Meet Sophie! It's puppy love...

[gingerBcookie]

omg...how precious is she?!?! i got a puppy for valentine''s too, but he''s not ready to come home yet thread here:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/our-new-furbaby.40681/

this thread is helpful -- esp al''s post about crate training...i already savedit under my new puppy folder as a reference

.
I loved reading about your new puppy experiences and can''t wait until I start having mine!

 

[singer]

What an adorable pup, chellebelle! When I was about 13 years old, a neighbor down the street was going to give me a miniature shih tzu for free, but mom wouldn't let me have a dog.

They are soooo cute! Have fun with yours.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Sophie is adorable! Congratulations!

 

[chellebelle]

Matatora~
I''m going to try to put a t-shirt that smells like me in her crate... that may comfort her and she''ll feel like I''m "with her". That''s a really good idea!

blodthecat~
No Sophie isn''t full size yet. She was 4.4lbs when we took her to the vet last week and she''s supposed to get to around 10lbs. fully grown. Her parents were 10lbs. and 11lbs. so she shouldn''t get much bigger than that. I love the size she is now, she''s so cute, but I guess they have to grow up sometime.

aljdewey~
I am so jealous! Nicky sounds like an angel! Sophie probably sees the crate as punishment or associates it with bad things because we just put her in there and walk away. So I will definitely try the bone trick and staying with her for ahwile... I think that''ll really help. Thanks so much for the advice!

Mara~
Your Portia stories never cease to make me smile. I love them! She is such a little character!

And everyone else, thanks so much for the sweet comments and input! I knew it was going to be a huge responsibility getting a puppy, but WOW... it really is a lot of hard work! I''m exhausted! We''re having problems with crating her and the whole potty training thing.

I just hope it gets better. The last few nights have been AWFUL with the crate. Her crying and screaming is getting worse! And it''s so loud and PIERCING.

I go to bed to her howls and wake up to her howls. I don''t know what to do! She really hates it. Did I mention how LOUD she is? LOL The sound that comes out of that little thing truly amazes me! As far as potty training, she''ll be doing really well and then she''ll have a run of mistakes in the house. It''s like one step forward, two steps back. *sigh* No one told me it would be easy, but it sure would be nice if it were! hehe

Any advice or input on crating or potty training would be GREATLY appreciated! It really does help hearing from others'' experiences. Thanks so much and Sophie sends you all puppy kisses!!!

First grooming appointment. Poor baby shook like a leaf the whole time, but she looked so adorable and fluffy afterwards!

 

[Mara]

chelle re: the potty training...warning, very long post below with things we found worked etc...

the best way to train her is a very strict way if you really want to minimize accidents. first off she can't hold it very long being so young, so she will have accidents from time to time until her bladder grows as she does.

but you can crate train her strictly which is to do something like get up in the morning, first thing take her out. if she goes, reward her and let her play for 30 minutes in a gated area or one designated room (aka kitchen or wherever you are), then put her in the crate (treats and all etc). go about your chores/daily house stuff etc. take her out within the next 45 minutes or so. if she goes again, do the whole thing over again. the idea is that she gets rewarded with play time or outside time when she goes and eventually she will realize that when she comes out of the crate, first thing that happens is you take her out to go and she knows that she can hold it til you take her out to go. eventually you can keep adding time to the play and time to the time in the crate etc etc.

but it's very hard to be that disciplined about play time, crate time etc. and it will be hard to put her in the crate, esp if she doesn't likeit... but if you can be disciplined it would be the easiest. use lots of treats. i totally had the one step fwd, two steps back feeling too...don't worry.

we had an inside litter box with portia and it just caused problems. she was confused about going inside the house vs in the litter box, she couldn't differentiate the two seemingly. finally when she was about 4-5 months i had it. we put the box away and i started crate training her the hard way (way above). i started on a weekend adn basically i took her out to go every hour on the hour. whether or not she had to was not the point. i wanted her to get used to going out in the grass and liking it. she loved it. after a few days, i lengthened it to an hour and a half. we also did not play with her at all in the house during this time because she'd get super excited and the inevitably pee. within a week it was about 2 hours and then 3 hours etc. now as an adult, she can hold it for 6-8 hours. after that the only accidents she has ever had in the house were when she was really sick and couldn't hold it.

another idea is to quarantine her in a place like the kitchen with a gate or something so that if she does have an accident she is in a 'safe' area, but still do the taking her out every hour or so to keep getting her used to holding it a little. the jist is that you want them to associate going out and going to the bathroom with cause for being rewarded by some 'free time' and positive reinforcements. you can also treat her after she goes to the bathroom outside. if she has an accident, pick her up and take her out right away even if she is done and doesn't do anything.

anyway alot of it is hit or miss...we were trying lots of things with the indoor litter box, supposed to be so easy, but portia just didn't like it or get it. once we started taking her out the lawn, sure it was a pain for us but she caught on SO FAST it was just easy. i was kicking myself for not doing it earlier.

hang in there!! as cute as they are, I DO NOT MISS THE PUPPY DAYS. those were very frustrating days for me. nothing seemed to go right. accidents right and left, screaming puppy all night long. but they grow out of it fast so DO take tons of pictures and try to cherish the fun and good times, because it will be gone before you know it and then she will be all grown up into a mature dog that actually behaves...imagine that!

 

[msdarlinjoy]

Oh isn''t she so sweet! I think sophie is a perfect princess name for your new lil'' punkin-pie!!!

Oh, all you girls are torturing me ... all of these cute sweet puppies ... I am going to go crazy!

I''m getting the itch ... my hubby would strangle me!

We have a two dog rule ... so I will have to wait, or twist his arm to bend the rule!

We have an 8 yr old border collie (Maggie), and a 5 year old beagle (Romeo). I think they deserve a lil'' brother or sister ... don''t ya''ll think?

Thanks for sharing, keep the pic''s comming!

 

[diamondsrock]

your puppy is too cute! I wanted one like that before we got the schnauzer. She shouldn''t shed which will be great.
Our dog initially didn''t like the crate but grew to love it. Now she sometimes goes in on her own to "chill out". I felt bad at first but she sees it as her own little den. I tried another crate which I thought was nicer but she didn''t like it. It was like someone taking away our bed and giving us another one. She wanted her own back!
She used to sleep in the crate at night but like Mara said the sad eyes were just too much and we gave in. I have to say I love having her in the bed with us. She sleeps right in between me and dh. She loves to feel cuddled. I can''t imagine her sleeping in the crate at night now. Luckily she gets up when we do so she doesn''t wake us up. I''ve heard of some other dogs who wake up their owners at ridiculous hours to get up. That would bug me so I''m glad she is a late sleeper! All I have to do is throw the covers back and she jumps out of bed with me. She waits for me to make the "I''m getting up now" move.
I do leave her in the crate when we''re not home just because she still has a tendency to get into things (she''s almost 3).
Good luck with the puppy! Things will get easier. My dog drove me nuts at the beginning but is so much better now.

 

[chellebelle]

Oh my gosh, Sophie's sick and throwing up! I don't even want to say what I think it is, it's so gross, but let's just say this is really hard! She ate something "bad".

And I feel awful for her. Poor thing. Now I don't know if I should crate her tonight in case she feels the urge to be sick... maybe I should just gate her in the kitchen like I do in the daytime? *sigh* I must admit, this "puppy stage" is really rough.

Well I'm off to put her away for the night. I'm really dreading it! Not only does she despise the crate, but she's not feeling well. I hope she feels better soon!!!

Chelle

 

[msdarlinjoy]

Oh my ... I hope she is going to be ok. Do you think she just may have gotten to excited after eating? I hope she will be feelin'' better in the am!

 

[Mara]

haha i know what she is throwing up, don''t worry...that''s normal for puppies to do if she''s eating icky things...she will grow out of it. just don''t let her hang around with the nasty stuff long enough to eat it, aka take her out, let her go then come back in kind of thing.

in terms of being sick and all that, i would crate her if you feel like she won''t throw up on herself. portia always went to the grate of the crate and barfed out onto the rug (thanks portia)...so i know she wouldnt want to soil her crate but if sophie is not like that yet then she may throw up in the crate and then get it on herself, and then its more of a mess to clean etc. so then leaving her in the kitchen area may be better since she''d have more room to get sick and move around etc. we did this with portia when she was sick last time....on the kitchen tile i put down a towel she could get sick on or whatever and then put another towel down for her to lay on and it kept things mostly neat.

good luck!! hang in there!

 

[sevens one]

such a cute cuddly puppy

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 2/27/2006 10:57:50 PM
Author: chellebelle

I just hope it gets better. The last few nights have been AWFUL with the crate. Her crying and screaming is getting worse! And it's so loud and PIERCING.

I go to bed to her howls and wake up to her howls. I don't know what to do! She really hates it. Did I mention how LOUD she is? LOL The sound that comes out of that little thing truly amazes me! As far as potty training, she'll be doing really well and then she'll have a run of mistakes in the house. It's like one step forward, two steps back. *sigh* No one told me it would be easy, but it sure would be nice if it were! hehe

Any advice or input on crating or potty training would be GREATLY appreciated! It really does help hearing from others' experiences. Thanks so much and Sophie sends you all puppy kisses!!!

Chellebelle, I can promise you this.......it will get better. In five months from now, you will be absolutely AMAZED at all the things she's learned and how much less maintenance she is then.

In the beginning, they really are like infants. They don't self-occupy well, and they want to be into everything! When I first got Nicky (14 weeks old), I came home from work and spent the next 2-3 hours just playing with him. Watching him, and helping him learn. There was no time for anything else then....ehhehe. I didn't cook dinner - subsisted on sandwiches, etc. - anything where I didn't have to take an eye off him! You have to accept that you need to watch him constantly in these first 4-6 weeks.

Tricks on potty training: Are you home during the day, or do you work? If so, how many hours are you gone at a stretch? If it's more than 4-5, you might want to think about getting someone to come by and let her out. A puppy cannot hold it as long as a grown dog.

Potty training is like a delicate dance...you need to anticipate when she might have to go, and then get her to wherever she should go. The more successful you are at observing and anticipating her need to go, the easier she will be to train. There are things you can do to make that happen.

Don't leave water or food down all the time when she's little. Put her food down, let her eat, and then 20 minutes later, take her to where she's supposed to go. Praise her when she does it right. Put water down when you play, but if she drinks a good amount, take her outside 15 minutes later....she will need to go. Restrict food/water otherwise. The goal is to use the food/water to know when she's needing to go, and getting her to there during that time so she gets the hint.

Use the same door all the time to take her out. Then, she knows where to go when she's trying to *ask* to go. When you are with her, watch her closely, and if she goes to that door for any reason,, take her out immediately. She will realize that going to that door results in her going out. Watch her closely inside as you play....if she begins to sniff the floor, take her out immediately.

When Nicky was little, I hung a sleigh bell from the doorknob. When I would take him out, I would ring the bell every time and then open the door to take him out. As he got a little bigger and "got it", he would go to the door and *push* the sleigh bell until it made a noise....so I knew he was asking to go.

When she does have an accident (IF you catch her in the process), tell her no, take her to the door, ring the bell, and go outside with her. Don't let her see you clean up any mess she makes.

Potty-training is much more successful if you do crate overnight when they are little because, as Mara mentioned, they don't want to soil where they sleep.

I promise......it seems like hell for about 4-6 weeks, and then all of the sudden, it starts getting a little better.

Also, keep in mind....she's only 10 weeks old. She's just been taken from her mother, and she's having a little separation anxiety. She's wailing because she doesn't understand "the rules" yet. Reassure her and give her lots of attention in the waking hours. Play with her as hard as you can - run the daylights out of her. She'll be so pooped at night, she'll hopefully begin to sleep a little longer.

Let us know how you do.

 

[widget]

(Bump)

Chellebelle: How are things going with Sophie??? Hopefully she''s over her tummy problems...

I just found a great lurking spot for new puppy owners...you might check it out: www.dogwise.com .

If nothing else, you''ll see you''re not alone in the trauma of having a new baby in the family!

We need news....and of course, more darling pictures...


widget

 

[chellebelle]

widget~
Thank you so much for your concern! Sophie is doing great. She was only sick for that one night because she ate something that um.... upset her tummy.

(Mara, embarassingly enough, I think you know what I''m talking about! oh geez...) Sophie still cries when we put her in the crate or gate her in the kitchen, but the other night, she didn''t cry at all when I crated her! But that was only that ONE night.

And last night, I accidentally fell asleep while I was studying on the couch, and I found that Sophie slept above my head/on my pillow the whole night! She didn''t wake me up to go to the bathroom or anything. I was very surprised, but I know I will continue to crate her because that''s the best thing to do. I find that she''s going to the door more often, which is good, but sometimes she doesn''t even go to the bathroom. She just eats grass and plays! LOL That can be kinda frustrating since we live in the cold, rainy northwest, but I''m just really happy that she''s starting to associate going outside with going potty. (Or maybe she''s associating going outside with eating grass and playing?!?

) I will definitely check out that website too... thank you! So far everything is going well... she is just SO cute. I was hugging and snuggling her yesterday and I must''ve got a little carried away, because she let out a little yelp! Oopsie!

I will try to post more pictures too. Thanks so much for checkin in on us!


Oh and totally off subject, but is everyone able to use the private message feature? For instance, I was trying to message Mara, but there was no option to... the only thing I saw was "Communicate with User" and underneath that it only has "Subscribe to User"? Has something changed that I''ve missed? I tried to do it on my home computer and the school computer, but both don''t allow me to message.

 

[chellebelle]

Oh and aljdewey, thank you SO MUCH for the advice and sharing your experience with Nicky... I really appreciated it!!!

 

[AndyRosse]

Chellebelle, I'm so glad things are (slowly) progressing

As for PMs, they are officially disabled for everyone. There was a thread in DiamondHangout a while back about it. ETA: HERE

 

[widget]

Oh, Chelle...I''m so glad things are progressing! I was almost afraid to ask..

By the way...I don''t think that link I gave you was good. What I wanted to refer you to was Dogwise forums....great reading, and some pros answer questions which I think is cool: www.dogwise.com/forums

More pictures please!!!

widget

 

[Mara]

Chelle it sounds like things are looking up...YAY!!! I can''t wait to see more pictures of little Sophie!!

Sometimes these darlings really try your patience. Portia is a charming darling 99% of the time but days like today, jeez! I was outside with her and she was not listening AT ALL, even when I got mad and picked her up and did my stern talking to her, which normally makes her want to please me so she listens reasonably well for the rest of the walk, NOPE. She just looked away from me, wouldn''t even acknowledge me and then after I put her down and kept walking, she did whatever she wanted for 5 whole laps around the park. Finally I got tired of calling her to me and having her not come (she''d stand in the middle of the park and just stare at me, the brat) so I put her inside the house and kept walking. She just took a nap in the sun and acted like she didn''t even miss me when I came back in. Little rat! My neighbor said maybe she has PMS. hehee.

Gotta love it!! Patience can be so hard sometimes....hahahaa. Oh and you have to make a cutie Dogster page for Sophie!!

Portia has one too:
http://www.dogster.com/pet_page.php?i=41170

You can send a message to us that way requesting Portia to be pup pals with Sophie and they will be connected then.
http://www.dogster

 

[chellebelle]

widget~
I haven't uploaded any more pics, so I don't have any to show you, but I have this video. I'm not sure if it'll work though? I don't know how to insert it, but I'll provide the link. Sophie's so funny in it!

http://www.bolt.com/chellebelle/video/389601