New Dog owner, New GSD puppy

CloudsAngel · 01-12-2013, 09:29 AM

I got a 3-3 1/2 month old GSD puppy from the shelter on Monday, and since then he has made a lot of progress. Like I said, I am a new dog owner, and a dog is a pet I've wanted for over 20 years. I am having some issues and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.

1. Housebreaking: I am trying to housebreak my puppy, which is going well overall, but he still has accidents in the house (which I expect, he's a puppy). It seems like he doesn't empty his bladder completely when I take him out, which is around every 4 hours at night, unless he's running around playing, and then its maybe every 2. How long should I stay outside with him? Right now I stay out between 5-10 minutes, usually just 5 when I take him out overnight. Like I said, I'm new to this and I'm getting advice from all directions. I know he won't be completely housebroken at this age, but I want to make sure I'm giving him enough time to really finish, because he always seems done, and then he will pee again after about 15 minutes inside, though its not a consistent pattern.

2.Crate Training: I just moved into a new home, but my master is not a huge master, and I'm literally not able to fit his crate in my room. I only have a bed and small dresser (and even that's not permanent, its just being stored for my niece). I hate to hear my pup cry at night, though it is getting less and less. I have discovered that he seems to calm quickly with the sound of the tv, so I use the sleep timer and turn it on for him when I need to go into my room to sleep. I know he wants to sleep in my room too, but I just don't trust him to wake me if he has a need to potty. I thought about buying one of those fold-away crates, but I'm scared he'll get too attached to that and not use his real crate. Any advice for getting him to calm down and understand that I'm not leaving him.

3.Doggy Daycare: I have a vet who also has a doggy daycare facility, and I was curious if anyone had any experience with doggy daycare? I want to take him at least twice a month, if possible (I'm single and therefore the finances may not allow for more than that, it will just depend largely on the cost). I have two days during the week off, I work retail, and while I'd like to spend the time with my dog, I also have [online] school and think it would be good for him to go and socialize with other dogs (at least once a week), and this would give me the time to study without him being neglected (though this week I took him for a lengthy walk in the morning, so he slept while I did my work). I do spend the time I'm at home with him, so he'd still get a good bit of attention, but I also want him to be able socialize and play with other dogs, especially since he is a GSD.

Any help would be appreciated. I just feel like I'm doing things wrong, and while I know we are going to have good times and bad times, I want my pup, August, to be happy in my home.

Nigel · 01-12-2013, 12:17 PM

On the PT training, I would take him out more frequently, probably every 30 minutes or so and praise like crazy. At night I think we ended up taking ours out about every 2-3 hrs. During the day You can tether him to yourself with his leash or use gates to help keep him eyesight at all times.

CloudsAngel · 01-12-2013, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nigel

On the PT training, I would take him out more frequently, probably every 30 minutes or so and praise like crazy. At night I think we ended up taking ours out about every 2-3 hrs. During the day You can tether him to yourself with his leash or use gates to help keep him eyesight at all times.

Thank you for replying. One big problem I have is that I am not able to go home during the day, so I keep him in my bathroom where he can move around, but the floor is easy to clean. I cover it with puppy pads so he can go on those, but I think I might be shooting myself in the foot. Opinions?

As for the gate option, um...he already jumped over one gate. He's actually really big for a puppy, IMO. I know a GSD is a large dog, but he reminds me a bit of an Akita pup with his size.

Thank you again for replying. I love that I have this forum to ask questions, because people who don't have GSD keep giving me advice, but every breed and dog is different. However, I prefer to hear from GSD owners themselves.

Nigel · 01-12-2013, 03:19 PM

Why not put him in his crate while you are at work? We used the spare bed room for our older two, but our new pup is crated while we are at work and his potty training has been easier.

Nigel · 01-12-2013, 03:28 PM

I should add, he sleeps on a dog bed next to our bed at night. He is 5 months now, but we have been able to do this without incident since he was 3 months. This helps keep his crate time down to about 6-7 hrs on workdays.

CloudsAngel · 01-12-2013, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nigel

Why not put him in his crate while you are at work? We used the spare bed room for our older two, but our new pup is crated while we are at work and his potty training has been easier.

I tried this too, but he destroyed the puppy pads I put into his crate and oeed all over his bedding instead of hjs pads. He is a puppy though, so I know he can't hold it 8 hours.

01-12-2013, 09:29 AM	#1 (permalink)
CloudsAngel New Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 4	New Dog owner, New GSD puppy I got a 3-3 1/2 month old GSD puppy from the shelter on Monday, and since then he has made a lot of progress. Like I said, I am a new dog owner, and a dog is a pet I've wanted for over 20 years. I am having some issues and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions. 1. Housebreaking: I am trying to housebreak my puppy, which is going well overall, but he still has accidents in the house (which I expect, he's a puppy). It seems like he doesn't empty his bladder completely when I take him out, which is around every 4 hours at night, unless he's running around playing, and then its maybe every 2. How long should I stay outside with him? Right now I stay out between 5-10 minutes, usually just 5 when I take him out overnight. Like I said, I'm new to this and I'm getting advice from all directions. I know he won't be completely housebroken at this age, but I want to make sure I'm giving him enough time to really finish, because he always seems done, and then he will pee again after about 15 minutes inside, though its not a consistent pattern. 2.Crate Training: I just moved into a new home, but my master is not a huge master, and I'm literally not able to fit his crate in my room. I only have a bed and small dresser (and even that's not permanent, its just being stored for my niece). I hate to hear my pup cry at night, though it is getting less and less. I have discovered that he seems to calm quickly with the sound of the tv, so I use the sleep timer and turn it on for him when I need to go into my room to sleep. I know he wants to sleep in my room too, but I just don't trust him to wake me if he has a need to potty. I thought about buying one of those fold-away crates, but I'm scared he'll get too attached to that and not use his real crate. Any advice for getting him to calm down and understand that I'm not leaving him. 3.Doggy Daycare: I have a vet who also has a doggy daycare facility, and I was curious if anyone had any experience with doggy daycare? I want to take him at least twice a month, if possible (I'm single and therefore the finances may not allow for more than that, it will just depend largely on the cost). I have two days during the week off, I work retail, and while I'd like to spend the time with my dog, I also have [online] school and think it would be good for him to go and socialize with other dogs (at least once a week), and this would give me the time to study without him being neglected (though this week I took him for a lengthy walk in the morning, so he slept while I did my work). I do spend the time I'm at home with him, so he'd still get a good bit of attention, but I also want him to be able socialize and play with other dogs, especially since he is a GSD. Any help would be appreciated. I just feel like I'm doing things wrong, and while I know we are going to have good times and bad times, I want my pup, August, to be happy in my home.

01-12-2013, 12:17 PM	#2 (permalink)
Nigel Elite Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Pacific NW Posts: 1,630	On the PT training, I would take him out more frequently, probably every 30 minutes or so and praise like crazy. At night I think we ended up taking ours out about every 2-3 hrs. During the day You can tether him to yourself with his leash or use gates to help keep him eyesight at all times.

01-12-2013, 03:19 PM	#4 (permalink)
Nigel Elite Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Pacific NW Posts: 1,630	Why not put him in his crate while you are at work? We used the spare bed room for our older two, but our new pup is crated while we are at work and his potty training has been easier.

01-12-2013, 03:28 PM	#5 (permalink)
Nigel Elite Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Pacific NW Posts: 1,630	I should add, he sleeps on a dog bed next to our bed at night. He is 5 months now, but we have been able to do this without incident since he was 3 months. This helps keep his crate time down to about 6-7 hrs on workdays.

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