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Day 3 with our first puppy ever! Questions!

1K views 12 replies 8 participants last post by  Rerun 
#1 ·
Well it's day 3 with Jada. I actually was fairly stressed out after reading so much on here about how much work it is to own a puppy. I gotta admit you all are fairly misleading! It's been a joy with her, and the training is easy so far. She's had one accident in the house and that was the very first 2 hours she was home and it was in her playpen on a puppy training pad that was covered in leaves...so that barely counts!

Now as soon as we hear her whine we take her outside to the leaves she pees/poops within 30 seconds everytime. It's fantastic. Both nights we've had her we've kept her crated at night. She immediately falls asleep at around 11 PM and wakes up at 1, 3 and then 6-7 AM which is fine by me.

Ok now a couple questions. She isn't eating a whole lot. It appears she may have Coccidia if that's how you spell it? The breeder said she might have it. She had been treating her for 5 days already. We're taking her for her first vet visit today, but she has diarrhea and we did find a little bit of blood in one of her stools. Not sure if this has to do with my upcoming question. We've been feeding her dry food with a little brown rice and boiled chicken breast. All she does is pull out the chicken breast and leaves the rest. We're also giving her treats in the form of freeze dried liver and Natural Balance Rolls (Lamb flavor) throughout the day for potty training and the name learning game where we just call her back and forth. I doubt she's eating much more then 1 1/2 - 2 cups a day of food though right now should I be hugely concerned about this?

She also wants to chew on EVERYTHING! She shows little interest in her squirrel dude or kong. She eats the puppy training pad and the training pad holder. If we have her out of playpen she's eating on the couch, table, cat toys, etc. We're not really sure what we should be doing in this situation? Should we put her back in her playpen with her chewable toys, tell her no? What do we do?

People say it's a good age at 8 week so train her basic commands, but I just see this as impossible right now. She just isn't quite focused enough or coordinated enough yet. Is it really practical to start training stay, down, sit at 8 weeks? I'm not sure if I can get her to focus on me enough yet. She's not THAT into the treats we give. She eats them but she certainly doesn't beg us for them or anything.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
at 8 weeks there is no need to train any commands. She is new and all you need to do is make her trust you and bond. You are doing well with the house breaking by paying attention to her schedule. My opinion is to feed her high quality puppy kibble with a little rice in it. She won't let herself starve so don't be too anxious if she doesn't eat much for a couple days. Keep learning her needs and adapting to them and she will trust you and bond. Then gradually she will learn and adapt to yours. Dogs love a routine. Our puppy was shy and her system was out of kilter when we got her but we all worked together and we were in a groove within a week. Now it's fun all the time!
 
#4 ·
at 8 weeks there is no need to train any commands. She is new and all you need to do is make her trust you and bond. You are doing well with the house breaking by paying attention to her schedule. My opinion is to feed her high quality puppy kibble with a little rice in it. She won't let herself starve so don't be too anxious if she doesn't eat much for a couple days. Keep learning her needs and adapting to them and she will trust you and bond. Then gradually she will learn and adapt to yours. Dogs love a routine.
YAY for us! I'm excited to hear this. We are feeding her 4Health Puppy from TSC. It's not a 5 star but it's a 4 star that most people recommend on here for the price. I'll try cutting away the chicken and instead just use brown rice and dry kibble to see if she'll start eating this. I'll maybe use the chicken for treats instead. At what age do you think she'll be able to start with command training? Or should I base this off of her attentiveness?
 
#3 ·
I agree let her settle in before starting training and when you do start training only do it for about 5 minutes at a time. Work on one command until she has it down before introducing another one.

If she was only treated for Coccidia for 5 days she still has it. The breeder should have sent her meds home with you. Let the vet know that information. They definitely lose their appetite when they have it and it causes loose stools.
 
#5 ·
Is it really practical to start training stay, down, sit at 8 weeks?
YES! But you can't expect her to focus very long, so for now lure her into a sit or down, mark it ("yes!") and give her the treat. No extended drills, just short and easy.

I wouldn't worry about stay yet, but you can teach her that sit means sit or down means down until released, which right now should be for a second or two. I also like to use a clicker and treats to mark and reward when the puppy DOES focus on me, it's a great foundation for later training where you're going to put it on cue.

I start working on name recognition and focus the first day home with a new puppy, and just rewarding everything I liked.
 
#6 ·
I would just work on her knowing her name and coming when you call her for now- I did start teaching sit and walking on a lead too at that age. When she starts chewing on something she shouldn't, I'd make a 'no-no' sound of your choice and put her toy or chew stick in her mouth instead and praise her. Your vet will be able to diagnose the diarrhea. Sounds as though you're doing a good job so far! I bet she's adorable
 
#7 ·
I would just start with the basics. Sit is probably the easiest to learn. Walking on a leash was the first thing I worked on, and name recognition. For the chewing, find something that she loves to chew, for instance, a small bully stick, etc.. and put them all over the house. I did this with Wolfie, and I still do. When he wants to chew, he goes for, in his case, bones, and hasn't chewed anything else.
 
#8 ·
Agreed, work on sit, but don't push it. The bonding and name-learning is first. Learning to sit is easier than learning to come (I think) and it is easier to teach her to come from a sit.
In this forum you will never have to worry about an abundance of 'advice', but trust your own instincts. << --- my advice
 
#11 ·
Learning to sit is easier than learning to come (I think) and it is easier to teach her to come from a sit.
I disagree that it's easier to teach her to come from any particular position, whether she's sitting, standing, or laying down shouldn't make a bit of difference, and you certainly don't need to teach her one thing at at time. A good recall is important and it's never too soon to start working on it. Say her name in a happy tone of voice and run backwards a couple of steps. Clap your hands if you need to, make noises, whatever, mark it and give her a tiny treat.
 
#12 ·
When we got our first GSD puppy..we were concerned about her eating as well. This pup would not eat more than 1.5 - 2 cups a day. The mistake I did is I changed the food and tried too many things.
Best is to stay firm and give the same food consistently and if the puppy doesn't finish in 20 minutes or so, remove the bowl. This may continue for upto 3 weeks. The puppy will learn.
 
#13 ·
You most definitely can start training early. Puppies are like little sponges. Just have short sessions and use lots of rewards (verbal and treat). What kind of treats are you using? You want to use what are called "high value" treats. Things such as bil jac liver treats, tiny pieces of hot dogs, etc. Don't use dry dog biscuits and the sort. Some dogs will work for kibble, some for anything (cheerios) and others want something that is really valuable to them (thus the name high value).

Good luck with your pup, and don't let some tell you it's hard. Raising puppies should be, and is, FUN. I don't find them to be at all an excessive amount of work, worry, or stress.

Our pup is 12 wks now and fantastic. The key to a puppy is supervision, training, and consistency. The one most people have trouble with is supervision. They think the pup being in the same room or area as them is supervision, but in reality the pup needs to be right there with you or in an x-pen/crate when not supervised. If your eyes aren't on the pup, it's not being supervised. That's where all the problems with housetraining and chewing begin. Once they start these sorts of bad habits, you are two steps back and it's an uphill battle from there.
 
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