The first couple of nights in a new home can be very strange for a puppy, and it’s important that she feels secure enough to sleep. Set up a crate or enclosed area next to your bed to reassure your puppy she is not alone. Adding a cuddly toy or warm hot water bottle close to her while she sleeps will help. To begin with, it’s likely that your pup will need to toilet at least once during the night, so be ready to get up briefly and take her to her pad or to toilet outside.
Nighttime outings will decrease as she begins to sleep through the night. You can have your puppy sleep in bed with you, but be careful that you wake up before she has an accident. Once she is sleeping through the night you can move her to a permanent sleeping area if appropriate.
While it’s important that your puppy is able to follow you around (encourage this, as it’s a great foundation for teaching a good recall), make sure there are times when she is separated from you. Independence training teaches your pup to cope when you are away from home. This might mean you close the door when you are in the bathroom or leave her in the kitchen for a time even when you’re home. Go on short outings away from the home so she experiences the environment without you being there.
You can also teach your puppy to cope with uncomfortable situations she is likely to experience throughout her life, such as strangers coming up to greet her, wearing a muzzle or having a surgical collar placed around her neck. These might seem odd things to practice so early, but it’s essential for building resilience and helping your puppy cope better when she is faced with these situations in the future.
If you don’t have a muzzle, teach your pup to put her mouth into a plastic party cup, by spreading some peanut butter or cheese at the end of it so she has to put her muzzle inside to lick the food out. This allows her to experience what it’s like to have her mouth confined for a moment, something that can be very scary for dogs if they have never experienced that feeling before.
How should puppy owners vet potential dogsitters or doggie daycares for their puppies?
Here in Colorado I would start by making sure that any facility is PACFA certified and meets the standards of cleanliness and care. Beyond that, find a facility or person that is able to meet your expectations and the needs of your dog.
If you have a calm, older dog, then a large facility with constant barking may not be best. If you have a very active dog, a facility without a good area to run and play may not be best. Read reviews and talk to the owners to make sure you’re comfortable leaving your dog in their hands.
Facilities can be very scary for puppies, and most facilities cannot take puppies younger than 4 months old as they cannot have their rabies vaccine until then, so finding a friend or family member who can have the puppy in their home is usually best- or if you have several dogs and cats like I do, I have a friend just stay at my house!
What common issues do you hear about from owners?
The most common issue by far is biting. Puppies have needle sharp tiny little teeth that HURT and tear clothes and make you bleed, and especially in homes with kids people want that behavior gone. So the first thing is to understand why puppies are land sharks, because obviously adult dogs aren’t like that, so why are puppies so bitey?
Puppies explore the world with their mouths and are learning what is fun and good to chew on, how to use their mouth, and most importantly they’re learning bite inhibition.
Bite inhibition means learning how to control the force of their mouth. If you watch young puppies play, they’ll be playing nicely then inevitably one will squeak and yelp when the other bites too hard. Both puppies pause for a moment, then they go right back to playing.
If the same puppy is again too rough and causes the other to squeak, often the play will not resume after the pause. They’re learning how hard is too hard, and that too hard makes the play stop.
Humans can imitate a puppy yelp or say “ouch!” in a high tone, and that can help until about 10-12 weeks old when squeaky noises become fun and exciting, like squeaky toys.
Most people know to do this yelp, but personally I rarely use it. It can scare your puppy and make them hesitant to interact with you, and it doesn’t seem to have quite the lasting effect as when puppies yelp at each other.
I find the best method is to be proactive in preventing playful biting in the first place. Any time my puppy is out of her crate or pen, I am actively engaging with her, and that means we have toys around.
Whether we’re playing, training, outside to potty or exploring the yard, or hanging out on the couch, I always have a toy in my pocket or within reach. In being proactive I try to invite her to play with toys ideally before she starts trying to put her mouth on other things, like me, but if she starts getting mouthy then I always have a toy right there wiggling and ready for her.
And many people know to redirect biting to toys, but all puppies hit that point where they don’t care about the toy and are chomping for your arms, ankles, shoes, clothes, even leaping for your face.
At the very first sign of that, play stops instantly and I put the puppy in her crate. I’m very strict about teaching my dogs that human bodies are not toys, and that playful biting on us does not work. Most often when your puppy is in that mode they are overtired, overstimulated, and need a nap anyway!
Now, the bite inhibition is a crucial part of puppy development that puppies must learn before their teeth start falling out at about 4 months old. I do allow puppies to bite and chew on me if they are doing so in a gentle, sweet, cuddly, non-playful way.
New Puppy Tips – Surviving the First Week
The beginning of puppy parenthood can be rough, but it does get better â especially when you implement this advice.
No matter how cute your little rascal is, puppy-wrangling can be absolutely exhausting. While its true that adopting a puppy can bring a much-needed source of joy and unconditional love into your life, it can also bring stress, anxiety, exhaustion, and frustration (often called the âpuppy bluesâ). The cycle of cleaning up messes and constantly removing household objects from those tiny teeth can become overwhelming, particularly if youâre also working from home during this time.Â
Itâs normal for the entire process to make you feel drained (especially when youâre running on little sleep!). Fortunately, there are ways to make it easier on both of you. Here are six super helpful strategies for coping with the stress of new pup parenthood.
Although the ball of fur zooming around your living room each morning may seem like the Energizer Bunny, that puppy energy actually comes in short (yet invigorating) bursts. If you can give them a way to release that, theyâll likely be ready to rest afterward.
If going for a walk doesnât fit into your day, there are plenty of other ways to exercise your puppy. Play a few rounds of fetch or engage them in chasing a toy around the living room. You can even set up a treasure hunt by hiding small treats and tossing a few across the floor to get their attention.
Dogs thrive in routine, so try to exercise your pup at the same times each day â even better, schedule playtime for the hours when they naturally get the zoomies.
They say dogs are our best friends, but naps may be a close second â especially when it comes to puppy parenting. Instead of waiting for your pup to seem sleepy, you can (and should!) put them down for a nap, just as you would a human child. That way, you wonât have to feel like your day is tossed around at the whims of your dogâs mood.
Just like toddlers become cranky when theyâre low on sleep, puppies may act up when theyâre overtired in the form of biting, chewing, barking, or whining. Despite their daily bursts of energy, they actually need a lot of downtime; itâs healthy for them to sleep more than 17 hours a day.
Dog trainer Sarah Hodgson recommends that puppies younger than 18 weeks old take a two- to three-hour nap twice a day. After morning playtime and again after lunch, try putting your pup in their crate with a toy for some downtime. They may be restless at first, but if youâre consistent, theyâll settle into the routine and learn to self-soothe.