Golden Retriever. I'm beyond excited. I haven't had a dog in over ten years- anyway.

I'm here to ask all the dog owners: What do you wish you would have done differently when you got your puppy? Would you have trained it differently? What can I do to prevent accidents in the house? I'm trying to take him outside every 20 minutes....for the most part. Should I keep a water bowl in his crate? I'm separating the crate so that it's only about 24 inches by 24 inches.

Should I go ahead and put a collar on it? How often should I bathe him? Is picking him up a lot bad for him? I just wanna snuggle. What are the best toys for him that aren't petsmarty toys? Like- should I just give him water bottles to chew up?

I'm taking all the tips possible. Here's a pic of the litter. His name is going to be "Humphrey".

8/9/2012 11:59:17 AM

I would have beat them more.

8/9/2012 12:03:46 PM

grats

goldens are about as easy as it gets, training-wise. they aim to please.

yes, it's ok to put a collar on him, and of course to hold him. 0.o

check out the lounge, there are a number of threads there.

8/9/2012 12:05:52 PM

um adorable! is there any from the litter left? is there a website on the breeder i could stalk check out? and then possibly send to my husband with a "pretty pretty please i promise to be good" face.

one thing i will definitely do different with the second dog we get is try to get him to not be so dependent on us. our black lab freaks the hell out if we leave him alone and he's not crated. it's something we've talked about working on. i have talked to friends who say he just needs a buddy and i'm thinking, yeah a buddy to help destroy the house faster!

8/9/2012 12:06:32 PM

Cassie- YES! There are some left, i think. Candace is really friendly- one of aaron grace's friends has a brother from another mother that's about 1 year old and says it's a fantastic dog.

http://www.copperfieldsgoldens.com I think that'll work. She's from near fayetteville <GULP>

So beat it more, huh? I think I will do a good bit of discipline- popping it on the nose. Good call, though- and be consistent.

Anyone ever heard of clicker training?

Going to Lounge now...I'm just default to Chit Chat. It's better for my ADD.

8/9/2012 12:09:44 PM

1. Unless the puppy will pretty much fill 24"x24", that's still too large, though useable. You want enough space for the puppy to lay down/turn around. Anymore and it might use the extra space as the bathroom and you'll be reinforcing the wrong idea.

2. Don't use any in-house potty training (e.g. pads, newspaper, etc. - it should never be OK to go in the house). If you want to have something in a room in case of accidents fine, but never train the dog to go on something within the house.

3. Yes, put a collar with all tags on it ASAP. Get it micro-chipped and registered ASAP. *ASAP = according to vet.

4. Get it fixed ASAP. *ASAP = according to vet.

5. Chew-toys (hard ones) are the best; avoid soft/plush/stuffing-filled toys (they'll learn to destroy these, which is entertaining, but annoying and could lead to destroying non-toys).

6. Always stop bad behavior immediately with a raised, serious tone, and when applicable, a firm, yet non-harm tap/spanking (some physical touch to stop them and get their attention).

7. Bath every few months, or as needed when dirty/craps in crate and rolls in it.

8. Start behavior training immediately (no jumping on people/furniture, no running out of doors (make it sit before going into/out of an exterior door EVERY TIME), and of course the "tricks"). I cannot stress the door thing enough. Don't let the dog run to the door/bark when some is at/coming through the door. This is dangerous (dog gets loose) and annoying for visitors (why am I fighting with a dog to come in your house??)

9. Keep your clothes, shoes, etc. (chewables) way for a while. Once he's starting to figure out toys and not toys, introduce things like shoes into the room (don't call his attention to these items). Let him approach/sniff, but never bite/play/chew/etc. with them.

10. Take him out at least every 2 hours (20 min is a lot), just keep an eye on him and water intake. Be sure he gets enough time in the crate too, so he can learn to be crate trained/to hold his stuff.

11. Clickers work well too; I just snap... seems to have the same effect

12. Play a lot outside too - don't have to worry about accidents.

13. After a few months, when it's learn its name, basic commands (sit, lay, here, etc.), and you can control it, socialize like crazy. I don't recommend dog parks, unless there is a puppy/small dog area and you feel comfortable with the dogs. Outside bars/restaurants are great.

14. Introduce other animals as much as possible - limit playing as most animals (most likely cats) won't play back; just have him get familiar with them - let him learn that cats are not toys, won't harm him, and will most likely ignore him and he needs to do pretty much the same (unless you have a dog-like cat ). Have him around other dogs as much as possible. Watch the playing though - some older/bigger dogs play rough so you'll want to limit that to avoid injury/fear/anger - when the dog grows up some is when it should play rough). Introduce food, toys, and treats with other animals/dogs to train for aggression/not stealing. Also, work on taking toys/treats/food from the dog to work on aggression. Move food bowl while eating. Take it away, have it do something, give it back, etc.

15. No food/water in crate until pretty much house-trained and calm enough where it won't just turn over the bowls. But be sure he's eating/drinking enough outside of the cage.

16. Start leash training (I recommend a leader). Never let the dog pull/lead. Never. Once the dog is leash trained, get a harness (1. in case the dog gets excited and pulls so you won't be putting pressure on its throat and 2. dogs can easily slip out of their collar).

17. Pick-up and play a lot with the puppy; however, make sure you have distinct play time and chill time, where the majority of chill time is in the crate. In order to crate train, the thing needs to be in the crate!

18. It may be difficult with a young pup, but determine if its food or toy motivated - this will be your training tool. Always use this tool to reward good behavior. For house-training, I recommend tons of praise when it goes outside, and provide its favorite toy/treat at this time, and this time only (I prefer treats since that's a finite tool; you have to take away a toy, which I don't like to do, since that is taking away a prize).

19. Don't let it bite (it will as a puppy), so by that, I mean be sure to "punish" biting.

20. Trim nails early and often

21. Don't shower with toys/treats. Only give it one of these AFTER it has performed something. Well, this one is for down the road a bit, when its learned something. But still as a puppy, don't go overboard - there's plenty of time. Anyways, when the puppy has learned commands/done something well/correct, reward with a toy/treat; don't just hand them out for nothing (e.g. don't leave toys out for it to just take and play with).

22. Never make a big deal of arriving or leaving. Just put it in the crate and leave. When arriving, ignore the dog for a few minutes, then take it out of the crate and directly outside to potty. Once the dog has learned not to chew non-toys, leave an old shirt that you've recently worn in the crate, if the puppy is having separation issues.

23. Back to separation issues - if its destroying the crate from the inside/crying/barking/etc. when you leave, you'll need to spend more than likely a lot of time on this. Using a webcam and a laptop just outside of the house and something like skype is a good way to monitor the dog remotely (and so he can't see/smell you there) and so that it thinks you've left the house. When bad behavior starts, enter the house and say "no" or whatever your punitive phrase and tone is. Wait a few minutes and leave again, trying to extend the time you stay away each time. Take a book on the porch with you - it's good to see how the dog behaves for a few hours of you being gone.


[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 12:40 PM. Reason : more]

8/9/2012 12:11:12 PM

Quote :

"Anyone ever heard of clicker training?"

we did clicker training with our dog - works very well and quickly. our friend Derk (who is a tww stalkerrrr) did clicker training with his dog and came over and showed us how to do with ours and our dog picked up on it very quickly.

8/9/2012 12:12:34 PM

By beat it more I mean go to Dicks and invest in a baseball bat. They have some nice composite ones, but I prefer the wood ones myself. Occasionally they break, but they sound so much better.

8/9/2012 12:15:36 PM

cute puppies!

I have a yellow lab, shes about 4.5 years old now. I wish I had leash trained her more, instead of off leash training her as much as I did. Even now, she is great off leash, but ever since she got to 60+ lbs it has been difficult getting her to be completely leash trained.

For me, regarding the accidents, Layla was crate trained about a month after i got her, and she was house trained maybe 3 months after i got her. Retrievers/Labs are typically pretty smart so the most important thing is for them to realize that peeing/pooping indoors is a no no. There are countless articles online about it, but when I caught her peeing (or within 5 min of her peeing) I would raise my voice, give her a gentle tap on the nose/head, bring her over to the stain and put her nose CLOSE to it while continuing to verbally show her that it was a mistake. No need to get super loud or aggressive just use a different tone than you normally do and the puppy will pick up on the fact that you are displeased. I remember reading somewhere that if you see the puddle/stain more than 5 minutes or so after they do it theres no point but I could be mistaken there. For pooping indoors, I followed the same approach except afterwards I would bag the poop up, take it outside and make sure that the puppy realizes that the poop belongs outside. Like I said the crate/house training went pretty well and quickly.

I would not put a water bowl in the crate, as if the puppy cannot control the urge to drink excessively he will urinate in the crate which is the worst thing that can happen since the crate is his safe haven/safety place. Then again im not dog expert so just my 2 cents.

I think a collar is important early as he will get used to it and additionally you can give him some tags in the rare event that he gets lost/someone else finds him etc. In fact I definitely have a few puppy nylon collars lying around I can give you for free if you want to pick them up (feel free to pm me). Puppies will outgrow those collars fast though!

In terms of toys I think puppies generally tear through anything with those sharp teeth so for me I just let him go after petsmart animals and rip them up lol. good luck with the pup!

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 12:18 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 12:15:39 PM

congrats!

8/9/2012 12:19:22 PM

How old will the puppy be when you get him? As a typical rule of thumb for young dogs, the number of months old they are is about how many hours they can hold their bladder. Taking him out every 20 mins certainly won't hurt but it may be overkill.

Definitely pick him up and hold him while you still can. They grow so fast and get heavy. Also, you'll want him to feel comfortable with people picking him up and having close physical contact.

Introduce him to other dogs (obviously keep a very close eye on him since he'll be so small) that you know are friendly so that he isn't scared of them or too aggressive towards them later in life.

Lastly (this kind of goes without saying so you probably already know this) but puppies require a lot of attention. Make sure you know what you are getting yourself into because you will get annoyed and frustrated. Until it has grown a bit and is used to the crate, it WILL whine/cry/scratch/bark/etc. whenever it isn't around you -- even if it is just in another room. It is really sad when people get a puppy and end up giving it away two days later because it is too much of a hassle to care for.

8/9/2012 12:20:05 PM

On a serious note, I would start trimming its nails very early in order to get used to that. If not trimming them, at least messing with its paws so it doesn't freak out when you have to do that.

8/9/2012 12:23:49 PM

Quote :

"our black lab freaks the hell out if we leave him alone and he's not crated. "

Do you walk the dog? Our dogs used to destroy the house and we thought it was separation anxiety, but usually its the dog saying "I'm free!" and they go nuts playing however they want. A walk in the morning and they won't destroy the house. No walks and they'll go a few days...but then start to get irritated and eventually destroy something until we take them out again . Friend of mine had very similar problems, but taking the dog on a walk in the morning fixes it.

Back to the new puppy:

Take it for walks and try to socialize the puppy as much as you can. New dogs or people it doesn't matter.

Make sure you teach him early on not to be food aggressive. Play with his face when he's eating. Take the food for your own.

Don't let him bite. God that's annoying with ill-trained dogs.

I'd want to teach the dog a few tricks by sign language; my mom has done it with her deaf dog and its pretty awesome.

8/9/2012 12:24:03 PM

Quote :

"Get it micro-chipped and registered ASAP. 4. Get it fixed ASAP."

I would argue against both of these. Putting a micro-chip at such an early age can cause the micro-chip to actually move to a different location as the pup grows. I've talked to a lot of breeders and they've had trouble locating the chip once the pup is full grown. Every breeder I've talked to has recommended that you micro-chip when the puppy first gets fixed so it's close to being full grown and a very painful procedure, so it's better done when the pup is already out of it and getting fixed.

As for getting fixed...I would definitely recommend not doing it right away. Our vet said to wait at least six months as to not fuck with the testosterone levels. We will be getting our dog micro-chipped and neutered at the same time.

I agree with pretty much everything else wdprice said except for maybe size of the crate...although I guess it depends on the dog. We put our pup in a pretty large crate and he has yet to have an accident...although I guess you should err on the side of caution. First couple weeks we took him out about every hour or so until his bladder got stronger. Now he walks to the door whenever he has to pee (he's three months old and we've had him for a month) and he has yet to poop in the house.

Puppies bite and chew...there's nothing you can do to stop it. In addition to everything wdprice said...we shove toys into our pups mouth whenever he's chewing something we don't want him to. So we say "No!", take him away from that object (or object away from him), and put a toy in his mouth. That's worked pretty well so far.

That's pretty much all I have for now. We've been socializing the shit out of our puppy. We take him to the market, to restaurants (outdoor of course), to the beach....EVERYWHERE...we take him to friggin Lowe's. They need to meet all shapes, sizes, and colors. People with hats, people with hoodies, etc. Dogs as well.

8/9/2012 12:33:22 PM

^I don't mean fixed/micro-chipped now. I mean ASAP, "possible" meaning when the VET recommends. Of course you should do these too early; that's stupid. I guess I should have made that more clear, but I figured it's understood that medical procedures should be done when it's recommended.

As far as the crate; it might do well in a huge crate. It might not. You've got what you've got. But the RISK of a puppy using extra space in a large crate is higher than in a small crate.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 12:37 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 12:36:13 PM

Wow, y'all, this is the most productive chit chat page evar. Excellent points- thanks so much for taking the time to reply. He will be 6 weeks old when I get him.

8/9/2012 12:37:26 PM

Quote :

"Do you walk the dog? Our dogs used to destroy the house and we thought it was separation anxiety, but usually its the dog saying "I'm free!" and they go nuts playing however they want. A walk in the morning and they won't destroy the house. No walks and they'll go a few days...but then start to get irritated and eventually destroy something until we take them out again . Friend of mine had very similar problems, but taking the dog on a walk in the morning fixes it."

i walk the dog every evening for about 30 minutes or so on top of his normal outside-potty breaks. morning doesn't really work for me considering i am at work at 6:30am and it's dark when i get up (and i'm from NJ - i don't walk anywhere by myself when its dark out). we really think a lot of it is separation anxiety because he will go look for stuff that we wear (like headphones, hair brushes, socks, etc) and have our smell on it. so it's not like, oh here's a bunch of stuff i can play with.....it's more like, "OMG WHAT WERE YOU THINKING LEAVING ME ALONE LIKE THIS NOW I AM GOING TO CHEW EVERYTHING THAT HAS TOUCHED YOU AND ALSO POOP IN THE HOUSE IN FEAR THAT YOU WILL NEVER COME BACK AND TAKE ME OUT!"

8/9/2012 12:44:40 PM

haha long list is long. my edit window is up... I'll just continue here:

24. Never feed the dog from the table/wherever you're eating. Never let the dog sit beside the table/wherever you're eating; this could enforce begging - it's annoying. While still a puppy, just have it in the crate (not beside you). After a few weeks (when it can be trusted to be alone and loose), then have the dog out while you eat. If it comes to you while you're eating. Stop eating and get him out of the area (say no/out/leave whatever you use and walk him away; have it sit/lay and tell it to stay). Repeat often

25. I also like to but all routine medications on the dog's birth day (of the month) so it helps me remember (e.g. my dog's birthday is 5/18/2010, so hearworm/flea/tick are applied on the 18th of each month; annuals/check-ups/boosters are on 5/18/xxxx or 11/18/xxxx (or close to when needed). I'm forgetful

You can take these ideas as you want - use them or not; I'm sure some will disagree, though I don't think any are bad advice. Just depends on how you want your dog to behave.

Unfortunately, I'm bad a actually performing all of this training, because I get lazy/not home

I know what to do (for the most part) I just suck at actually getting it done.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 12:52 PM. Reason : /]

8/9/2012 12:45:25 PM

Quote :

" As for getting fixed...I would definitely recommend not doing it right away. Our vet said to wait at least six months as to not fuck with the testosterone levels. We will be getting our dog micro-chipped and neutered at the same time."

I agree, but if you could push it to 1-2 years after they are done growing, I think would be ideal. 6-12 months at least allows females to have their first estrus cycle and well males are sexually mature around 4 to 6 months. Estradiol is essential for female development and Testosterone is essential for male development and I mean more so for bone and growth development. A lot of times vets feed you the "your pet will develop _____ cancer" speech. Dogs wont start developing cancer until well into their senior years which start at 7. Vets, I think, feel responsible for controlling the pet population and their wallets.

8/9/2012 12:52:03 PM

^I've always heard the opposite from vets. Don't wait that long; illnesses, humping, aggression, etc. I've never seen any source recommend waiting so long. And you realize cancer can take years to develop? The vet isn't saying your puppy will get cancer; the vet is saying it may get cancer years down the road if this isn't done early on. Besides, population control is vital, no need to downplay it.

I'd like to see your sources on that information. It's just completely opposite of everything that's out there.


[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 12:56 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 12:54:01 PM

Haha, my parents' horrible dog did the same thing when she was younger. I don't think they knew about crates then, so they ended up tying the dog to a stack of weights in the middle of the floor where she couldn't reach anything .

Our dogs would destroy makeup or socks during the day despite long runs when we got home, but when we switched to morning runs they stopped. I guess they just needed to burn off morning energy instead of waking up and having to chill in the house all day.

8/9/2012 1:00:34 PM

Quote :

"25. I also like to but all routine medications on the dog's birth day (of the month) so it helps me remember (e.g. my dog's birthday is 5/18/2010, so hearworm/flea/tick are applied on the 18th of each month; annuals/check-ups/boosters are on 5/18/xxxx or 11/18/xxxx (or close to when needed). I'm forgetful"

oooo I like that

8/9/2012 1:02:03 PM

First of all, GREAT NAME CHOICE!

You are fortunate in the fact that you are adopting pretty much the easiest to train dog breed on the planet. I haven't had a puppy in 7 years (when my current dog was a puppy), but here are a few things I found helpful.

1. Crating is great, but it's all about location. The mistake I made here was that I put the crate in the kitchen when I wasn't home (thinking that if he peed/pooped, it would be easier to clean up on the linoleum). When I wasn't home he would cry to the point that my neighbors called the police. I moved his crate into my bedroom and in front of a window where he could look out, and the problem stopped immediately.

2. Crating Part 2: Don't use the crate as a punishment. The crate should be his safe place, not a place they don't want to be. My dog used to sleep in his crate every night, even when I left the door open.

3. Collar him from the beginning so he gets used to having it on. Also, get a choke collar and start leash training immediately. My dog is worthless on a leash because I used to just let him run.

4. The best toys are rawhide bones, especially when they are teething. Avoid anything made of fabric because he will just eat it, and potentially cost you a trip to the vet.

5. Take him out often, especially after he drinks, eats, or you play with him.

6. Pick him up and love him as much as you can.

7. Do not waste your money on obedience training. Retrievers are very smart and loyal dogs, so you can easily train them at home on your own.

8. If it isn't done already, microchip him and keep the records up to date every time you move.

I will post some more as I think of them.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 1:07 PM. Reason : a]

8/9/2012 1:06:05 PM

This poor dog doesn't stand a chance.

8/9/2012 1:15:26 PM

^^good points/agreed, except #3. You don't need a choke collar. At all. Get a leader (e.g. gentle leader) and be persistent about the dog's positioning compared to yours (typically, the head should be where your feet land while walking or just parallel to your body). The leader will do everything the choke collar would do. The dog probably won't like the leader at first (my dog hates it), but just stop him from playing with it/removing it and get him moving and he'll eventually forget about it. Start training with the leader in the house (just wearing it around for 5 minutes at a time; no leash/don't walk, just let him wear it).

Edit: Well let me say this, 99.999% of the time with a golden you'll never need a choke collar. I just don't see it. If you have a larger/heavier/more aggressive breed and leaders just will not work, then OK; but it's still probably a training problem not a tool problem.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 1:42 PM. Reason : I don't like choke collars, k?]

8/9/2012 1:37:59 PM

^ Yeah...+1 on the gentle leader as well. My fiance's sister has a dog that can pull a truck. Put a gentle leader on her, and she'll go wherever you want her to.

Although I'd like to think I will be training my dog well enough that he won't need those things...you never know.

wdprice3 is pretty much on the money with all his comments. Heed his advice.


And to Cass...can your husband walk the dog in the morning?? Even if your dog has some anxiety issues...if he/she is worn the fuck out, then its still tough for them to go nuts. If we know we're both leaving in the morning and he's going in the crate, then one of us will take the puppy for a long walk, no matter what time in the morning. We refuse to leave our dog in the crate/house when it has energy to expend.

Also direct you to this thread for future reference:

message_topic.aspx?topic=629876

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 2:17 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 2:14:25 PM

+1 on the gentle leader

8/9/2012 2:29:24 PM

I have a golden toooooooooooooo! She is the best dog I ever owned. Hardest thing was crate training for the first month because that poor baby whined all night. So out it in a spot you can't hear and let him cry it out. Mine will be 2 in December. She's the best and we want another one soon!

8/9/2012 2:38:56 PM

We got a goldendoodle in May, she was born in March.

Pic:



What can I do to prevent accidents in the house?
We hung some bells on the entry door. We made her ring the bell when we took her out.

I'm trying to take him outside every 20 minutes....for the most part.
As a rule of thumb, the age they are in weeks, should be about how long they can hold going to the bathroom in hours. Read what Bill said above about indoor training and voice.

Should I keep a water bowl in his crate?
No.

I'm separating the crate so that it's only about 24 inches by 24 inches.
Like Bill said, the smaller the area the better while they're young.

Should I go ahead and put a collar on it?
Yes

How often should I bathe him?
Use Bill's advice above. Before ending the bath, spray him with a 1/2 vinegar 1/2 water solution and rinse. This will reduce wet dog smell and help his coat.

We put Barley's crate in the living room for the first two nights. She whined all night. SO we moved the crate into our room and that ended the crying.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 2:53 PM. Reason : -]

8/9/2012 2:44:33 PM

Quote :

"As a rule of thumb, the age they are in weeks, should be about how long they can hold going to the bathroom in hours. Read what Bill said above about indoor training and voice. "

it's actually measured in months - dogs up to 10 months old can wait about 10 hours, but i wouldn't make them wait much longer than that, if you can help it. there's no way a puppy of eight weeks wait eight hours to go outside.

8/9/2012 3:25:01 PM

Puppies will also save you on alarm clocks. My puppy has woken up in the same five minute window since the day we got him. 6:45 every fucking morning. Which is fine during the week...but I just want to sleep in until 9 am at least one Saturday.

8/9/2012 3:28:13 PM

We put the dog in our room thinking it would stop and it didn't. She is a talker so we out her on the far side of the house til she figured it out. Now she sleeps in the room with us, she takes the decorative pillow of our bench and uses it under her head like a human! I loves her!

8/9/2012 3:28:42 PM

my dog is 28 months. that bitch is about to fend for herself come the friday/saturday bar scene!

FYI - in case you aren't used to puppies, taking them out every x amount of hours means throughout the 24 hour day. No sleep or vacations for you! Unless you like pee filled crates and pee soaked puppies. I've heard it's "worse" than a baby for this aspect (obviously depending on the baby).


[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 3:31 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 3:28:46 PM

Yeah they go a lot , yeah you'll have accidents, don't get mad at it. Holden's learned quick! Two weeks for my pup! You'll learn the potty signals and if you catch pup going potty inside, make loud noises, clap, startle and take right outside, then celebrate like crazy when they go outside! Also separate potty area from play and ignore puppy til potties so they quickly learn when it's time to do the business. It's a snap!

8/9/2012 3:36:04 PM

Oh yeh, ^thanks.


26. Have a designated spot/area (small area) for pottying. Use a phrase (go potty or whatever) to signify it's time. If it's "go potty" then while you're inside ask him if he needs to go potty. Then take him (on a leash) outside immediately to the area/spot and repeat go potty/whatever phrase you use every 15 seconds (?) until the business is done (you can try using 2 phrases (e.g. go pee and go poop), but I think 1 phrase for both works better). Mine is "do ya thang girrrrlll". Always go to this spot/area for pottying while training. Don't use that area otherwise with your dog. If the area is getting full of poo, shovel some away and discard appropriately, but leave at least a semi-fresh pile, as that and his urine scent there will be markers. Get some really good cleaner for accidents in the house - you want to remove, in addition to the urine/poo/bacteria/what you can smell, as much of the smell (that the dog may sense) as possible. Once a dog learns it's smell, it will tend to go there again, especially if you're spot/area training outside (the dog will start to learn that it's ok to go where he smells his stuff - so if there is remaining scent from an accident, he may be prone to go there again).

I'm going to clean-up this list and post it in the pet thread when I get some time. So if anyone else has good ideas/methods, post them and I'll consolidate/organize.

I think I have some good ideas; however, I don't always know the best way to train the idea. Especially when you have a young/stubborn/old dog; or if your dog isn't really food/toy motivated. So the more information the better!

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 3:57 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 3:49:07 PM

Dont' let them be backseat drivers...like my pup. He's constantly pumping the "fake brake" in the backseat:




^ In addition to the cleaning products....dog proof the house. We removed as much "pup-level" stuff as we could. We also rolled up all of our rugs downstairs (we have hardwood floors). Hardwood floors are a lot easier to clean-up than rugs and carpets. We also got a specific hardwood/pet stain cleaner from Petco and it worked great the first couple weeks when he was still having accidents.

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 4:05 PM. Reason : .]

8/9/2012 4:02:02 PM

Quote :

" there's no way a puppy of eight weeks wait eight hours to go outside."

I should have mentioned this was at night and that it depends on the size of the breed.

When we first got our puppy at 8 weeks, after a couple nights of accidents, she started to hold it all night. Now at 5 mo (20 weeks) she can def hold it 8 hours.

8/9/2012 4:17:21 PM

how are you gonna name the dog when you haven't even picked out what dog it's going to be. jeez

8/9/2012 4:25:42 PM

^^ Yeah...dogs can hold it when they're sleeping and/or in a crate. I think we're talking about hanging around the house and shit. There's no way an 8 week old puppy is going to hold it longer than 5 or 6 hours when you're chilling at the house.

8/9/2012 4:34:49 PM

Wow- Great GREAT ideas- Thanks wdprice for taking the time to spell everything out for me. Some SERIOUSLY great ideas.

Alkatraz- Did the bell at the door thing really work? Cos damn- that's like, one step away from using a cell phone....I'm impressed.

DJeternal- I have the crate set up by a window so he can look outside on to the water (we live on a big river down east). I think it should work out pretty well...I'm just hoping he's not a whiner. We will put him in the crate at night.

8/9/2012 4:37:11 PM

I'll add that my fiance's sister uses the bells on the door thing. It works great...however, now the dog likes to fuck with his parents. He'll ring the bells and watch mom and dad run to open the door...then just sit there and laugh at them. It's pretty funny...but I think they're going to take the bells off now.

8/9/2012 4:40:25 PM

Humphrey is such a great name!!

8/9/2012 5:36:56 PM

Quote :

"Alkatraz- Did the bell at the door thing really work? Cos damn- that's like, one step away from using a cell phone....I'm impressed. "

Yes!

Quote :

"I'll add that my fiance's sister uses the bells on the door thing. It works great...however, now the dog likes to fuck with his parents. He'll ring the bells and watch mom and dad run to open the door...then just sit there and laugh at them. It's pretty funny...but I think they're going to take the bells off now."

We don't scramble or make a mad dash for the door. We leash her up and take her out. She gets a treat every time she rings the bells and pees/poops. If she rings the bells and doesn't pee/poop, she doesn't get a treat. If you decide to do this type of training, you have to keep in mind that whenever she rings them, you have to let him out even if you know she doesn't have to go. Drag his butt to the potty spot and stand there, tell her to go, if he doesn't, drag him inside, unlease and no treat, ie ignore him.

8/9/2012 5:43:32 PM

Well, I took our information here and bombed the crap out of jbrick's thread in the lounge, for a more formal/long term discussion:

message_topic.aspx?topic=629876&page=1

8/9/2012 9:20:41 PM

Word up to puppy gettin

I know u will love him

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 10:29 PM. Reason : It]

8/9/2012 10:28:41 PM

not a dog champ but I'll answer on my own experience

Quote :

"I'm here to ask all the dog owners: What do you wish you would have done differently when you got your puppy? Would you have trained it differently? What can I do to prevent accidents in the house? I'm trying to take him outside every 20 minutes....for the most part. Should I keep a water bowl in his crate? I'm separating the crate so that it's only about 24 inches by 24 inches. Should I go ahead and put a collar on it? How often should I bathe him? Is picking him up a lot bad for him? I just wanna snuggle. What are the best toys for him that aren't petsmarty toys? Like- should I just give him water bottles to chew up? "

got her younger

less human food

accidents as in pooping or chewing or what? you cant prevent peeing in the house while house training with out 24-7 supervision and even then its tough. more about teaching your dog and learning your dogs signs

see before, you cant at the beginning. that part of the learning process

yes, puppies need water/food more so than grown dogs

yes, you wanna get her used to a collar as soon as possible

I bath my dog once a month, unless she goes out and gets all nasty in the creek

no, dogs loved and need to be picked up and hugged. my dogs 50 pounds and I still pick her up

toy wise depends on your dog, my dog doesnt like toys but she does like kongs and stuff like that with food in them


also for the most part wdprice is right on point

[Edited on August 9, 2012 at 10:44 PM. Reason : ,]

8/9/2012 10:41:42 PM

Jason- you got a dog?! PICS

8/9/2012 10:44:15 PM

8/9/2012 10:46:04 PM

She's absolutely beautiful and funny. Did you name her "Lauren"?

8/9/2012 10:53:28 PM

haha, no I didnt wanna name her any human names of people I might meet, that'd be awkward "hey lauren, meet my dog lauren"

so I named her Stella

8/9/2012 10:55:46 PM