Six Ways to Make Your New Puppy Comfortable

If you are considering bringing a puppy home and have never done it before, there are some important things you need to know. A puppy is a new member in your household, just like a new baby and therefore needs your care and attention just like any other member of your family.

The puppy has just left its family and is going to be very lonely and just a little lost. As a result, whenever it is awake, it will seek company and a caring touch. If you are not able to provide these crucial elements, plus food and water, maybe you need to reschedule the 'bringing home' event.

In the meantime, do some research on the kind of attitude you need to have when dealing with a new puppy and the kind of care you need to give it. One thing you can expect when a new pup comes to your home is restlessness and whimpering. You can minimize this discomfort. Let's look at the best way to do it.

The first way to make a puppy comfortable.

Do not get a puppy that is less than eight weeks old. All puppies need to be with their mother until they are at least eight weeks old. They need the nourishment, which provides the antibodies necessary to ward off disease, the security and the sense of identity that comes from being nursed by their mother.

The second way to make a puppy feel comfortable.

Since you must transport the puppy from the location where you obtained it, remember that it's a pup, so treat it tenderly. Bring it home as comfortably as possible. Prepare a basket with a cushion, a coverlet and some chewable dog toys. Put the pup in the basket and place the coverlet over it, if the puppy appears frightened. If it appears relatively calm, then leave the coverlet off. Make sure you caress the pup's head occasionally during the journey home. Talk to it. It will probably whimper, but your soothing voice should calm it down and make it feel less abandoned.

The third way to make your puppy comfortable.

Introduce the pup to your home. Carry the pup around your home. Introduce it to the rest of your family. Let them and the pup become acquainted with each other. Put the pup down and watch it when it goes exploring. Gently, but firmly, stop it from doing things that are unacceptable in your household. In this way, you will introduce it to your authority and your rules, which it will have to abide by for the rest of its life.

The fourth way to make a puppy comfortable.

Prepare its corner/basket/bed in a cozy place in the house. Take the same care that you did when you prepared the basket for the trip home. The place where you intend to keep the puppy depends on the rules of your house. Some people prefer to take the pup to their bedroom; others would have it in their kitchen, etc. No matter where you put it, your task is to check on it occasionally, caress it, talk to it (maybe you could name it right away) and to take it out whenever you think it might need to relieve itself.

The fifth way to make a puppy comfortable.

If the puppy has not been completely weaned, give it a bowl of milk and some water in a separate bowl. Keep these next to its basket. Coax the puppy to drink as much as possible. If the pup does not drink at all, you might want to use a dropper to feed it some milk and water. You might also try giving it something semi-solid, like bread soaked in milk. Keep the quantity small. Feeding it too much might cause an upset stomach and the puppy might throw-up. After all, this might be the first time that it has had anything other than its mother's milk. If the puppy has been weaned, fill the bowl with the type of puppy food it had been eating at the location where you obtained it. Do not try changing its food at this time, because the pup will be under stress and its stomach may be upset. Keep some soft paper towels with you to clean up any messes that you, or the puppy might make.

The sixth way to make a puppy comfortable.

The pup will need to relieve itself on its first night away from its family. It may not be possible for you to step out of your house in the dead of night for the sake of the puppy. If this is the case, spread an old newspaper near the pup's basket or provide “puppy piddle pads“ for it to relieve itself on. Whenever you see that the pup is getting restless, lift the puppy, put it on the newspaper or piddle pad and keep it there until it has finished its task. In this way, you will eventually train the puppy to go on an acceptable surface.

The first night with the pup is going to be mostly sleepless for you, what with the whimpering and the waking up. However, you won't mind because you love your pup, don't you? When mom and dad got their first puppy, a black miniature poodle named Mitzi, they had a box with the puppy in it in a corner of the living room. It whined loudly, so after a while the box was moved to a corner of the master bedroom. When the pup continued to whine, dad picked up the puppy and placed her on the bed. She settled down between mom and dad and that was the last time she spent a night anywhere else. Mom and dad are the first to admit that they are pushovers when it comes to animals. They feel that if you don’t make them part of your family, why have them? I’m afraid that I have taken unfair advantage of that feeling and so has my “sister.” We are probably two of the most spoiled dogs around. But hey, I’m not stupid, why not take full advantage of a good thing?

Until next time,

Teia

PS. When you start to get frustrated with your new puppy, just remember that we grow up and provide you with unconditional love and plenty of entertainment for our whole lives. Show us kindness and provide us with good nutrition and we’ll provide you with a loving companion and all the protection that our size will allow.

A Guide to House Training Your Puppy

This entry was prompted by a request from someone who met my dad in the grocery store while he was picking up some dog food for the dogs of a family mom was house sitting for. This lady had just picked up her first puppy and she didn't know how to house train him. Dad told her the information contained in this post and I thought that there were probably many more people who could use the information too. So, for all you first time puppy owners, here's a guide to house training him.

Dogs are probably the only animals in the world who love unconditionally, with their whole heart, body and soul. There are many stories of dogs saving the lives of their owners, of warning people of danger or of seeming to know when an owner is sick or in pain. Some dogs have been trained to diagnose cancer and detect oncoming heart attacks and epileptic seizures in humans.

If you've decided to get a puppy, or you've recently brought one home, congratulations! You will have a loyal friend and companion who will enjoy your company, never be too tired to go for a walk with you and who will always be on your side, no matter what!

One note of caution though. A dog is only as well-trained as he has been taught to be by his owner. It is important that your puppy understands as quickly as possible what is considered acceptable behavior in your home and what is not.

You need to decide early on if you will allow your puppy to get on your furniture. Also decide where she can sleep and what she can chew on.

So house training your dog now, while your dog is still a puppy, is the best way to ensure that she/he is a welcome and happy member of your household.

The crate method is one of the fastest and most humane methods of house training your puppy.

But, first, here are some do's and don'ts for house training your puppy:

DOES:

Do be accessible to your puppy. If you are going to be gone for long periods of time during the training period, then do not give the puppy full access to your house. Put him in an area which you have prepared for accidents.

Do limit the amount of food your puppy has throughout the day. If it's hot outside, make sure your puppy has enough water to drink, because if she becomes dehydrated from lack of water, you could come home to a dead or very ill puppy. Also remember that what goes in, will come out so be prepared for puddles when you come home.

Do praise your puppy every time he or she does what you expect him/her to do. Your puppy wants to please you, and he/she needs to learn what behaviors create praise from you.

Do be consistent. You will only confuse your puppy otherwise.

Do be realistic. Your puppy may not be capable of being completely house trained until he is at least six months old. I had a lot of trouble learning where to go. I was born in the winter and trained to go outside on the snow. When the snow melted, I was confused and didn't know where I was supposed to go. So, I held it as long as I could then just went where ever I was when I couldn't hold it any longer. Eventually I learned that I could go on the grass or the gravel outside, but not before mom and dad got frustrated. As they learned to understand me, they finally came up with a solution that made us all happy.

DON’TS:

Don't reprimand your puppy when he has an accident. It's going to happen and if it does, it means that you didn't get him outside in time. Just clean it up and move on.

Don't use the crate as a means of locking your puppy up for long periods of time, or as a punishment.

Don't let your puppy go to the bathroom anywhere except his/her designated area while you are training him/her.

Why the crate method works: Dogs are naturally fastidious animals and they don't like to eliminate where they sleep or eat. Therefore, if your puppy sleeps in the crate, she/he will not use the crate as a bathroom unless they have an accident because they couldn't go elsewhere.

First things first:

Puppies need to urinate shortly after they eat, drink, play, chew, run or walk. Depending on the breed, size, temperament and age of your puppy, this can be within 15 to 30 minutes.

1. Keep a record, for a couple of days, of the times your puppy needs to go. This will help you to learn his natural schedule and make the training process easier.

2. Plan your "walking" schedule around your puppy's needs. From the time your puppy is about ten or 11 weeks to six months old, he/she should be walked between five and ten times a day. Once your puppy is between six months and 11 months old, this will drop to around four to six times a day. And when he/she is an adult, walking your dog two to four times a day will be sufficient, depending on the breed and temperament of your dog. Remember to take along several clean pickup bags to pick up after you dog has a bowel movement. It is not courteous or sanitary to leave it behind for others to step in. Turn your pickup bag inside out, put your hand into it and reach down and grasp the stool. As you pick the bag up use your free hand to fold the bag down over the stool. Once the bag is right side out again, release the bottom where the stool is and tie the top tightly closed. In this way you can sanitarily carry the stool to a proper disposal container.

3. Especially after your puppy has spent the night in his/her crate, do not return from your morning walk until he/she has eliminated. (If for some reason you do have to return, put your puppy in his/her crate, and then take him/her out every fifteen minutes or so, until he/she goes.) Make sure you give your puppy lots of praise and affection, once he/she has done what you wanted.

What the crate means to your puppy.

A crate is your puppy's home away from home, his/her sanctuary in times of stress and his "bedroom" at night (if you have chosen not to let your dog sleep with you).

Make sure that your puppy associates his/her crate with positive feelings. Put his/her favorite blanket, chew toys and treats inside the crate. When helping your puppy get used to the crate, leave the door open until your puppy shows no sign of fear of the crate.

The more comfortable your puppy is inside the crate, the less likely he/she will be of soiling it. Never let your puppy out of the crate for bad behavior such as barking, whining or scratching.

How to Get Started:

1. Establish a regular schedule of feeding and going outdoors.

2. Put the puppy in the crate at night, but make sure you take him/her out first thing in the morning and don't go back into the house until the puppy has finished.

3. After the puppy has gone to the bathroom, bring him/her in, and let him play for an hour or so. (Remember not to give your puppy complete run of the house until he is completely house trained.)

4. Feed the puppy.

5. Using the chart you created, take the puppy outside within 15 minutes of the time you know he/she is going to need to go. Don't come back in until the puppy has gone.

6. Bring the puppy in and let him/her play.

7. Put the puppy in his/her crate for a nap.

Repeat this schedule throughout the day.

Yes, this is a lot of work. But the method is effective, it works quickly and your puppy will soon become house broken. As he/she gets older, your puppy will let you know when he/she needs to go to the bathroom. In the meantime, you'll be able to have complete confidence in your puppy.

Until next time,

Teia