Preparing for new puppy - what to do?

spurscormac

Hi folks,

My girlfriend and I are bringing home a male cocker spaniel puppy next Tuesday evening - he'll be 8 weeks then.
I just want to check I have everything covered in advance.

Already bought collar & lead, 2 stainless steel bowls, dry food.
Awaiting delivery from zooplus of kennel, couple of toys - kong bone & rubber chicken, blanket, brush and a snugglesafe to keep him warm @ night seeing as he'll be away from his litter.

I will have the house & garden as puppy proofed as possible.
Have read up a bit on training tips etc, so I hope I have the basics covered.

Just wondering is there anything else I need to consider?
Have heard talk of not taking him outside the garden until he's 12 weeks.
Other people have mentioned using a ticking clock to ease his whining at the start.
Can anyone explain the reasoning behind these and if they are valid or old wives tales?

Also, if there's anything obvious I'm missing or any tips from people
who have gone through this, it would be greatly appreciated.

Ruby-J

id strongly reccommend a hot water bottle at night under his blanket so he can feel the warmth. it was an absolute gem for settling my pup a few months ago. also try and confine him to a smaller space in the house so that he learns boundaries and say is only allowed out of the kitchen when u are with him etc. it helps in training him not to go upstairs or run out the front door when its opened.

The ticking clock resembles the mothers heart beat and the hot water bottle the warmth of the mother.

get him a ball and chewy bone so to deter him from chewing furniture from day one.

other then that you seem to have it all covered!!!

enjoy it while it lasts! theyre only pups for a short time!

Ruby-J

oh and taking him out to the back garden is a great idea!!! the sooner he learns the garden is all for him to play in etc the better. its best not to bring him out on walks for the first few weeks until he has all his injections but out in the back garden he will be fine once he doesnt come into contact with other dogs.

NextSteps

Once you have the rubber chicken, you're sorted. Good luck.

peasant

Have you managed to take a few days off to help him ease into his new home?

Gadgets are all well and good, but the most important thing he needs initially is you.


(btw ...a ticking clock resembles a ticking clock, nothing else)

also see here:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showp...8&postcount=25

Discostuy

Yeah, i agree with being there with him for a few days, ease him in.
Also i would recommend to start as you mean to go on. What you do now will pay off big time in the long run. Set the ground/house rules, and make sure everyone follows them. Training should start from day one.

Working with a pup and getting them to understand the basic rules you want followed is much easier than having an 18 month old ball of energy who thinks its fine to run all over the sofa and jump up on visitors...

spurscormac

Thanks for the replies folks

Ruby-J:
The snugglesafe is instead of a hot water bottle, can be microwaved, so thats covered.
I should get him a little ball so he can chase it around the garden then.
There are a few dogs in the estate, and an 8 month old labrador next door, but the garden is secure all the way around so he'll be safe.
I just have to check with the breeder & vet then to ensure he has all his injections before bringing him out to the big bad world. right?

UB - yeah, rubber chicken was a hit with some other puppies we saw, had to be got

peasant - yes, by sheer coincidence, I have some time off. Will be working early on Tuesday, so can pick him up in the afternoon. Am due 2 days off for working a weekend, so getting Wed & Thur, and will be working from home on Friday.
Jammy or what ?
Oh yeah, that link didn't work, could you repost ?

Another thing I'm kinda confused on...

I want him to be on outdoor dog, not let him have the freedom of the house, but he'll be allowed downstairs, tiled kitchen & hall, and wooden floor in living room - just not upstairs.

Should we be teaching him to live outside in his kennel from the start, or should he begin indoors?
I don't want him to get too used to indoors, so if its ok for him to be out at this age I'd like to start him there.
He's already begun life in a shed with his litter & Mom, so if he's used to that, is it ok for him to be in his kennel outside overnight?

Ruby-J

oh right ok cool! yeh the snugglesafe is a defo need! its really a life saver for getting them to settle in their beds...well from my own experience anyways!

He will prob still need to get one or two more injections though. its to about 12-16 weeks they get tall their injections. if i recall right my own pup was still gettin hers til then.

carwash_2006

If you want him to be housetrained at all I would recommend keeping him inside until you have that sorted. Crate training is probably the best way to go for this, it will also mean that you are training him to sleep through the night and not be up barking.

I know some people who got a dog recently that they wanted him to sleep outside ultimately. They were letting him stay in at first, but they found he would wander about the kitchen whining and not settle. I lent them a small crate for him to be in at night, from that point he settled straight away, just letting them know when he needed to wee, so they would take him out. When he started getting too big for the crate they put him out to sleep in the kennel and he has been an angel.

With a small dog like a king charles it would not be hard for you to have a crate in the house permanently and let him sleep inside, one reason I would suggest this is that as a popular pedigree dog he would potentially be at risk from "disappearing" from your garden. You could still have him out during the day, bearing in mind that he could still be at risk. There is a scary amount of pedigree dogs being stolen these days.

Discostuy

Theres a lot of reading regarding dogs living out the back. A lot of top dog folk say dogs living out the back tend to bark more, be harder to train, less socialable etc.
You'll find a lot of posts on here about neighbours driven mad with dogs barking all the time...
I keep my two in the kitchen at night, they dont whine or make a peep. The have full use of the garden when im there, but they generally are happiest when they are with you. They hate being turfed out the back, all they will do is sit at the back door...and these are large active dogs.
I suppose what im saying is dont be under the illusion they are happy outdoors all the time.

peasant

spurscormac wrote: »

He's already begun life in a shed with his litter & Mom, so if he's used to that, is it ok for him to be in his kennel outside overnight?

You're looking at that from the wrong angle:

What he is used to is a whelping box, filled with mother and siblings. Close contact, warmth, care and social interaction in other words. That this box was in a shed is just a minor detail.

So ripping him out of this box to put him into an empty kennel in a wide open space would be a bit cruel in my opinion.

It's great, that you have few days off. give him this time with you, to get used to you, bond with you and learn a few things he needs to know.

The link above was to this from the "new puppy" thread;

The pup is "brandnew" and very young. This means two things: It's just been separated from the only world (mother and siblings) it ever new, so it's scared and confused ...and it leaks

The best way to train a pup as young as this is for night time continence is to put it into a high cardboard box (one that can't climb out of) and let it sleep in this by the side of your bed.

This has two advantages
1) you can put your hand into the box every now and then, re-assure the pup and let it get used to you / bond with you

2) you will wake up when then pup tries to get out of the box to do its business, so you can grab it and run outside and do the usual praise routine once it has sucessfully relieved itself outside.

Once the pup (and you ) has slept through several nights in a row without having to go out, it is time to find new sleeping arrangements.


Trying to house train a pup with pee pads or newspapers is pants ...because these are still inside and the name of the game is to teach pup to do its business outside.

Paper/pads may make your live easier when it comes to cleaning up ...but they prolong the learning process unecessarily

Once the pup sleeps through the night, you can take it out of its box and let it sleep on its own (kitchen maybe) and once it has got used to you and yours and is showing some independence (I'd say at about 4-5 months or so) you can then move it outside.

Moving the dog outside from the word go will only distance it from you and could make it to grow up afraid and insecure.

The first few months in a pups life are very important. This is where it learns (from your guidance) what to make of its environement and the people, animals and things in it. Leaving it to fend for its own during those first weeks makes it uneccesarily difficult for it.

spurscormac

Thanks again peasant.

So its not going to be too difficult to get him to live outside after a while indoors then?
I suppose thats what my concern was really.

Also, the bit about outside was aimed at will he be warm enough - suppose the snugglesafe would help on that front.

So the general consensus is that he needs to be trained in the house, to go outside, then once thats done, he can be trained to live outside.

I'm not keen on the bedroom box at all - I think it's overkill.
He'll have a bed to lie in downstairs in the kitchen which can initially act as his bed for the night then.

Should I be fencing this off with planks of wood to prevent him roaming the entire kitchen at night, but giving him some space to move ?

peasant

spurscormac wrote: »

.

I'm not keen on the bedroom box at all - I think it's overkill.
He'll have a bed to lie in downstairs in the kitchen which can initially act as his bed for the night then.

Should I be fencing this off with planks of wood to prevent him roaming the entire kitchen at night, but giving him some space to move ?

It may seem like overkill, but it is the easiest and quickest way for all involved.

The more effort you put in initially (getting up a few times at night to take him out) the quicker he will be house trained. He won't learn anything from tumbling over planks of wood at night.

This is not a question of where exactly he's sleeping, but a question of who is there to take him outside when he needs to go. Putting him into a box beside your bed is more for your comfort than his.

You could theoretically put him into his outside kennel from the first night on ....as long as you are prepared to sleep in there with him, that is

Or leave him in the kitchen ...as long as you're in there on the guest bed to let him out, that'll be just fine.

Discostuy

Hey Spurscormac...

Are you completely against the idea of him living indoors?. Before i got my two, i used to think there is no way they could sleep inside, especially with their size. But they have slept in the kitchen at night now since i have them. I have a plastic bed thing, with some blankets and it works great.
Since then i have found this has worked out great. I know they are indoors, safe, warm, dry, happy. They have their "den", which makes them feel safe and secure which in turn makes them placid, relaxed and confident dogs.

Im not totally against dogs sleeping in kennels out the back. But in my housing estate there is so many distractions...cats, people, cars, alarms...all these will not help your dog sleep, and he might end up barking all night (like so many of my neighbours dogs).

Again im not against the idea...whatever works best

sn00ps

I really would consider the bed box idea. For the first couple of weeks anyway. Puppys have tiny bladders and it's a much better idea to start their toilet training properly from day one. They will whine when they want to pee and if you are not able to catch them they will just do it in your kitchen and leave lots of msgs for you to pick up in the morning .. they don't learn anything that way and not really fun to deal with first thing in the morning. I did this with both of mine and it took no more than 2 weeks for them to get the msg.

As they get older their ability to hang on gets better and they can make it through the night.

In my experience it has been easier for me to get a good nights sleep too. It's really hard to sleep when your new little fella is crying himself to sleep down stairs.

Congrats in the Cocker btw .. we have had Cockers in our family for 13 years now .. Charlie passed last year but we have Jasper the lad now (distant cousin of Charlie) .. and they are SO much fun and bounding with energy.

I hope you have a great experience with him/her

Oh and yeah .. mine is indoors, in the kitchen ...

spurscormac

Discostuy wrote: »

Hey Spurscormac...

Are you completely against the idea of him living indoors?. Before i got my two, i used to think there is no way they could sleep inside, especially with their size. But they have slept in the kitchen at night now since i have them. I have a plastic bed thing, with some blankets and it works great.
Since then i have found this has worked out great. I know they are indoors, safe, warm, dry, happy. They have their "den", which makes them feel safe and secure which in turn makes them placid, relaxed and confident dogs.

Im not totally against dogs sleeping in kennels out the back. But in my housing estate there is so many distractions...cats, people, cars, alarms...all these will not help your dog sleep, and he might end up barking all night (like so many of my neighbours dogs).

Again im not against the idea...whatever works best

Luckily, I live in the back row of houses a very quiet estate. While there are a number of other dogs around, barking is not a problem at all.
Its also a little out of the way, pretty much the last estate within city boundaries, so traffic is not an issue - again, being at the back helps that too.

I'll see what works best I suppose, wing it & see what he responds to.

therewillbe

Totally scrub your yard with a good cleaner as new pups are prone to picking up all sorts. the main culprit is bird droppings as it is full of bad bacteria and if your pup licks at it he too will suffer and might even die . I am serious about this .I have had dogs all my life and one sadly passed away when he was 10 weeks old.wait till he gets his final needle at 11/12 weeks and a week later he will be fine to roam out back. If he starts scratching your back door, rub a bit of pepper over the door and he will soon get the message.

spurscormac

therewillbe wrote: »

Totally scrub your yard with a good cleaner as new pups are prone to picking up all sorts. the main culprit is bird droppings as it is full of bad bacteria and if your pup licks at it he too will suffer and might even die . I am serious about this .I have had dogs all my life and one sadly passed away when he was 10 weeks old.wait till he gets his final needle at 11/12 weeks and a week later he will be fine to roam out back. If he starts scratching your back door, rub a bit of pepper over the door and he will soon get the message.

Thanks for the tip.
I was cleaning up the back garden yesterday - need to get rid of a few things lying around, and fill up a hole in the ground beside the oil tank, to stop him falling down.

Couldn't see any bird droppings, they tend to keep to the roof of the she, but I'll give it a good scrub anyway.

Another query for the experts...
Should I be arranging a VET check-up for a couple of days after I get him?
I'll be asking the breeder what the status of his injections are, so if I need more, should I wait until he's due them to bring him to the vet, or should I get him checked early anyway?

Also, what's the cost of a trip to the VET?
I have no idea so would like to be prepared.

KhuntChops

I would recommand taking the pup straight from the breeders to your own Vet to give him the once over. This is too make sure the pup is in good health and there is no probelms with he/she which you have not been informed about.

The pup should of had its first injection with the breeder,also you should be given a cert to show the vac and the vet that preformed it. He/she will need a follow up injection that you can then make an appointment for while at the vets.

In regards to the cost of vets,well it depends on were in the country you are. Dublin a vacc normally will cost 40/50 euro and you may need to buy worming tablets etc so I would bring at least 70 with you. It seems alot of money but after his second injection he will need nomore till his/hers yearly boaster.

Hope this has helped.

KC

therewillbe

yES , SUSS OUT A GOOD VET AND BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM/HER AND THIS WAY LIKE A HUMAN THEY WILL KNOW YOUR DOG AND SOMETIMES A SPECIAL RATE WILL APPLY. GET HIM CHIPPED IF NOT ALREADY DONE BY BREEDER .GET ALL PAPERWORK OF BREEDER THERE AND THEN , NOT LATER !

carwash_2006

Make sure you are given a vax cert when you get the pup, if the breeder says they'll send it on to you assume it either hasn't been done, or the breeder did it themselves in which case the cert cannot be signed by a vet and is useless to you if you want to board the dog in kennels at a later date.

Taking the pup straight to the vet will mean also that you won't have any time to get emotionally too attached if the vet finds something that you didn't spot that would make you want to return the pup.

I know it sounds a bit heartless returning the pup because it is sick, but if people don't make sure that breeders are only selling healthy pups by refusing to accept unhealthy ones we have no chance of stopping the unscrupulous people who are just in it for a quick buck from subjecting unhealthy animals to being bred from.

Obviously I really hope that the pup you get is 100% healthy and you don't actually have to worry about any of this, but there's no harm in being prepared.

leopardus

Apart from whats already mentioned in previous post I would reccomend looking into pet insurance (works out at about €17 per month) and reading some GOOD books on dog behaviour and training; You'll save yourself all sorts of problems later if you do things correctly from the start.
I can not recommend 'The Culture Clash' by Jean Donaldson highly enough, her advise on socializing puppies is particularly good. Dr Ian dunbar also has a number of very good books (although I find his style of writing a bit irritating).
Good luck with your pup.

spurscormac

Thanks for the advice folks - off to collect him this evening.
Stuff arrived from zooplus today, so should be all set.

KhuntChops

Brilliant news,make sure to post some pictures of the new arrival for us all to "aww" over Good luck

kerrysgold

Just wondering, why do you want the dog to sleep outside?
Don't see what the problem with the dog being allowed to stay indoors is once he is housetrained?

Vel

kerrysgold wrote: »

Just wondering, why do you want the dog to sleep outside?
Don't see what the problem with the dog being allowed to stay indoors is once he is housetrained?

I agree with this. Why bother getting a dog if you aren't going to let it live inside as part of the family?

jenjo23

Vel wrote: »

I agree with this. Why bother getting a dog if you aren't going to let it live inside as part of the family?

Just because you let him/her sleep outside or keep it outside during the day doesn't mean it's not part of the family as long as whenever your there in the living he/she is with you.

I keep my dog indoors.........but I wouldn't tell someone that they shouldn't bother getting a dog if they are going to keep him/her outside.

But that's just my opinion

kerrysgold

Vel wrote: »

I agree with this. Why bother getting a dog if you aren't going to let it live inside as part of the family?

agreed 100%.

whitser

kerrysgold i've read some of your posts and tbh you are very" look down your nose-ish" at people just cos they dont do things the same as you. so what if he keeps his dog out the back,thats his business. not everyone does things the same way. once the dog is exercised,well fed watered and given the attention it needs. a dog is quite happy out the back.
you always seem to answer someones post with some sort of condisending(spelling question) like the one above, why get a dog if you wont let it in the house? etc.....

Vel

jenjo23 wrote: »

Just because you let him/her sleep outside or keep it outside during the day doesn't mean it's not part of the family as long as whenever your there in the living he/she is with you.

I think there are two scenarios here. There are the people who have dogs who never let them into the house at all and there are those who only allow them in the house only when they are there but make them sleep outside at night.

I just have no idea why people in the first scenario even bother to have a dog. If they are doing it for reasons such as being worried that the dog will make a mess or the house might smell of dog, then maybe they need to think about the fact that a dog isn't for them. I sometimes think in this scenario, it can come down to one family member not really wanting a dog and giving in to the one who does by agreeing only if the dog is kept outside. Dogs are sociable animals who like to be part of a pack and personally I just think its unfair. Maybe in the summer, the family spend more time in the garden but in the dead of winter, bar a walk or two during the day, I can't imagine the dog is enjoying life stuck on its own in the garden.

But the second scenario I understand even less. Personally I keep my dog inside during the day when I'm out as I would be worried about him being stolen but I can understand why someone might keep their dog outside during the day. What I don't understand though is why they let the dog in for a few hours when they get home and then consign it to the backyard again at bedtime which I think is the OP's plan. I really am curious as to the reasoning behind this. A well trained and well behaved dog should not cause any mess or problems at night left alone in the house so that can't be a valid reason in my opinion.

whitser

well i keep dogs in pens out the garden and i also have an old springer thats retired into the house full time. i see nothing wrong with a dog in the garden as long as its not left solo all all day long. dogs are quite happy out the back,in fact they need their own space. a dog cant be the centre of attention the whole time. the op has done everthing right here, got all the hardware before the pups arrived. asked what to look out for etc.... if he wants to keep the dog out the back so be it.