playing

[Rusty]

Hi Everybody

Please tell me how you all play with your cocker spaniels. We are fed up trying :? Everytime we try to play with Rusty he ends up eating bits of twigs or pegs or scratching my flooring I'm stumped don't know how to get his attention and keep it. please could you give me some idea's as the only games he wants to play with us is aggressive games and biting. :x

Elle & Rusty xx                    

[Pammy]

Elle - have you spoken to Rusty's breeder? You seem to be struggling a bit with him and you can easily find yourself in a viscious circle that is hard to break out of. What is his breeding - is he from a reputable breeder? If so then they will be only too willing to help you overcome your problems and help you through this difficult time.

It sounds like you could benefit from some one to one help here which is difficult to give over this medium.

Have you got yourself a copy of The Perfect Puppy by Gwen Bailey? It really is a godsend to owners of new puppies. The key with puppies is consistency and patience. You must also be confident with him. If he senses you are becoming anxious then that will increase his excitement/anxiety and make his behaviour worse. It's easy to look to food but it's more likely a combination of things that's making him difficult.

Read our FAQ's - get hold of the book if you haven't already and then decide as a family how you are going to handle Rusty and make sure you all do the same thing.


hth                    

[Jane S]

Elle, I would echo what Pam has said & urge you to contact your breeder ASAP, assuming you bought Rusty from somewhere reputable. As a breeder myself, I would want to know if one of my new owners was having trouble coping & be there to provide the necessary back up. It seems from reading your posts that you are finding the realities of owning a puppy quite a bit different from what you imagined. Unfortunately, baby puppies are not sweet & cuddly (well, perhaps when they are asleep ) & new owners need lots of patience & persistence to get through the first few weeks/months but if you can persevere & follow the advice you have been given on the other threads, there is light at the end of the tunnel If you have read some of the other threads, you'll see how common it is for new owners to struggle initially but that things almosts always get better with time & a consistent approach to training from all members of the family.

Jane                    

[net_masters]

Just to back up what has already been said, our Staffy/Lurcher pup Loki has been a real nightmare.  We knew having a pup woul dbe hard, but it has been truly awful, and I have been practically tearing my hair out constantly since we got him.

But, he's 5 months old now, and although toilet training is still a bit hit and miss, he's becoming a beautiful little dog.  He's not as manic as he was, sits on command, and he will sit at your feet and offer you his paw bless him, doing that daft floppy eared, head on one side thing that pups do so well!

It really is such hard work, but then your pup will do something really small and insignificant, and will totally melt your heart, then it will all seem worth it.

It's like living in a cartoon in our house, it's so manic all the time, but I wouldn't change it for the world............                    

[s baxter]

alfie 11wks likes a few fav games one is playing with a large blanket in the garden i think he pretends he`s caught it he drags it along a bit jumps on it then holds it in his mouth and shakes it,it`s quite funny to watch. i hide treats in his bed scattered in between layers of bedding and once he gets a sniff of them he goes of digging in his bed ,he also loves his kong esp if it`s stuffed with a bit of dairylea,this i alternate with a ball we have that you can fill with treats that fall out randomly.he also loves his cotton chewy thing like rope with a knot on each end,(this one is suppose to smell of chocolate to dogs),but i have learnt you must be in control ie if outside you decide it`s time to come inside come in. i come in put alfie in this puppy pen and ignore him to settle and have a rest i`ve been quite strong about it and he`s great at settling down or occuping himself with a chew toy or have a rest or sleep .also remember not too many treats they are ment to come  out of the daily food allowance/ rec,but please correct me anyone if i`ve heard that wrong                    

[Rusty]

Hi Everyone

Thanks to all for your replies,I have spoke to the breeder about the biting and he has gave me a few tips to try with rusty I also spoke to the vet about it and he told me similiar things to try So I am hoping things are looking up he is still biting but I think perserverance and us all doing the same thing with him, we will all come out the other end in tact
We also went on his first walk today and it went very well better than I expected   Rusty is such a beautiful looking pup and I 'm sure everything will fall into place soon
Thanks again

Elle & Rusty xx                    

[padfoot]

It will   They are not hooligans forever providing the work is put in during the first 6-12 months.
I'm not surprised small puppies are such a shock to people. Like babies, it's something that people often don't talk about, or forget with time.
It's great you are talking to his breeder, and keep posting here if you have worries.                    

[PennyB]

Also one thing I found was that you become more immune to some of their bad/trying behaviour and don't tear your hair quite as much and then you just deal with working on this new unwanted behaviour without too much fretting.

With my two you solve one thing and then something else happens that I have to work on and I just take it all in my stride now.