Oh What a Night

[benji]

We've had our 12 week old with us for 4 days now.
He had been so good overnight, not made a sound, all mess on the newspaper etc....until last night!

We put him in the kitchen (where he stays overnight) at about 11:30pm and within 10 minutes he was howling, crying, whining and jumping up at the door.
My hubby and I tried so hard to stay strong and stay away but gave in by 2 o'clock after no sleep and the constant howling.

We gave him a little love and put the radio on but again within 10 minutes he was crying again.

This time we did persevere, more because we were shattered and frustrated than anything else I think!!

Is this the best thing to do? Why has he suddenly started doing this when he was so good the first 2 nights?
He did sleep all evening so perhaps we should have spent some time playing with him before we went to bed in order to tire him out?

Your thoughts are much appreciated!!

[Cob-Web]

It probably means he has got over the "shock" of his new home, and has begun to settle in and bond with you as a family 

While this is obviously a good sign - it can mean sleepless nights for a little while 

There are lots of threads about how to deal with it - some people say you should leave them to cry, others prefer to allow the pup to sleep in a bedroom, and I spent the first few nights sleeping downstairs with Molo until he had learnt to settle on his own.

Whichever you decide, the secret is consistancy - don't swop and change your approach and all puppies learn to settle at night eventually  If you do decide to leave your pup alone, remember that they only have small bladders, so you may need to set an alarm to let Benji out to pee/poo in the night for a few weeks yet 

[Joules]

He may just have been knackered the first 2 nights!  It is still all very new for him and he is away from his mum and litter mates for the first time  in a strange place - not surprising it can be stressful.  

You are right to stay strong though - are you using a crate?  I found this a godsend and it makes a pup feel more secure to be in a confined cosy space - they are den animals after all  I put a cardboard box with a blanket and put a blanket over the crate to make it cosy - Coco was much more settled after that.  I really recommend getting one - pups like to have a safe place to retreat to during the day and it is a safe place to put him when you cannot be watching him - I think it helps with housetraining too.  If you don't have a crate you could just make him a cosy bed out of a cardboard box.   I also put a warm cuddly toy in with her so she could snuggle up to it.  Some people put a piece of their clothing eg a sock or t-shirt you have been wearing. Once you know he is comfy and secure with his sleeping place, doesn't need to go out etc and there is no obvious reason for him to be distressed, just put in some earplugs and stick to your guns.   If you go to him when he cries, you are rewarding that behaviour and it is more difficult to put a stop to it.  

Good luck!  I hope you have a better night tonight!  

[benji]

Thanks guys - yes makes sense that he's comfortable with us now and that's why it's suddenly started.
A good thing I suppose but we weren't feeling that way at 4:15 this morning!!

We don't have a crate but have made a bed out of a cardboard box with an old dressing gown of mine which he loves.

I feel sorry for the little mite as he's going to find tonight even harder, we've got a party arranged and have about 20 people coming round.
We spoke to the breeder about it as we felt it would be better to bring him home after the party but she said he needs to get used to our lifestyle and it shouldn't cause any problems...and then told us to shut him in the garage!! There's no way we could bring ourselves to do that but we were comforted that she wasn't worried...until now as we feel he's going to find it quite difficult with all the noise, too many people at once etc.
We've decided to shut him in the spare bedroom upstairs away from everyone and one of us will go up every 20 minutes or so to check on him and make sure he's ok...
After last night though I'm even more concerned than ever, so much so that neither hubby nor I are now looking forward to our own party!

I would take him to a friend's/neighbours for the night but it's just not fair as he's not toilet trained!

[Cob-Web]

We spoke to the breeder about it as we felt it would be better to bring him home after the party but she said he needs to get used to our lifestyle and it shouldn't cause any problems...and then told us to shut him in the garage!!

 

Mmm 

Most good breeders avoid homing puppies around Christmas so that this type of hussle and bustle can be avoided as it can really upset a puppy

I would suggest at least one of you stays reasonably sober so you are able to offer him comfort - he will be able to hear the noise of the party and be very anxious about being isolated all evening 

[Penel]

What a shame you haven't got a crate then, because tonight it would be ideal for him.  I wouldn't shut him in a bedroom all the time, let him do some socialising - you won't have the opportunity often when you have 20 different people in your house !!! obviously if people are p*ssed, then you'll need to be careful in case he gets trodden on etc....  a confident puppy will be able to cope with it - but a nervous puppy could be made more nervous - so I am hoping he's confident !!!

[JaspersMum]

I'm for the crate as well although they do take quite a bit of room, we put the box inside and paper in the other half, then covered the cage with a throw to make it cosy and safe and you know that they can't cause any damage to the house or themselves whilst they are there.

Worked for us and as we already had another dog, kept them safe from one another in the early days.  Make sure you buy one big enough to use long term as the pups do grow very quickly!

Has the breeder (or any friends) got a cage you could borrow for tonight to see how it goes, especially if he's got to be in the spare room, it'll be something he can move in but still be familiar with?

[benji]

Perhaps we should leave him downstairs at first and see how he gets on, I would certainly like him to be confident so would hope it will help!!

But I doubt very much I will drink now as too concerned about him!!  And I'd rather he went outside every hour (which means meeting people) otherwise all our hard work with the housetraining over the last 3 days will have gone to waste!!

[benji]

Just thought I would say that Benji was amazing on NYE's!
He stayed downstairs until 10pm ish when there were about 16 people in the house.  He was so good, pleased to see everyone!
But I decided to take him upstairs when he poo'ed in the living room and started eating it, think some of our guests were a little grossed out haha!

Took him upstairs to the spare bedroom which we'd kitted out with newspaper, bed, radio and toys etc.
He cried for 5 minutes then we didn't hear a single peep out of him until 8:30 am!!

It's times like these that I feel really confident about his progress, but I do feel perhaps I want too much too quickly from him.
He's only been with us 5 days although it feels a lot longer!
I knew that this would be hard work but I had no idea how much worry and stress looking after a puppy can be!!!
One minute I feel like he's the best thing since sliced bread and the next I'm crying because I feel we've taken on too much!

We'll get there I know..I just wish someone could tell me how long it will be until he's toilet trained but I understand that it's different for every pup.

Is it normal for a pup to eat their own poo?  How can we try and teach Benji that it's not the best idea?!!

Thanks, Karen

[JaspersMum]

Maybe he just wanted to help you clear up Karen! 

Bet Guests loved it - I can imagine what some of my friends would say! (or think)

Glad it went well on NYE, sometimes we build these things up so far and then we realise we worried over nothing but it was far better to be prepared and have a backup plan ready, you were probably more relaxed knowing that you had the matter in hand and that would rub off on pup anyway.

[Joules]

Yes, poo eating is normal - one of those delightful doggy habits that no one mentions.  Pretty revolting I know. Coco did it on my sister's kitchen floor last Christmas Day - one of the main reasons why I insisted on staying at home this year!  She did stop short of eating it though which is unusual as she tends to eat it if there is a squeamish person watching!   Coco used to eat hers all the time but now she is not so keen - she prefers horse, rabbit or cow if she has a choice    She knows I don't want her to eat it though - I just had to try and be there and say a firm "no" and offer her a more tasty treat when she was about to grab a mouthful.  Had to be pretty quick though!    She is much better than she was though.

Re housetraining - obviously it varies but I have read that you should not expect too much before they are a year old.  That means the odd accident I suppose.  Coco didn't really do anything in the house after about 4 months but I continued taking her outside at very frequent intervals until she was about one ie about every half hour at first then every hour or so.  If the door was open she would go outside on her own.

Yes it is hard work - I was also beside myself at times wondering what on earth I had done.  In fact, if I am honest I really didn't enjoy the puppy stage as much as I expected to.  Apart from constantly cleaning up messes, there is the stress of "am I feeding her right?" worries about bowel activity, training etc and sleepless nights and early mornings do not help 

Honestly, you are not alone and it does get better so just persevere and in a couple of months you will think how much easier things are!

[Krisdt]

Loki is pretty much house trained (only 2 accidents in the house in the last month) and he is 5 months old. I spose all dogs are different as loki loves it when we have guests over (at least once a week) we started off by giving each new visitor a treat to give Loki so he would not see them as a threat (he has taken a real shine to a couple of our friends (he evn greeted one with a bark and a play growl  on NYE) Loki stays in the living room with us when we have guests and he usually has a play with each of them a couple of times before lying at my feet. We still take him for a quick walk so he can go potty every couple of hours if there are strange peeps here as he has forgotten to ask to go out cos of all the excitement. We have also used a crate from day one and he goes in it himself when he is tired (if the sofa is taken  ) It just takes time and persevierance with a pup and he will soon know what to do