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ltc
TL:dr version: We’ve had Willow about four days now and surviving. She is clearly smart and has no shortage of energy.
Long version. These things going well:
Training in general. She is really food driven and can laser focus. She quickly got sit, and ‘in’ (crate). She’s evolving mid lesson and we’re having to think on our feet.
Potty training. Yes we’ve had an accident or two, but last 48 hours have gone pretty well, of course we are setting timers etc to keep taking her out.
Crate. She’s happy to go in there, she’s sleeping and eating in it. She’s getting the hang of going in on command for a treat, even when not sleepy. Won’t stay in yet unless tired. Need a bigger one soon.
Cat and toddlers. No big dramas so far, our 18m.o. Human is a bit wary but 3 yo is fine, however see nipping below.
Things needing work:
Sleeping. We’ve done four nights with her downstairs on the futon with her crates. She’s done pretty well, sleeping for a few hours in between toilet breaks, and generally most of the night, she decides at some point in the small hours she wants to play and then it’s an hour to get her settled and back in the crate with the treat routine. Tonight we’re going to try leaving her alone... set alarms for Pre-emptive potty to try to stay one step ahead of her.
Biting, mouthing, nipping. All normal puppy behaviour I understand. Preferably distract with something she can chew. If she’s intent on going for us, gently close her mouth, calm her down. She’s generally soft mouthed but we want to iron it out early on. Our 3yo boy gets very excited with her of course and if they’re inside it can turn into a nip fest pretty quickly.
Being alone. When she’s awake, we generally go outside for some exercise (10-20 min depending how cold it is!) then inside for some play. She loves pulling on rope toys and suchlike. Or chewing an antler or dental stick. BUT we generally have to be in her ‘enclosure’ with her - if we potter around outside it, she whines and claws to get out. When this happens we are just waiting till she calms, rewarding her and then going back in for a bit. The plan is to gradually increase the length we leave her. I think part of the issue is our fully open-plan living space, of which she occupies a corner. Always something to be fomo of. I understand why people crate them in utility rooms and suchlike. We do have one, but it’s the cat’s domain, so we’d need a re-plan.
I wrote most of this post while she was contentedly chewing on my lap. Having never had one before, I’m getting the whole dog thing.