Naomi

Archie is getting much much better at the lead. I can see he finally understands what 'heel' actually means now. And I haven't had any lead tug-of-war issues with him for a while now. Although he understands it, his attention span is short and he doesn't hold it for very long. I just keep his training sessions short. We went to puppy school on Sunday and had a blast. :p He was sooo knackered all afternoon. It was pretty hard to hear what the instructor was saying. There were a lot of us and it was sooo windy. But she seemed to think Archie was doing well and she had some good advice.

Jakemon, ham is going on my shopping list!

Beautiful dog, pup, and cat. They are all very colour coordinated. Love the eyeliner that is coming on. I think Zee will keep those blue eyes.

Thanks Betsy! The 'eek' noise with Archie seems to hype him up more. I've found that he has improved lately. Most of his chewing is directed at toys because I give him lots of attention/praise whenever he chooses to play with them. Haha. Cats are a whole different matter. And likewise, I really enjoy Archie's go-go-go personality. I'm keen to do some sort of obedience training and I know that this boisterous nature will come in handy with that. I introduced him to a frisbee today. I threw it small distances and he was even bringing it back for me. Could be a possible future activity for when he is older. I always loved watching the athletic breeds catch the frisbees on youtube.

So you ended up using a water spray bottle? Where you using this just for when he was nipping at your legs or for when he was being naughty in general. I prefer the redirection idea but then it doesn't seem that the pup learns that the previous behavior was wrong, even though you have redirected to a better behavior. Was it between the 14 - 17 week mark you used the spray bottle? No I'm steering clear of using the crate for time outs. The crate is currently used to feed dinner in treat dispensers and for sleeping. Although I'm going to purchase 'Crate Games' over the weekend so I can start some full on crate training with Archie over the next few weeks. He tolerates the crate at the moment which is practical enough. But I want him to really love it. Haha. Archie is like this too at the moment. I always have a toy. I also have this puppy bitter stuff I spray on my hands but it doesn't seem to worry Archie. Oh dear. Don't think I'll be using that method in a hurry. ;) But he really was a cute puppy!! Archie is a livewire too. But I expected this in an Aussie. Funnily enough, the only thing Archie won't do is dig. I feel a lot better about handling him now. I remembered my brothers Labrador was the same as Archie when he was a puppy. Now he is the friendliest adult Labrador I have met. Just gotta be consistent with what I'm doing I guess. I love my pup, but now after having my first pup I can see why people would opt to adopt an adult dog. You really have to have a lot of time and dedication for them.

I finished listening to this one this morning. He suggest to feed all meals from food dispensing chew toys. At first in the crate, and later on moving on to a play area, and then finally progressing to leaving the pup to have full run of the house with these food toys while you are away. Archie won't be inside while we are gone. He is only a puppy and he would surely have an accident. Do you think his method would still work if I started Archie with dinner in chew toys in the crate, and then progress him to having these in his dog run instead of an inside play area like Ian Dunbar suggests? It was a great listen though. I'll have to teach Archie how to 'speak' and then 'shoosh' like he suggested. Except I lack a doorbell so I will have to find some other lure to get Archie to bark. Hah.

Kirst, they are devine!!! I've always loved Goldens (after Aussie's of course). My friend has one which I practically grew up with. Now I'm thinking I would like a Golden next. They are all really cute. I'm sure you'll end up with the perfect one for you.

That's amazing! Well done to you and Dante. He's a handsome dog without the makeup. In the ad his ears are down, but in the promo pictures they have his ears up. Was the filming done here or there? Any plans for him to star in other things?

Lovely pictures of Rebus and Halo. Rebus sounds adorable, and I'm already a huge Halo fan. I bought Archie home on the 11th of March. He is 10 and a half weeks old at the moment. He is seriously like velcro. Follows me everywhere, although he has become a bit more independent lately which means I need to get serious about a good recall. But he has a great 'sit' and 'drop'. Still working on 'stay', 'come' and some leash practice this week. I have puppy school on Sunday. I'm sooooo looking forward to it. I can't wait to have an obedient puppy. He is going through a bitey stage at the moment but I'm working through it and he is gradually improving. He is not laid back at all. Always on the go and always wanting to play. I love this! When he has a break I get to have a break too. LOL. Here is Archie at 8 weeks. Archie almost 9 weeks old. And Archie last weekend at 10 weeks old.

I should clarify that this post was about him out in the run, not the crate. When I say 'pen' I was referring to the run. Sorry for any confusion.

Thanks Meh. I had heard crate games mentioned once before but when I wanted to find out more about it I couldn't find it again. I will definitely look into this!! Stonecutter, thanks! I will check this out too. I appreciate the help.

Ok I think we are back at square one. He was doing okay for a while it seemed but at the moment he is still taking forever to settle. He is barking or howling every now and then but when he does it, he keeps it up for a while. I'm expecting a complaint from the neighbours any day now. I don't get it though. I'm leaving him with pigs ears to chew on, treats to find, and a treat dispensing toy (which I switch with the kong some days) as well as toys to play with (which are rotated) but when I watch him from inside he just ignores them completely while he whines?? I'm going to pick up some bones on the way home from work to try on him tomorrow. I'm just hoping he isn't barking during the day but it wouldn't surprise me. I put him in the pen half hour early today to see if he would settle before I left for work at 9. Just as I was typing he stopped. Only took him 25 minutes today. :D

Oh really? Where did you see her? It was probably Kenzie. She is a cutie! Archie can howl too. And bark. And whine. Oh joy. Haha. Haha. Still lurking and enjoying all the cute puppy photos. Here is my most recent one of Archie at 10 weeks. Here is a video of him at 9 weeks. He loves the beanbag. He went through a stage where he would run into the study and do a flying jump right into the middle of the beanbag. It was so funny. link He is doing well. He is directing most of his biting to his toys now which is really good! He seems to be irritated by his ears so I'm going to try and get him to the vets today to check that out. We start puppy school finally this weekend. I can't wait!! He is a smart dog but I would love some guidance with his training. I think I'll work on a good recall for the rest of the week. Because until he can behave well on the lead I need the safety of a good recall.

Love all the new photos. Gila, yours really stands out! I love the contrast the white background gives. I'll have to try that sometime. Here is week 3/52 of Archie.

I took Archie over to my parents place today. He loves exploring their garden. It is much more interesting than our rural block. He has grown so much in the 2 weeks we have had him!! He is 10 weeks now.

Lovely photos of Sid. He is growing up fast! What method are you using for leash training? I think I should start on recall soon. There are soo many things to teach them.

You asked for it! Here is little Archie at 9 weeks. He is 10 weeks old tomorrow! He starts puppy class next weekend. Our friend has also got a Rotti pup the same age as Archie and we plan for them to become best friends. Crate training has gone really well for Archie. He sleeps there at night and at the moment he is only getting up once or twice a night to go out to the toilet. He knows a good solid sit and drop. We are starting on stay, and also a bit of leash training. He hates the leash and tries to play tug of war. He is currently going through his biting stage. It upsetted me at first, but now I know that it is common for pup. But most importantly he is lots of fun!! He is very sweet and loves his belly rubs. He is so clever and he loves meeting all my family friends. Can't wait for him to meet other pups.

Thankyou for all your replies! They are really helpful. I assumed he will grow out of it. But being my first puppy, I felt like I was doing something wrong. It's nice to know it has happened to others. Misery loves company right? I think for now I am going to use time outs in a different room, and reinforce the crate as a positive experience. I don't think he feels crate the crate is his 'home' just yet so I will avoid that for time out areas for the mean time. He was at it again this morning so I put him into a time out in the laundry and waited until he had stopped crying. Once I let him out I ignored him for a further few minutes to make sure he was still calm (which he was) and then gave him gentle words and gentle pats for being good. Since then he looks as if he was going to start up again a couple of times but I said "uh-uh" which he understands well (but sometimes he chooses to ignore), but this time he didn't ignore the "uh-uh" and he left my legs alone. KTB - I've read through the thread and it really echos my situation!! Here I was feeling like it was the first person it had ever happened to. Your thread has been really helpful! How long before Elbie stopped the behavior? Just to be clear when you say "wouldn't recommend it for Archie given everything is still so new for him" do you mean the crate time outs, or time outs in general? It's funny you should say that Hoover isn't mouthy. When we picked out Archie he wasn't mouthy at all compared to the other pups. Just a late bloomer I guess. RallyValley - Last night the behavior got me upset to because I felt like I had tried everything. I was feeling like it was out of my control. Like KTB said, I just want cuddles but I felt like Archie hates me. I admit I was being overly emotional about the situation and I know that you can't train a dog with that attitude. But I had a very bad week and day, and I think Archie's behavior was just the tip of the iceberg (or is it the icing on the cake?) for me.

I wasn't keen on using the crate. In case he saw the crate as a punishment instead of his safe place? Maybe popping him in a different room for a bit until he settles?

Over the last couple of days Archie seems to be a bit aggressive in play? It's my first pup so I'm not sure if it is normal play biting or aggressive biting. It's really unsettling because I feel like I'm failing as a dog owner, because I don't know what's causing it and it seems what ever I try seems to aggravate it. If we are walking around he will jump at our legs and wrap his paws around our legs while teething our trousers. Usually he barks or growls as well. Is this a herding instinct thing? If I say "no" it makes him more hyped up and nippy. If I ignore him he still nips at the back of my leg anyway. He has been fine up until now. I'm really unsure what to do. I've been rewarding him when he does the good things. When he plays with his own toys I give him heaps of attention and praise. If he gets nippy at our hands I usually redirect to a toy as well.

Thanks guys! My friend has just got a pup the same age as Archie, so maybe lots of play time with him? I don't know many other people with dogs. Our neighbour has a friendly lab but he is quite large. Archie is coming with us to the local shops later.

Thanks Kirst. That's what I thought. I had already called them and they said he could come along and bring his vaccination sheet. I've just found out though that apparently puppy class isn't on this weekend because of grading or something. I can't really delay his first puppy class until he is 11 weeks!! I'll have to go to the other puppy class which is further away. But I don't want to pay the joining and lesson fee only for one lesson at the other puppy class. Sigh. Minor set back. Oh well. Here is a video of Archie at 9 weeks old. link And here are a couple of pics I took of Archie today. He's discovered the bean bag in my study. He'll run into the room and do a flying jump into the middle of the beanbag. :p

Just a question about socializing and vaccinations. Archie goes to his first puppy school this weekend but he is not fully vaccinated. I had someone tell me they shouldn't go until they have finished all vaccinations? And can Archie socialise with older dogs as long as their vaccinations are up to date? Where can I take him (carrying) to expose him to new people and places? I've taken him to my parents place, and a friends place. Neither of which have pets. He has also had a lot of visitors. Just want to get him well socialized. Just not 100% what is and isn't safe at the moment.

Thanks everyone. I absolutely adore him. Now he knows 'drop' as well. So clever! OH is away during the week. He said Archie had grown when he came back. I see him every day so I can hardly tell. He has his first puppy class next Sunday morning! I can't wait. Our friends just got a Rotti pup so they will be at the same puppy class too.

I was just about to take my photo for week two of Archie but my camera battery was flat. So instead I'll use this one from earlier in the week. I swear he has grown since this one was taken.