chugo101

Tom is 5 and in prep so out most of the day and Holly is 4 and only in 3 year old kinda once a week so in most of the time with me. At the moment they say a firm 'Daphne No Bite' and stand up but she just keeps on doing it. She jumps lots too, and we say 'Daphne No, Down' but this isn't working either. She's brilliant at sitting for food, and when she knows we'll play fetch with a toy, even in doorways but she just isn't getting the 'stay' and 'no nipping & jumping' rule. It doesn't seem to affect the kids too much, Tom just gets disappointed with her and I explain that she'll grow out of it and Holly cries if she gets hurt but then forgets about it and says how much Daphne is 'her baby'! They've never lost their temper with her either which is good; I just keep explaining that Daphne is only a baby and we as a family need to teach her how to play nicely. Any advice you can give me would be great!

Hi, Daphne is great, she's now 11weeks old and has settled in really well. She's still sleeping in a small pen in our bedroom and we have very peaceful nights, she just walks right on in there, crashes out and we don't hear from her til my hubby gets up for work at 5:30am which wakes her. He then takes her out for wees and then puts her in the laundry with the back door open while he gets ready for work. He generally gets to play with her for about 20minutes before he leaves when she's put back in the laundry til I'm up and showered at about 7am. She seems happy with this routine and only whimpers for seconds when shes left. When we're all up she just plays around my feet while I'm organising the kids. She still follows me everywhere (she's asleep at my feet in the study as I type) but I enjoy the fact she loves me and likes me close. Through the day she's good and goes outside to play loads. She still loves digging, her stone and dirt eating has reduced but she still does it. She doesn't have a spot for weeing, she just tends to do it anywhere but she seems to go to the same area for poos 90% of the time (this isn't the place we trained her to go but at least its in one place!). The only time she wees indoors is if I leave her with the kids with the hall door shut while I race to the loo, she occasionally wees by the door while shes waiting for me. The other thing she does which is quite annoying is everytime my son leaves his bedroom door open she'll run in, give a quick squirt of wee on his big teddy and then act like she's done nothing; I'm assuming she's just marking as she's not supposed to go in the kids rooms? She'll sit on command almost everytime and we're teaching her to fetch now too. I've been trying to get her to sit and stay but that's not sinking in as yet. I figure if I can get her to do this it'll be great for keeping her out of the kids rooms while I'm popping in and out. She eats Eagle Pack Holistic Large/Giant Breed Puppy formula and loves it, she also loves, cheese, carrot, pasta and anything that will make a right mess on the floor. Her favourite toy is a big cuddly polar bear who she fights with regularly and she also LOVES ice cubes!! I was getting one for my wine one evening when I accidentally dropped one on the floor, she had so much fun that now everytime I'm in the kitchen preparing dinner with my nightly glass (or 3) of wine she has icecubes to entertain herself! My only real issue I have is the constant nipping and it is constant, all the time, non stop and no matter what we do she just won't stop, she also jumps up all the time. I'm not look forward to when she can actually get onto the sofa as the kids 'safe place' will be no more! I guess its an age thing and she'll grow out of it - fingers crossed. I haven't took many piccys as she doesn't keep still long enough, I'll try to take more soon. Thanks for your interest.

Well re the 'marking' the reason I say that is we visited the family (who has dogs) and they wee'd inside (no poop) everywhere (very embarassing and why we now travel with crate and playpen), not big amounts but lots of little wees as though they were marking and I think it was because of the other dog smells. They have not ever done that type of wee marking since. Only guessing mind you, but that's what it looked like to me and I know Daphne isn't doing it because she can smell other dogs but she may want to mark her smell into each room? But we're in a rental at the mo while our house is being built and the previous tennants had a dog and a cat? maybe thats it? Oh, whatever it is I hope she gets over it soon, its just strange that its took her a week to start doing it? you'd think she'd have done it straight away?

Oh you do make me laugh and I so know the frustration your feeling. I don't have any perfect answer for you though. I'm kind of wondering if she is marking. We deny access to any carpeted area (have barriers up all over the place) Mine are 13 weeks old now and only now really showing signs of very few accidents. It's constant and you're still in early days yet. I'd deny access until she's better toilet trained. Have you tried puppy training pads. While mine will shred them if left with them overnight, they are attracted to that spot and I have one placed near front and back door when they are loose in the house to encourage them to head in that direction for pee/poop. Do they mark then?I thought maybe she was but wasn't sure they did this? I haven't tried puppy training pads but maybe I'll have to give them a go if she's no better soon! It is funny though, and at least I'm seeing the funny side of it rather than getting wound up by it. She doesn't poo inside so thats a bonus (although I shouldn't speak to soon as she'll probably be doing that next too!!!) Just a shame they don't do potty training pants for pups!!

Ohhh Chugo101!!! She is gorgeous ......and what a look of "Hmmmm what can I get up to out here mum!!" As someone said, she may follow you around now but watch out .. sooon she will be up to all sorts of mischief without mum in sight Have you tried putting her on a light lead when you take her out to toilet and standing like a lamp post in the middle of the lawn where she can't get to the stones? (mine got stuck into the bark chips so I know where you are coming from)Other idea perhaps to put one of the pens that you have in teh bedroom (minus the bedding of course) out on the lawn and put her in it for 15 minutes or so until she goes. Perhaps stay out there and watch .. if you see her starting to go mark the 'Go Wee' (or whatever cammand you choose) as she is doing whatever and then praise her and let her out? Just a thought ... not really wisdom .... I was the lamp post with young Noodle .... noting interesting happened until she went to the toilet. As Noodle got bigger I have continued to say 'Go Wee' if I take her outside before she goes in her crate for the night. Just persistence. Oh yeah,... 'Urine off' works well when cleaning up inside ... and paper towel ... I nearly bought shares in the company the first few weeks. PS Good to see you have the camera out too ...... I love seeing all the photos of the pups .... a lovely 'Ohhhhhhh' moment. Unfortunately we have gravel and bark chippings all over!!!.... And only a small area of lawn (which she likes to eat too), she loves playing outside so its impossible to stop her and I'm hoping she'll just grow out of it. It doesn't seem to have done her any harm so far!!???.... and look on the positive side.. the only thing she doesn't like to eat is her own poo!!!!

The latest on Daphne.... We're still going great through the night, Daphne goes to bed in her small pen in our bedroom about 10pm and doesn't wake until 4:30am when she cries to go out for a pee & poo. In the day when I pop out for an hour or 2 she goes in her larger pen in the laundry, she cries when she goes in but is good whilst in there and theres rarely any mess for me to clean up when I'm back. However, when I'm in its a different story, and she seems to be getting worse not better! She can be outside playing for ages, and pee whilst shes out there but then she'll come back in and just pee where she's standing. Until yesterday she had never pee'd on the living room carpet (only the tiled areas) now she's peeing there too. Also if she follows me into the kids room when I'm distributing clean washing she squats as soon as we get in there and pee's, even if just moments before she's been outside for one? She does this in my bedroom too?? It just doesn't make any sense? Would there be a reason for her doing this? (these are rooms she's not allowed in normally) Also sometimes she doesn't even look like shes peeing, she sits down and does it without even squatting, resulting in her having a wet bum, wet paws and me having a wet floor. We never tell her off, we just say 'No Daphne' 'Outside' and put her outside whilst we clean up. It just seems never ending as I'm following all the training advice of taking her out all the time but she'll pee outside then inside 2 minutes later. This morning she even went outside, pee'd then came in for her breaky then stopped mid chomp to pee where she was sitting, then continued to eat!? Its a bloody good job we love her so much!!!!!

Let me know how you go with this labmummy as I may give it a go with our Daphne too. Although she'll probably just try to eat the bell!! :D

Thanks again, we really appreciate all the responses, its good to get the reassurance. I guess with the crate training its just that when I'm in the house most of the day I want to spend the time with her rather than crate her. She's in a small pen which only fits her bed in over night (which is working great) and then a larger pen with bed and newspaper in the day when I pop out. I do watch her constantly but she doesn't circle, sniff or give any other signs before she pees, shes a little minx but I'm patient and its all good practice. I think we'll continue as we are as it sounds as though we're doing everything right. Also today we have noticed that she stayed asleep on the living room floor when we walked away so we may have made progress there. We've had a lovely day, even took her out in the car to see the sea (as we live in Torquay its only 5 mins from our house), we got the kids an ice-cream and all sat in the car watching the waves, it was just lovely. Daphne just fell asleep on the back seat and didn't try to pinch any ice-creams, we were amazed! I'll keep you all posted on her progress, its only been 5 days so I'm not expecting miracles. Mercedes - Daphnes parents had good hip scores so we're hoping she'll be fit and well. I wouldn't be able to tell from looking as I'm a complete novice to raising dogs. Thanks for the comment though, great that you can see it!

Thanks for your advice, we didn't really want to crate train but I think I'll definitely put her in her pen more in the day when she's sleepy just to ensure she rests well. Thanks again, we'll keep working at it!

Oh My......... I thought I'd prepared myself for the hard work...... my friends say it’s like having a baby again, BUT babies stay in one place and wear nappies!!!!!! We bought Daphne our 8 week old yellow Labrador home on Wednesday, she's beautiful, fantastic and we all love her soooo much. The car journey home (2hours) was fairly easy, she whined a little, but was content to sit on my lap. She was happy exploring the house when we arrived home and her first night was pretty easy, she whined a little in her pen in our bedroom but soon settled, she woke at 3am and we took her out for a pee & poo, she did this within 5-10mins of being out and then she settled back down til 5:30am, this has been the same since, making our night times pretty straight forward. She is also fine when I have to leave her in her larger pen in the laundry while I do school runs/shopping etc.. She cries when I first leave her but when I sneak back in there’s no crying so I guess she must settle herself well. When I’m in she follows me everywhere, if I sit to relax she’ll relax with me but if she’s asleep at my feet and I get up to make a cuppa she’ll get up and follow me to the kitchen and then lie by my feet, I move to the fridge for the milk, she’s up again to lie by me at the fridge. I guess it’s just her way of settling in and not wanting to be alone. I feel bad her getting up and down all the time but I need to carry on as normal and can’t sit with her constantly (otherwise I think she’ll turn into a very spoilt madam!). She plays well and loves the kids which is great, she’s very nippy but I think most pups are and we’re just saying ‘no’ to her and turning away if she does this. Her daytime housetraining is a struggle, when we take her outside she is more interested in eating everything in sight, bark chippings, dirt, stones, plants, you name it, she eats it. We’ve even noticed when picking up her poo that it’s full of stones. Is this normal? We try to discourage her from doing it but she pays no attention? Do we need to discourage her or is she just being a curious pup? Will she grow out of it? :rolleyes: Also, we could be outside for 15mins and her do nothing, but then a few minutes after being inside she’ll pee on the tiles? We say ‘no’ ‘outside’ and place her outside while we clean up; are we doing this right as we don’t seem to be getting anywhere with it? Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t all the time and she does pee & poo in the garden (for which she is rewarded with a treat and lots of fuss) but if she needs it when she’s not outside she’ll just do it on the tiles? Also she could pee & poo outside then 5 mins later inside, pee on the tiles? Its rather discouraging for us when we’ve stood outside with her for 20 minutes only to be rewarded by her coming inside and peeing on the tiles 2 minutes later. We currently take her outside after waking, after eating, before bed, and every 30-45mins inbetween times. I guess I just need reassurance that we’re doing the right thing really. I look forward to hearing your words of wisdom! :rolleyes:

Thanks all, feeling a bit more relaxed about it now! If I'm like this now what am I going to be like when she's here tomorrow! - Its more stressful than when I had my children!!

Its just so confusing when everyone has a different opinion. I'd rather her not have water in there and its cold here in Torquay now so there'll be no worry of her overheating? I just don't want to be denying her of something she needs?

I think I'll talk to the breeder when we collect her for their opinion too. I really want to do right by her but can just imagine her playing with the water.

Thanks for the replies. As there's not much room in her pen for anything more than her bed we think we'll leave the water bowl out and as we'll be getting up to toilet her in the night we'll offer her water then. At least she'll be close to us so we'll hear if she's distressed about anything.

I collect my Labrador pup 'Daphne' tomorrow and now I'm making all the preperations for her arrival I keep thinking of more questions!! Does my labrador pup need access to water through the night in her crate (well its more like a small pen), or as its 'sleep' time will she be ok til morning?

He's just beautiful!! We pick up our Lab puppy (Daphne) tomorrow. I'm so excited and only hope we have it fairly trouble free too! I'll be sure to let you know how it goes for us too!

Thanks all, have made lots of notes!!

Quick question; on the KONG Puppy Ziggies Healthy Puppy Treat packet, it states that its for puppies over 3 months of age? What do I give my puppy in the KONG before this age? I collect my Labrador Puppy on Wednesday and she'll be 8 weeks, just wanted her to have something to occupy her in the car as its a 2 hour journey back from the breeders? She's been reared on BARF and easily handles a chicken wing, however I don't really want her eating a chicken wing in the car!! Do you think she'll be ok with one of these Ziggies in her Puppy KONG?

Thanks for all the feedback, I'll still be giving my Labrador pup her breakfast in an 'entertaining' way, either treat ball, Kong, frozen Chaser ball (bought one yesterday as I thought it was a fab idea!) as I don't want her to feel too lonely when I'm out, its only 2 hours but from what I've heard they can get very lonely! If she doesn't seem happy and it doesn't work for us then I'll stop; but I'm definitely giving it a try.

Thanks for all your info sas, very helpful! And your dog is beautiful!!

I plan to put dry kibble in a treat ball so my puppy is entertained while I'm out for 2 hours in the morning. Surely if I feed her breakfast and then give her a treat ball as an occupier this means she'll be getting too much food? I only plan to do this for breakfast, lunch she'll have a chicken wing and dinner BARF patty. Surely this would be ok?

The whole diet thing has me a little paranoid about what to feed as it is so important to get it right with large breeds and I have had it drummed in to me to grow them slowly! Don't over feed. The breeder had them on premium dry food. I introduced them to BARF over a week and I have had no problems with upset tummies and they have perfect poop! (always a good sign) BARF is excellent and I use it for their evening meal. I use premium dry food (Nutrience) for breakfast and your idea of treat balls to keep her occupied is excellent. Having 2 pups makes it hard to monitor if they are both getting their fair share and so I need to separate them at feed times and this also makes it easier to teach them to sit and wait before I give them permission to eat. (took 2 days to teach the sit and 2 weeks for the 'wait' until I say 'ok' for them to eat...impatient little possums) For lunch they get either chicken necks or wings. I did read Dr Billinghursts 'Grow your pups with bones' book and would highly recommend it and it is an easy read. They keep me on my toes but I am enjoying every second. We're off to puppy school this weekend. :D Its good that you seem to be on the same wave length as me! I'd planned to do the chicken wing for lunch too. My plan is dry food in the treat ball for breaky while I'm not around, chicken wing for lunch and BARF pattie for evening meal. That way I'm hoping she'll be getting the best of everything! Good look with your two; your braver than me thats for sure!! I'm stressing enough about coping with one!!

Sounds great, I'd planned to give my labrador pup (we collect her Wednesday) a treat ball with dry food in for her breaky to keep her entertained while I'm on the school run and at aerobics. Your idea is great too so I'll be sure to give it a try and let you know how it goes!

Thanks for this, I've made a note of the paperwork I need to ensure I get. The pups are being reared on a BARF diet at the mo and its whether we stick to this or try to swap onto a dry food. I've bought some of the Dr B's BARF frozen patties but really I was hoping to put her onto something like Eagle Pack Holistic for Large/Giant breed puppies or maybe a mix of the two. What are you feeding? Any idea whether its best to gradually change diet or just do it straight away? I'm just worried about over/under feeding. Plus in the morning when I go out to do school drop off & aerobics I'm out for 2 hours so thought maybe dry food in a treat ball would be a good way to give her, her first meal of the day to occupy her while I'm out? We've got a puppy pen and I'm preparing myself for some hard work!

Oh, also, if anyone can advise of what paperwork I need to make sure the breeder supplies us with, that would be great too. Does the vet actually give them a report of some description when they get the puppies checked? Also registration papers?? Copies of the hip/elbow and eye results?? We want to go with a list to ensure we have copies of all the right things. Thanks guys