My New Lab Puppy

[Guest]

Hi there

My DH and I just brought home our new lab puppy yesterday morning. Overall, she's been really good - she's very eager to please. She already seems to know how to sit inside of jump up to get our attention. She's used to being outside and prefers to do her business on the grass ( yay, i didn't know puppies came house trained ). I thought she'd be happy to pee on newspaper in the middle of the night and once we go back to work late next week, but she got distressed last night (i tried to ignore her, but in the end took her out, and she still cried a bit but not for too long after going out to the toilet). I don't mind getting up to take her out at night, but I'm wondering what to do during the day... I've thought of 2 possible options:

1. We could install a doggie door and fence off part of the yard (our yard is huge and no way could we let her have complete access), but we have some concrete steps with a large drop off at the side (for a small puppy). She's only 8.5 weeks, so I'd like to wait to she's a bit bigger before letting her outside unsupervised (although she is used to being outside at her breeders).

2. We also cut a chunk of lawn out and put it in a litter tray this morning, so another option is to train her to use that... the room she's in is about 3.2 x 2.2m and we've got it in the opposite corner to her bed and bowls. Is this going against her nesting instinct though?

DH will come home a lunchtimes and I'll work a day a week from home, so this arrangement would be for 4 days each week. DH finishes his contract at the end of June and will have a least 2 weeks off with her then.

What do others think? It seems a bit odd to train a dog to pee inside who naturally wants to go outside... sorry for the longwinded post...

Edited June 12, 2010 by Guest

[Miranda]

1. We could install a doggie door and fence off part of the yard (our yard is huge and no way could we let her have complete access), but we have some concrete steps with a large drop off at the side (for a small puppy). She's only 8.5 weeks, so I'd like to wait to she's a bit bigger before letting her outside unsupervised (although she is used to being outside at her breeders).

This is probably the best option, but I don't like the idea of a large breed puppy going up and down steps and you would also have to block the drop off at the side. You would also have to teach her to use the doggy door.

Can you purchase a portable run and a kennel and put her in that during the day? It is always handy to have a way of confining your dog even when she's old enough to have free run of the entire yard.

There is no way I'd be encouraging a lab puppy to soil inside the house, they grow very quickly and in a couple of weeks she will be producing good sized poos and lots of wee. Continue to take her out at night, expecting her to use newspaper at night, but go outside during the day will only confuse her.

Edited June 12, 2010 by Miranda

[Mas1981]

You could get a puppy pen and make a pen for her where she has some shelter and some grass if possible?

[aussielover]

agree with the dog run/puppy pen ideas for the daytime.

Your pup should be able to hold through the night, just give her a few days to settle.

I also have a 9 week old lab puppy and she holds on from around 11-7am.

Are you crate training her? This might help overnight.

Also I find if I do a big training session and play session just before bedtime, my puppy is really tired and will sleep straight away.

[Guest]

Thanks for the ideas guys

Unfortunately we don't have any fixed shelter in our backyard (only a few small-medium sized trees) so the play pen would have to be completely out in the open. I want her to be able to come inside - it gets quite cold and wet in winter where we are. And in summer, it gets really hot in the yard. Her den is the sunroom out the back and we weren't planning on crate training.

I spoke to my dad today and he's installing a doggy door on Monday (will need to be huge!). Tomorrow we'll fence off half the yard. We went to Home Hardware this afternoon to buy some wire fencing material etc (brought the puppy with us, as she hasn't been out and about yet).

As for the steps, well that is the most nerve wracking part for me. I'll see what we can do to puppy proof the sides. There's only about 4 ot 5 steps down and they aren't that steep. I was carrying her down, but she is negotiating them carefully but confidently now. Being a lab, I'm worried about the long-term damage on her hips. (Maybe I'm worrying too much though... I'd rather she was well adjusted and happy)

Your pup should be able to hold through the night, just give her a few days to settle.

I also have a 9 week old lab puppy and she holds on from around 11-7am.

thanks aussielover, i hope my girl has the same bladder control soon!

[Double Lab Love]

Thanks for the ideas guys

Unfortunately we don't have any fixed shelter in our backyard (only a few small-medium sized trees) so the play pen would have to be completely out in the open. I want her to be able to come inside - it gets quite cold and wet in winter where we are. And in summer, it gets really hot in the yard. Her den is the sunroom out the back and we weren't planning on crate training.

I spoke to my dad today and he's installing a doggy door on Monday (will need to be huge!). Tomorrow we'll fence off half the yard. We went to Home Hardware this afternoon to buy some wire fencing material etc (brought the puppy with us, as she hasn't been out and about yet).

As for the steps, well that is the most nerve wracking part for me. I'll see what we can do to puppy proof the sides. There's only about 4 ot 5 steps down and they aren't that steep. I was carrying her down, but she is negotiating them carefully but confidently now. Being a lab, I'm worried about the long-term damage on her hips. (Maybe I'm worrying too much though... I'd rather she was well adjusted and happy)

Your pup should be able to hold through the night, just give her a few days to settle.

I also have a 9 week old lab puppy and she holds on from around 11-7am.

thanks aussielover, i hope my girl has the same bladder control soon!

Hi Shebu,

Your set up sounds very similiar to ours and I had two 8 week old Lab puppies to contend with

We have no real shelter outside and a big back yard that was too big to let them have full access - esp as OH and I both work fulltime - but luckily no stairs.

We did bring them them home early March so weather wasn't an issue then and like you we have a sunroom which is now their den - and we didnt crate train either.

What we did was to fence off a part of the yard next to the sunroom and put a big gazebo over it to shelter them but there was a small part of the yard which they could lie out in the sun if they wanted to. We put a massive kennel out there for them as well ( blankets etc) which they were both happy to snuggle into at night. They were allowed into the sunroom whem we were home and supervised as they were too destructive in the first couple of months and we did put newspaper in there for them which we toilet trained with great success (her) and varying degrees (him)

We have spent ALOT of time in that sun room since March !!!

On the weekends they were allowed out in the "big yard" - again fully supervised - to see how they went...

But like your puppy they were much happier toileting outside (which they did in their small yard) so we just left the sunroom door open and encourged them to go out after play / eating /drinking and making a massive fuss of them - my neighbours think I am complete idiot

But it did eventually work...

OH and I had a week off work early May and were confident at the end of that week they were fine to be in the big yard ( plus they were getting too big!) so we pulled down the barrier and they have been running around ever since - but kept the gazebo up for shelter. They now sleep in the sunroom at night on their snuggle beds (for the last few weeks) and we have had no toilet issues

We also been gradually introducing them to inside the house - one room at a time - and they have been really good with sitting on their blanket and watching TV with us at night

Although I think the time where we can leave them inside unsupervised overnight is still a long time away..... judging what they did to the cushions in my sunroom 3 weeks ago

Sorry for the long winded reply - and hope it makes sense .... but having a sort of similiar set up - I thought it might help.....

And always nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel - I lost sight a few times after a couple of particlularly challenging days with them :D

[Guest]

Hi Shebu,

Your set up sounds very similiar to ours and I had two 8 week old Lab puppies to contend with

We have no real shelter outside and a big back yard that was too big to let them have full access - esp as OH and I both work fulltime - but luckily no stairs.

We did bring them them home early March so weather wasn't an issue then and like you we have a sunroom which is now their den - and we didnt crate train either.

What we did was to fence off a part of the yard next to the sunroom and put a big gazebo over it to shelter them but there was a small part of the yard which they could lie out in the sun if they wanted to. We put a massive kennel out there for them as well ( blankets etc) which they were both happy to snuggle into at night. They were allowed into the sunroom whem we were home and supervised as they were too destructive in the first couple of months and we did put newspaper in there for them which we toilet trained with great success (her) and varying degrees (him)

We have spent ALOT of time in that sun room since March !!!

On the weekends they were allowed out in the "big yard" - again fully supervised - to see how they went...

But like your puppy they were much happier toileting outside (which they did in their small yard) so we just left the sunroom door open and encourged them to go out after play / eating /drinking and making a massive fuss of them - my neighbours think I am complete idiot

But it did eventually work...

OH and I had a week off work early May and were confident at the end of that week they were fine to be in the big yard ( plus they were getting too big!) so we pulled down the barrier and they have been running around ever since - but kept the gazebo up for shelter. They now sleep in the sunroom at night on their snuggle beds (for the last few weeks) and we have had no toilet issues

We also been gradually introducing them to inside the house - one room at a time - and they have been really good with sitting on their blanket and watching TV with us at night

Although I think the time where we can leave them inside unsupervised overnight is still a long time away..... judging what they did to the cushions in my sunroom 3 weeks ago

Sorry for the long winded reply - and hope it makes sense .... but having a sort of similiar set up - I thought it might help.....

And always nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel - I lost sight a few times after a couple of particlularly challenging days with them

Thanks Double Lab Love It's good to hear from someone with a similar set-up. Shebu loves the yard, and I'd feel mean keeping her cooped up inside, but it is so big and she could get up to all sorts of mischief My dad came over yesterday and installed a doggie door and helped us put up temporary wire mesh across half the yard. She still has three trees to sit under/destroy . We've also got a kennel and she's curious about it, but doesn't stay in there for long. We're also going to build her a little doggie pergola down the side of the house for summer. She wasn't very confident with the doggie door yesterday but today she's negotiating it really well

Edited June 15, 2010 by Guest