New Mini Dachshund Puppy (9 Weeks Old)

[Matt_D]

Hey there everyone.

I've been having a good read of these forums and it covers some great topics for puppy raising more inline with how we do things in Australia (rather than US/UK etc). A wealth of great information.

We've just taken home our new addition to the household for my wife and I - a little 8 week old Mini Dachshund we've called Dasha(original I know...). She's an only 'child' and will be spoilt with much love and affection from both of us.

We've been putting a puppy off for several years as we had grave fears about raising a puppy and both working full time in the city. But we came to the conclusion that unless we wait for kids or retirement we're just never going to get one of our own. So we've pledged to spend 3 weeks at home (off work) with her getting her into a routine,and introducing some gradual seperation exercises to get her used to someone not being at home with her 24/7.

I completely understand mixed opinions on the topic of both parents working, but we're determined to make it work for us & the new Dashie.

As expected the first few days have been a combination of many highs and excitement, along with some stress as you wonder if you’re doing the right thing training her. She’s now in her 5th day here and tearing around the house & yard like she’s been here for months!

I think she’s sleeping a lot better now after doing a lot of reading from sites like this, we’ve now got into the habit of ignoring her calls from her playpen/bed and finding she settles down fine and goes back to sleep. I think last night she slept all the way through from 10pm til 5am – good girl!

During the day I’ve been trying some separation exercises for 5/10/30 mins etc and once she’s quiet for 10 secs or more, then come & praise her heaps and play with her. I was a bit worried yesterday by how clingy she is. I know we’ve still got a few more weeks with someone at home all day with her, but I’m trying to ween her off the 24/7 attention.

I’ve got to keep reminding myself it’s early days and it’s just what puppies do. Obviously if I need to have a shower / toilet / lunch etc I put her in her pen. But she cries, whimpers and is now fully howling when I leave the room even for seconds after putting her in the pen the poor thing.

Does this sound like a usual phase and am I doing the right thing by trying to wait each time til she settles down then coming & seeing her?

She does the same thing even if she can see me in the room & she’s behind the bars of the playpen. But I think she settles a bit quicker then when I’m out of the room.

I read a lot about crate training but I think we should be fine with the playpen idea as it’s more like the way we’ve brought up puppies over the years (many people stick them in a laundry and shut the door and they still work out in the end). The playpen is in the living/lounge area upstairs and got her bed water, food, kong and toys, as well as lots of paper for a toilet area. She gets fed in there and last night we didn’t leave a light on, also left a shirt I’d been wearing and she seemed better for it.

I would like to get some reassurance that I'm on the right track and interested to hear any different methods as we approach going back to work in a few weeks.

Thanks in advance & apologies for the long post.

Matt

[Tintin Jac]

I don't have any where near enough experience to give you advice but I wanted to say that I think Dasha is absolutely gorgeous

Look at those forehead wrinkles :D

As long as you are willing to learn and find out all you can, I'm sure Dasha will be just fine.

[Matt_D]

Thanks for the feedback Tintin. hee hee we also fell in love with her little wrinkles. She's got a lot of skin to grow into that's for sure (little rolly dog in parts!)

[mumof4girls]

Hi Matt, I'm new to puppyhood also we have Rogue an Airedale who is now 8 mths and my first dog .. I think I had 3 weeks off work but I didn't find him to cry when I left, but he was very good from what I have read on here :-) i left him in his little run which also had his crate ( I crate trained him ) for school drop off and pick ups and to go shopping etc ..our problem was nipping lol..

Good luck with Dasha , it is a little dawnting hey, I'm sure someone experienced will drop by to give you ideas :-)

[Dogsfevr]

Don't praise or play when she is quiet.

She wont understand its a reward but what she will understand is after a set time you come back & make a big deal out of it.

First rule of puppihood is what is cute now isn't cute at 12 months & as much as people wish to spoil & treat them like a child they are a dog & when treated like a dog are wonderful pets .

Dachshunds can be very demanding & very vocal dogs but they are very hardy dogs that enjoy life.

So what you need to decide is what the plan is for the next 6 months whilst you work.

Will the dog be in the pen during this time or in another room.

Whilst 3 weeks of is great you NEED to make sure it isn't 3 weeks of being spoilt & pandered to because it will be harder on the pup in 3 weeks than if you had a few days off as it will think you are home .

First thing is people under estimate how easily pups adapt & often wake them or disturb them into being needy.

If pup is in the pen & is quiet just leave it during that time it doesn't exist for it to learn to be away form you its needs the people to do there part .The main thing with Dachies is they love being warm,they love to hide under things when asleep so look at the bed ,cat beds are often great for Dachies as there like caves .

[Matt_D]

Thanks for your input and ideas to the nice folks who have replied so far.

The plan for the first 6 months would be to leave her in the playpen in the open-plan lounge during the day whilest we're both at work. We've got a perfect size fully fenced back yard (10m x 15m) that I would like to start using when she can. But it's too big while she's still so young.

I also had ideas of introducing the playpen outside with a little kennel/crate for protection from the weather eventually.

We're both outside on the rear deck right now & she's inside howling loudly Is your suggestion to ignore her until she settles down, then go inside and keep ignoring her when she's jumping up trying to get out of the pen to be with us? When do you actually start paying attention to her?

It's pretty distressing on us too but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make it less of a shock when we both go back to work in a few weeks.

The main thing I'm after is some simple routine steps to perform while we're home in order to prepare the little hound for 7-9 hours by herself.

It sounds like we should be trying to give her less attention when we're here with her, and playing with her less than we do.... It just seems wrong and counter intuitive for why we got the puppy in the first place. But maybe you have to be cruel to be kind?

Any further methods or preparation we can try? Purina.com.au suggests not making a fuss when you leave or come home **except if they're a puppy you should pay them attention when you come home, and also praise them for being quiet after you've left her by herself for periods. It's the nature of the beast that everyone will have different opinions - I guess that's the beauty of forums.

Cheers,

Matt

[Dogsfevr]

It isn't wrong to play BUT you in 3 weeks will go to work where she is expected to be alone for many hours so she needs to learn now & yes means ignoring her .

But this also applies no matter what .

What you teach/allow now is what they expect is normal.

If you go back to the pen all the time then that is what she will expect is normal.

If the pen is to be her home whilst your out then that is what happens in the pen ,you ignore her unless its for a toilet break BUT i gather as she will also have to toilet in her pen when your at work that she also needs to be taught that toileting in the pen is fine as well which can be confusing but something you need to train her to now

When she isn't in the pen then you can have fun & do what one does with puppies but you need to teach her what you are expecting from the pen & that is when your at work that she is happily to sit in there ,if you go back all the time she will howl when your at work waiting for you time like normal & it becomes very confusing to the pup.

We don't praise or reward for leaving or going we also don't do the routine of a kong or anything else,

Our dogs are taught what we expect for the life & that is life doesn't end when we go out.

We drill it into our puppy owners that whilst pup is cute,fun & you want to s pend forever with them & often think its a puppy it will learn latter that the puppy pays the price with confusion or owners decide at 12 months they suddenly have a monster or issues that need retraining because as puppies it was acceptable .

Our dogs sleep on the bed,havea doggy door & a re very much part of our family BUT they are dogs & as such treat them in manner they deserve not humanizing them ,

Your pup is still young & yes looking for companionship & love which it will get BUT as you have decided to have the 3 weeks to adjust pup you must be very conscious that at the end the pup won't now where everyone has suddenly gone so yes it is a case of tough love for its sake .

Yes you ignore howling,jumping or any behaviour that isn't alerting you to a toilet break,if you rush to the pen each time you are teaching it to get what it wants which is you not what you are trying to achieve.

I

[Matt_D]

Some good points you've made there thanks Showdog.

I came back inside after 45mins, walked right past her pen and ignored her even though she was exicted to see me and was expecting the usual 'pick me up & play with me' but I kept on walking past and went downstairs. She absolutely screameed blue murder, louder than anything I've heard come from her lungs before. It was just heartbreaking.. It sounded like she had her little neck or leg caught in the pen mesh and was in serious agony. I had to stick my head back around to make sure she hadn't hurt herself, but it was just extreme distess.

I walked past her pen again 10 mins later and went back outside on the deck and again she was absolutely screaming at me when I ignored her pleas. Her hysterical cry was soo loud it echo'd across the whole neighbourhood, dogs started barking - it sounded like a puppy was being torchered.

After 10 mins the noise died down, it turned to whimpering, then some silence. So we went in and rescued her from the playpen and took her out in the yard for a play. Trying to re-assure her that we hadn't stopped loving her through ignorance.

After 30 mins of playing I put her back in the pen and sat down on the lounge near her. She howled and whimpered knowing I was only meters away and she can see me through the pen. But I held firm, ignored her except a couple of times yelling "No!".

She's now sulking quietly and curled up & went to sleep on her bed in the pen (bless!).

But far out it's hard to deal with hearing her like that. Almost makes you cry walking past her and ignoring her after leaving her alone for 45mins, then STILL ignoring her. NO wonder her cries were deafening.

It leaves you feeling on a real downer, but if this is how it must be, then we must both toughen up on playpen time. It's still confusing to know what to do & how to treat her when you do take her out of the pen. You can't help but show her genuine love & adoration when she's clearly so happy to see you. How can you not make a fuss when she's like that?

Anyway, we're buying a little plastic kennel tonight so that eventually when it gets warmer here in Brisbane we can do what an earlier poster did with her Airedale and have an open crate inside of a run in the yard that she can leave her in when she goes shopping & runs errands.

I would love nothing more than let her loose in the backyard (even in a run with a kennel for protection from the elements). That was she gets to see all the birds (yum) and hear all the sounds of suburbia instead of being inside.

I'll keep you posted. For the mean time I'll leave her asleep in her playpen and wake her up for dinner soon.

[Jumabaar]

Some good points you've made there thanks Showdog.

I came back inside after 45mins, walked right past her pen and ignored her even though she was exicted to see me and was expecting the usual 'pick me up & play with me' but I kept on walking past and went downstairs. She absolutely screameed blue murder, louder than anything I've heard come from her lungs before. It was just heartbreaking.. It sounded like she had her little neck or leg caught in the pen mesh and was in serious agony. I had to stick my head back around to make sure she hadn't hurt herself, but it was just extreme distess.

I walked past her pen again 10 mins later and went back outside on the deck and again she was absolutely screaming at me when I ignored her pleas. Her hysterical cry was soo loud it echo'd across the whole neighbourhood, dogs started barking - it sounded like a puppy was being torchered.

After 10 mins the noise died down, it turned to whimpering, then some silence. So we went in and rescued her from the playpen and took her out in the yard for a play. Trying to re-assure her that we hadn't stopped loving her through ignorance.

After 30 mins of playing I put her back in the pen and sat down on the lounge near her. She howled and whimpered knowing I was only meters away and she can see me through the pen. But I held firm, ignored her except a couple of times yelling "No!".

She's now sulking quietly and curled up & went to sleep on her bed in the pen (bless!).

But far out it's hard to deal with hearing her like that. Almost makes you cry walking past her and ignoring her after leaving her alone for 45mins, then STILL ignoring her. NO wonder her cries were deafening.

It leaves you feeling on a real downer, but if this is how it must be, then we must both toughen up on playpen time. It's still confusing to know what to do & how to treat her when you do take her out of the pen. You can't help but show her genuine love & adoration when she's clearly so happy to see you. How can you not make a fuss when she's like that?

Anyway, we're buying a little plastic kennel tonight so that eventually when it gets warmer here in Brisbane we can do what an earlier poster did with her Airedale and have an open crate inside of a run in the yard that she can leave her in when she goes shopping & runs errands.

I would love nothing more than let her loose in the backyard (even in a run with a kennel for protection from the elements). That was she gets to see all the birds (yum) and hear all the sounds of suburbia instead of being inside.

I'll keep you posted. For the mean time I'll leave her asleep in her playpen and wake her up for dinner soon.

She isn't sulking- she just worked out that the behaviour she was doing didn't work so gave up and went to sleep. That isn't a downer- its a success!! After a little tough love you will find there is no screaming and you will have a well balanced pup. MUCH nicer than a pup that stresses when you go because the barking that has always gotten them attention doesn't work so they have to try new and louder more destructive methods to get that attention- which clearly isn't going to work because your not home!!

Your dog is just learning how to communicate with you. Setting up the ground rules means you will have an amazing bond with your pup!!

[Dogsfevr]

After 10 mins the noise died down, it turned to whimpering, then some silence. So we went in and rescued her from the playpen and took her out in the yard for a play. Trying to re-assure her that we hadn't stopped loving her through ignorance.

The problem is all the good work you did you lost in that one move,you went and disturb her from doing exactly what you want your pup to do .

You need to stop humanising the emotions & start thinking about the pup after all she is the one that has to deal wih it .

When you go to work you wont be there top reassure ,she could scream all day unattended & that is exactly what you are trying to teach the pup not to do .

You are trying to teach the pup to be very calm & confident in that pen & if you keep removing pup when the success stage has meet you have lost the whole point of training.

Pup should have been left there to be quiet for how ever long it choice to be .

As for fussing you have plenty of time to do that BUT this pup will be with you for 14 yrs & trust me some of our puppy owners have regretted not taking the advice of what is cute now isn't cute or fun latter on.There is plenty of time to fuss pup now & latter but what you train & teach lasts a lifetime & pups learn very quickly what they can/can't get away with & its for there benefit that as dog owners we train them for success not failure .

What you have to remember is in 6 months your puppy will nearly be fully grown & very smart.

Dachies can be chronic barkers due to the job,they must bark to alert there handlers to the badger hole & so its important to get on top of barking early on

They are a bright breed & certainly adore there humans but as owners we can make them confident to be on there own or we can make them needy & needy is for life .

Not sure when you say what for kids you mean kids down the track so if that is the case you also need to train the pup to be a social dog with wonderful manners & not then sulk because something new is in its life & suddenly has to share.

The most important advice any trainer or breeder will give is it is a dog ,you can love it to death but its still a dog & as such needs to be treated as a dog .

If you humanise it you are taking away its identity which isn't fair .

And yes my Std Smooth was very spoilt & havea whole different nature to a Mini but the same rules applied & he slept on the bed(under the doonas actually) did agility,visited nursing homes & was part of THe Dachie club obedience demo team

[Clyde]

Dasha is divine I am sure you will work it out, you sound very committed

[Matt_D]

After 10 mins the noise died down, it turned to whimpering, then some silence. So we went in and rescued her from the playpen and took her out in the yard for a play. Trying to re-assure her that we hadn't stopped loving her through ignorance.

The problem is all the good work you did you lost in that one move,you went and disturb her from doing exactly what you want your pup to do .

You need to stop humanising the emotions & start thinking about the pup after all she is the one that has to deal wih it

But by that stage she had already spent an hour in her playpen, so we felt - what's the point in staying at home with her if we're just going to sit stressing as we listen to her cry during her last hours of daylight.

I wasn't disturbing her as such, but I felt that as an 9 week old pup it was long enough to let her spend screaming for one afternoon and we wanted to play in the yard before the sunlight was lost. You can't say that I've undone all the good work when I'm keeping her in there for hours of sleeping, and many durations of hysterical crying. I've got to play with her some time. It's just turning the whole experience negative if I feel bad everytime I pick her up from the playpen

I did in fact leave her sleep for an hour in her pen after the second time I put her in there. I've now woke her up to feed her dinner in her playpen(as it was getting way past her dinnertime), and she's now howling again after finished eating as I'm downstairs typing in this forum.

But it seems like I've been torchering her all afternoon (well for the last 4 hours anyway!) and I really need some together time with her. It's probably better if I actually have to go out legitimately for an hour tomorrow so I'm not actually in the house. It's prob less heartbreaking than being here listening to the scream / calm / sleep for 1-2 hours in pen / play , then repeat all over again.

There's got to be some balance whereby you can limit time in the playpen to a few hours otherwise what's the point of taking 3 weeks off work to be with her. It's not to sit stressed for the whole time as your new puppy just screams the neighbourhood down, and you're a mess yourself as you want to calm her.

All I'm saying is balance. Fairness & consistency is what I've always thought.

[Clyde]

Does she have time outside of the playpen with you in the house? Can she access her pen on her own? I find once you start them off in some sort of enclosure they take themselves back there for a sleep. I'm like you, I think puppies are supposed to be 'spoiled' and loved to within an inch of their little lives - it sounds as though you have a tough one though. Can you have someone visit her during the day for a half hour so play while you're at work? Can she go spend some time with a neighbour during the day? Obviously not all the time, but to break up her week and make her need sleep more.

I wouldn't torture yourself too much. You obviously realise she needs to be weaned from 24/7 attention, but she also needs to be loved after only ever knowing life with her breeder and siblings.

I don't think there's anything wrong with getting a pup and working full time but I do think she needs some sort of stimulation during the day. Having a pup should be a joyous time so I would go with your gut but also with a bit of forum advice.

It's probably better if I actually have to go out legitimately for an hour tomorrow so I'm not actually in the house. It's prob less heartbreaking than being here listening to the scream / calm / sleep for 1-2 hours in pen / play , then repeat all over again.

Absolutely leave the house! If only to keep your nerves calm.

[Matt_D]

Thanks for the re-assurance Clyde. It's upsetting (v. distressing) to hear the little hound screaming at 120 decibels for your attention and to not do anything about it.

I think the fact I've been home with her the whole time since picking her up last weekend and spending 15-17 hours a day with her has meant that she's just 'attached' to me or my wife and is desperately clinging to my every move.

The pen is not designed for any sort of entrance/exit as you can see:

..so she can't wander in & out on her own.

I usually have been playing with her constantly then when she has her regular sleeps I've either let her sleep with me on the lounge or outside in the hammock, or if I've got stuff to do I use her sleep time to put her into her bed in the pen then go and do things as can't leave her unsupervised anywhere except her pen at the moment.

We have a lot of play time in yard everyday this week where she's more than happpy to wander around & explore without me next to her

The hardest thing is if I'm the only one at home and I need to put her in there for 5-10mins to do something, then she starts crying until I'm finished doing what I have to do and I think "do I get her back with me on the couch or do I teach her to stop crying before I get her again".

I feel as if I'm failing the duty if I have a shower then come & ger her when I'm out as she sees me and wants to be out of the pen. But if I go through the screaming to calm routine each time I leave the room for 5 mins, how do I ever get any quality time with her. There's other people on this forum who write that they wait til puppy has stopped whimpering for 30seconds then go & praise her and give her treats. But then I'm told now if I do that then it's just undoing all the pain I've just endured waiting for her to settle...

Obviously if she's asleep in there or happy to be in there then there's no way in hell I'm going to disturb her as I want to encourage this behavior. But it's really taking it's toll on me if I have to listen to her howl like a torchered child from 4pm-7pm and upsetting everyone in the neighbourhood- just to try to adhere to the "ignore her until she's quiet for 30mins" each time I go to the toilet or leave the room for 10 minutes.

But all good. Dasha is asleep with me on the lounge now between my legs after enduring hours of playpen anxiety.

We shall persevere.. :)

[RiverStar-Aura]

To me it would be more beneficial to have Dasha outside the pen for the most part and when you need to leave to do something (be it the loo, shower, cook etc) put her in the pen then walk away and ignore.

That way, she's been kept busy and will most likely be sleepy when she goes back in.

Does she get to use your backyard at all? Why not put the pen outside for a bit during the day of just give her free reign for a bit?

When Kirah came home at 8 weeks she was outside from day 1. My mum won't have dogs in the house so she learnt to be outside. If I wasn't outside supervising playtime with big brother, then she was in the garage in her play pen alone with Zeus outside.

Puppies are amazingly resilient and will quickly learn their place.

The best advise I was given was to start off how I mean to finish. I didn't take time off work and Kirah learnt to accept me coming and going. There have been days where I haven't seen her at all as its very late when I get home. She'll bark when my car pulls up but I ignore it and she settles -- tonight was a perfect example.

I'm not going to teach her that I come see her when she demands it; I'll go outside and play on my terms not hers.

Try leaving the house and go out shopping or something. When you come home, ignore little Dasha as she'll most likely carry on when you get home. Then once she's quiet -- not immediately after she's quieted -- you can choose when to take her out for a play.

Just don't make a big song and dance about coming home and don't get her out immediately upon returning otherwise this will become her routine.

It is hard work in a way but boy is it worth it!!! Little Dasha is gorgeous (such oversized floppy ears!!) and good luck!

[minimax]

I find the whole concept of taking time off work to get pup used to the routine to be a bit weird - you've effectively got her used to you being there, which isn't going to be her routine?

[Guest donatella]

I dont think there's anything wrong with taking time off, I do it with my pups to bond/settle in and integrate leave times into the schedule. Never had a problem.

[Clyde]

I find the whole concept of taking time off work to get pup used to the routine to be a bit weird - you've effectively got her used to you being there, which isn't going to be her routine?

Yes but as Matt said they will be weaning the pup off them. I think it's cruel to take a pup from 24/7 company and then leave it alone for 9 or so hours each day. Much kinder to do it the way Matt is.

[Christina]

Maybe try & relax a little & remember that people & pups have survived centuries without playpens, crates, experts & internet forums. There is no one right way formula.

Let the pup just be around you & the place while you can watch it & don't pay attention & play with it all the time, they just need to be sometimes, only place in the playpen when you can't keep an eye on it for any length of time. Or when mopping floors etc.

As long as it knows where its supposed to go to the toilet it doesn't have to be penned. Put any unsafe things out of reach & puppy proof the place.

Outside is fine with supervision. There is no such space as too big for a puppy.

Go out for lunch or shop or see a movie & leave it alone & relax.

[Matt_D]

Thanks again for all of your input. I can see the logic behind all of the replies.

I went out today for 2.5 hours and came back to find her quiet in her bed inside the pen in the lounge :)

She was (as expected) super excited to see me again, but I immediately went downstairs again and waited for her to stop carrying on. 10 mins later I came back up to greet her after she had quitened down and now we're out the back yard and she's doing her own thing wandering around by herself and eyeing the birds flying in/out.

I think a few more excercises like this and we will see some improvement to the clingyness she's been displaying since coming home. We'll just continue to ween her off the 5am-10pm shift so by next week we'll be leaving her alone for 4 hours at a time.

Good point from Christina too about over thinking the whole process. Just relax and let her be around the house outside of the pen until you really have to go out for a period - sounds a lot less stressful to me.

Cheers for now,

Matt