What a difference a year makes! Encouragement for new puppy owners....

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

I've been in a very "reflective" state of mind lately, and thought I would share some of these thoughts with all of you puppy owners. Bear with me... this might take a while....

Last year at this time, I was a mess, to be honest. My dad, whom I was super close to, had just passed away unexpectantly. The grief was nearly unbearable. Two weeks later we brought home Winnie. We had been planning her homecoming for months- reading up on puppy care, watching training videos, etc. Both my husband and I grew up with dogs, and I raised a pup myself 20 years ago. We were sooooo excited! I knew that it was going to be stressful, but I was blindsided by the amount of mental energy that it required to raise a very active and mouthy puppy. Mental energy that I didn't always have! My physical energy was waning, too. After a long day at work, I just wanted to rest on the couch in the evening. Not possible with Winnie around! :-)

She potty trained fairly quickly and learned all of the basic commands easily. That wasn't the so much the stressful part. The mouthiness/nipping/biting/crocodile behavior nearly drove me insane. I could not touch her, cuddle with her, play with her, take her out to potty or attempt to walk her on a leash without getting ripped pant legs/skirts/nightgowns and multiple bite marks on my hands and arms. It seemed that no amount of redirecting, training, "time outs," encouraging, pleading, scolding and praying would stop the behavior. I'm a fairly patient person, but this was putting me over the edge. And, I'm ashamed to admit, drove me to drink waaay too much wine on more than one occasion! :-) My husband and I have a great relationship. But, we found ourselves being more irritable and short with each other because of her. I was ready to throw in the towel and call the breeder to take her back. But everyone kept encouraging us and telling us that it would get better. A neighbor down the street (that has beautifully trained dogs) would see the fiasco of trying to walk a puppy attached to my pant leg and would yell his encouragement. We had all sorts of cheerleaders along our journey.

And then, it happened. One day I took her out to potty, and my pant leg was no longer enticing. I noticed that my hands and arms had less bite marks. I could wear my long flowing nightgowns in the evening and she didn't even notice. She would sit next to me and let me pet her. Gradually we could walk around the entire block without having her hanging from her leash or attacking my leg. A miracle was happening!

Fast forward one year.... Winnie is an absolute gem. She is a gentle dog that loves to cuddle and snuggle. She is well behaved, has had run of the house since age 6 months, and is the apple of my eye. My neighbor down the street smiles whenever he sees me riding bike with her trotting loose lease beside me. Something I never dreamed I'd be able to do with her! 

She's not perfect- no dog (or human) is. But, all of the frustration I had last year at this time is gone. And, she has been a blessing to our family in a way that I never thought possible. I'm quite sure that my dad would have loved her....

 

[Cammy Todd]

Lori - thank you for sharing.  I teared up a little reading this post - it was such an encouragement to me!  We are in the early puppy stages right now and I feel like I was so naive and unprepared for how Izzy would take over my life.  Did you ever hire a professional trainer?  Or go to classes?  I am trying to figure out what to do on that end.  I know it is important and we are going to puppy classes, but the thought of adding one more thing to the Izzy plate/schedule/routine right now might put me over the edge:) 

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

I considered it, but I didn't ever hire a professional trainer. Since my husband had never trained a puppy before, he took her to 2 series of classes at our local Petsmart. It was very basic obedience training- things she already knew how to do. But, it gave the 2 of them time to bond, and it gave me a break from her! :-)

[Jenny and Cooper]

Omg I had teary eyes reading your post! Thank you so much for sharing your story. It makes people like me have hope that someday my Cooper will be a dream dog. Lol I have about 7 months to go til he reaches one year old! I'll hang in there. Thanks again and I'm very happy for you!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Hang in there- things will get better!

[Roz Liberman]

Thank you for your story. I'm sure the spirit of your dad has in part manifested itself in your r wonderful dog. Luckily for me, Scout has been a rather mellow puppy compared to most. However, it's still nice to hear that puppy behavior does pass, and the rewards are more than worth the effort!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Yes! True story- the morning of my dad's birthday Winnie was looking back and forth around the room like there was a bug slowly flying by her. I looked around, but there was nothing there. She kept looking and looking, and finally I said out loud, "I wonder if she is seeing my dad!" At there very moment, she starting hiccoughing. My dad used to have chronic hiccoughs that would last for hours. Pretty sure she had seen his spirit.... 

[Kathryn Clark]

Thanks for sharing this. I just realized last night I was in the same situation. I said to my hubby, and to think we were going to send him back to the breeder! We had a nightmare puppy until about six months. Three trainers later, argh, it's like night and day. It was the last trainer who said "he just needs some off leash time every day to wear him out" It was like magic after we started taking him a dog park every day. He's now perfect at the dog parks, everyone loves it when he plays with their dogs since he can match his behavior to other dogs instantly. He still gets into things every now and then but it's usually our fault when it happens. He's happily sleeping in his crate with the door open right now. So much for that morning walk! I feel like I have my life back as I bet you do too. The hard part will be leaving him with a boarder next week when we go out of town. Enjoy your puppy honeymoon but I think it will last!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Off leash running really helped Winnie back then, and still does. That's one of the reasons why I bike with her- plain ol' walking doesn't tire her out. Doggy Daycare while we are at work helps, too. 

[Diane, Hurley and Sidney]

What a touching note. Finding our way through the challenges makes the cuddling, sweetness and snuggling all the more precious.

She will be such a comfort and bring such amazing loving energy into the house every day.

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Yes- there are always good things that can come out of challenging situations! Persistence is key....

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

This is very lovely. Thanks for sharing! :-)

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

:-)