Puppy depression!

[Ann]

Has anyone else gotten this??? I am in a funk right now and can't get out! I've fallen and I can't get up! I don't know if anyone else feels this way sometimes, but I get sad over the independence I've lost. I sometimes think I was too fast in getting another puppy so soon after Odie died.

Maybe I should have waited a year or two.

I'm tired and I know puppy hood comes only once and this will pass.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I have to add that I have met Tammy's Gracie (comment below) and I can't believe Gracie was EVER a naughty puppy. She does have an invisible leash! That girl doesn't leave her mom's side even at a Doodle Romp! I am dreaming of that day! Even though Peri is much, much better now.

[Tammy & Gracie]

It's wierd reading all the other posts that sound just like me! Gracie was a very challenging pup, too smart, energetic and destructive. I got thru those stages with doggie daycare several times a week. The days she does not go to daycare, we visit the dogpark for an hour or two. Now I realize on rainy days that I miss the park more than she does. It helps to commiserate with the other puppy owners at the park. And it's so much fun watching her have a blast. At this point people make fun of me, asking where Gracie is. They all still remember the wild and crazy pup I brought last year. Now I have a sedate, well-mannered dog followiung me around on an invisible leash!

[Debbie and Thomas]

I felt the same way 1 year ago. We brought home our Golden doodle only 6 weeks after my beloved dog Buddy passed away. I thought I would wait at least a year before I got another dog, but after a few weeks of such emptiness, we contacted a breeder and picked up the most adorable puppy. Well after a few weeks, I realized this new puppy was hard work. He was a handful, that is for sure. It did take my mind off my sorrow over losing Buddy though. Now a year later, this doodle is the light of our lives. So hang in there-this stage will pass.

[Sandy]

We got Toby two weeks after our 14 1/2 year old dog had to be put down. We got that dog as a 2 year old, so it had been a very LONG time since we'd had a puppy in the house. Oh boy - I was definitely not ready for that! I, too, cried, and thought I would never leave the house again. I admit openly, right here, that I am not a puppy person. I am a DOG person. Now Toby is 15 months old, and it gets better all the time. Don't be too hard on yourself. Be as patient as you can, love your dog, and before you know it things will suddenly be better, and you'll wonder where the time went.

[Carolyn Wilkinson]

I agree with doggy daycare. I have found the most wonderful place called Pups Play & Stay. I take Sophie there 2 or 3 times a week for 3 or 4 hours and she loves it. She comes home "pooped" and then I can get things done while she sleeps all afternoon! I also take her for at least 2, sometimes 3 walks a day. I took her to a training class when she was about 6 mos. old and she walks right next to me and we walk for a couple of miles and I too feel much better getting out and so does she. Search out somewhere to take her for a little now and then and you will feel much better!

[Sally]

i cried to my sister in law 3 times a week from the first day I brought Duncan home at 12 weeks until he was about 6 or 7 months. It was a huge adjustment. My first dog ever. And a puppy nevertheless. He's 11 months old now and i am really gaining back a lot of independence. I can leave him at night to go out with friends and know he's ok for 4-5 hour blocks. If i am going to be gone all day i call his dog walker and set up two 30 minute walks. one at 12:30 and one at 4:30. That allows me to be out and about from 9am-7pm and I feel ok. But I do hurry home to him.
All that crying and all those worried days and nights were worth it. He's my favorite thing in the whole world. Hang in there. And definitely try and find some puppy-sitting options.

[Kathie and the gang]

It will pass, and tomorrow he will do something to but smile on your face, or make you laugh out loud. Winston is a year and I'm not sure where that year has gone. He came to live with me on the day before Thanksgiving, just two weeks after my beloved male Rottie Moe died. I have no regrets, just lots of chewed up TP and the padding under the area rugs.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I know I sound like the Doggie Daycare "spokes model" but that is what helps me to stay independent. I send Guinness one (or sometimes two) days a week to daycare for about five hours. He loves it, and that's my chance to do things "for me". It's the best of both worlds for both of us. I admit I worry about him when both my husband and I leave him in the evening. I know he is missing us, but we don't do it that often and we do need our time out together. We did wait a few years between dogs for this reason, but I still couldn't wait to get my next puppy. I agree the puppy stage goes pretty fast, and then you'll have much more independence. In the meantime, if there's a good daycare in your area, try it and give yourself a break.

[Linda,Yankee & Finn]

My puppy was driving me nuts for a while but he has somewhat settled down. I do find that I always hurry home to my dogs when I am out so I have lost some independence. I also take my dogs to the dog park every day for an hour or more walk. I feel better afterwards, I get fresh air and exercise. I have lost some weight (not enough but it helps). Take your puppy for long walks and you may feel better. I now think the best part of my day is my time at the park with my doodles. Find a friend with a dog to walk with you. It will get better, hang in there.

[Tammy & Gracie]

You may feel a little overwhelmed today but tomorrow is another day. You would be so lonely without!