puppies and little kids?

[TJ]

Hi, I posted this in the main forum tonight and I thought I would ask here as well. :)

We are picking up our first mini goldendoodle puppy tomorrow. He is 10 weeks old and we're naming him Finn. t's been almost 10 years since I've had a puppy, and I've never had a puppy and kids at the same time. I'm a single mom to two boys, ages 2 and 3. They have been around adult dogs a lot but never a puppy. 

Any advice on how to get this to go as smoothly as possible? We have a crate, an x-pen, a fenced yard, and I'm never out of the house for more than 3-4 hours on some days (usually just an hour or two)...I'm hoping this isn't too much for me to handle!

[Diane, Hurley and Sidney]

Congratulations!  Finn will be a great addition to your family.  Just think of Finn as having another child around to love and care for.  

[Lynette Casey]

Hello!  I don't really have advice for you, but I am happy to provide moral support.  We just got our 8 week old mini goldendoodle puppy last Thursday.  This is our 1st puppy as well (hence the lack of advice to offer - we are novices at this).  Our children are a little older than yours.  Our daughter is 7 and our son is 4.  We are 5 days in and so far so good.  I think the different confinement plans you have will be a great benefit to you.  It took our puppy, Bailey, about 2 days to settle in and get comfortable with his new surroundings. Then he really started getting playful (a mixed blessing).  We always have the kids keep several toys close by so they can keep something between them and the puppy to cut down on nipping.  My 4 year old prefers to be standing when he deals with Bailey.  We are working on discouraging the jumping that this causes, but I think my son prefers having the height advantage and quick escape possibility.  I know there will be many challenges ahead, but is so worth it to add such a wonderful addition to our family.  I'll keep am eye on this feed.  Maybe we can offer each other suggestions of things that work and don't work as we go along.  Good luck and enjoy Finn!

[Sarah & Theo]

Congrats on the arrival of Finn!  How is everything going so far?  I have no advice to offer unfortunately, but like Lynette, happy to offer moral support as we are expecting the arrival of our first puppy soon.  

My children are almost 5 and 2 and I am also feeling rather nervous and hoping we are not biting off more than we can chew!  It sounds like you are doing all the right things re: crate, x-pen etc.  We are planning on having a similar set-up.  I think the children and puppy will both need times away from each other, so having a pen and crate will allow this. 

Best of luck and I look forward to hearing how things are going!