Day 1: Not So Easy

[Amelia & Ruby]

Hey Doodlers,

I need some advice or at least some reassurance.

We brought Ruby, our 9 week old Aussiedoodle, home last night and things are pretty tough so far.

We got her from a farm far outside of the city, and the first and most obvious hard thing is that she's really unaccustomed to city noises and people and goings on in general, which has lead to or exacerbated our potty training attempts. We found a few ok pee spots outside our condo (we live on the fourth floor), but she gets easily distracted and scared when we're out there. Because of this, or maybe for other reasons, she's already had several small pee accidents in the house--two in her crate (one big one this morning, and one smaller one while I was trying to get her out), one on a big dog bed, and one coming out of her crate on the way to go downstairs. She gives me little yipping warnings, but only as she's about to go or while its happening. She slept through the first night and barely made any noise at all, but now she's whining in her crate and I'm not sure whether that means she has to go potty or if she's already developing some crate anxiety. I'm afraid to take her out when she cries and I'm afraid to NOT take her out when she cries. 

On top of this, I was really committed to having a great crate / potty schedule and following Ian Dunbar and Sophia Yin's philosophies with "learn to earn" etc., but today all of that has been almost laughable. She's not all that into food right now, so using kibble as treats is not happening, not to mention she can't stay focused on me for very long anyway. And feeding her from the kong isn't happening cause she just doesn't care. Also I don't really want to limit her water intake because it's pretty hot here in Toronto right now, but is she going to have to pee 15 minutes after she drinks every time? When exactly does that fit into the crate schedule?! AHHH 

I know it's the first day, but they BOTH say things along the lines of "if you're not training them to do the right thing you're training them to do the wrong thing." 

Sorry for the puppy novel / drama, but HALP! Or at least tell me you've been here before and there's a way out. Or just to be patient. 

I've attached some pics from when she was 7 weeks so you can see why I haven't strangled her or myself yet.

[Dee & Chappie]

We used the big crate we had used for our lab, so I just got those large plastic storage boxes (2 of them) and put them side by side in the back of the crate, worked like a charm.   Now he is 25 lbs and can use the full size of the crate.   We leave him in the crate when we go out for dinner or a movie.   He is perfectly content to stay in there, as I give him a marrow bone at that time (only then).  He won't touch the kongs, no matter what I stuff in it, and the marrow bones are perfect for him.   I didn't give them to him until he was about 3 or 4 months old, as his tummy was a bit sensitive.   Dee

[Amelia & Ruby]

Smart! I'll try all of those things. She doesn't care about the kong either. Do you stuff anything in the marrow bone, or are they the ones that actually have marrow inside of them? Probably too early to try but maybe some PB inside a hollow bone.

[Joann Valerio]

What are the dimensions of your crate?

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Our breeder suggested giving yeti pumpkin to help his digestion. She said it can get a little funky when he goes home to a new environment ect. The first day we didn't give him any (we didn't have any on hand) and he would hardly eat. That first night we went out and got some canned pumpkin and put it a spoonful in his breakfast and he snarffed it right up! Just a thought!! :) Also hang in there. 2 months ago I was in a position very similar and everyone is exactly right, a schedule will be your best friend! We were letting yeti out every 15 minutes and right after a nap or sleep for a good month before he was finally able to hold his bladder for longer. It was at the point where we couldn't even allow him to exit his kennel. We had to pick him up out of his kennel and take him right out or he would pee right in front of his kennel. Now we let him out and he will play for 15-20 minutes before signaling to us that he needs to go. We also used the bells for training which may or may not help you. He doesn't always ring them but will always go to where they are and either bark or look up at me and sit or lay down.
Wishing you lots and lots of good luck and patients :)

[Amelia & Ruby]

Thank you! I'm trying to follow a schedule, but she's always thirsty after we come back in from peeing, so that sets the whole thing off again. I try to take her out about 30 minutes after a big drink, but she doesn't usually go that time, so I have to put her on the 15 minute crate / 5 minute pee attempt schedule and then when she finally does pee she has to drink again. Oy! But things are definitely getting better. She's eating more but I will try the pumpkin trick if she doesn't seem to be passing it in a timely fashion.

[Dee & Chappie]

All good advice.   Chappie drinks more water than I have ever seen in a dog, but all his blood work show a healthy pup.    I take his water bowl away from him after 7 PM.   He sleeps through the night, and has for months.  Re: pumpkin, I have used that many times when we were finding the proper food for him.  Orijen always gave him very lose stools, and the pumpkin helped then. 

I can buy frozen marrow bones at the speciality pet food store, and gave them to him frozen.   Our grocery store here in FL. also has them in their frozen food section.   The speciality pet store has them for all sized dogs, so depending of their size you get that proper sized bone.   Now that Chappie is 8 months old, I have the butcher shop cut the proper size for me, I get larger rather than smaller, and he loves loves them.   Now, I will tell you what I do now and what I have always done not that he is older.   I bake them frozen  on a cookie sheet at 400 for 10 min.   Some of the fat comes off, and they are large enough that they will not splinter, they are about 2-1/2 inches wide and about 3" tall.  I then freeze them and give him one when we put him in the crate.  Some may criticize me for baking them, but I have had four dogs, three of them labs, and never had a bone splinter.   They are large enough that there is no way a piece will break off.   They only bake for 10 min, and they are frozen to begin with, so they are hardly cooked, just some fat gets cooked off.   Chappie will chew on these bones for hours, when we come home he jumps on our bed with it, and it is licked clean by then.  

[Amelia & Ruby]

Great, thanks! Probably too early to try out for Ruby though, eh? At 9 weeks? I would like her to be more calm and occupied in her crate of course, but not at the risk of her digestion.

[Dee & Chappie]

I didn't start that until 12 or 16 weeks.