Little Nibbler...

 Well, we're a week into Miss Cindy's stay. She's over her cough, so we're back to going outside to learn to go potty. And she's pretty much got it down. Obviously, with a bladder the size of a walnut she has to go more frequently, so when I get up to let her out in the morning and after work (yes, she sleeps in her crate at night and when I'm gone... it keeps her from chewing on something in her puppy stage and getting hurt, and she really does like her bed) there's usually a little present in there. But as she grows her bladder is going to grow too, so she'll grow out of that.

It's all about keeping a regimen when you have a pet. It keeps them happy. And it keeps you (me) happy too.  We know what to do, we know what to expect. So every morning We wake up at 7am, and go outside to go potty. We go to one spot, and we stand there IN that spot until she's gone potty and poo. (I can tell when she has to go poo...she gets verbal with little squeaks and ruffs and runs around crazy in circles out to the end of her leash until she goes. One of the main reasons I stand still. If I walked with her until she was satisfied with her "restroom" who knows HOW far we'd have walked..). THEN we play for a few minutes since she was such a good girl, and come back inside for a lovely breakfast of kibble and canned and play. For the next couple of hours or so we play with the Kong, or evil Squirrel (I've become a pro at tossing evil Squirrel while putting my shoes on).

Before I leave for work we go outside again to go to the bathroom... same thing. Stand in one place (We're inside a courtyard, working our way gradually out toward the scary noisy outside) while she goes to the bathroom, then a bit of play for being good.  After work...yup, same thing. Then it's back inside for dinner, for more play, and outside a couple more times (same routine) before bed.

Things I've noticed? That German Shepherd stubborn sometimes comes out, which means that if there's something that she really likes... she can be distracted from it... but it may take a  few attempts. When she gets wound up playing she tends to be a nibbler...those puppies DO like to chew...so once again, something to distract her usually works well. :-D  We're working on being better at this. But that stubborn means just a bit more working. But she's SO worth it. She's just a loving little thing, full of spunk and fun.

Thoughts on puppies:
1. It's all about the routine. Keep a routine, don't confuse them, you'll all be happy...

2. Keep Potty time and Walk time separate. If it's 5 degrees outside and you have to take the dog outside to go to the bathroom but Fifi is used to walking around the block before she goes...it's going to be a loooooonnnggg cold walk. I used to pet sit a dog who did exactly that. To go to the bathroom we'd have to walk around the block...rain or shine... to go. I, on the other hand, trained George the dog (my lovely lovely yellow lab) to go out to go "potty". Once that was done, then he knew it was time for play, or "walk".

3. A lot of times when you get a pet from a situation where there are a lot of other animals together they can develop Kennel Cough. Sort of the equivalent of a dry, scratchy cough in a human with a bit of a retch at the end. One of the best things I ever did was get a warm air humidifier. It soothes their dry air passages and helps them get over it faster. That and mainly moist food while they're sick...which is more soothing to swallow...

4. All puppies are going to be nibblers and full of energy. They're BABIES. :-D We have to remember that. And not hold it against them or give up on them and take them to the shelter.

That's how I got my George dog. A young lady was walking him, and he'd been stuck in a cage all day long so he was running in circles. She couldn't handle it. Her loss became my gain for a decade. Because I COULD and he became the best friend a person could ever have had.

:)