Pre-Puppy Wisdom

haalumni

Hi all, while admittedly I'm still a long ways away from my own new pup, I'd love to hear any pre-puppy advice from you guys. What is the thing you most wish someone would have told you or that one item you wish you had gotten before bringing your pup home?

curlytails

One thing? It's not enough to just research puppy care and the breed, but you've got to research the breeder too.

One item? *The Other End of the Leash* by Patricia McConnell.

Heidi

Think about your daily schedule and imagine how you would rearrange it to accommodate a puppy. Find out what other people's schedules are.

JessicaRabbit

socialize, socialize socialize! with people, children and lots of other dogs. I have three dogs that all would have benefited from more socializing. Miko is the only one good with kids. All three are not fans of children on wheels (bikes, scooters, skateboards). And Miko certainly could have used considerably more guidance from adult dogs. I think had she been corrected by more benevolent adults as a pup she would be much less of an antagonist with my other dogs.
And read many books by Ian Dunbar, Emma Parsons and Jean Donaldson.

Heidi

Oh yeah - kids are great for socializing dogs. I have kids in my house and I've really noticed that they make my dogs bomb proof. After you've been about loud, unpredictable, screaming, dashing, banging things together, jumping kids, everything else seems pretty mild. Aside from my own children, I took Sosuke to the playground and had all the kids feed him treats. Playgrounds are good since the kids there are running around, jumping off strange equipment, swinging, screaming, and whatever else. Also, children are the most common victims of dog bites, so having a dog that's okay around kids is a good way to stay out of trouble.

Of course, be careful to socialize and not traumatize. If the puppy is showing hesitation, then it's too much. Move at their pace.

shishiinu

If getting a imported pup, get a complete physical done and expect to spend some time at the vet. I would do this regardless but since all my nk's are imports this is my first thing to do before any thing.

Oh and prepare for sleepless nights for a few weeks!

BradA1878

For the first few nights expect your puppy to cry in their crate when you first leave them alone. If you know you they have everything they need (food, water, potty break) ignore the crying.

white_bear

Apart from what has been mentioned, i would add: don't listen to cesar milan and don't raise your dog on slippery surfaces.

jujee

Lol @brada1878 first few nights is an understatement regarding Kai! Or maybe it's just Kyuubi :P little man wants to be with me 24/7! Lucky for haalumni, he wants a Shikoku and I'm not sure how Shikoku are with separation anxiety. I remember Corina telling me that Shoushuu would cry all the time when he was crated.

I wish I knew more about the different types of dog foods. I was ignorant and thought "dog food" at the grocery store was all the same thing. It's probably because when I was 5 years old we fed our chihuahua at the time kibble n bits. Now I'm this huge raw feeding junkie lol

Heidi

Bringing a new puppy home is like bringing a new baby home. It totally throws your life out of whack for a couple weeks. Then, things settle down and you come up for air... ahhhh.

haalumni

@hondru It does kind of feel like getting ready to have a kid. The day I decided that this is something I wanted to do I went around the house thinking "OK, so what will I be OK with a puppy destroying".

@brada1878 I remember those crate crying days very well. Noah, my Golden Retriever, would cry bloody murder at night when we got him. We found that crating him for short periods during the day helped.

CrimsonO2

@jujee - Shikoku cry as much as the Kai, but for different reasons. Remember that thread about Shikoku and impulse control? Crate = restraint. So you can imagine their first time being in it being unpleasant as it is the antithesis of freedom...freedom to act on impulse.

Jesse

haalumni

@white_bear lol, I've never been a fan of the dog wisperer. Seriously, if you don't understand your dog, then either your not paying enough attention or it's not the right dog for you. What do you mean about slippery surfaces?

okiron

One thing, don't worry so much. Just by being on this forum you're more informed than the average person. I was worrying about everything thinking if everything wasn't perfect it's because I wasn't doing something right. In the end you are only human and they are only a puppy.

JessicaRabbit

You ARE going to make mistakes. Everyone wants to be a perfect dog parent (or people parent for that matter). But we all screw up from time to time. Maybe you'll blow your cool, or not socialize your puppy with enough trashcans.
But regardless, there will come a time when you look back and wish you had done something differently. Just know that EVERYONE is not perfect. And EVERYONE has the same desire to do their very best.
Every good dog training book starts with a story about how the trainer was going to raise this perfect dog and instead the dog was timid, or aggressive, or some other issue. And through love and patience they overcame whatever issue and thus wrote a book about it. My point is even trainers don't get perfection so don't expect it of yourself.

Heidi

^ It's true alright. Wise Jess.

StaticNfuzz

Go with the flow and modify as you go. Be practical and use common sense for each stage of development.... Much like raising kids. Helpful to get down to dogs level to look for potential hot spot destructive areas. Eons ago I thought the idea of a crate was not so nice. I have revised that for sure. The crate is a super thing for your sanity even if you dog does not think so. (LOL).

Snf

jan3t

Decide on the rules (allowed on furniture? jumping up on people? all good things come to those who sit?), and establish them as habits from the git go.

Puppyhood is not unlike childhood, only its over by 18-months rather than 18-years. The rewards for a job well done for either are extraordinary (my twins turn 18-years this summer!). StaticNfuzz, there were times I would've liked to crate one of both of the twins - haha