We went to pick him up at 10am, we took my car (Wobb) because S's car (The Shed) decided Saturday was a good day to break down. This meant I had to drive which was a touch difficult when you are so excited you feel like you might wee yourself. We were very pleased to be immediately handed some official documents about his tail-docking and micro-chipping. Since he's not pure-bred, KC registered etcetera it was reasuring to get some paper to show everything was above board. Then we saw the puppies. Oh my hadn't they grown? And our pup is the biggest of the lot. He was full of breakfast so his belly was round, and he looked massive.
After playing with all the pups for a bit and a final photo of all the pups together for the breeder we picked him up and took him away. There was some crying, which was quite heart-breaking but we took him anyway cos he are cruel like that. At least his littermates will be able to get some food now, I think Oscar was nabbing it all.
He sat on S's knee on the way home and was really good for the whole half-hour drive. A bit of crying but no throwing up, which is quite impressive for a small puppy full of food on his first car journey. On arriving home he went down in the garden and did a massive wee. So far, so textbook.
It didn't carry on very textbook and over the rest of the day we had nearly as many wees in the house as outside. I think it might take him a while to get the hang of it but we're just going to keep taking him outside at least every hour and praising him for doing what he should do, where he shuld do. It's difficult and my patience was tried several times. Especially when you get him to the open doorway and he wees just inside the house!
He was learning an awful lot in one day though, so I don't blame him for being a bit confused. News family and new house. Carpets and slidey floors. Plants and gravel. Garden steps. Toys and blankets. Socks. Even visitors! An awful lots for a pup to take in. I think as we settle into a routine with him the housetraining will suddenly click into place.
He seems to have taken a liking to us though and is quite happy to follow us about and play and have cuddles. I thought he might be more shy but he has accepted his new "parents" really quickly. He's even started working on his recall with fabulous success. At the moment he's doing for just praise and strokes - I think we'll introduce ham into the equation quite quickly so that that recall is hot to trot before we take him out anywhere.
The first day passed, there was lots of sleeping and playing and a bit of eating and more sleeping and the pooing and weeing of course. I never thought I'd be quite so excited about another creature's poos and wees. It is very exciting when he goes outside though, it's like "YES!! Jackpot!".
Anyway. The First Night. So much conflicting advice in puppy books and on forums and old wives advice. We decided on a high-sided cardboard box at the end of our bed, with a smelly towel from his mother and littermates and a blanket and a hotwater bottle. A bit of reassurance when he cried and getting up in the night to take him out to the loo is he woke up and made a fuss. It kind of worked, he didn't have any accidents in his bed and roll around in it. We all got some sleep - ish. He did two wees outside during the night, one at 1am and one at 4:30am. So that's 2 hours, then 3 and a half hours. For some reason it was me, who normally sleeps like a log, that was waking up when he started mithering for the loo. S only woke up when I got up. I was sleeping really lightly - I've been so worried about getting things right I think I was basically half-awake the whole night.
We tried to get him to go back to sleep at 4:30am after his wee, but he was wide awake and made such a massive, hysterical fuss (including howling then snorting like a pig, which was just hilarious if I'm honest)that we decided to get up. Well S got up with him to play with him. He then decided that the wee he'd had wasn't enough and did a poo and a wee inside - damnit, not the best start to today's toilet training.
I tried to sleep again but couldn't settle so came downstairs. S has been playing with him and now they have both fallen asleep. I'm going to need some serious sleep payback at some point - I can't sleep now cos one of us has to be awake when Oscar wakes up.
I think we'll try the cardboard box again tonight and if it's just as bad again, we'll have a re-think. It might be newspaper down in the kitchen and some closed doors. Less puppy friendly, not as good for the house-training, but possibly better in the long run. I really don't know. We'll see.
He's a proper cutey though and has settled in really well already. Busy day ahead today for him. Vets for a health check. Some more traning. Possibly a brush. Definitely food, sleeping and playing. Maybe a collar on for a bit and a little bit of being carried about in the big wide world? And at some point I am going to have to get some sleep in!!
xxx
Sounds like you guys have your work cut out. He looks beautiful though. :-D
ReplyDelete