New Puppy Arriving Today . . . Any Last-minute Words of Wisdom?

Do you have a crate, you need a crate. Easiest way on earth to potty train plus it gives them a hide out if they are over stimulated.

20 minutes after puppy has eaten...take them out to do their business...then straight back in...don't mix play and potty time. After they do their business go in and then you can take them back out to play.

We brought Grady home at 10 weeks. He's a Boxer Pit bull mix.

We had the potty pads in a play pen - you know the fence that you can do inside or outside? that one - that he slept in during the night until he was house trained.

plenty of exercise. play with the kids....get her used to a collar and leash ASAP!! the longer you wait - the more resistance you have.

Take her outside every few hours and make a big deal when she potties outside!!

After he was house trained? He co-sleeps!! :) LOL!! He loves to crawl in bed with Greg or Nicky...it's good for them too!!

Absolutely co-sleep. And puppy pads make things easier.

Patience, patience...and YESSSSSS I co-slept with my puppies. :)

crate train, crate train, crate train, crate train, crate train, crate train, crate train and did I fail to mention Crate Train.

I bought a little water bowl that attaches to the door of the crate but the bowl will twist off to wash and refill without unscrewing the entire thing, if that makes any sense. Found it at Walmart.

I put our pup's crate on a large plastic tub next to our bed and when he whimpered in the night, I could reach out and stick my hand through the crate door and he would go back to sleep. It was so much easier than trying to reach down to a crate on the floor.

Last, when you take him out to go potty, keep him on a leash so you can catch him going (even in your yard). If you say "go potty" every time and then praise him big time when he goes, you will train him to go on command. Ours will even go poo on command. I figured out that he goes in the am and the pm after he eats. When I was training him, if he didn't go when I took him out, I put him in his crate, waited a while, took him back out, told him to go poo poo. (Wish I had picked another word for it but oh well.) If he didnt, he went back in the crate, and so on. When he finally went, I made a huge deal and played with him for a long time outside, which he loves. Now he goes when I tell him. So awesome when I have to go to work and I am in a hurry!!!

Too bad co-sleeping with the dogs is not a joke in my house....we have a 9 yo dachsund who has been sleeping with us since we got her. We have a 3 yo golden retriever who sleeps next to our bed in her pet bed, and starts out in our bed at night then moves because she's too big.
Puppy tips:
1. Use the crate at night. Never use it for punishment. Put it next to your bed, if she cries, you can reach in and pet her.
2. Take her out too pee/poop a) first thing in the morning. By first thing, BTW for a puppy, it will probably be 6 am. b) again RIGHT after she eats. RIGHT after. c) If she takes a nap, then gets up, take her out the second she gets up. d) If she starts to walk around and sniff, take her out. e) In addition to taking her out right after eating, take her out an hour later. f) Regardless of anything else, take her out every 2 hours whether she indicates needing to go or not. Just to be sure.
3) When taking her out to pee/poop, take her on a leash, don't just "let her out in your yard". Take her always the same route. Use a command for going, we say "park time". You say it as she pees/poops.
4) Be very effusive about her going outside.
5) If (when) she has accidents in the house, DO NOT PUNISH her.
6) Do not leave her alone for more than 2 hours. Do not crate her alone for long periods. It is not good for the dog.
You can housetrain your puppy in a week or two if you follow this. If you want any help at all, PM me. I have housetrained both my dogs. One was VERY tough having had previous bad training. The other was easy.

HAVE FUN!!!!

Oh A....I just about snorted my Starbuck's passion tea/lemonaid out my nose at the co-sleeping!! Like Cheryl said...when they are older! Pretty darn funny!!

Please, please, please be careful where you take him on common grassy areas...the parvo virus is awful especially in little girls this young.

Have fun with your schnoodle!! I have never seen one. Mine is a boxer shepherd mix. Lover her!! Have fun!!

crate train. i agree with kristina m. i have seen dogs tear up toilet paper, shampoo/conditioner bottles, eat soap, tear holes in carpet and linoleum, tear up doors, trim, etc, trying to "dig" out under the door. they can and will destroy bathrooms too. get a crate.

forget the puppy pads.....crate train & life will be so much easier! Do you really want the dog trained to "go" in the house? & Casey C. said it all when it comes to potty-training! The same goes for Jen C....her comments on potty-training were also dead-on!

Whatever you do...don't use the bathroom as the training ground! We made that mistake & had to replace the door! The scratch marks were that deep....in just 4 hours. OMG, my DH was furious! Oh, & we have friends who put their dog in the master bathroom...in one 1/2 day (total 6 hours) at work, they ended up having to replace the soft toilet seat, the wicker trashcan, the wood vanity, the floor trim, & the closet door. Oh, yeah, & the toilet paper was everywhere....stuck to the dog, spit wads stuck to the floor. It was crazy, crazy!

Work with the breeds in your dog: both schnauzers & poodles can be high strung. Give the pup a secure home with lots of exercise. Schnauzers are yippy-yappy, very protective of their homes. Poodles tend to be anxious, but also performers. I truly believe mixed breeds bring out the best of both worlds. We have a labradoodle & he's a riot! Opens doors like a champ!

Co-sleep: ummm, sorry, it's not a case of JK! It will happen! Plan on having the crate right by your side, because you will be the one getting up thru the night for months! & I mean, months! Thank goodness you live in FL!! :) No snow/ice to worry about! The pup will whine/whimper/potty/want to play thru the night ....probably until spring. That's life with a pup....& not a bad pup.

Having a pup is a joy! I love puppy kisses, puppy nips, & that warm/full belly. Just like with kids, this is an issue of total trust. It's a huge responsibiity & not for the faint of heart....or those who choke on ownership after the puppyhood. My DH always says, "puppies are cute ....until they grow up. Then they're a pain in the a**. " LOL....& unfortunately, he's done with dogs after our current two....whom he adores. He swears NO more pups after CoCoa & ChockO pass on. I disagree: owning 2 or 3 Jack Russell siblings is on my bucket list! My beloved Gma always wanted a wire-haired J.R.....& so do I....but I want 2-3, not 1 at a time!

Enjoy & watch those electrical cords on the Christmas lights!

Make sure you take her out often, and don't be harsh if she has an accident, the fault is yours, not hers. Teach her to give you a cue. We hang bells from our door, and every time we take them out we ring them, than they eventually learn to ring them if they want out. Also, crate training at night will help them to learn to hold their bladder, but at this age don't expect them to go more than 6 hours even at night without going outside, they can make it longer as they get older. Most of all, be patient. The first year there will be accidents and lots of stuff chewed up, but that is normal!

Also, get the best food you can afford. Some of the best brands are Taste of the Wild, wellness, and Blue Buffalo. Grain free is good. The price seems high when you look at hit, but without all the fillers they use it more efficiently, so eat less, and poop less. Cost wise, it ends up being about the same as the cheap stuff because they eat half as much.

Almost as important as crate training is. . . actual training. Puppies need to learn who is boss before they become unruly dogs. All dogs can be trained. Most dogs need to be. Please sign up for classes in your area when puppy gets a little bit older. You won't regret it.

Abolutely co-sleep!
Have him get his first job at 10 delivering papers (not eating them).

JUST KIDDING.

Love the idea Cheryle gave you......a fenced play pen.
You can put it where ever is convenient for you: your room, living room etc.
Put pee pads & a dog bed in there.
Take out OFTEN to pee.
Take out to poop, too.
A few chew toys so he won't chew on things. Ha ha. Expect that....just
work on that.
Give lots of attention.
If you play w/them a lot & walk them, you get them tired out like a child. :)
Good luck & have fun w/your new little love.

Definitely crate train. Incredibly helpful at night, when you're out and when you have people over. Our puppy was dry at night within a week of crate training. She caught on extremely fast that she didn't want to pee where she slept.

Oh, expect the first few nights not to get much sleep if puppy sleeps near you. A lot of whimpering and howling all night. It will get better soon.

Expect tons of potty accidents, nipping and high energy early on. That's just what happens with a puppy, so go into this with lots of patience.

Move everything small up high, as you do with babies on the go. Our puppy will eat anything, with her favorites being crayons, stinky socks and matchbox cars. And don't be shocked at what your teething puppy will chew on. We invested in tons of balls, chewies, etc. only to find out puppy outside chewing rocks, our patio cover posts, our retaining wall. They literally will chew on ANYTHING.

Have fun! Our puppy is five months old now and it's been so much fun so far!

I would put her in the master bath to sleep. There isn't anything to tear up and you can hear when she wakes up. I LOVE dogs but puppies are tough because, like any little baby, you can't take your eyes off them or they'll get into something. I wouldn't co-sleep, I'm sure she'll have an accident...

Crate train the puppy. She will cry in the beginning, but will learn to love it as her own little "cave". By nature, dogs do not want to go to the bathroom where they sleep. It use to be a survival instinct. This will help you with house-breaking her. You will need to do some middle of the night walks to help her relieve herself because even a dog who doesn't want to go in the crate can't make it all night long. The general rule is however old in months is about how long the dog can make it plus 1 hour. So if she is 2 months old, she needs to go out every 3 hours. Stop water around 6pm at night to help her last about 4 hours while you are sleeping. Also, when dealing with puppy nipping, don't hit her to get her to stop. Have a chew toy handy and trade it for the hand that is being nipped. You can also just get up and walk away. They get it quickly...I nip, no more games and attention. That can be hard with kids. We brought our current giant schnauzer(20lbs at 10 weeks) into our house when our daughter was 6. I truly believe my last giant schnauzer was much easier to train than my 6 year old. :)

Hitting after the fact of an accident on the floor does no good but make the dog timid which could develop into fear biting when she is older. Just clean it up and try to get her out before it happens again. I teach people to least the dog around your waste, so the same principle of not wanting to go where they lay or sit helps to prevent accidents. If you do see her peeing then give her a loud, low tone "No" and get her outside for her to finish. Lots of praise afterwards. If you connect a word to it, you can teach to pee on command. My giant, now a 100lbs, pees on command to a Chinese word, and gets it done quicker.

Good luck!(sorry, in a rush and didn't spell check) lol

I am a bad mommy I guess, because I have 2 fur babies that sleep with me. 1 tunnels into the bed and the other 1 nestles in the dip of my back on her blankie. Our bigest 1 (35#) sleeps in his crate at night in my son's room and 1of my daughter's has a fluffball who sleeps in 1 of those "pop-up" doggie tents at night. Watch out in the mornings when the "Lets go outside puppies" sound is spoken - you might get crushed in the rush. LOL

1. have a puppy sitter for the periods of time you are not home to avoid accidents and destruction of home due to boredoom

2. Never let puppy on your bed.

3. crate train

4. dont let puppy off leash til after the puppy is a year and trained. Petsmart has a great puppy training program.

5. socialize the puppy with kids and other dogs.

6. bitter apple spray works to get them to stop bitting furniture

7. Best cleaner for accidents is a product at petsmart that comes in a white bottle with red writting on it. It got out red crystal light. Just cant step on it while wet or the dirt will get attracted to it.

8. DONT DO PURINA BRANDS!!!!!!! It has too much protein in them and makes the dogs just poop more. Also, leads to fatter dogs. Best brand we found was Science diet. Cost a bit more but no more upset tummies, pooping 1 or 2 times verses 4, shinny coat, great on the weight and recommended by our vets.

Crate training really worked for me. Leave the water out and give her water only a few times a day. It's not summer so she'll be fine. Have fun!

With all the terriers I have had in my life (3 now), they ALWAYS slept with us. Some dogs do not do well in crates no matter how long you let them cry it out. It just causes more anxiety and they are no problem in the bed anyway. They will pick their spot and that's where they will sleep the rest of their lives. I do admit we have a king size bed tough! MAKe sure you watch some of Cesar Milan's videos or Dog Whisperer shows because he gives the best tips how to treat your dog as a dog and not a baby. Good luck!