The car ride went superbly well as he was nestled on daddy's lap, the dog introductions went well (sniff, sniff, lick kiss ignore), he had food and playtime and then settled in his crate for a nap after 30 minutes of loud ruckus.
"Hey!", we thought, "that was easy! good puppy!"
Little did we know...
The evening tantrum lasted about two hours. At one point I had to go outside for a walk, the howling was doing my head in. At least the stars were out so it was a nice view...
Did I ever mention that earplugs are a godsend? No? Well, they are: from snoring dogs to sirens to traffic and screaming puppies, it all gets blocked out allowing for a good night's sleep. Unfortunately for Vegas, he can't to earplugs so let's just say he didn't get
"Rough night?"
"...groan..."
Puppy got taken out at 3am and then at some point after that he managed to crap in his crate and smear it all over, then proceed to howl and scream from 5am onwards. We got up at 7 to take him out for a pee and clean everything up - he then ate a huge breakfast and is now, of course, passed out in his crate sleeping.
But look how cute he is:
We have since figured out that this is the result of him being mama's boy all his life. Being the last born, he was coddled and carried and held a lot and now it's all he wants. He's not too steady on his feet, he can barely climb stairs and wants to be carried all the time.Thankfully, the problem is easier to fix when you know what it is ;-)
He will need to learn that no, he's not being abandoned and yes, he will be treated like a dog now and not a human baby. He will build his self-confidence and autonomy and will learn to be a good pack member. Hugs and cuddles and kisses will be limited to what is normal in order to help him become the awesome dog we know he can be - let's just hope we have enough patience and earplugs to make it until then!
More news and pics to come later...Hope you're all having a great weekend!
/end of Oh Lord Grant Us Some Peace And Quiet post/
10 comments:
He is adorable. Breaking bad habits is hard, but you will persevere.
Plus, he is yummy!
Oh how sweet! Sorry he seems like a handful, but I am sure that it will get better as he gets used to his surroundings! What great care givers - so patient! :)
I'm glad he made it home safely. :)
I assume you know the drill, right? No stairs or full out running for the first year and calcium in the diet should be around 0.8% tops...
Found this too:
http://www.dogueinfo.com/index_files/care.htm
Busy Bee, he's a good boy, he just needs direction and less coddling. It's his second day here and already he's getting better :-)
Daring, totally - we wouldn't go through all of this if we didn't think he was worth it! Who needs sleep? LOL
Prin, yep limited playtime & exercise but he will have some stairs to contend with to get to the lawn, luckily there are only a few! He's starting his raw diet tomorrow so he should grow at a proper rate for bones and all (he's on pukaneuba crap right now - shudder). Thanks for the link btw, it's awesome!
he is just frikking adorable! awwww how can you NOT kiss and cuddle that lil boy? spoil him, pleeeeease... he deserves it. those beautiful blue eyes melt my heart. i think puppies get lonely and feel abandoned. i say, let him sleep with you. he will keep you warm and then wont cry all night. he just needs some affection!
bwahhh i hear you laughing from here. you think im nutso. thats ok, i will just continue to spoil my bella. it works for us.
congrats, new parentals.... he truly is beautiful.
c
See, this is why I don't own dogs, I don't think I'd have the discipline to give them the boundaries they need to have. Ditto kidlets, haha. :) He sure is beautiful! I used to walk dogs at the No Kill shelter in San Antonio. I love pups, I really miss those walks and snuggles.
He is cute. I especially love the pic of him walking with his leash hanging behind him - looks like he has got ATTITUDE! What breed is he? He is a great catch.
Puppy power!!!
Oh my god, that dog is so cute. I get my dogs back tomorrow :-)
C, once we figured out it was a case of separation anxiety and extreme fatigue, the problem was quickly fixed - day two was a dream!
Rebecca, when you see the results that the mantra of "exercise, discipline, affection" - in that order - can produce, it's really easy to stick to it cuz in the end you have a dog that is a joy and a pleasure to live with. :-)
Roshan, oh yeah hims got attitude! He is a Dogue De Bordeaux, aka french mastiff.
Katana, I bet you can't wait!
Lady B, if today and tonight were any indication, I think we have a super good puppy on our hands... he is a VERY fast learner!
He is so cute, TD! They're always a handful as puppies. He'll settle down soon enough. And that is great that he is such a fast learner. It's great when you luck out like that. When I had my pup - he was an incredibly fast learner. :o)
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