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Friday, December 02, 2005

Whining, Howling, Barking Puppy - Not if I can help it

I just this article at Perfect Paws. Since I was shocked about how much he whined when we crated him I thought it would be useful to have it posted here.

Whining, Howling, Barking Puppy

Your puppy is howling, whining or barking for a reason. If the problem is not resolved immediately, whining can become an ingrained habit that is intensely irritating and annoying. Many dogs use whining, howling, and barking as a means of vocal blackmail in order to control their owners.

Puppy Whining Do's

-When confined to a crate or small room or pen, always give your puppy the benefit of the doubt. When she begins whining, immediately take her to her toilet area.
-Teach your dog to accept isolation and privacy. Accustom your puppy to being left by herself, even if you are home. This will prevent separation anxiety and all the problems that accompany it.
-Make sure your puppy is comfortable. Is your puppy hungry, thirsty, too hot, too cold, uncomfortable, sick, or has lost her toy under the furniture?
-When you know that all your puppy's physical needs are met and you have taken the time to accustom her to isolation, then teach her that whining is unacceptable.

Puppy Whining Don'ts

-Do not give in and reward your puppy for whining.
-Do not hesitate to appropriately reprimand unnecessary whining.
-Do not let your dog feel abandoned.
-Do not let your dog soil her crate.

posted by kv sheldon at 7:38 AM 0 comments

Life with our Bernese Mountain Dog Puppy

Our puppy arrived yesterday morning from Kansas City. He's an adorable ball of brown and black fur with the biggest puppy paws. We couldn't believe how big he had gotten since we had picked him out two weeks ago. We were able to bring him home without to much incident except that he pooped in his crate as soon as we got into the car. Needless to say it was stinky ride home.

Once we arrived my husband took him into the garage, still in his crate, and then we open the crate door. He was nervous and scared and initially had a hard time even looking at us. But, eventually, with some coaxing and food he wondered out of his crate.

We brought him inside, where he begin to sniff and nose about. But in no time he was wagging his tale and following behind us closely. As I mentioned in previous posts we left our two cats upstairs in our bedroom and our 14 month old spent the day with Grandma. When my husband took him outside to go to bathroom he immediately, starting hopping about and playing.

At this point we had not picked a name for him and were trying names like Brewster, Mickey, and Bo.

We have a stone fireplace with a slate base on the floor. He really likes laying on the slate and we put a blanket down for him. In no time he was a sleep.

Before we knew it Grandma showed up with Connor. We grabbed the camera as we put Connor down to show him his new friend and pet. Immediately, Connor bent down, pointed at the puppy and started squealing. He went over and patted the puppy and the puppy looked up to him and gave him a snuggle. They tried to play for awhile, but we had a very tired puppy from a long plane trip and new home, and a cranky little boy with little nap time since he had visited Santa earlier. In no time Connor was sleeping in his crib and the puppy was sleeping by the fireplace.


posted by kv sheldon at 6:59 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Introducing Puppies to Cats

We are very excited because we are picking up our puppy from the airport tomorrow. However, in the last day or so I have been doing research on how best to introduce our puppy to our family. As exciting as it is for us to get a new puppy, the puppy is going to feel stress after leaving his litter and the home he has known up until now. Of course we want to make this as smooth as a trasition as possible. My last post was about introducing our puppy to our 14 month old, this will be about introducing our puppy to our cats.

We have two cats and I want to make sure that the puppy is introduced properly to the cats. Puppies can unintentially hurt a cat as a cat feeling that it needs to defend itself can hurt a puppy. Anyway I have found some very helpful information on the subject that I can share.

The first is from The Cat Site. It gives very clear instruction on how to Introduce dogs to cats and puppies to cats.

The other information is from Pet Focused.

Here are some Pointers for Introductions from the Pet Focused Website.

Three basic rules will ensure a good start to introducing dogs and cats to one another.
  • Be in control! If you have an aggressive dog, have a leash on hand to rein him in when his behavior indicates that he might pounce on the kitty.
  • Never leave your pets unsupervised while they're getting acquainted.
    Be prepared. Your dog may be very excited and curious about your cat, and the cat very frightened. Excited dogs can easily get out of control, and frightened cats may try to claw and bite to escape.
  • Give it a try. Don't assume that you can't adopt a new pet because you already own a dog or cat. You may miss out on a new friend and companion, and so might your pet!
Luckily, we have a large house. We already have gates up, because of our 14 month old, that give access to the family room, kitchen, and office. The cats have been eating in our pantry, but I will move their bowls up to our bathroom, and they will go on the otherside of the house and have access to the upstairs and the litter box. We plan to crate our puppy and he will sleep downstairs. Our cats can actually jump from the stairs over one of the gates to the kitchen so when they are ready to be friendly with the puppy it will be up to them.


posted by kv sheldon at 8:43 AM 0 comments

Monday, November 28, 2005

Bernese Puppies and Children


We have a 14 month old. And this 14 month old was the reason why we decided to get a dog. He loves our neighbor's Beagle and Rhodesian Ridgeback. They give him kisses and hugs every time we would visit, and he would just laugh and giggle. We finally gave in and decided to get a dog as well.

One of the reason we decided upon the Bernese Mountain Dog is because they tend to be very gentle dogs and are great with children. But a puppy is not a dog. There is much to consider when having both a toddler and a puppy. Essentially, you end up having two toddlers.

I have been doing much research on how best to introduce our new puppy to our toddler. We are very excited to see his face light up when we introduce him to our new puppy, which will be arriving on Thursday. We have decided that Connor, my 14 month old, will spend the day at grandma's while we get the puppy. This way when the puppy comes home he as the chance to explore and get use to his new surroundings, before meeting his new playmate.

Now I believe that the best advice that I have found and have been given about having a puppy and toddler is never leave either one of them alone or unsupervised when they are together. One of them could very well get hurt. If I leave the room, the puppy will have to be in his crate or Connor will have to come with me.

Also, being aware that the puppy may need time away from Connor, who have seen relentlessly chase my cat. When needed the puppy may need some quiet time alone. Also, I need to be sure that Connor never corners the puppy. If it feels threatened it's only course of action will be to defend himself. For more information about children and puppies and toddlers and puppies, Diamondsintheruff.com has excellent information.






posted by kv sheldon at 6:22 PM 0 comments

Our Bernese Mountain Puppy

Friday, November 11, 2005.

I want to back up a little to give everyone some information about why after many, many years my husband finally talked me into getting a dog. I can put the blame on our neighbor's two dogs and my 14 month old. My neighbor's have a Beagle and Rhodesian Ridgeback.

I have been relunctant to get a dog for many reasons.

1. We have two cats.
2. I would end up taking care of the dog.
3. I have a baby I'm raising.
4. I would end up taking care of the dog.
5. We have two cats.
6. I would end up taking care of the dog.

The problem is that everytime we visit our neighbors my son has a such a great time with the two dogs. The Beagle gives many kisses to Connor and he just laughs. The Rhodesian Ridgeback knocks him over and he doesn't care. Our cats at home could care less about Connor know matter how much attention he gives them.

It is also just too adorable to watch and I knew everytime that I visited them and watched the dog and baby scene that I was going to eventually relent to my husbands wishes.

The other reason we are going to get a Bernese Mountain Dog is because of a 1999 Chrysler Sebring.

Find why on my next posting....

posted by kv sheldon at 9:30 AM 0 comments