New puppy

[SounderChick]

Our new puppy will be here Friday. She is a Rottie 5months old very sweet.  It's been awhile since I had a young pup.  So hit me with your tips and hints.  

[Pen]

It has been a while now since I had a Rottweiler.  😢 I had a very good Rottweiler specific forum that I used.  Maybe this: https://www.rottweilersonline.com/forum/forum.php#/

[gardenmom5]

zac George's youtube channel.

[Dynamite5]

She's adorable! Have you chosen a name?

Are you going to crate train her? If so, remember to feed her inside it, give her special treats inside of the crate only and in general make it an awesome place for her to go and feel safe, to nap, etc.

Have plenty of heavy chew toys at her disposal and make sure everyone is extra diligent about picking up things she should not have access to.

I keep new puppies with me (on a leash) so that I can control their movements during the first 3 or 4 months (no hunting around the house looking for a puppy who has found mischief!). It's a bit of a pain, but that's the beauty of crate training--got an appointment? put the pup in the kennel.

Her bladder will seem much smaller and less reliable than you remember from other puppies you've had. LOL Plan on taking her out very often.

Start good habits now--sitting before she eats, staying off furniture unless invited, not chewing on things she's not authorized to chew on.

Practice having kids sneak outside and ring your doorbell and ignore them--that's the easiest way to teach her to ignore it, too. I actually put an app on my phone and played noised at various times because our household tends to the quieter side and I don't want my dogs going crazy at every single sound.

Post photos!!

 

[Scarlett]

Aww.  Welcome to my club.  My girl is 15 weeks old.  She is sooo much work.  Like a toddler.  I told Dh I feel like that couple who had a late life baby that they let get away with murder.  You wanna chew holes in my fuzzy robe?.  Go ahead, I don’t really need it anyway.  
 

The first few nights were rough....she wanted to go out 2 or three times at first.   It she was only 7 weeks old when we brought her home.  Yours is older than mine already.  My pup is 15 weeks old.  
 

she is work, but so so much fun and love and joy.  

Edited March 23, 2020 by Scarlett
15 weeks not months!

[SounderChick]

3 hours ago, Dynamite5 said:

She's adorable! Have you chosen a name?

Are you going to crate train her? If so, remember to feed her inside it, give her special treats inside of the crate only and in general make it an awesome place for her to go and feel safe, to nap, etc.

 

Yes we plan to crate train.  Only question was do we setup 2 crates?  1 with us during the day and the other in a bedroom to sleep?  Or move 1 crate or choose 1 spot for everything. Never had such a large house before.  

Planning to leash her to and not let her go downstairs at all.  

Hopefully since we are all home to watch her potty training will go smoothly.  She is doing really well but that's no guarantee that it will transfer to the new house.

[Scarlett]

1 hour ago, rebcoola said:

Yes we plan to crate train.  Only question was do we setup 2 crates?  1 with us during the day and the other in a bedroom to sleep?  Or move 1 crate or choose 1 spot for everything. Never had such a large house before.  

Planning to leash her to and not let her go downstairs at all.  

Hopefully since we are all home to watch her potty training will go smoothly.  She is doing really well but that's no guarantee that it will transfer to the new house.

After the first week we moved her to a bigger crate in the living area for day crating and sleeping.  We can hear her if she cries out loudly but not every little noise she makes.  Normally.  Last night we had our door open and I heard her dreaming.  She sleeps all night every night. Usually fro 10-6.  But our house is not huge,  just 1900 sf.
 

We had not a single accident all weekend.  

[Pawz4me]

9 hours ago, rebcoola said:

Yes we plan to crate train.  Only question was do we setup 2 crates?  1 with us during the day and the other in a bedroom to sleep?  Or move 1 crate or choose 1 spot for everything. Never had such a large house before.  

Planning to leash her to and not let her go downstairs at all.  

Hopefully since we are all home to watch her potty training will go smoothly.  She is doing really well but that's no guarantee that it will transfer to the new house.

Whichever you prefer. I have an embarrassing number of crates in the attic, so when I have a foster here I usually set some up in different areas 'cause I'm lazy and would rather do it once than move one around. I do think if possible dogs should sleep in the same room with their people at night.

Do you know anything about her history? At 5 months old she's old enough to have learned some bad habits, but still be very malleable. My hints are --

Be prepared to provide her with way more exercise than you remember a young puppy needing.

Start working on training right away. Mental exercise tires a puppy or dog out faster than physical exercise, plus you want a well trained dog. And this is going to sound contradictory, but also be prepared (again, depending on history) that she may need a week or two decompression period. But still--start working on fun reward based training. You want her to understand from Day 1 that in her new house it's beneficial for her to do what the humans want her to do. And it will help tire her out. 😉 

Many newly adopted dogs have a honeymoon period--a week or three when they're on their best behavior because they feel uncertain in a new home. So don't be fooled if she seems practically perfect and then starts showing some naughtiness. In a way that's a good thing, it shows she's feeling comfortable in her new home.

Congratulations! One of my past dogs was a Rottie. They're usually wonderful dogs.

Edited March 23, 2020 by Pawz4me

[Guest]

Awww, she’s lovely! 

I wish I had gotten a puppy before all this stuff happened!

[Jaybee]

I keep fighting the thought that this would be a wonderful time to get a puppy, with most of us at home available to train. The reason I'm fighting it is due to the added expense and the stress we are already under, with all the current unknowns. And then I think, "But having a little friend to pet would help my stress!" And then I think, "But worrying about it ruining the carpet and having to clean up messes would add to my stress!" And on and on...😂 Anyway, we won't be getting one right now. Your pup is beautiful!

[Scarlett]

52 minutes ago, Jaybee said:

I keep fighting the thought that this would be a wonderful time to get a puppy, with most of us at home available to train. The reason I'm fighting it is due to the added expense and the stress we are already under, with all the current unknowns. And then I think, "But having a little friend to pet would help my stress!" And then I think, "But worrying about it ruining the carpet and having to clean up messes would add to my stress!" And on and on...😂 Anyway, we won't be getting one right now. Your pup is beautiful!

I went through the same back and forth and ended up giving in when I saw her picture. Well my SIL showed me pictures of the litter asking for my opinion on which one she should get. I did not hesitate .... but the one I suggested my SIL said was too feisty and sassy.... when I found out my SIL chose another I knew I had to have the one she passed on  . Mazie came home with us a week later. 💕💕

[Selkie]

She is beautiful!

PSA to anyone thinking about getting a dog or cat: Many shelters are trying feverishly (no pun intended) to get their animals adopted out and are running specials with reduced prices for adoption. They are worried that between the virus and looming lockdowns, they won't have enough staff to care for the animals. So if you are so inclined, you can help the shelters out and add some joy to your life at the same time.❤️

[Jaybee]

38 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

I went through the same back and forth and ended up giving in when I saw her picture. Well my SIL showed me pictures of the litter asking for my opinion on which one she should get. I did not hesitate .... but the one I suggested my SIL said was too feisty and sassy.... when I found out my SIL chose another I knew I had to have the one she passed on  . Mazie came home with us a week later. 💕💕

I'm trying not to look at too many cute pictures!

[Jaybee]

8 minutes ago, Selkie said:

She is beautiful!

PSA to anyone thinking about getting a dog or cat: Many shelters are trying feverishly (no pun intended) to get their animals adopted out and are running specials with reduced prices for adoption. They are worried that between the virus and looming lockdowns, they won't have enough staff to care for the animals. So if you are so inclined, you can help the shelters out and add some joy to your life at the same time.❤️

I can't get one from the shelters around here, because they are breeds that do not work for our situation and family. I wish they did, but they do not.

[Pawz4me]

I'm all for people getting new pets (from shelters or reputable breeders), but do keep in mind that right now it's harder to get vet care. The AAHA, AVMA as well as state and local health departments are all providing guidance and regulations on how vets can operate right now. A vet on another board I'm on posted this:

Quote

No client is allowed in the hospital.

Animals are retrieved from the car by a hospital employee.

All communications are done by phone.

Routine surgeries have been cancelled.

As many problems are being solved via telemedicine as possible, many things can be addresses by phone with extensive q&a between doctor/tech and client.

The state mandates that if any hospital personnel turns up positive for corona, the hospital must close for 2 weeks, personnel self quarantine and thorough hospital disinfection performed (that's done usually twice daily anyway with individual exam room disinfection after each patient).

This all means that veterinarians are going to have to work together between hospitals in case one has to close. It also means that people are going to have to be cooperative in dealing with these new normals.
 

So when thinking of getting a pet I'd keep in mind that getting care is going to be trickier for the next few weeks, at a minimum.

[Selkie]

15 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

I'm all for people getting new pets (from shelters or reputable breeders), but do keep in mind that right now it's harder to get vet care. The AAHA, AVMA as well as state and local health departments are all providing guidance and regulations on how vets can operate right now. A vet on another board I'm on posted this:

So when thinking of getting a pet I'd keep in mind that getting care is going to be trickier for the next few weeks, at a minimum.

True! The shelter near us (which is across a state line and not on lockdown yet) said they have adjusted their requirements re. vet visits and are addressing that issue with potential adopters.

Edited March 23, 2020 by Selkie

[stephanier.1765]

What a sweetheart of a face! Lucky family!

 

[Scarlett]

5 hours ago, Pawz4me said:

I'm all for people getting new pets (from shelters or reputable breeders), but do keep in mind that right now it's harder to get vet care. The AAHA, AVMA as well as state and local health departments are all providing guidance and regulations on how vets can operate right now. A vet on another board I'm on posted this:

So when thinking of getting a pet I'd keep in mind that getting care is going to be trickier for the next few weeks, at a minimum.

I was shocked to find this very thing in rural OK just now when we took our puppy to get her last set of shots.  Thankfully they will see us Thursday.......

[stephanier.1765]

7 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

I was shocked to find this very thing in rural OK just now when we took our puppy to get her last set of shots.  Thankfully they will see us Thursday.......

I called our vet today to insure they are open before I go tomorrow. I'll still be holding my breath the whole way there hoping that it will be true.