# Two weeks of Ownership



## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Tired. That's me right now, just Tired. Indy has started to sleep better but it's still a crap shoot on how the night will go. Last night we went to bed around ten and he didn't get up until 3 and then slept until 6am. The night before he was awake for random reasons every hour or two. Even with last nights much better schedule I still wake up exhausted. I don't do the split sleepy times well. I want all of my sleep to happen at the same time... and preferably 9 to 10 hours of it. I just don't function well on less. So basically I'm not functioning at 100%.

Zoe (11 year old daughter) is still getting used to Indy being a constant. She says she feels like we're just watching him and he'll be going "home" soon. I love that he's in charge of waking her up. I bring him up with me and turn off her fan then he goes and stands on her lowest rail for her lader and wimpers until she gets down to hold him.










We have not had a problem with her running late in the morning since he showed up  Homework in the evening is getting easier too. For the first few days it was impossible to get her to pay attention long enough to get it finished but we're slowly moving into a new normal.










My current Mantra is: "It's only been x# of weeks."

Indy has been in our home less than 3 weeks and he's not quite 3 months old. Yesterday I spent two straight hours ignoring him in order to get all the house chores finished. Zoe was in the living room with him but apparently that wasn't enough. He peed three different times. I'm not sure when the first happened but I saw the other two. I was on the phone once and was standing in the kitchen the last time. He didn't even attempt to let anyone know (he has been SO good about going to the door and ringing bells). I'm pretty sure he was acting out. Fine, two hours with random pets for attention is not enough right now. Message received! ...Puddles cleaned up. "It's only been 2 weeks."

He's sleeping anywhere from 2 hours to 6 hours before needing to go outside at night. Three hours is the most common which works well enough. We're usually in bed around 10pm so I get up again anywhere between 1 and 3 and then he'll sleep until around 5:30 or so. The alarm goes off at 6 so we're up until everyone leaves the house and then Indy and I curl up for another hour on the couch. I think he likes these naps more than I do. He just follows me around watching until I sit down and then pounces me. The only down side is when it changes from Nap time to Play time and the only warning I get is my nose or ear being attacked. We've also started running into the problem that during the day Indy wants ALL his naps to be on me. This is cute but really not a sustainable practice. With as tired as I am it is REALLY hard not to lay down with his puppy dog face but so far I've only given in to the one morning nap (pretty sure I deserve a cookie for that).










Yesterday was the first day he was left in the puppy play pen. We started with 10 minutes and I left the room to work upstairs. I was quiet (folding and putting away laundry) and listened to him whimper and cry the full ten minutes. I went back down and ignored him until he calmed down and then let him out and sat down on the couch to give him lots of cuddles. Today we'll do 20 minutes and see how things go. Tomorrow the goal is 30. If it's consistant with his night time crate training he should stop crying at 20 minutes and just lay down. I have no doubt it won't be anything like crate training at night. I would really really like to be able to leave the house again one day but ... "It has only been two weeks."

We went over to a friends house on Monday. Indy was able to "play" with a much bigger dog (she's not huge but it's all relative to a 5 pound pup). Misty has so much energy and could not understand why Indy wouldn't chase her. Indy was stepped on once and was a little gun shy but he was interested the whole time and would play with all of her toys - just not her. He would go chase a tennis ball but as soon as Misty went after it he'd drop it and bolt in the opposite direction (usually ending up behind my legs). We all went on a walk and with the help of four additional people and another dogs lead to follow Indy walked for nearly a mile at a not so snailish pace! We passed about ten other dogs while we were out and he would sit calmly and let them sniff him and even walked up to a few of them on his own. My favorite was the giant St Bernard looking bear of a dog leaning all the way down to sniff this fur ball that is smaller than most cats. The first set of dogs he was nervous around and tried to climb into my arms but after some reassurance and pets he was fine and didn't have any problems with the other meet ups. At the end of the walk we heard someone yelling behind us. Turning around there was a larger dog (maybe a pointer of some sort?) bolting our direction. I scooped Indy up and the dog was right there. Pretty sure he thought Indy was a rabbit. The owner came up and directly came over to make sure Indy was ok and was apologetic. I'm pretty sure Indy didn't have any idea what was going on. At no point was he shaking or showing any signs of nervousness. As far as he was concerned, I'd finally picked him up. Something he'd been trying to get me to do for at least ten minutes straight. We made it back to their house and Indy saw their cats again (both of whom are bigger than he is) and then we came home for dinner. The best news is that he has gotten SO MUCH better at walking on a leash. We still have a LOT of work to do but I no longer think he's a lost cause.










This is how Indy asks to be picked up. He stops in front of you and puts his paws on your feet. If you can keep in front of him and just not stop - you can make it all the way around the block at a decent speed. Indy is not impressed with snow. >.<

Indy has had two baths since moving in. Zoe helped me with one and Brad helped with the other. Odd as it may sound, Zoe was a better helper  I think it's because she's used to taking instruction so she can see what I need her to do and she picks up on cues faster than Brad does. Both times Indy wasn't thrilled but he wasn't really upset either. He doesn't like the hair dryer but with his hair he's going to have to just get used to it. He's also TINY when wet. The next time I'll have to get Zoe to help so that Brad can take pictures.

Last night Brad brought out an old beard trimmer that he doesn't like and we managed to cut the hair between Indy's paw pads. That went pretty well too as long as I held him and kept the treats coming. That will get easier too because Brad will get faster and Indy will know what to expect. Face washing has become a little more of a pain. At first he was so good about just curling up in my lap and I could wash his face and around his eyes with a warm wash cloth. Now... he sees the wash cloth and runs the opposite direction. This is something I'm hoping gets better with time. He's a Hav. He has to have his face washed. As a chocolate the tear stains won't be as big of a deal but the eye crusties can't be comfortable and if they're ignored they'll just get worse.

There is a 20 minute period of time before he crashes for a nap where he goes CRAZY. It reminds me of a toddler who is trying so hard to stay awake that they can't sit still. The problem is that during this time Indy chews on EVERYTHING. If he nips one of us we immediately say "Ouch!", stand up and look away from him for a few minutes. This doesn't always help but I'm hoping if we just keep doing it he will eventually figure it out. I have less ideas on how to get him to stop chewing on: the wall, the couch, the curtains, the chair legs, even the grout! I can't get Apple Bitter spray locally so I'm waiting for some I've ordered. Hopefully that will help.










He's finally figured out his name and he's getting better with the simple "Sit" command but everything else is a lost cause. I try to spend ten minutes with him every day while the house is quiet working on simple commands but I don't want to do too much too quickly. It's also hard to keep Zoe training him the same way Brad and I are consistantly. She really just wants an excuse to give him treats.

Thank you again to everyone here! I spend a lot of time going through old threads and having my questions answered before I even have to ask them. Indy appreciates it too 










*****
And HOW do you add a picture to show up under your name?


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Chica'sMom said:


> I have two thoughts. One, at 3 months he should well be able to hold his bladder through the night. He could be training you.  Secondly, his accidents are not 'acting out'. He's just not house trained. It's going to take a lot more work, and possibly many more months before that happens. My pup was 9 months old before she was fully trained and that's with me being home full time and taking her out VERY regularly.
> Actually, I have one more thought. He's very, very cute!


... and here I was thinking 3 hours was good.  Should I just start pushing him back a little at a time until he's sleeping through the night?

The only reason I think the accidents might have been intentional was because he's only had three accidents since we brought him home (now 6 with yesterdays antics). Two of the previous accidents were our fault too. He'd rang the bell we just didn't get him outside fast enough. I'm not pretending that he is 100% house trained at 3 months. Just that Indy only has free reign in the living room and kitchen so these are his living spaces and he'd rather go outside. Yesterday might have been just a little too much activity and not enough attention.


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

He seems to be pretty normal, but you need a little help with the training. He should be able to sleep all night, but has gotten into the habit of doing what he's doing. We expect them to sleep all night in a crate by 8 weeks. 

He needs to learn "leave it", and have plenty of toys and other stuff that's okay to chew on.

I have no idea where you are, but if you were close enough to us, you would be welcome to bring him by here.


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Tom King said:


> He seems to be pretty normal, but you need a little help with the training. He should be able to sleep all night, but has gotten into the habit of doing what he's doing. We expect them to sleep all night in a crate by 8 weeks.
> 
> He needs to learn "leave it", and have plenty of toys and other stuff that's okay to chew on.
> 
> I have no idea where you are, but if you were close enough to us, you would be welcome to bring him by here.


I won't lie, I'm a little disappointed. I thought the night time crate training was going well. He'd never been in one when we brought him home at 9 weeks so the first week was just hell. It's just baby steps I know. Indy will go in the crate without any problems so now it's just teaching him to last the night. Time to look up more information again.

The living room is covered in a multitude of toys. Any time he starts chewing on something he's not supposed to we try to distract him with one of his toys or a game of fetch (which he LOVES). It works maybe 60% of the time. "Leave it" has been started when we're out on walks but I didn't even think to be using that in the house as well. I'll blame that on the brain deadness.

We're actually in Germany but don't speak German (civilians with the army) so finding actual puppy training classes has been difficult. I think I've found someone who will do one on one training which should help and at least give us more ideas and options.

Thank you for the response!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Sounds like you are doing a lot of things right. i think with the few tips people have given you, you are well on your way. Just hang in there. It will get easier, it's only been a few weeks


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

Mine slept threw the night when I decided to let them sleep with me.


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Last night I ignored Indy's whining at both 12pm and 2am. He didn't make any noise after less than 5 minutes both times and slept until 4:30 (he'd gone to bed at 10pm). I was already up and opening his cage before my still asleep brain recognized that he was having a puppy dream and not whining to go out. Since he was up I took him out and he went to the bathroom and then straight back to bed again until 6am.

MUCH better!


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Suzi said:


> Mine slept threw the night when I decided to let them sleep with me.


That might be something we "worry" about later. Currently our bed is too high and I'd be worried the whole night about Indy either falling or trying to jump down. ... and he's never in our bedroom except to sleep in his crate so I don't trust his "no peeing in bed" instinct to cover my room.

... That and I can't imagine my daughter would be to happy that he gets to sleep with us and not her (she's in a loft bed = no chance).


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Chica'sMom said:


> I don't think it's unreasonable to expect him to sleep 8 hours (or more) without needing the bathroom. You should be very well rested by the weekend.


You have no idea how happy the thought of 8 hours sleep makes me!
My kiddo would agree completely. 
I think she might be missing my patience as much as I am.


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## SJ1998 (Feb 4, 2013)

m0rg4n said:


> You have no idea how happy the thought of 8 hours sleep makes me!
> My kiddo would agree completely.
> I think she might be missing my patience as much as I am.


Hi! I agree with Chica's mom, sleep is not too far away! Our pup is sleeping through the night. We were getting up for awhile if he cried but only on a strict timetable. Then magically one night he slept all the way through and he's been good ever since (except for a couple of 5AM wake ups, but those were usually if we went to bed earlier and/or took him out a little earlier). For us what seems to be working is to take up the water early and take him on a walk right before bedtime.

In your situation I would not suggest having him sleep with you because I would think you need an adaptable mobile dog. It really helps to have a crate trained dog if your lifestyle involves a lot of relocation.


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

SJ1998 said:


> Hi! I agree with Chica's mom, sleep is not too far away! Our pup is sleeping through the night. We were getting up for awhile if he cried but only on a strict timetable. Then magically one night he slept all the way through and he's been good ever since (except for a couple of 5AM wake ups, but those were usually if we went to bed earlier and/or took him out a little earlier). For us what seems to be working is to take up the water early and take him on a walk right before bedtime.
> 
> In your situation I would not suggest having him sleep with you because I would think you need an adaptable mobile dog. It really helps to have a crate trained dog if your lifestyle involves a lot of relocation.


Knowing that we'll be moving in another 2 1/2 years and the stress that will bring it just seems easier but also a lot kinder to have him used to sleeping in one space. The surroundings will change but the bed won't. As a bonus, it might also make traveling a little easier.


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## Grindstone50 (Feb 13, 2012)

Tired. That's me right now, just Tired. Indy has started to sleep better but it's still a crap shoot on how the night will go. Last night we went to bed around ten and he didn't get up until 3 and then slept until 6am. The night before he was awake for random reasons every hour or two. Even with last nights much better schedule I still wake up exhausted. I don't do the split sleepy times well. I want all of my sleep to happen at the same time... and preferably 9 to 10 hours of it. I just don't function well on less. So basically I'm not functioning at 100%.

Zoe (11 year old daughter) is still getting used to Indy being a constant. She says she feels like we're just watching him and he'll be going "home" 

MY DOGS AS PUPS DID THE SAME ROUTINE FOR QUITE A WHILE, GETTING UP AT 3AM IS A "DOG!!" I WAS ADVISED WHEN GETTING UP AT THAT HOUR TO MAKE IT VERY MECHANICAL. TALK IS VERY VERY MINIMAL AND THERE IS NO REWARD. ON THE OTHER HAND THERE SHOULD BE POSITIVE HANDLING AND KARMA....I WENT TO BED EARLIER AND THE PUP TOO. IT WAS LIKE HAVING A BABY CHILD AGAIN. 

MY 12 YR OLD DAUGHTER (AT THE TIME) WAS VERY JEALOUS!!! THOUGHT SHE HAD BEEN REPLACED. I SHOULD HAVE HAD A QUIET TIME SPECIFICALLY FOR HER...AND PUT MY PUPPY ( LILLY) ASIDE IN HER CRATE FOR AN HOUR OR SOEACH EVENING. AS THE DOGS, I HAVE THREE, GOT OLDER I DID ALWAYS PUT THEM TO BED BEFORE WE DID, SO THAT MY HUSBAND AND I COULD HAVE A BIT OF "PEOPLE TALK TIME" BEFORE WE WENT TO BED.
HOPE THIS HELPS SOME!


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

I remember the early days of not enough sleep very well and Brody DID sleep through the night for me from the day I got him. However, his morning started way earlier than I'd like! He'd get up between 4:30 and 5 the first while and that gradually got later. I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and need my sleep to feel well, so this was hard for me and I just couldn't get to sleep at 8:00 in order to get enough! I lost something like 10 pounds the first month I had him and I was a walking zombie. But it gets better and faster than you'd think!

I had Brody's crate on the night table next to my bed so if he fussed at all during the night I could just poke my fingers in the crate and that would do the trick. He slowly started sleeping in a bit later than 5am and when I moved him to my bed when he was around 6 months or so, then he'd sleep much longer.  He'd sleep happily until noon or later with me now if I didn't get up (he just turned 2).


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## ThorHav (Feb 19, 2013)

I know how it feels! We have our 8 week old puppy for 6 days and the first two nights were not very pleasant! I also need to sleep through the night with no interruptions to function right. Luckly, Thor started sleeping for the whole night in his 3rd night with us. We actually placed his crate on the side of our bed and covered it with a towel, so he doesn't get distracted by seeing us. It seems to be working, but there is still the potty training which is going on baby steps. He is pretty good on going outside, however in the past two days he had many little accidents. Even tough I don't get upset with him, I feel disappointed with myself, for not being able to prevent it. But again, this is just his first week and eventually it will all make sense. We don't have kids yet and I can already tell that having a puppy is indeed a great preparation! 

Raising a puppy is not an easy task, but I am sure with a lot of patience and consistency we all can do it! Good luck for us


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Grindstone50 said:


> MY DOGS AS PUPS DID THE SAME ROUTINE FOR QUITE A WHILE, GETTING UP AT 3AM IS A "DOG!!" I WAS ADVISED WHEN GETTING UP AT THAT HOUR TO MAKE IT VERY MECHANICAL. TALK IS VERY VERY MINIMAL AND THERE IS NO REWARD. ON THE OTHER HAND THERE SHOULD BE POSITIVE HANDLING AND KARMA....I WENT TO BED EARLIER AND THE PUP TOO. IT WAS LIKE HAVING A BABY CHILD AGAIN.
> 
> MY 12 YR OLD DAUGHTER (AT THE TIME) WAS VERY JEALOUS!!! THOUGHT SHE HAD BEEN REPLACED. I SHOULD HAVE HAD A QUIET TIME SPECIFICALLY FOR HER...AND PUT MY PUPPY ( LILLY) ASIDE IN HER CRATE FOR AN HOUR OR SOEACH EVENING. AS THE DOGS, I HAVE THREE, GOT OLDER I DID ALWAYS PUT THEM TO BED BEFORE WE DID, SO THAT MY HUSBAND AND I COULD HAVE A BIT OF "PEOPLE TALK TIME" BEFORE WE WENT TO BED.
> HOPE THIS HELPS SOME!


There is no talking when we go out at night. After reading more it's recommended so the puppy knows it's not play time. For me it's more that speaking takes more brain power than I have at 3am. Up, outside, back to bed. He gets cuddled because he's carried (open backed stairs that he isn't allowed on yet) but that's it.

I honestly didn't even think about the possible sibling rivalry with Zoe. We haven't had any issues yet (except that Indy "likes" me more ... because I'm home all day, take him out at night and feed him). I think this weekend I'll leave the puppy at home and take the kid out for lunch. Thank you for mentioning this!


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

misstray said:


> I remember the early days of not enough sleep very well and Brody DID sleep through the night for me from the day I got him. However, his morning started way earlier than I'd like! He'd get up between 4:30 and 5 the first while and that gradually got later. I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and need my sleep to feel well, so this was hard for me and I just couldn't get to sleep at 8:00 in order to get enough! I lost something like 10 pounds the first month I had him and I was a walking zombie. But it gets better and faster than you'd think!
> 
> I had Brody's crate on the night table next to my bed so if he fussed at all during the night I could just poke my fingers in the crate and that would do the trick. He slowly started sleeping in a bit later than 5am and when I moved him to my bed when he was around 6 months or so, then he'd sleep much longer. He'd sleep happily until noon or later with me now if I didn't get up (he just turned 2).


Indy's crate is on the floor right next to my side of the bed for the fingers in the crate reason. The first few nights I was pretty sure I was going to put my shoulder out of place because he wanted to sleep ON my fingers. It's hard to explain the strange contortions for my hand to hang off the side of the bed, fingers to fit in the crate door and be flat enough for him to rest his head on like a pillow. Luckily that isn't something that stayed a necessity.

Indy is waking up between 5 and 5:30 and while that is too early, the alarm goes off at 6 to get the kid up and ready for school so it isn't horrible. The weekends are a little painful though. At 11, Zoe has been getting her own breakfast and entertainment for a long time so it's been a while since I've had to get up in the mornings. Happily, Indy is a GREAT napper!


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

ThorHav said:


> I know how it feels! We have our 8 week old puppy for 6 days and the first two nights were not very pleasant! I also need to sleep through the night with no interruptions to function right. Luckly, Thor started sleeping for the whole night in his 3rd night with us. We actually placed his crate on the side of our bed and covered it with a towel, so he doesn't get distracted by seeing us. It seems to be working, but there is still the potty training which is going on baby steps. He is pretty good on going outside, however in the past two days he had many little accidents. Even tough I don't get upset with him, I feel disappointed with myself, for not being able to prevent it. But again, this is just his first week and eventually it will all make sense. We don't have kids yet and I can already tell that having a puppy is indeed a great preparation!
> 
> Raising a puppy is not an easy task, but I am sure with a lot of patience and consistency we all can do it! Good luck for us


It was three nights of crate training for us too! The first two nights there was just no sleep at all but by the 3rd Indy was sleeping for 2 to 3 hours straight. With the knowledge that he ~could~ sleep longer the past few nights have been better with a light at the end of the sleep deprived tunnel.

I completely understand on the disappointment, not directed at the puppy but because *I* must be doing something wrong.

We had the kid first and now the puppy and yes - it is FANTASTIC preparation!


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Chica'sMom said:


> How is Indy doing? Are you getting lots of sleep?
> Just want to comment on something ThorHav said about potty training in above post. Baby steps is exactly what you get with an eight week old pup. It can take months and months to house train a puppy. I consider myself pretty good at this stuff and my pup just 'got it' at 9 months. (That's with me home full time and being VERY consistent with taking her out. She was ALWAYS in the room I was in so I could watch her.) The only way you can try to 'prevent' accidents is to not let the pup out of your sight and to take him outside over and over and over. And over.


Things are moving in the right direction. Indy was still waking up for a few nights but I would ignore the wimpers and he'd go back to sleep in less than five minutes. Last night he slept for 7 hours and I took him out at 4:30. We'd gone to bed early and I was hoping if I took him out then he'd be able to make it to 6 - which he did. This weekend we'll keep working at it and hope to push to a solid 8 hours a night.

The biggest problem for me is that I've got the "Mom Ears" turned on so I'm still waking up multipul times a night to different noises. Sometimes Indy's bad dreams or even my daughter rolling over (metal framed beds make a lot of noise!) in her room. That will get better as I adjust to the fact that Indy doesn't need me checking on him to continue to breath.

Potty training is constantly paying attention. I'm still not sold that we're training ~them~ but that we're training ourselves to pick up on their cues ... at least in the beginning. I will be much happier to spend time outside when it's no longer below 30 degrees!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I am happy to hear things are getting better! I hope you get a full 8 hours of sleep tonight


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Last night Indy went to bed around 10pm and didn't wake up until around 6am! I went to bed at 9 so I had nearly NINE HOURS of sleep! I feel like a new person 

Thank you for all your suggestions and commiseration!


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## jdog (Feb 28, 2013)

I appreciate you sharing all of these experiences.... We bring home our new puppy in two weeks, and the sleep part of things has me most perplexed, there are so many different suggestions on how to handle it. I guess I have two very simplistic questions, please pardon my ignorance, but I would appreciate any direction.

1. If the puppy is left in say an ex-pen at night with a crate/bed on one side and a puppy potty on the other with water wouldn't it solve many of the sleeping problems? At least until it is a bit older.... Again first post newbie sorry if that is pervasively addressed elsewhere.

2. I have experience with my own kids letting them cry at a certain age, and them learning to sleep all night..... Nothing will ever seem harder at the time, all you want to do is pick them up and cuddle them to sleep. What are the pluses and minuses of this tactic with a puppy, and what is age appropriate for a puppy.

Sorry to post on your fantastic thread, but the question seemed to fit your circumstances. I hope I can have your resilience. You seem to be doing a fantastic job with Indy.


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## ThorHav (Feb 19, 2013)

Hi Jdog,

I am by no means the most experienced one in this forum, having my pup for only 3 weeks I am still learning a lot! What I noticed tough is that it always depend on the personality and the way your pup will react to his first night at home.

This is my on my humble opinion about your questions
1) Even if you leave him on an open crate with access to the bathroom, he may not even know that it's the bathroom or he may cry just because he misses his littermates. I also think closing the crate helps to teach the puppy to hold through the night.

2) I also believe in letting him cry himself to sleep, but on the first night I was worried if he was in pain or if something was really bothering him. On the second night I started to realize that he just wanted to have me there, this why we put his crate in our bedroom and when he would wake up in the middle of the night.I would just say "night time Thor, go night night" and he would go right back to sleep. Since the third night he has been sleeping between 8 and 10 hours a night! Nowadays he sleeps in his crate/play pen in the living room and he rarely complains.

P.S.: I definitely recommend reading the book "Before and after getting a puppy" by Ian Dunbar - you can download them for free at http://www.dogstardaily.com/free-downloads the website also has tons of great advice! I have use this book as the "bible of puppy ownership"!

Reading other people experiences really helped me to deal with the ups and downs of puppyhood! Wishing you and your puppy the best of luck!

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

jdog said:


> I appreciate you sharing all of these experiences.... We bring home our new puppy in two weeks, and the sleep part of things has me most perplexed, there are so many different suggestions on how to handle it. I guess I have two very simplistic questions, please pardon my ignorance, but I would appreciate any direction.
> 
> 1. If the puppy is left in say an ex-pen at night with a crate/bed on one side and a puppy potty on the other with water wouldn't it solve many of the sleeping problems? At least until it is a bit older.... Again first post newbie sorry if that is pervasively addressed elsewhere.
> 
> ...


As to the first part of your question, that's exactly what we did. I have RA, and I REALLY need my sleep. I generally sleep at least 9 hours. Clearly, that was way too long to expect a small puppy to wait. Kodi was litter box trained, and reliably used his litter box in the ex-pen. After talking to my breeder, we did exactly what you've suggested, with one change. As he got bigger, I wanted him to have more space to play in the ex-pen, since he also spent time there during the day. So I got a crate that was about the same width and height of one of the ex-pen panels, and attached it to the OUTSIDE of the ex-pen, leaving that panel open. That way, he had the whole square of the ex-pen available for play and his litter box, and the crate attached for sleeping space.

We used that set-up for 3 years, just because he felt comfortable there and it was convenient for us. Since then, we have had a whole-house renovation, and the ex-pen needed to be folded up during that. Now he just wants to stay in his crate while we are out (and to sleep at night) so we go with it. He doesn't NEED to be confined, but that's the way he's most comfortable.

As far as crying during the night is concerned, it only happened a few times, notably when he needed to poop during the night, since he has ALWAYS preferred to poop outside. I handled it exactly the way I did with my kids. I checked to see what was wrong, took him out to potty, with VERY minimal talking, and put him back in his pen. Gently, but with no cuddles, no sweet-talk and DEFINITELY no play. Just like my kids, Kodi quickly got the idea that night was for sleeping... that I would take care of his needs, but no more.


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## jdog (Feb 28, 2013)

Thanks for the great follow up info. Wicket (yes it is the name of an Ewok, who my kids think he looks like) came home to us yesterday. He is a handsom 9.5 wk old havanese with a "pirate patch" on his left eye. After Last night I can now fall squarely in the empathize category with mOrg4n. After a lively day of play and fun he settled down well in his kennel by our bed and slept for 3 hours. Became restless but had no interest in using the bathroom. I took him twice to his outside potty pad and no luck. He barked and barked, I was sure he needed to go, and he was pretty consistent about finding the pads during the day. finally I put him in his ex-pen, he barked for an hour, but when I checked on him he had done his business on the potty pad in his pen. So I put him back in the Kennel by our bed and he proceeded to bark the rest of the night...... any advice would be appreciated. I was pretty prepared for tough sledding as far as the kennel and ex-pen went. does it get easier?


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

jdog said:


> Thanks for the great follow up info. Wicket (yes it is the name of an Ewok, who my kids think he looks like) came home to us yesterday. He is a handsom 9.5 wk old havanese with a "pirate patch" on his left eye. After Last night I can now fall squarely in the empathize category with mOrg4n. After a lively day of play and fun he settled down well in his kennel by our bed and slept for 3 hours. Became restless but had no interest in using the bathroom. I took him twice to his outside potty pad and no luck. He barked and barked, I was sure he needed to go, and he was pretty consistent about finding the pads during the day. finally I put him in his ex-pen, he barked for an hour, but when I checked on him he had done his business on the potty pad in his pen. So I put him back in the Kennel by our bed and he proceeded to bark the rest of the night...... any advice would be appreciated. I was pretty prepared for tough sledding as far as the kennel and ex-pen went. does it get easier?


I LOVE the name! That was my first choice but I was outvoted by the two Indiana Jones nuts.

After reading all of the suggestions here we started ignoring his whimpering. It did take a few nights for it to kick in but it's gotten SO much better. Our other issue was that Indy would only sleep if I had my fingers curled up at the entrance to his crate. Yep, I slept with my arm hanging off the bed and my hand contorted so he could sleep resting on my fingers. NOT fun or very restful for me.

Finally after some more reading we were ready to test another option. Our bed is pretty high and with the crate right next to it but on the floor Indy couldn't see me. We moved the crate about two feet away and faced the opening toward the bed. He slept the whole night without a whimper and I slept the whole night with my arm not losing circulation!

No idea what the setup in your room is like but if Wicket can't see you that might be causing him distress. Just keep reading and something will click. I couldn't do the "cry it out" thing with the kid and attempting it with a puppy isn't any easier. Luckily these guys are smart puppies and pick up on everything faster than an infant.


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## Caroline (Oct 9, 2012)

Just curious,as I have friends and family in Germany. What hoops do you have to jump through to bring a dog out of the country when you do move?


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Nikita said:


> Just curious,as I have friends and family in Germany. What hoops do you have to jump through to bring a dog out of the country when you do move?


It can't be too bad... I have a freind who has purchased Havnese puppies, one from Germany and one from Hungary. She didn't make it sound like it was terribly difficult.


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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

Nikita said:


> Just curious,as I have friends and family in Germany. What hoops do you have to jump through to bring a dog out of the country when you do move?


It might depend on the reasons they're out there? We're on orders with the military so it's pretty simple paperwork wise. Just make sure all shots are up to date, which they have to be over here anyway. It also really depends on where you're going next. As long as it's from Germany to the US it's pretty straight forward and so many people do it that all questions can be easily answered. I'm really not looking forward to the stress of the flight but I'll be able to answer with a first hand approach in another two years!


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

wow, I have good friends that have been stationed in Germany for several years! small world!!


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## windym300 (Nov 20, 2010)

m0rg4n said:


> It might depend on the reasons they're out there? We're on orders with the military so it's pretty simple paperwork wise. Just make sure all shots are up to date, which they have to be over here anyway. It also really depends on where you're going next. As long as it's from Germany to the US it's pretty straight forward and so many people do it that all questions can be easily answered. I'm really not looking forward to the stress of the flight but I'll be able to answer with a first hand approach in another two years!


Where are you in Germany? My daughter is in Ramstein. Actually my SIL is Air force and stationed there and they live in a village 20 min away from base. I have been telling her she needs to get me a puppy from one of the awesome breeders I always stalk over in Europe ..lol.. Where did you get yours from?

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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

windym300 said:


> Where are you in Germany? My daughter is in Ramstein. Actually my SIL is Air force and stationed there and they live in a village 20 min away from base. I have been telling her she needs to get me a puppy from one of the awesome breeders I always stalk over in Europe ..lol.. Where did you get yours from?
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


We're about an hour from Ramstein, stationed in Wiesbaden.
We looked all over and finally found Indy from Rosemarie Schäfer at http://www.jokitas.de
There are quite a few breeders over here, it was a little surprising.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

m0rg4n said:


> We're about an hour from Ramstein, stationed in Wiesbaden.
> We looked all over and finally found Indy from Rosemarie Schäfer at http://www.jokitas.de
> There are quite a few breeders over here, it was a little surprising.


There are some really top Havanese breeders n Germany.


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## windym300 (Nov 20, 2010)

m0rg4n said:


> We're about an hour from Ramstein, stationed in Wiesbaden.
> We looked all over and finally found Indy from Rosemarie Schäfer at http://www.jokitas.de
> There are quite a few breeders over here, it was a little surprising.


That's cool! I've been looking for a show girl for myself. I had been looking at some breeders within driving distance of her but its hard to do that because you never know how they will turn out. Some of the European breeders also put some strong restrictions on dogs you buy for the US to show. I tried to talk her into getting one but a Havanese isn't for her. She thinks they look too girly for her husband. She has a mini long haired Doxie and having him was very tough! Lol. Of course she always jumps in getting a puppy and doesn't think about personality type..Her Doxie is a cutie. He is cream colored and to me actually looks like a dwarfed golden retriever..This is off topic but just plugging..lol.. If you ever need a really great photographer you could look her up, jessreneephotography.com .. Yes, I'm a Mom....lol. And Indy is such a cutie pie! My daughter said she heard Germans didn't like to sell dogs to Americans because they tend to leave them because they don't want to pay to take them back. I was curious if you had heard that and if you had any issue with that. Thanks!

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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

windym300 said:


> My daughter said she heard Germans didn't like to sell dogs to Americans because they tend to leave them because they don't want to pay to take them back. I was curious if you had heard that and if you had any issue with that. Thanks!
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Issues? Yeah you could say that.

We started looking for a dog nearly two years ago. We didn't have a breed picked out and really wanted a rescue. The pounds here are run very differently from the states. First, we had to drive over an hour to even find a place that would look at us as a case by case situation and not just the blanket statement of "no americans". I understand that rule though. There really is a problem with soldiers leaving pets when they move. Sometimes it's because they're deploying and they don't have a choice to bring them but not always.

Once it became apparent that we weren't going to be able to get a young rescue dog locally we looked into what it would take to get a pound puppy from the states brought over here. Even though you can find puppies all over the place in pounds, especially if you aren't looking for anything specific it would still cost so much to ship a dog and the added stress is something we wanted to skip if we could.

Next came the breed search. After looking up everything and talking to anyone we could get a hold of we decided on a Havanese. Finding breeders that would deal with Americans was easy compared to shelters but it still took time. We found Die JoKiTas's and were so very lucky. They speak very little english and we speak very broken german and they were still so welcoming. She translated everything so we knew exactly what Indy was doing during the day and sent pictures every week. I do think we're missing out because I won't walk away with a breeder who I will be able to contact with any questions. I know they would do their best to help but the language barrier is so hard to overcome. I've read so many stories here about how breeders become good friends and I hate that we miss out on that but I'm so glad that Indy is apart of our family.

So yes. Finding a young dog as an American can be a little bit of a problem but it just makes bringing home the fur ball that much more exciting!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

windym300 said:


> That's cool! I've been looking for a show girl for myself. I had been looking at some breeders within driving distance of her but its hard to do that because you never know how they will turn out. Some of the European breeders also put some strong restrictions on dogs you buy for the US to show. I tried to talk her into getting one but a Havanese isn't for her. She thinks they look too girly for her husband. She has a mini long haired Doxie and having him was very tough! Lol. Of course she always jumps in getting a puppy and doesn't think about personality type..Her Doxie is a cutie. He is cream colored and to me actually looks like a dwarfed golden retriever..This is off topic but just plugging..lol.. If you ever need a really great photographer you could look her up, jessreneephotography.com .. Yes, I'm a Mom....lol. And Indy is such a cutie pie! My daughter said she heard Germans didn't like to sell dogs to Americans because they tend to leave them because they don't want to pay to take them back. I was curious if you had heard that and if you had any issue with that. Thanks!
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Maybe that's why I haven't heard of people IN the US having trouble buying German (or European!) dogs... The cost of getting them to the U.S. is part of the up-front cost of purchasing the pup! It's awful to think that people would buy them as pets while living in Europe and then just want to leave them behind! (though I know there are a lot of people here in the US that do the same sorts of things)


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## windym300 (Nov 20, 2010)

m0rg4n said:


> Issues? Yeah you could say that.
> 
> We started looking for a dog nearly two years ago. We didn't have a breed picked out and really wanted a rescue. The pounds here are run very differently from the states. First, we had to drive over an hour to even find a place that would look at us as a case by case situation and not just the blanket statement of "no americans". I understand that rule though. There really is a problem with soldiers leaving pets when they move. Sometimes it's because they're deploying and they don't have a choice to bring them but not always.
> 
> ...


Wow sounds like it took you a while to get around to getting Indy. Glad it finally worked out!

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## m0rg4n (Feb 8, 2013)

windym300 said:


> Wow sounds like it took you a while to get around to getting Indy. Glad it finally worked out!
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


He is worth the wait. Looking for so long has also helped with my patience level I'm sure


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