# preparing for a puppy



## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

My puppy will be coming home in January. My first havanese. Thinking to name him Bailey. I just joined the forum today.

What I want to know is - with so many books out there - what should I read first. My concerns of course are bringing Bailey home, the first few weeks, housebreaking, nitetime etc. Any suggestions?

Also, I live in Princeton NJ. Does anyone know a fabulous vet? 

When I first got my Molly who lived to be 17, I winged it. Older and wiser I want to do as much right as possible. 

Thanks in advance for your help.

loriabigail


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

Welcome, and congratulations. Manditory reading Before You Get Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar http://www.siriuspup.com/pdfs/before_puppy_sirius.pdf

After You Get Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar http://www.dogstardaily.com/files/AFTER You Get Your Puppy.pdf

I'll send you the test afterwards. ound:


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## StarrLhasa (Jun 6, 2010)

Welcome to the Forum! This is a very exciting time for you.

Sorry, I can't help you with a Vet, but you'll be able to get great advice here.

I just had a thought, though. If you are amember of Angie's List, you can find recommendations for great [and not-so-great] Vets.


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## Becky Chittenden (Feb 4, 2009)

Welcome. To find a vet, possibly contact the local AKC club and ask for suggestions. Hopefully there is someone on this forum who lives near and can point you in the right direction.


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

thanks for your reply. by the way, what is angie's list?


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

davetgabby said:


> Welcome, and congratulations. Manditory reading Before You Get Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar http://www.siriuspup.com/pdfs/before_puppy_sirius.pdf
> 
> After You Get Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar http://www.dogstardaily.com/files/AFTER You Get Your Puppy.pdf
> 
> I'll send you the test afterwards. ound:


thanks so much for the suggestion. there's so much information out there it's good to have a place to start.

Lori


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## Diann (Apr 25, 2011)

Welcome to the forum! Quite honestly, besides the links Dave posted already, this forum will be a valuable resource for you. You'll never run out of things to read and learn and everyone is very helpful. Post pictures as soon as you can.


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## StarrLhasa (Jun 6, 2010)

Angie's List is a subscription service with > 1m members who post reports and reviews of business and health services [People's] in their local areas. For instance, I joined to see their list and reviews of roofing companies. I just checked my local area and found reports on SF Bay Area Veterinarians in the business sector.

It is similar to Yelp.com, but there are no anonymous posters.


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

Dave

I've been reading through Dunbar's material - it's great thank you. I have a questiont hough - when he says, rush the puppy out to his toilet as soon as he wakes up, an hour after being into short-term confinement etc - does he mean, walk the puppy outside or carry him? If I walk him outside, isn't there the chance that he could pee on the way out? And if I carry him, does that send another kind of message I don't want to send?

Also, not sure about nite time. Does the puppy stay in the crate all night long? Or intervals during the nite do I take him out?

The doggy toilet Dunbar is talking about - there is no mention of potty papers. he suggests a litter box or maybe turf? What is he referring to here? A cat litter box? with litter or with papers in it? 


I'd so appreciate your response. Thank you in advance.
Lori


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

loriabigail said:


> Dave
> 
> I've been reading through Dunbar's material - it's great thank you. I have a questiont hough - when he says, rush the puppy out to his toilet as soon as he wakes up, an hour after being into short-term confinement etc - does he mean, walk the puppy outside or carry him? If I walk him outside, isn't there the chance that he could pee on the way out? And if I carry him, does that send another kind of message I don't want to send?
> 
> ...


 He means to quickly run with your dog outside . Here is a more concise article. http://www.dogstardaily.com/training/errorless-housetraining At night if you are cratinig him, then you have to get up and take him out . The crate is considered short term confinement so depending on his age you have to take him out based on how long he can hold it. He recommends waking the puppy up to go outside . The toilet area depends on whatever you want to use, ie. pee pads litter, turf or papers. yep you can use a cat litter box


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

loriabigail said:


> Dave
> 
> I've been reading through Dunbar's material - it's great thank you. I have a questiont hough - when he says, rush the puppy out to his toilet as soon as he wakes up, an hour after being into short-term confinement etc - does he mean, walk the puppy outside or carry him? If I walk him outside, isn't there the chance that he could pee on the way out? And if I carry him, does that send another kind of message I don't want to send?
> 
> ...


While Dr. Dunbar has a great program, and it works for many dogs, many good Havanese brreders start their puppies with a specific type of indoor potty training before sending them home. For instance, my Kodi was litter box trained before I got him, so it made most sense to for me to continue training him the way my breeder suggested. Have you talked to your breeder about potty training?

As far as litter boxes are concerned, dog litter boxes are shallower than cat boxes, and often have an even loer lip at one edge for the puppy to enter. You can buy special purpose dog litter, but I use (as does my breeder) wood pellets. The ones I use are called "Equine Pine", which is horse bedding. It's a LOT cheaper than dog litter and, IMO, works a lot better too.

tom King (my breeder, and someone who has potty trained more puppies than most of us will see in a lifetime) says that owners who insist on just outdoor potty training have the most accidents, and have it take the longest. I have to tell you, even now, with Kodi 2 1/2, I really like that he can use the litter box when the weather is really bad. It also means that we can leave him longer from time to time if necessary, since he has an indoor potty alternative.


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

You must be so excited to be waiting for your puppy, Bailey. Great name, btw. 

You're already getting some great advice and I'm sure you'll get a lot more before he comes home. We're happy to have you with us.


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## Pattie (Jun 25, 2008)

Welcome to you and Bailey. Good place, here.


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

isn't it better to use the xpen at nite with the crate inside, chewtoys and doggy toilet?


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## heatherk (Feb 24, 2011)

loriabigail said:


> isn't it better to use the xpen at nite with the crate inside, chewtoys and doggy toilet?


Just as with everything about raising a puppy (or, with raising a kid!), there are all sorts of different schools of thought about everything possible! Some people crate-train, others don't. Some use an expen, others don't. Some use an indoor potty system, others don't. In my humble opinion, none of these decisions are bad (even if they are different from the decisions that I made), as long as the owner does their research, and considers both their situation AND how the dog reacts.

I used a situation much like the open expen one that you just described, except, I kept my puppy locked in the kitchen with an open crate, toys, and pee pads. It worked for us. I don't think that there is any real right or wrong answer; you just have to listen to people's stories from all sides and then make the decisions that will work best for you, your family, your situation, and of course how the puppy reacts .

Good luck, I know it's scary trying to prepare and you feel like you are so lost (I did, anyway!) but you are doing exactly the right thing by asking questions and doing your research.

I bet that you can't wait for January!!!!!


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

Also, a lot of decisions you make can be based on your living situation. For example, I'm in a small apartment. I don't have room to set up an X-pen so I have a wire crate for Brody plus I got a smaller portable plastic one that I used when he was little (and he still uses it at work). He slept in his plastic crate on a chair next to my bed. This was fine for me since I planned to graduate him to sleeping on the bed anyhow. I also used it to bring him to and from the car on my way to work. For me, the plastic crate was a must have.

I used an indoor potty system (Ugodog) because it was just easier than putting on shoes/boots, coat, grabbing keys, taking him outside the apartment to see if he'd go every hour or so (plus the fact of him not being fully vaccinated and not really wanting him around other dog's elimination). I still use the Ugodog because he knows it and the winters here are cold! If I lived in a house with a yard, things would be a bit different. At work he goes outside.


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

thank you. you've been a great help.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

loriabigail said:


> isn't it better to use the xpen at nite with the crate inside, chewtoys and doggy toilet?


Although I had this set up for my guys, I still always woke them up in the middle of the night and took them out every 30 mins during the day. I had pee pads for emergencies only. I didn't really want my guys using them unless they had to. I didn't want them to get used to going inside.


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## mozzerellas98 (Mar 3, 2012)

can someone help me? im a noob and i cant figure out how to start a new thread ? this question is realy dumb, but i really dont know how, thanks.


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## StarrLhasa (Jun 6, 2010)

mozzerellas98 said:


> can someone help me? im a noob and i cant figure out how to start a new thread ? this question is realy dumb, but i really dont know how, thanks.


Welcome to the Forum!

Go up the the link for "Forums" and click on it. Then click on "General Discussion." 
On the left-hand side, above "Threads in Forum: General Discussion" is a button that says, "New Thread." Click on the button to start a new thread.

Type a descriptive title, such as "Watch Animal Planet to See My Puppies March 24th" and then type in the body of the message giving detail.

If you have more difficulties, go back to the main page and seek help in the Tech Support area just below News and Announcements.


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