I'm Getting SO Excited! About This Page:

[AngelOn9]

I know this might seem silly, but I am BEYOND excited about the prospect of in about a month having a puppy!!

I was that little girl that begged for a puppy(a Yorkie no less)throughout my ENTIRE childhood! My mom was the "easy," parent and usually broke down to my pleading and smiling that "you are the bestest mommy ever" grin. My father on the other hand never allowed animals AT ALL. We got some fish...that was IT.

Since I didn't live with my mom part of my life and then when I did we were moving all over Europe and the U.S., we weren't stable enough for a dog.

Now I'm just reading puppy after puppy book, looking at all the things I want to get for him, looked through lists of names, it's all so exciting to me!

So I wanted to ask if any of you has any tips or advice for me? I want to make sure I'm as prepared as I can be to welcome my very first doggie!

[buckysmom]

Amber, I've read your other posts and think that I cannot name a more responsible soon to be dog owner!
Seriously, you have love and enthusiasm and those are key staples. Dogs can be your best friend, your child, or an annoying pest that you have to feed and walk. You choose.
My DH and I have 3, and while we spend less time with them than prior to DD, we still love them and indulge them. Make sure you know about Yorkies specifcally, and get to know the breeder well so you can contact him/her with any questions. I still send a Christmas card to my Bulldog's breeder every year!
Congrats on your new family member and best wishes for a long and happy relationship!

[vsonnier]

Make sure you have a 'home' for him/her picked out before you bring him home. DH and I hadn't thought it through that well (I had been begging for weeks and we just out of the blue decided we would go on and get one one day) and had to scramble on Daisy's first night at home. Also, try to buy from someone who has at least started potty training the dog. We have had nine kinds of trouble getting Daisy house trained (she still constantly has accidents and she is a year old). One thing that helped Daisy was that I took an old shirt and wore it one night to sleep in then gave it to her. She didn't cry nearly as much at night when she had something that smelled like me nearby (of course we finally gave in and she sleeps on the top of my pillow now ).

[snoozy]

Ah, puppy love!

[chezp]

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Amber, I've read your other posts and think that I cannot name a more responsible soon to be dog owner!


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I've been thinking the same thing as well. I've never owned a dog, as my dad couldn't bear to have one and put it into kennels when we went on holiday, so I can't offer you any advice, but I think with your enthusiasm, you'll be in a perfect position to welcome your new addition home when the time comes!

[BritDisFan]

You certainly seem to be well prepared for your puppy Amber, good for you for trying to find out as much information as you can before buying. Please post a photo as soon as you have one, I can't wait to see him.

Karen

[Colexis Mom]

No advice for you Amber, just sending you lots of pixie

[joyjoy]

Amber,
Congratulations on your new baby! I've raised several puppies through my life and here is my best advice (it's about housetraining, which is a biggie). I'm dead serious here:

When the puppy wakes up from a nap - take her outside
when the puppy finishes eating - take her outside
when the puppy finishes drinking - take her outside
when you play with the puppy for even 10 minutes - take her outside.

Seriously. After the puppy does ANYTHING, take her outside because she's a baby and will have to pee. And don't let her walk out herself, pick her up and carry her to the grass and set her down. Love on her like crazy when she pees outside. That way, she'll learn that she doesn't pee until her feet hit the grass. Don't spank her if she messes up, she won't understand that. Just catch her doing it right, praise the heck out of her, and she'll have a good chance at success. Good luck!

[Teresa]

Amber - cage training!

I had dogs as a kid that we were always "picking up after" in the house. As a mom with lots of kids, and a busy schedule, i couldn't do that, so I decided to cage break my dogs. We have had 2 accidents in the house, both because the dogs were very ill.
Pick out a cage that is roughly 2 times the size of the dog lying down. Make sure to take it out often. And, keep it in the cage unless you are interacting with it. Keep it in the cage while cooking, studying, etc.
It sounds cruel, but it is a lot better than getting mad at a poor little baby because you didn't notice it needed to go out.

I got both of my dogs to from a pound. There were full blooded dogs there too, you might want to check them out.