Hi. We have been waiting ages to be able to get our puppy who joins our family on 11 October. We are new dog owners and very excited. Please pass on any puppy tips or experiences of the first few days would be very greatfully received.

aw how very exciting for you!!! bet you cant wait can you???? what are you getting a little boy or girl? what colour liver or black and white? cant wait to see the piccies!!!

Thanks for the reply. We are getting a liver and white girl. Name is being argued over constantly ... will post pictures ... Can I ask, did you use a crate for your puppy??

We used crate for Bailey (B&W ESS) and it's the best decision we made! Tess (Black Heinz) wasn't crated and it was a nightmare!

Good luck, can't wait to see the pics!!

i didnt use a crate for my 2 puppy springers and didnt have any probs with them as regards house-training. sam came as a rescue who was already house-trained. i think i would probably use one though if i got another puppy.

Hi, welcome to the site. Looking forward to seeing the piccies, better include a 'thud warning' in the title, just in case

We DIDN'T use a crate for our boys when they were small but I wish I had. With hindsight Im sure it would have saved us alot of stress. Not to mention a lot of money when they got to the chewing stage and were waking up alot earlier than us...

Hi and welcome to ST! How excited you must be! I crate trained Angel, i found it really helpful. At first i thought it was a cruel idea, but after leaving her alone for just 20 mins when she was a pup she had chewed through the phone wire it helped make my mind up. if it had been a mains cable i dread to think what would of happend

Sam and Angel

hi and welecome. I didnt crate train but on hindsight i wish i had as it seemed to take longer training without. He is housetrained now so they all get there in the end.

Alfie is 20 weeks and we have used a crate, not just for house training but also to prevent chewing whilst he was left on his own.

Also if you have a busy house we have found it invaluable to be able to put him away so that he can have some space from the rest of us.

House training has been easy and so far chewing hasn't been an issue, whether this is down to the crate, don't know, but i wouldn't be without it.

Cathy

Put yourself through some vigarous training and catch up on your sleep

Hiya and welcome, I didn't crate train my boy Jed (14 months)and I have to be honest I think it was pure luck that he was not a chewer, however when left alone he had plenty of things to occupy him i.e filled kong, an indestructible bone and music on etc to help sooth and settle him , god that sounds real woosy but it has proved to be very effect. He is more than happy to be left alone, but the longest we ever leave him is about 3-4 hours now.They are really hard work mind you, but as they get older the more you put in the more you get out. they need loads of time and patience and bucket loads of mental stimulation and exercise taking into account their age. My Jed is now going through the adolescent faze and boy you really do need to be firm as you would do with any adolescent. Set the boundaries from the beginning and you should do fine. all in all they are fantastic companions and make you smile every day, you can not put a price on that. When you get your puppy it will feel that they have taken over your lives and your house, but now I honestly can say that Jed feels that he fits in with our lives and home, instead of us revolving around him. ( bit like having a baby). Also one thing i done from the beginning is when ever possible take him with you in all sorts of situations. I have always taken Jed into any shops, busy towns, even to my daughters youth club for hours on end, where there is lots of noise as you can imagine LOL and he is comfortable and confident in any situation. Most of all enjoy your new baby as they grow real fast. Good luck and piccies please.