Category: Top Dog

My 10 week old puppy wakes up everyday at 5 am. He barks non stop in his crate and I can’t ignore it for too long since I have neighbors right on the other side of wall. I take him downstairs to the living room and he will calm down and sleep 1 more hour after all the fuss until 6:30. I’m exhausted😭 I don’t have issues with naps or other potty breaks during the night. He good back to the crate right away. It’s the 5 am one only. Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Hi, I am currently reading Ian Dunbar's book 'before and after getting your puppy'. I know some if this book is a little outdated and I am taking certain things with a grain of salt. However most of the book seems to give pretty good advice. One of concepts in the book is how you should not shower your new puppy with attention and affections all of the time as it will create a situation where the dog is completely dependent on your presence. This is definitely one of my biggest concerns and I want to try and prevent this from happening as I will need to leave him alone for certain periods of time when he is older.

However I also feel like I will find it hard to not completely shower him with attention…especially in those first few weeks. So I am wondering if there is a "healthy balance" of how much time you should be spending interacting with your puppy versus allowing them to spend time by themselves in their crate or playpen playing with their chewtoys or sleeping. I would love to hear how others have managed to navigate this period to set themselves up for success.

Thanks!!

Hi everyone, we brought home our sweet and playful Beagle puppy when he was 2 months old. He took to training very quickly learning all of his basic commands and learning to love his crate. He hasn’t had an indoor accident since maybe the first week he was home.

However, now he is nearly 5 months old and nervous to see some signs of regression. In the past 2 weeks alone, he has peed inside of his crate 4 times, which he had never done before. 3/4 times we got absolutely no warning – no whining, growling or barking. One time he barked but we thought it was demand barking which he’s also recently picked up.

Any advice on how to manage this? He was leaning into his crate so well and still does otherwise for all of his naps and bedtime. What other signs of regression did you see in your pup at this age?

14 week old puppy peeing CONSTANTLY

hi there,

I am in the puppy trenches and going mad. I got a golden retriever puppy about 3 weeks ago.. I’ve had a Goldendoodle in the past and I think I got super lucky the first time around, or super unlucky this time around.

To preface this, I THINK that my now puppy was an outside litter. I believe they were mostly left outside while developing, or in an indoor area to just roam and use the bathroom anywhere they pleased. I am dealing with potty training issues and I’m stuck! When I brought her home she immediately would have to pee every 5-10 minutes. As soon as I saw her sniffing, I would rush to take her outside and she would pee just a tad everytime. She had accidents in her crate and in the house often, and I did downsize her crate with the divider giving her just room to be able to turn completely and to lay. Well- that didn’t stop her. She would

Still soil her crate and lay in it, I took bedding out – still would pee in the crate. I took her to the vet to rule out a UTI- everything was normal. Now I’m three weeks in and she sleeps through the night with no accidents / wakes me when she needs to pee. But during the day sometimes she will pee in the crate with NO WARNING. I know she’s a pup, but I do take her out every 30-45 minutes throughout the day with some exceptions of being out and about. I could take her out to pee- she will get distracted and after 30 minutes I come back inside and BAM pees in her crate. Or I will take her out to pee, give her some play time and 5 minutes later she is squatting in the house to pee. My first pup was potty trained in a week or so but I also got him at 6 weeks I believe – this pup is obviously coming into my house older and was just roaming freely outside. I don’t want to give her up and I won’t but I’m sad my house is getting destroyed with pee and poo accidents and I feel like a bad dog owner not being able to understand her. Any help is appreciated. Please tell me I’m not alone in this. Is there hope?

I’m wondering if anyone can give me advice on what I could do/buy/make etc for my dog that would give her the most joy? She’s recently undergone a tough procedure and I know the concept of gifts is probably lost on dogs but it breaks my heart to see her like this. Once she’s better I’d like to do anything to give her the most joy and show her how much she’s loved. I know probably just making her every day life happy and loving is enough but I just feel so helpless and would love to give her something like a toy, a bed, something for enrichment, a new food, anything like that. Especially because I’ve been advised she’ll no longer be able to do the things she loves like long walks and swimming. Any ideas are appreciated!!!

The dog I sat for damaged a baseboard and I did not notice.

I dog sat for a family who I have worked with for years but it was only my second time dog sitting for them. The dog is young ( under 6 months ) but the family assured me that they could be left crated for up to 6 hours. I only had to do that once which was the day they had left. I had work and let them know this ahead of time, and they told me they had no problem with that. Now, after they got home I got a text asking if I knew when the baseboard had been chewed. Dog was crated anytime I wasn’t watching/ or home with her. I did notice that a small piece of the baseboard behind the kennel had chipped paint but I didn’t get a closer look to investigate and honestly didn’t think anything of it. I assume that is where they are referring too and so I asked but have not heard back. I also have not received payment. I feel that I took very good care of the pup and followed all of their instructions. They asked no toys or bones be left in the kennel so, what I’m assuming happened is the puppy got understandably bored that first day and ended up chewing on the baseboard. Family also asked if the puppy had been sick and I let them know that she had been completely healthy the entire time. I feel like this wasn’t my fault but not hearing from them and not having been paid yet has me overthinking. What do you guys think?

I think I might be in over my head with my dog, looking for some honest advice. I adopted him about a year ago from a rescue. He has a large patch of burn scars on his back and is missing two toes on one of his back paws. Most of the time he’s a happy “normal” dog, except for when I’m cooking, and when we try to cut his nails.

When I cook, I think the sizzling sounds and smoke really trigger him. He gets extremely scared and tries to hide or run out the door. So much so that he pees and poops indoors. Nail trimming is the same. He won’t let anyone touch his paws and we’ve taken him to multiple vets, and no one has been able to trim his nails. He’s gets so scared he pees and poos at the vet. The only way we’ve been able to do it is under anesthesia which is honestly really crazy……

Honestly I feel like I’m in way over my head. I’m a first time dog owner and I feel like I’m not a good fit for him. Nothing I tried has improved his trauma response, and it’s just been getting worse. Any suggestions? Or is rehoming the best option?

Edit: for nails, we’ve tried grinders, nail filers, cutting one nail a day (took us 1 month of trying everyday to cut 1 lol). We use a scratch pad for front paws, but it doesn’t get his back paws and dewclaws

Something new (and very peaceful) is coming to Richmond 🐾🌾

We’ve officially opened Doggy Meadows, a high-end, farm-based boarding experience designed for low-stress stays. We aren't your typical kennel—we are a low-volume, free-roam sanctuary where your dog can enjoy the fresh air and individual attention they deserve all day long while having the security and comfort of a private suite at night.

I was walking my dog in a public park. Granted the park was pretty empty but there were two large dogs not leashed with their owners hanging out at my usual path. I usually go straight through but I decide to go around. Then one of the dogs start chasing after us. My dog is scared. I stand in between. The owner walks up yelling the dog's name and saying sorry, but doesn't do anything just stands there. I tell him calmly "You gotta have him on a leash". The guy crashes out. "Oh yeah? I will have him on a LEASH. Way to be a f**ing dick." He is a large muscular dude basically yelling at me at this point. I didn't want to escalate and left the scene with my dog immediately. tldr: I was called a dick for asking to have a dog on a leash at a park.

My dog likes to run up and down the fence and bark at cars when he is outside.

Its not a safety concern. I built a tall fence. The concern for me is if this is unhealthy or not. He will run back and forth repeatedly and even has made a trail of dead grass in my yard lol

He seems happy while doing it … but things online say it may not be good.

Should I try to stop this behavior?

Also.. he doesnt chase cars unless he is inside our fence. For instance while on the leash its not a concern that he would try to get loose and chase a car