Category: Top Dog

So no matter what I try my puppy continues to nip I welcome any advice

My golden retriever puppy is almost 5 months old and so far has not shown typical fear signs of being afraid of people or other dogs; big or small. Ever since I got him at 11 weeks he has always been on the more bashful/reserved side, but I’m starting to wonder if daycare would be too overwhelming for him to socialize.

When he meets another dog, his tail is slightly between his legs but ALWAYS wagging. He usually goes in slow and allows them to sniff him and he will slightly cower to them. He’s met big and small dogs; calm and high energy, and he’s never nipped, snapped or shown any aggression. He allows the higher energy dogs to push past him in tight spaces if they need to, or run past him at a distance with no reactions.

With calmer dogs, he shows signs of wanting to play when we are on leashes. He’ll jump on them (mostly sit on his butt and put his paws up on them), jump next to them, giving kisses and overall be excited. However once the are off leash and the other dog starts running around, he gets nervous and either lays down to observe them, will want to be next to me, or just runs away to create space from that dog.

He had his first half day of daycare today (12:15-5:15pm) and i didn’t realize that between 12-2pm this daycare does a naptime in kennels in the play room. I wasn’t aware of this so the first time he was introduced to all these dogs he was put in a kennel for over an hour, then from 2-5:15pm he was allowed free play. This particular daycare as well says the separate by size and temperament. They had big dogs and small dogs in his room, some more on the higher energy side, and I was told he would be with puppies and calmer side. This did not seem the complete case… They have webcams so you can check in on your dog, which I really appreciate though!

For the first hour he was in free play, he stayed to himself but still sniffed other dogs that came up to him. There’s a decent size space by the door of the play room where he stayed and watched the other dogs. By the second hour he ventured out more into the middle of the play room, but if another dog tried to play with him he retreated back to the space against a kennel and a wall where he felt safe. By the time I picked him up, he was trotting around, running, but still not playing with any other dogs. If he got uncomfortable, he retreated to that space against a wall, waited for the dog to walk away then he went back out and walked around more or drank water.

If you’ve ever owned a puppy on the more reserved but still friendly side, did daycare help build their confidence? Did you use smaller daycares rather than large daycares with 15-20 dogs in the playroom to not over stimulate? I’m not sure if this daycare would help him or hurt him in the long run. I know it was only his first time but I still worry that he might get traumatized if the playroom attendant doesn’t pay attention if another dog doesn’t back off enough.

Thanks for any advice!!

Hello! In October, I rescued a husky/Shepard mix, she’s 6 months old now. I’m looking for opinions/ improvement suggestions for the schedule I’ve had her on. She’s my first dog and I really am trying to get it right!

I work a hybrid work schedule and am in the office mon-wed. She’s currently crated when she’s left home alone and at night (approx 9pm to 5:30 am). Monday and Tuesday I have a dog walker come in and walk her for 30 minutes at lunchtime. My roommate is home on Wednesdays so she free roams then – same thing with Thursday and Friday when I work from home. She gets at least 1 – 1.5 hours of exercise a day and plenty of chews/puzzles.

I think maybe because she’s gotten more comfortable in my house, shes starting to put up a fuss about going into the crate when I leave for work in the morning. She also used to sleep until she heard my alarm go off in the morning for work, but this week she’s started whining before my alarm goes off.

My main concerns are: Is regression normal at this age? Is there something I can do to combat it before it gets worse? I also thought her being crated at night, and only twice a week during the day with breaks was fine but maybe she needs more activity? If anyone has any advice I’d love to hear! Thanks!

I am planning to get a dog for my mom who's alone. Last time I went home, my mom told me how she was able sleep for 10 hrs peacefully when I was next to her, that's when I realised that she's very lonely, she doesn't hangout with her friends as my mom doesn't likes to go out often and she has the entire home for herself, she goes to work at 7.30 in the morning and comes back at 5 in the evening and she lives in a hill station, where morning temperature drop to 0 during winter

So my questions are: 1. Is it a good idea to get a dog? If yes: 2. Which breed should I go for? 3. Should I get a puppy or adult dog?

A dog in pain or distress cannot bond effectively. Health issues can disrupt routines, increase stress, and damage trust between you and your pet. Providing timely veterinary care, consistent health monitoring, and a calm, reassuring presence during emergencies are crucial to maintaining a healthy, trusting bond with your dog.

I was brooming but my puppy (who's 1.5 weeks and a GSD x Staffy) started chasing the broom. I put my leg in front of the broom, whilst saying "no" since I didn't want her treating the broom like a toy.

She started barking and even biting for the broom, obviously I tried to correct these behaviors but she kept chasing the broom, with me trying to get in her path and stop her.

How do I correct this behaviour?

Hello! It's the fourth day that I got my 8 week old west highland white terrier and he's a little menace (in a good and bad way).

I've done so many researchers, online and videos and just nothing seems to work regarding with him getting used to the puppy pen. He's got a blanket, a puppy pad (still getting used to it) and some toys.

What the biggest trouble is just leaving the room when he's awake. He'll throw a massive fit inside, barking, whining and biting the pen. I can only leave when he's in a deep slumber. He does whine even though I am in the same room as him and just want a break for a little bit…

The worse fact is that I have to return to work next week and I'm scared on how he'll behave during those hours by himself. I work from 8am to 5pm and I will be returning during lunch around 12 to check on him and feed him. I do live in an apartment and I'm terrified about the complaints…

Any advice would be appreciated!

We have a 9 month old Anatolian shepherd/Great Pyrenees mix. She has these moments where she will be laying on the sofa, then the next minute she is aggressively snapping and chasing after the closest person. She doesn’t try to bite, and will immediately wags her tail and “apologize,” but it’s scaring our kids and I don’t want to get rid of her because I love her so much.

Any advice?

I got my cockapoo puppy on friday wasnt planning on crate training him but he wont sleep in his bed. He wants to sleep in my bed. He barely naps during the day as I have an 18 month old daughter. Im at my wits end trying to get him to nap and entertaining my daughter. My husbands currently working 12 hour nights so he cant help much. My vet recommended a crate yesterday when he got his vaccine. So he has his own space to go and nap and when he gets extra land shark I can take him to nap in it. The crate arrives today ive researched how to crate train him but there's so much conflicting information.Im just looking for some advice really.

I’m seeking advice but please be gentle in the comments. I have a 6 month old puppy currently. We were letting him have free roam of the downstairs while we work our 12 hour shifts which worked well for about 3 months but now he chewed up our couch on 2 separate occasions. I understand this is normal puppy behavior, he just doesn’t know.

What I’m asking advice on is whether or not it’s ethical to crate him while we are gone. I wake up at 4 am and walk him for about 30 minutes, come home and do some training or nose work for 20ish minutes and then he’d go into the crate with a frozen Kong and a long lasting chew. We have a neighbor walk the dog at about 12-1ish and we get home around 6 pm where I repeat our morning routine, just longer and a puzzle feeder.

I also have 3-4 day weekends so there’s plenty of time to be with him, take him to dog parks or new areas to explore etc.

I know we messed up giving him too much freedom too early but he’s completely potty trained since he had access to the backyard.

It’s either we crate him until he’s grown up more and no longer teething or we will have to find a better suited home for him…

EDIT: He is crate trained, sleeps in his crate every night with no problem and on weekends when I enforce naps he has no problem (no barking/crying). I’m also seeing a lot of comments recommending I train. He gets trained for about 20 minutes before work and 30-60min after work (broken up segments). Plenty of training on the weekends too.