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Hello, I went to my first puppy class today (petsmart puppy class). I have some type of herding breed mix, he is smart and is also a handful. It’s also winter (Ohio) so i wanted a way to provide him some socialization to people, dogs, and being in public

My puppy is only 3 months old. I was the only one in class so I had the trainers sole focus for an hour and I was NOT prepared for how micro managing this trainer would be. She took issue with the way I was holding the leash, the treats I brought, the fact I was giving him treats for just laying on the floor being calm…. Among many other things. She was physically intervening so that I would hold my hand how she wanted and move it when she wanted.

My puppy can already sit. But it’s not good enough. She has a very specific way she wants me to do it, down to the posture I stand and the position I hold my hand, and how I hold the leash, and exact timing in saying sit, a word to use while the dog is sitting… then a release word. She talked a lot about the AKC. Her dog was with her the has their crate covered in ribbons.

I feel completely in over my head. She even said obedience is not fun. I explained I wasn’t there intending to get any advanced training or ribbons, I wanted some basic training & socializing to have a more well rounded puppy, (and I also think it SHOULD be fun, but I didn’t say this)

So my second class is tomorrow.. same trainer but switched days to be in class with other puppies. It all has me wondering, what has your experience been with puppy training? Did I just get a miss matched trainer? Her expectations of both me and my puppy seem extremely strict and ridiculous. I’ve watched some videos since I got home and it seems everyone has a different approach to training.

I have a 10 lb Manchester terrier who recently turned a year old pretty great dog all around well behaved and well mannered mostly lol. I’m planning on adding an American hairless terrier puppy. I just want to know people with 2 dogs or dogs with an age gap what’s your experience? I’m interested I’ve been researching the pros and cons and potential drawbacks of having two dogs .

Also before anyone ask

I’m not solely getting another dog for my dog I’m am genuinely interested in this breed I feel like it would fit my lifestyle as well and i want something slightly larger they range between 12 and 28 pounds fully grown.

We are getting our Golden Retriever puppy in two weeks and are preparing for everything atm but I'm starting to worry about fireworks.

Someone on our street has been setting off fireworks at seemingly random moments. There's generally a lot of them in my area but I feel like I could deal with it when it was predictable (religious holidays, new years etc…) but I can't plan for it when we're just hanging out on a random weekday and there's suddenly explosions down the road.

What can I do to desensitise puppy to fireworks? Anything I can do to make her feel safe when she gets scared?

I have a 8 month old mutt, she’s got husky heeler basset hound, Doberman, and collie, the lady I got her from was about 80 and she hoarded dogs and the shelter wanted to put the down so I took one, she isn’t super food motivated and she just won’t listen to me at all, I call her name she won’t come, I tell her to sit she’ll do it on her own terms, and lately she’s been going to the highway almost getting hit, at this point if someone hits her it was natural selection, I’m at a loss with her, she breaks out of the fence and runs a muck, and in a few days I’m brining home my bird dog she’s a purebred Irish setter, how can I train my dog everyone I ask says hit her but knowing my dog she’ll hit me back, (I would t hit my dog) everyone around me just says the same thing but I don’t want to resort to violence with her, she’s a good dog with so much potential but I don’t know why she won’t listen, my other girl is trained to the 9s I’m wondering if my mutt is bored she always tries to herd the kids but she stop short to actually do any farm work, please help me

My partner and I just adopted a wonderful five month old puppy from a shelter. He’s great, socializes well and super well behaved. He has a lot of accidents in the house though (at least five a day), and it’s like clockwork after he drinks any water. If we take him out, he’ll pee again even if he just peed inside, and he’ll go every few minutes on a walk. When he goes, he doesn’t lift his leg, and sometimes seems a bit unaware that he’s going. Is this normal? Any advice between very positive potty training? We’re worried it could be a UTI or something, and we already have a vet visit planned soon.

My gsd is 9.5 weeks old, I just got him last week at 8 weeks, and the first night he was screaming so much I asked here on reddit and people directed me to the wiki which suggested I stay in the room with him.

So every night he goes into his crate and I take a folding cot and sleep in front of his crate…

However it has been about 1.5 weeks and he sleeps through the night quietly now without potty accidents, so I want to start working towards being able to go upstairs to my room while he stays downstairs in his crate.

How do I work towards this? because at night when he goes into his crate, if I leave the room and head upstairs he starts crying again…

thanks!

I had to take a step back and realize that getting Pretzel (whom I planned on getting, and was really excited to get, and did my due diligence for before adopting, etc) really triggered the puppy blues in me and it is a very real phenomenon. I had no idea what was happening.

I have the two girls with their immune mediated thrombocytopenia and an unknown amount of time left with me, and I wanted to bring a puppy in before they were gone.

After I did, for the first few days I was in shear panic. I legitimately had panic attacks (which I don't struggle with) and I wanted to give him back or find him a new home… especially the first 72 hours of caring for him on my own.

Every time he refused to potty outside felt like a personal failure, or like a defect with the dog. I would wake up stressed out with heart palpitations.

I even adopted an older puppy so I wouldn't go through the sleepless nights that I went through with my girls. Still, it felt like he just didn't fit and nothing was working. I was sure something was wrong with him.

The funny thing is, aside from being more difficult to potty train than other puppies I have had, he's a quick learner, super affectionate, and has the best temperament out of the puppies I've brought home over the years.

Jameson is now home from the emergency vet again tonight, and for Valentine's Day I'm so grateful Pretzel has officially gone potty outside three times in the last 24 hours and I have all three of my dogs by my side to watch TV with and veg out and be grateful for.

The Puppy Blues are real, but I also have a damn sweet puppy.

Hello all! We have had this new puppy for a few weeks now. Over the last few days we have noticed her seeking out our elderly cats. With them being elderly (14 years old) they are not a fan of vertical space even in dire circumstances. She seeks them out and lunges snaps and barks at them. It doesn't matter if they bite her of snack her she just keeps going at them. Also, a few times this next thing has happened but tonight it was the worst. She was in bed with my husband and I while watching a show. (She has a crate she goes in for bedtime and does great, this wasn't bedtime so she wasn't in the crate) and she had a Kong Enrichment. Our show ended and we knew she was due to go potty so my husband went to pick her up and she snapped at him several times and was growling loudly for her size. It was shocking. What can we do to help this not happen? Is this normal puppy behavior? Should we be super concerned? We do have two children in the home as well. **She came from an ethical and good breeder and came with all her certificates and documentation.