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My puppy is 5.5 months old. For context I live alone and I have little to no support.

I got him at 8 weeks old and fully intended to train him to be independent, but two things happened:

1. He started having cluster seizures not long after he came home. I lost count of the number of times I had to rush him to the emergency vet. Because of this, for about a month or two I was too scared to leave him alone
2. A neighbour filed a noise complaint and my landlady got on my case

I hired a force free trainer and her recommendation was to go very slow and build up to longer and longer increments of alone time. The thing is I feel like a prisoner in my own home and based on her instructions I'd be lucky if I get an hour in 8 weeks time.

I cannot stress enough how much this has affected my mental health. I was prepared for the fact that I couldn't leave a puppy alone for long, but because of my trainers protocol I now I feel like I can barely leave my home at all because doing so allows him to "rehearse the feeling of panic".

I lean on sitters and daycare but this isn't a long term solution and my wallet is already drained from the emergency vet bills.

Advice please.

Hello,

I have a question about puppies, I see a lot of people on different threads complaining about their own lack of sleep due to getting a puppy. I'll adopt a puppy in the upcoming months and I'm trying to prepare to try, as best as possible, to make things smooth…

What is the reason people are not sleeping due to a puppy and how to prepare to avoid that as much as possible ?

We have a 11 week old cocker spaniel, and have found that saying "what's this" has inadvertently become a way of getting her to come back to us (in the house/garden at least) and wondered if anyone else has found that a similarly innocuous phrase goes on to become a command?

I'm really hoping someone else's dog has disemboweled the same Kong toy this squeaker is from and know where I can find it.

It is a soft rubbery red squeaker that has a VERY responsive/hair trigger squeak with minimal pressure.

I'm fairly sure it came from a soft/furry toy.

Please help if you know 🙏 Thanks!

Here is a photo of her and the toy:

https://imgur.com/a/ogDOquz

My roommate is going to be gone for 3+ months and wants me to watch his dog. This dog is a husky and is very high maintenance. How much would be acceptable to charge him? I was thinking 300 a month but really have no idea. I have a dog of my own but people would pay me to have him for a month. This dog is very….. non trained. I’m reluctant to even accept. How much should I charge?

what is the best robot vacuum for a house with a heavy-shedding dog and thick carpet? i’m not asking in a “what’s the best gadget” way. i’m asking in a “my carpet looks clean for about 14 minutes and then somehow looks dog-owned again” way. i’ve got one big shedder, thick carpet upstairs, and the hair gets worked into it so fast it feels permanent. a regular vacuum helps, sure, but i’m trying to figure out what actually helps in between full vacuum sessions — especially something that can keep up day after day without becoming its own maintenance project. that’s the part i can never really tell from reviews. plenty of robot vacuums seem fine in short tests, but pet homes are different. i want to know what still works once the robot is dealing with dog hair every single day, when the brush has to keep pulling from thick carpet, and when missed patches start showing up fast. i don’t need “pretty good on hard floors.” i need something that can actually live in a dog house and keep the carpet from looking defeated all the time. bonus if it handles hair without constant tangles and doesn’t need babysitting every run. dog people only: what actually held up long term?

Do people own dogs who work full time? how do you manage dog care if you are out of the house from 7:30am to 5pm? wondering if I will ever be able to own a dog.

I will be traveling out west soon and I was going to take my pup with me. I really didn't want to put her in cargo, but it seems that might be my only option besides driving. Has anyone flown their dog in Delta cargo?

Hey everyone!

Just after a bit of advice with my 10 week old Neo Mastiff x Cane Corso pup.

She’s actually pretty good with the basics. Shes knows sit, stay, down, and will come most of the time, but her name recognition and recall aren’t great. A lot of the time she just doesn’t respond to her name, especially if there’s anything else going on, and I have to keep trying to get her attention before she’ll listen. Once I’ve got her focus she’ll usually do what I ask unless she’s feeling particularly stubborn (generally when she’s tired and uninterested), it’s just getting her to tune in that’s the hard part. She’s also not very food driven which makes training a bit tricky since treats don’t really excite her much.

Just wondering if anyone has tips for getting better recall and name response (especially with distractions), building more engagement/focus, what to use for training if your dog isn’t super into food

I know she’s still young, just want to make sure I’m on the right track early.

Appreciate any help!

I’ve been paying closer attention to how stress affects dogs, especially during thunderstorms, vet visits, or loud events. It’s clear that anxiety can impact their digestion, energy levels, and overall mood.

I’m curious to hear from this community: what strategies have worked for your dogs when it comes to managing stress naturally? Have you tried supplements, behavioral techniques, or environmental changes that genuinely make a difference? I’m particularly interested in solutions that have noticeable, positive effects without over-relying on medication.

It would be great if we could share experiences and compare approaches, from calming routines to diet adjustments, so others here can benefit as well.