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We are wanting to potty train as soon as we pick up our puppy. We have a fenced in backyard but we do have an outside cat that is around our yard. Is this not safe? I’m in Florida.

Hi everyone. Me (20) and my family just got a puppy at 8 weeks old and altholugh shes been sweet and adorable my dad (52) has been getring frustrated at me because I apparently havent been doing a good job training her because shes been having accidents at the house and has been teething. He knows full well what he got himself into since he has raised a puppy before but I can't help but feel being unfair to me and has been asking me for her to be fully potty trained already. Its been making me feel bad since shes only 9 weeks old and sti getting a grasp of things and im afraid he might do something to the pup if i dont meet his expectations

I got my 9 week old lab (Maggie) just over a week ago. Life feels super hectic. I knew it would, but I guess I need reassurance it calms down a bit. I have an 11 month old and a 4 year old. We have been crate training little pup and her crate is inside a play

Pen. This is primarily to encourage the crate to feel safe by choice at first but the play pen will come kinda redundant once she can jump over. The pen also stops little fingers getting into the crate when she is in there. I limit this time but I do rely on it quite a bit during the busier parts of the day, I feel so much guilt but she is well and truly in the shark phase and need to keep everyone safe. I feel like I’m juggling 10 balls from the minute I wake to the minute I go to bed. She can’t go out on walks yet as her round of vaccinations isn’t complete so we play in our small garden. If I need to split her from the kids from whatever reason I’ve started to open our back door and allow her to roam between the garden and kitchen with lots of toys. Any minute I get that isn’t mum duty I spend playing with and training her (we’ve got sit and lie down). We had a dog before Maggie, but we had no kids and all the time in the world apparently. She was also older, probably around 6 months but we weren’t sure. So when does it become “having a dog” and not “managing a feral puppy” – I guess is my question.

back in December we rescued a then 9 month old hound/GS/husky mix. he's now 13 months. we shut him and our other hound mix (5 1/2) in our bedroom. he's not as destructive as he used to be, but he'll still things like socks, pillows and blankets on the occasion. I feel so bad that he's stuck in our room, which is a decent size, and he and our other dog just sleep all day. I always leave plenty of toy options for them and I've filled a Kong ball with kibble that our pup loves, but only for a short while.

we don't live near family who could let them out during the day, my husband's a pilot so he's rarely home and I try to come home during my lunch but I only get 30 minutes and I live 15 minutes away, so it's not easy.

does anyone have any ideas? I know people suggest freezing kongs, but like I said, they're shut in our bedroom and I don't want anything melting on our bed.

I recently adopted an aussie x border collie and I’m starting to feel like I’m not enough. Family says I’m over thinking but I just want to be sure she’s happy/healthy.

I WFH at a desk 8 hrs and throughout the day. I take her out and we get a fetch or play sessions in, I walk her in the morning and night, give her a frozen Kong mid day and take her do the dog park once or twice a week. I’m trying to get her steady walking so we can eventually add hikes to the week but I don’t thinks she’s ready yet.

I know these breeds need lots of stimulation as they’re very energetic so if you have advice on what more I can do or add to the schedule please let me know.

Hi everyone!

I’m trying to train my dog the touch command for recall but every time I put my hand out he lunges at it thinking there’s a treat. So instead of touching his nose to my hand, he’s almost attacking it.

Any advice on how to stop this?

Hi everybody, first time posting here.

Me and my girlfriend are getting a puppy in May (he’ll be ~8 weeks old). There’s a puppy training starting about 7 days after he arrives, and the next one isn’t until after summer, when he’d be too old for the puppy group.

Is it actually a good idea to start that early (after just 1 week at home), or would it be better to wait?

Edit: I forgot to add that he will have his first vaccination a few days before we pick him up. We live in Europe / Scandinavia and I saw that different rules apply for puppy training which I didn’t know.

I’ve got a 10-month-old Labrador and I’m looking for a bit of advice on when they usually start to calm down, especially on walks.

Right now, he pulls like crazy. We’ve been doing training with him, and he can walk nicely, but it’s very hit-and-miss. I’m guessing a lot of it comes down to excitement and lack of self-control, everything is just too interesting for him.

I’ve been working on his impulse control at home by throwing a ball and getting him to wait until I release him. He’s improving, but sometimes his emotions still get the better of him and he ignores the command.

So I guess my main question is: at what age did your Labrador start getting better at controlling their impulses and settling down a bit? I know every dog is different, but I’d love to hear your experiences to get a rough idea of a timeline.

thank you in advance

I’m so aggravated and I do not love this dog, not truly. (Oda, Jackchi, 5 months or so, getting shots soon) This isn’t my first post on here but I really must be frank. I do not love this dog. We’ve only had him since the 18th of march but I haven’t been able to go out or see any of my friends or work out or go on walks. He’ll destroy every little thing he can get his mouth on, even if we give him countless treats. My boyfriend and i recently discovered that we have a broken bed frame and this dog has made it his absolute prerogative to get under that fuckin bed and tear off as much cloth, wood and other bullshit he can get his teeth around. We left him home for two hours for one of the first times in like a week and he shit all over his crate and shredded the potty mat we left for him in case he had to use the potty, he had toys and so many treats AND we made sure he used the restroom before we left. I can’t have a social life, I can’t play any video games anymore, I’m burnt out and tired honestly? I see him as an extension of my boyfriend because that’s the only way I can care for him. On top of this, he has marred my skin over and over and will drop his toys just to come bite me instead!! I’m sick of it! I don’t want to be bit anymore and it makes me severely angry as I also have anger issues and I have to separate us when he does something that he knows he’s not supposed to do as i just get so livid that we are backpedaling. BUT I do not want my poor boyfriend to have to return his little pal. I do not wish for connection with this creature, does anyone have any advice on how to tolerate him just enough that it doesn’t cause issues for boyfriend???

We want to get sunglasses or dog goggles for our pup but have no clue which brand, style, & fit is best.

Does anyone have any experience or recommendations on good brands or tips on what to look for when buying?