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I adopted a puppy (8 w/o pug mix) at an adoption event through our humane society. We wanted to try fostering the dog but the shelter said they do not allow fostering puppies because of the parvo risk. We also couldn’t set the dogs down to meet eachother because of the parvo risk but when we held their faces close together our chihuahua (2 y/o) seemed very curious and didn’t shy away from sniffing her, so we adopted the dog.

The puppy is such a good dog but our chihuahua doesn’t seem to be adapting well to her. Our chihuahua is very small (2 lbs) and still seems curious about the puppy from afar but anytime the puppy gets close to her she runs away. The puppy will sometimes run towards her or nip at her in an attempt to play but our chihuahua gets frightened and will run away or cower in a corner, getting tackled and nipped at while she waits for us to pick her up.

We’ve only had the puppy for 2 weeks but she’s already double the size of our chihuahua. The chihuahua’s separation anxiety has gotten worse and she shows less interest in playing or eating if my mom is not directly in the room.

I’ve been considering returning her to the humane society because she’s only 9-10 weeks old and will have the most success of finding/ adjusting to a new family but I’ve also gotten a lot of advice from friends telling me to try waiting it out because neither dog is showing direct aggression toward the other. My mom does not like the way our chihuahua has responded and is 100% for returning her but my dad doesn’t want to so the decision has been essentially left to me and I’m really at a loss. I just want what’s best for both dogs.

hello everyone! I got an 8 week old lab mix puppy about a week and a half ago. I absolutely adore her and I’m growing attached to her which is why it’s hard for me to think I may have to take her back to the shelter. the thing is, I’m a student and I also have to work. so during the day I’m gone for maybe 4-5 hours and when I have to work I’m gone for 9 hours. I’ve had people to check on her but I know this always won’t be the case. it makes me feel like a bad owner when I have to leave her in her pen for a while. to top it off I’ve been having mental health struggles due to academic stress, I just sort of feel bad that she has someone who’s not mentally well. I still take her on walks, feed her, play with her, try my best to train her, and my goodness I can’t stop finding things that I want to buy for her. but a part of me feels guilt for when I have off days. I can’t tell if I have puppy blues or if it would be better for me to return her to the shelter. it’s really heartbreaking for me to do so as again I’ve grown really attached to her but perchance there’s someone out there who’d take better care of her.

Hi! Next week our puppy will be coming up from a rescue transport in Alabama. We know the rescue well and have had friends adopt from them in the past.

The pup was supposed to come up last month, but unfortunately they had a kennel cough outbreak and elected to quarantine for a few weeks, just to be safe. (She, as far as we know, never exhibited symptoms)

So, instead of a five month old that will have only been in a shelter for two weeks, we'll be getting a nearly sixonth old that's been in a shelter for a month.

We live in the other end of the country, so she'll have had a long journey! Has anyone been in a similar situation? What advice for her adjustment do you have?

For extra context, we have two cats and a senior dog, who will be kept away from her for a day or two while she adjusts. She'll also be mostly kept in an expen/crated.

(Also, the date change means she's arriving when my wife is out of town and I'll be going solo, but I'll deal)

I’m getting a German shepherd puppy in the coming weeks. My plan is to have a large playpen set up, with a crate, water, fresh patch, and safe toys. While I work, my puppy will be utilizing the fresh patch. During my time home, I will have the fresh patch on the balcony to assist with training the puppy to hold his bladder. I don’t plan on fully crating my puppy during my work hours until about 4-6 months old so he can comfortably hold it until I’m home. My question is this; will my puppy have a hard time learning to hold his bladder since I’m leaving a safe potty option while I’m not home? Anyone with experience regarding puppies and training please help:). He’s a German shepherd if it makes a difference.