Blog

She was too warm 😭. after like 3 trips outside, water, even laying in front of the crate, I let her out and she laid down near the AC vent. so far since getting her it has been about 70F in the house but it was warm enough today that we had the house set to 72 on AC. she’s also very fluffy and due for a first groom.

Okay so our pup is a dachshund mix with mini pinscher (we think!?). We got her at 12 weeks from the shelter (stray dog) back in Feb. shes 23weeks old now and lots of work.

We’re a family of 3 with my kid being 5. I work remote 2 days a week and the rest in office pretty much all day. My wife M-F 8-5. I was able to take a week off when we first got her but geez it feel like now progress.

We have no other choice than to leave her solo at home the days I’m in office. We clear the living room and gate off access to dining room. I don’t crate her since we’ll be done for 8hrs+ but leave her with the crate open, and water and make sure she’s fed and potties before leaving. I do leave pee pads and she does a good job at hitting those with an occasional accident just off of them. I also leave Dog TV on for background noise

My question is how do we go about her being comfy at home? I’ll check on her on the ring camera and for the first 30min we’re gone, she’s howling and crying and tends to settle for a bit but paces back and forth for a while. Occasionally she’ll scratch at the door nap for maybe 10-20min max. But she never tends to calm down solo. I leave her with puzzles or a Kong and that keeps her busy for 20-30min but she whines while she plays with them.

I do the quick goodbyes and make sure to not make a big deal.

Any advice on making sure she doesn’t end up with life long separation anxiety because I’m not sure I can do this forever. I try doing the leave for 10sec and comeback in but sometimes she gets distracted with everyone else in the house.

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share something that came up during a recent vet visit and see if others have had similar experiences.

I took my 4-month-old mini Goldendoodle in for her scheduled vaccinations, and during the exam, the vet mentioned that he could hear what might be a heart murmur. He wasn’t certain about the cause and recommended a follow-up with a veterinary cardiologist for further evaluation (likely ECG and/or other tests) before proceeding.

As a precaution, he decided to hold off on vaccinations for now until there’s more clarity from the specialist.

What’s interesting is that she hasn’t shown any noticeable issues in day-to-day behavior. She’s been very active and playful—recently spent time running around with a 14-month-old Goldendoodle and kept up easily without signs of fatigue or slowing down.

At this point, we’re in the process of scheduling the cardiology appointment and just taking things step by step.

⸻

🧠 Curious to hear from others:

• Has anyone else had a murmur picked up during a routine visit like this? • How did the process typically go after being referred to a cardiologist? 

Our puppy, Miss Phoebe Consuella Tyrannosaurus-Rex Wagdelena, is the best.

But my god do I need a good nights sleep 😭

She is almost perfectly toilet trained. I say almost perfect as she doesn’t 100% go on command the whole time. But otherwise she’s an absolutely gem and will take herself out to the toilet whenever she needs it.

Herein lies my problem. Shes started waking up and whining at 3am, sometimes shell get up and pee and poo like she’s been busting, sometimes she won’t get up. When she gets up at 6am there’s no way you are getting her back in her crate but she will happily snooze on the lounge with you till 8am 🤦🏼‍♀️

She gets her last dinner at 6pm and last toilet break at 845pm ish/as close to 9pm as I can make it.

I’ve noticed if she poos at that last break then she’ll sleep through, but if she doesn’t that’s when the midnight whinge/wakeys happen.

So what’s y’alls schedules for a 5-7 month old puppy? (She’s a medium breed roughly 16kg now and will be about 25 fully grown)

Please help! Dog won't stop marking!

okay so I want to start off saying that I always fix my pets asap, however this dog is my husband's that he got extremely early in our relationship and chose not to fix him (he does regret it). marking has always been a bit of an issue (any amount of marking in the house is) but it wasn't extreme like it is now. he's marking like crazy and it doesn't matter how I clean. I have used vinegar, bleach, and various dog urine specific cleaning agents. I have even gone over spots multiple times with multiple cleaning products. it doesn't matter if the floor or item has been with us and has had our sent for years or if it's brand new or used. we've tried dog wraps, but those don't stay on even with suspenders because he's an English bulldog with a very round body that has only gotten rounder with age. he is getting older and is currently about 8 years old. I don't want to re-home him if I don't have to, but I have a baby now and it's becoming a health and safety hazard for him. But every year he gets worse. we've thought about trying to scrape together enough money to fix him but will that even help at this point?

Please help me find a solution that works, I really love my animals and want to do right by them as best I can.

I want to preface by saying that I need honesty but kindness right now. I am in the very first few days of a newly adopted dog and am feeling all of the “puppy blues.” This is really hard and I’m trying my best.

On Saturday, I adopted a new dog from my local shelter. Male, -50ish pounds, 3yo lab mix. As sweet and affectionate as can be. Everything has been going great, but he is very attached to me and has serious separation anxiety. Whines, paces, pees, poops and never settles when left alone. He knows how to break out of a wire crate and turn doorknobs which is making me incredibly nervous for his safety in my home. I live alone and am managing this new dog by myself. I simply have to be able to leave him for a few hours a day for work and errands. I know what you’re going to say: he can’t tolerate that right now and I need to work up to his alone time in small increments. Though I would love to do that, I don’t currently have the luxury of doing so. I do not think I would have adopted him if I knew his separation anxiety was this bad. Being able to be safely left alone for a while is really important for my lifestyle. We’re going to the vet tomorrow and I suspect they’ll give meds to help with the anxiety. My own emotional state is wrecked right now.

Am I just feeling the overwhelm of the first few days of a new dog? Is it too soon to tell how big of an issue this is? Is this something we can work through? Or am I dealing with a real issue where I need to consider the possibility that this isn’t the right dog for me? In every other aspect, he seems like a great fit.

EDIT: I have done Kongs, lick mats, calming music etc. He did better in a “dog safe” closed off room than he did in the crate, but I’m still nervous because he knows how to open the door

Hello everyone! I'm reaching out here to (hopefully) try and stamp out this problem before it gets worse.

I adopted a GSD/husky mix about three weeks ago, and everything has gone relatively fine. It's certainly been a stressful adjustment (I just don't handle change in routine well, not her fault), but all things considered we're doing great! My only concern is that as she's settling in and we're getting used to one another, I'm worried my new companion is starting to develop separation anxiety.

I'm currently a student in grad school, so I'm typically gone 2-4 hours a day, consecutively, for 3-4 days a week. Up until today, she's handled this fairly well, but when I got home today she had chewed up the blinds pretty badly. This obviously isn't the end of the world, but I can't afford for her to regularly start destroying my apartment any time I leave! She also constantly follows me around the apartment. Any time I move a muscle, she turns and stares at me like I'm about to run out the door. Any time I stand up, no matter if she's awake or asleep, she's immediately on her feet and right behind me. She's done this since I've gotten her, but it's felt particularly anxiety-induced lately for some reason. I've been trying really hard to make sure she's been exercised mentally and physically any time I leave (especially considering her breed) to prevent boredom, so I don't think it's that. We went on several short walks and then a longer scent walk, played for over an hour inside, and she had a frozen kong all before I left! We went on another long scent walk when I got home, and she immediately started snoozing afterward.

She also just started doggie daycare (only one day a week, when I'm working and don't feel comfortable leaving her home alone for 8-10 hours a day). Her first day was Saturday, and I can't help but feel that this has contributed to her behavior. She's been seemingly more energetic and harder to calm down since her stay. Is this something that could have sparked this separation anxiety or behavioral changes? It's also worth noting that now any time we go outside (especially if I've taken my keys) she tries to pull me to the car. I want her to be socialized and to have a good outlet to burn her energy, but I don't want it to put her in a state of over-arousal that starts a destructive cycle.

Is there any way to stop minimize these destructive behaviors before they really start? I've seen people recommend gradually acclimating anxious dogs to separation, but I can't just stay home 24/7 until we've worked up to extended absences. Is this my only option? I'm at a loss for how to give her a smooth and low-stress adjustment here, and any advice would be greatly appreciated!

My dog is escaping the yard so I'm looking for recommendations on an outdoor camera to see how she's doing it. Preferably one with wide lens and short term camera history without a subscription

She’s a 9 mo old husky. Somehow, she got out of my basement door few hours ago. She’s ran off before but always came back within minutes. Been looking nonstop for hours with no luck. I don’t know what to do! I’m so worried now that it’s dark. I live in a sort of rural area…. I’ve been wanting to put one of those AirTags on her but haven’t gotten around to it yet…. So angry at myself.

Can dogs really get jealous? Any tips to help them get along?

I'm a new pet owner. I first got a French bulldog (named Darwin), who's under a year old. Later I adopted a sweet little Labrador puppy (named Benny), who's only 7 months old.

Most of the time they get along fine, but whenever I give the Lab a little extra attention or cuddles, my Frenchie starts picking fights with him. Today he even nipped me when I tried to protect the Lab!

I really think he's jealous, like he thinks I'm favoring the Lab.

Has anyone else had this experience? I'd love to know how to help them get along peacefully.