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Hey all – I have a now 5 month old puppy Maltipoo and things have certainly gotten better since month 1, but waking up constantly, biting and barking are still a challenge.

On the topic of waking up constantly, our pup has an internal wake up clock (which I'm sure most do) and I'm looking to understand how we can break the cycle. When I mean waking up, she will wake up and whine endlessly until there is interaction. And I mean whine endlessly? She will whine for 20 mins straight until she gets that interaction. If she settled on her own, I wouldn't be here

For context, our pup will get up at 5am, 6am, 7am, and 8am almost religiously every day. Been this way for a while now. What we've been doing is that when she wakes up, we take her downstairs to pee or see if she needs a drink/food, then will take her back upstairs. Only once during the 5/6/7/8 cycle does she actually need to pee (rarely, if ever poops and rarely, almost never, wants to eat and drink before 9am)

We spoke to our trainer about this topic and he gave tips, but I'm not sure the tips are working:

– Tip 1: remove water and food by 8pm each night to have less liquid/food in her system so she doesn't need to get up as much during the night –> since implementing this two weeks ago, the various wake up times haven't changed

– Tip 2: when she gets up and whines during the night, we were told to pick her up, NOT take her downstairs, give her love for max 1-2 mins (it's not time to play, it's just long enough to acknowledge we're there) then put her back down and let her settle (she has a pee-pad in her play pen for use now). The context was that if we pick her up and only tend to her for a minute, she will realize over time there's nothing exciting happening at these times and it's not time to start the day –> since implementing this, we have been able to get her to settle faster by giving her some light attention and putting her back down, BUT she's still waking up constantly so I'm not sure it's having the intended consequences

Now – for some really important context –> once we finally give in (usually around 8am, sometimes 7am) I will go downstairs to work on the couch while my partner continues to get some more sleep. Our pup will then cuddle up with me on the couch (almost immediately) and sleep on me for an easy 2-3 hours more. So I can tell she's still tired, it's just clear she's fed up about being alone in the pen.

Could really use some help because she does like to sleep during the night, but she likes to constantly wake up and won't stop until we give into her attention.

Hi everyone, I’m from India. I’m feeling really worried and heartbroken after the recent Supreme Court decision about stray dogs in my country. The order says that stray dogs should be removed and kept in shelters, but the truth is that India does not have enough proper shelters. This makes many of us fear that these innocent dogs will be killed.

People who love and care for stray animals are already doing everything they can. I have 27 indie dogs living in my home, and I’ve been looking after them for years. But because they are Indian breeds, very few people come forward to adopt them. Most people still prefer foreign-breed dogs, which makes the situation even harder.

That’s why I am reaching out with hope. I’m looking for kind-hearted people from anywhere in the world who truly love dogs and know how to care for them. If you or someone you know can help adopt these beautiful indie dogs, or help me find safe homes for them in your country, it would mean the world to me.

Please connect with me if you can help in any way. Your kindness could save lives.

Thank you from my heart.

My dog is a Rottweiler, 10 years old. I took her to the vet today for a minor issue, but I live 45 minutes to and from the vet. The car ride's always been a bit tough on her, but now she can't get up and I need to take her outside for a bathroom break, but she just can't get up and I don't know what to do, I'm freaking out, please help me

Our 10 year old lost her buddy last year. While he was alive, he would get (and mostly tolerate) twice daily head "baths" from her. Since we lost him, she does a lot of licking on couches, our bedspread, etc.

I've come to learn licking is a soothing activity and woke up this morning wondering if there's any sort of "stand in" we might be able to get for her (we don't really care if she licks the couches, etc., just wondering if there's something better people have found that we might place in a couple of spots in the house).

I did see something called a licking mat that you put peanut butter, yogurt, etc. on, but that seems to be more for fast eaters (?). I'm thinking a fabric, or something that simulates hair, or something? Thanks for any thoughts.

I have a Jack Russel Dachsund mix, hes about 7 months old now and I got him when he was 3 months. Hes been a velcro dog since day one, like he will get up and follow me to the kitchen even if he was sleeping. I work from home so Im with him a lot and he sleeps in the bed with me. Long story short I have been working gradually on leaving him alone and got up to a few hours at a time but had a major setback recently. I went to the movies and got back 3 hours later like I have many times and nothing unusual. But the next time I tried to leave him alone he just started trembling in fear like Ive never seen before.

Here's what Ive done so far:

I tried crate training after he was comfortable in the house at about 14 weeks and the first time he freaked out and tried to bite his way out of the crate, his face got stuck in it and he started screaming, one of his puppy teeth ripped out and he was bleeding and scared. So pretty much immediately I gave up on the crate and started making the bathroom puppy proof and decided I would leave him in there instead. Started small with a minute, few minutes, 10, 20, etc. I got to the point where I could leave for an hour and then more, all over the past 4 months. I would stay for a couple minutes talking to him and giving him treats so it didnt surprise him when I left. I pretended to leave and monitor him and after about 10 minutes he would quiet down and he would be quiet when I got back so I figured he was settling okay. Coming back it would always be a mess, he spills his water and food, chews his potty pad, but he would do those things when I was home so it wasnt really out of the ordinary (typical Jack Russel stuff).

I got him a safer crate, one of the plastic ones with a small metal gate and started crate training again. He is okay in it while he has his peanut butter kong but then wants to come out, he wont freak out like when he was young but he will let me know. I tried tether training too but its the same problem with the crate, he will cry and bark if he cant get to me, even if im 2ft away. It doesnt matter how or where I leave him he just wants to be able to get to me. So its not really a confinement problem, he will actually go in the crate on his own sometimes now. I started leaving the crate in the bathroom with him and just leaving it open and gradually he stopped panicing and trying to run out of the bathroom when I would leave. He started going in the crate obediently and would sit calmly while I shut the bathroom door to leave. I thought we were making good progress! But something changed one night after I went to the movies for 3 hours, he has been alone for that long plenty of times but after that night he started trembling and shaking when I put him in the bathroom to leave. I feel like Ive lost all progress and dont know what to do now. Should I start from square one or consider medication at this point?

Hes and amazing dog in so many other ways, he was potty trained after like 48 hours somehow, he has no problem self regulating with naps throughout the day, never aggressive towards other dogs or people, incredibly cute and acts like everyone is his friend, hes done really well in puppy training classes, and he alternates between being an absolutely hilarious psycho and a sweetheart but thats just his breed. I love him to death and would never consider getting rid of him, but the separation anxiety is the one thing I just cant figure out.

I’ve been using her normal kibble to train as that’s some advice I was given but now I feel like she doesn’t care about meal times lol. I’m not over feeding her. I use maybe half of her meal for training/positive reinforcements. So she definitely still has more calories she should be getting in. She also eats it with no issues when training, so she doesn’t dislike the food. Please help!

i have a 10-week old Border Collie/Australian Kelpie cross, and at the moment, his ears basically change every day. sometimes they’re pointy, sometimes they’re floppy, sometimes one is pointy and the other floppy, and sometimes vice versa. is this normal, and if so, is there a way i can predict how they’ll be when he’s older?

i’ve been walking my neighbours dog to help out for the past few months and last week i took her a walk through a local cemetery.

i didn’t know beforehand but the cemetery was filled with squirrels and she was totally obsessed and not wanting to leave – this just seemed cute and funny but not every single time i take her out she begs to walk to the cemetery and whines when i don’t go that way. it’s so bad that she often completely stops walking and we end up in a stand off

i’m just wondering if anyone knows if she’ll eventually stop doing this on her own or if there’s something i can do to try and stop her

i should mention she’s an extremely timid lurcher and it took me quite a while to even get her to walk with me so i don’t want to do anything that’ll upset her

tldr; dog’s obsessed with squirrels and doesn’t want to go on any walk that doesn’t involve them lol