Am I on the right track or creating a bad dog?

Hi, lately I have so much doubts about the progress with my puppy. And if it sometimes is just puppy behaviour or behaviour I need to stop. Could some people maybe clear that up? It’s an 11 week old whippet puppy

What I have issues with: The biting. Most of the time it just puppy biting and I accept that puppies bite. But sometimes he is really charging your hands and it hurts so bad. I am trying to learn him ‘no’, meaning to stop the current behaviour. I also end the play with a ‘done’ and stand up so he can’t reach me anymore. But it does not seems to stick.

Car drives. He is okay with the car with being in there and when the motor starts. Just when you start to drive he start crying so bad. It looks like he is not nauseous, just oncomfortable. I tried to put him in his own bed on the ground, in the back etc. But he just wants to crawl against me and cry.

Leash behaviour. I am trying to build his confidence so i just let him sniff, walk and explore where he wants. He is quite an insecure dog. I don’t let him go up to other dogs or people. But he is not walking next to me, just everywhere around me, sometimes pulling when he knows where we are going. I don’t mind (yet), but should I already start to learn him that for the future? Or am I just creating bad behaviour by letting him do his own thing?

Chasing the cats. I really try to not let him chase my cats. Mostly by recalling him just before he starts to fixate. And when he’s too far and in the fixation, i stand in front of the cats, say ‘no’ and wait until he stops the behaviour and starts doing something else. But it does not seem to get better. (He does not hurt them, he wants to play but the cats do not).

The ‘no’ command. I really try to learn him ‘no’. But as I said it does not seem to stick. It seems he does know that it means. But when I say it he just starts to do everything that earns him a no (chasing cats, eating plants etc). I wonder if this gets better or how I make this stick in his little head.

Not able to settle. He’s not able to settle in new environments. Sometimes I feel like i socialise him to much. For example: i went to the beach, he just got to hyped up, he keeps crying and I just go home because i feel like its too much for him Am I going to fast? Do i have to stay there until he settles? Am I just creating bad experiences now? I dont know. Because he already gets too ‘hyped up’ when we reach the end of the street. But I also want to go to places so he gets used to it.

It all makes me wonder if im doing the right thing, is this normal puppy set back, am i doing things wrong etc.

And you know, So many things go amazing. He sleeps in his crate with ease after an hour of activity. I can leave the house for 2 hours without problems. He sleeps in the night from 10pm to 8am. He’s basically fully potty trained. He knows commands like sit, place, turn, between (standing between my legs), touch. He’s a big cuddler when he’s not in shark mode. I feel like we are building a good bond and I already love this little fellow so much. There are moments I want to gift him to the next person that says he’s cute lol.

Basically: im wondering if this is normal for a pup of 11 weeks or if you are reading behaviour I should fix.

submitted by /u/SapienceNL
[link] [comments]

Source

View Best Offer