Any news from Solo2? Not been on here for a bit and wondered how she is after her holiday?

[2T2T]

That' s all

[Happymm]

She's fine. Sounds like had a fab holiday, and Rolo was perfect puppy for dog carer :o Even slept-ALL night!

[2T2T]

awwww so pleased. I hope he is keeping up the good work then!

[Solo2]

I've waited a few days to post again until I'm sure of what's happened - but it looks like it's true! Rollo has returned from the trainer a reformed character! He looks and acts like a dog, as opposed to a difficult pup! Obviously, he hasn't really changed much in appearance but he just comes across as the golden retriever we always wanted, rather than the nightmare we seemed to get!

Aside from the slight exaggeration, he really is a different dog. He mooches about on his own, without doing destructive chewing/ jumping up all the time anymore. He hasn't nipped anyone once. He can walk virtually normally on a lead attached to his normal collar!

He has these brilliant, hard, solid poos! I LOVE his poos! No diarrhoea! He's solely on the vet prescribed diet for now (Royal Canin Whitefish and Tapioca). He loves it so much that I can use it as treats too.

I think several things have helped: he's a had a break froma hyper-stressed me! He's been with 3 other dogs. He's had free run of a whole single level flat and yard. He's been looked after by someone who's confident and sure about being with dogs and trains them for a living.

Her feedback is that he doesn't need training. He needs freedom - to mooch and be a dog. I put off his return in order to erect a temporary fence in our garden. Took me 2 days to do this but it's finally up and although it looks awful, it's really worth it. He can now wander into the garden from the kitchen when he wants to. I don't have to put his harness and lead on every time I take him into the garden and yank him away from fallen fruit or the pond or plants. He has a large patio and part of a lawn to play and run at will and the only irritating thing he's doing is digging holes and as long as eating earth and moss doens't give him diarrhoea, then i don't really mind for now.

We've let him have supervised access to the family room - the room off the kitchen and he's laid down at the feet of my twins whilst they're on their PCs and they've interacted a bit more with him. We've let him go into the sitting room- although this is more problematic, as the cats are there and we have to watch them together all the time - so far though, all they do is sniff and lick each others noses or bums!

Generally, he's miles better. He woke me the first night back at 10.30pm and 11pm but when I let him out he didn't need to toilet at all. The trainer had told me he happily went through from 9pm till 8am without really needing a wee or poo and that he's fully toilet trained. Last night, he didn't wee from about 8pm till 5.45am. I let him out from 9pm till 9.30pm and he still didn't need to go and I actually woke him this morning (I need to get up early myself so 5.45am is a reasonable time for me).

He's just being a regular dog now rather than an unpredictable puppy. He's also nearly 6 months old now, whihc must have something to do with it and obviously as he's not unwell, he must be feeling better in himself too.

Anyone else struggling with a puppy, I'd obviously recommend getting help from a trainer or dog sitter who can simply break bad habits by modelling a different way of being. She didn't actively try to do anything really - just kind of assumed he'd fit in with her lifestyle and dogs and he did. She said he was the easiest puppy she's ever had and she'd previosuly thought on of her own dogs had been the perfect pup.

Anyway, we're only on day 3 so I hope this lasts! But it's really helped to have a mutual break from each other and he seems to have settled back with us even better than before, isn't pining for her and is SO much easier

[bumpybecky]

that's brilliant news :) you all sound so much happier :)

[chickchickchicken]

so happy for you all

having a reliable back up person for your dog to go to in an emergency as well as for hols is essential especially when you are on your own with young dcs. if possible i would advise you let rollo go for a sleepover to the trainer's house once a month or so. mine has been going to the same person for 5yrs

glad the garden is safe for him now. plenty of time in the future to have a lovely garden. it must be so lovely for you all and for rollo to have more freedom to roam.

[exexpat]

Really glad to hear it all worked out so well. Did you and the DCs have a good holiday too?

[Happymm]

That's such fab news. Our lab pup is a bloody nightmare with the jumping and biting scenario. She's going back to the breeders in 10days whilst we have a pre-planned holiday. I really can't wait to wave her off TBH. If she's like she is now on our return I'll not want her to come back as she is providing stress I really don't need or want. I don't enjoy her at all. She's just really hard work. Has just jumped up at my littlest and scratched all down his face
breeders are into training big style, and obviously also have her mum, brother and another lab there, so will be interested to see how she comes back! Just hope we have the lovely success story you have Solo,x

[2T2T]

oh no happymm - that sounds like a nightmare. the horrid thing is she doesn't even know she is causing you such a lot of stress. It must be horribly stressful. I see so many people wandering around, dog on lead, chatting and having a relaxing day and it all looks so easy!!! I tentatively lean towards getting a puppy from time to time but then I take alook on here and it puts me off!! No, I am firmly fixed on a rescue dog -they do sound like bloody hard work and not much fun. You can probaby see how so many of them end up in rescue! I do hope things improve for you Happy . You are so far into it now, don't give up

[ditavonteesed]

happymm , what do you do about the jumping? sounds like a nightmare, my little terrier jumps up, I have managed to train her not to jump at me or my family or people in our house but when we are out she still jumps at everyone and they just go oh I dont mind and fuss her. for her ignoring has never really worked, just slightly delayed the reaction, what I do is step into her, so the minute her paws leave the floor I step forwards, knocks her off balance which she doesnt like. Hoping now nobody is going to come and tell me how cruel that is, and obviously I mean mean so I block her jumping path not so I boot her one.
The best thing about puppies is every stage is so short and maybe the change of scene will help.
Solo hope things are still going well, is so nice to hear things turned around.

[DogsBestFriend]

Solo, I'm grinning like a loon here for you all, what a great update.

Not trying to be cocky, but I (like a few others) just KNEW that the break with another doggy person and their pooches would work. We could read panic, stress and inability to see the wood for the trees in your posts but we could see the solutions too (far easier when you're not in the middle of it, I know!). I'm SO delighted that we weren't mistaken. :)

happymm, jumping and nipping (she isn't biting, as you know ) comes with the territory I'm afraid, it's what pups do and you buy into that when you buy or adopt a puppy. Yes, small children get scratched when this happens, but it won't kill them and the behaviour does pass, honest. IME your biggest weapon against puppy behaviour is consistency, demand that from yourself, DH, children and visitors and you're 75% of the way there.

What are you doing to help the undesirable behaviour on its way? Are you withdrawing interaction as soon as it occurs? Turning your back, arms crosses, when she jumps up and are you absolutely insisting that all the family and all visitors do the same? I can't say it enough, consistency is key, you really must have everyone on board. Are you withdrawing interaction when she nips and all making a sharp squealing OW noise (as another pup would to indicate that rough play had gone too far)?

Times like these, as much as I deplore dog breeding, I almost wish I was one so I could take these pups back for a couple of weeks and take pleasure in teaching them these things! :o