A Hi and Some ??'s

puppies do sleep in many cat naps thruout the day...but honestly compounded with his eating habits and likely small size AND young age...I'd really be watching his blood sugar. Hours of uninterruped sleep in a pup isn't normal in my book. They should be at least curious about their surroundings or you and kinda follow you around and get up to stuff with as I said...naps mixed in.

If he is skipping entire days of eating and is small I'd really suggest you get him to eat several small meals thruout the day...and add some nutri cal or similar to his diet. Puppies that are small need to fuel up at least 3x a day IMO.

What's the water intake like? What's his reaction when you try to engage him in a game that is active during the day?

ETA: Has this dog been vetted and what vaccines or parasite control is he on?

Crating him at night is a great idea, and is highly recommended. It's not a cage, it's a den for them and should never be used as punishment. That said, taking him out because he's crying is NOT recommended! Give him two or three nights where you just leave him in there no matter how much he carries on and he'll be fine.

As for the food, he also needs to get used to the schedule you want him to be on. Only offer him food when you want him to eat and pick it up after, oh about a half hour? And offer it to him again at lunch time/dinner time. He'll probably catch on REALLY quickly if you do this. Consistency is key, and don't spoil him like that if you want a well-behaved dog later in life. Having some sort of boundary is really important for the puppy's development.

Welcome Hannah and Deisel!  Sounds to me like you are off to a pretty good start being a Puppy Mommy.   I am not near as experienced as most of the folks on this forum.   I will let them advise you.   This is a great place to get pet knowledge.  I just wanted to say Hi and welcome, oh and you will find that we all love pictures of puppies!

He's not having hours of uninterruped sleep. Even when he's napping throughout the day he's very alert. He'll move his head around and look if someone opens a door or if someone talks loud or something. He's def just napping, not deep sleep. I just worry about him not sleeping at night.

My friend boy said he ate his lunch today and he also ate yesterday so maybe he was just getting used to things. We've only been feeding him at lunch and at dinner, but we leave the bowl out with his food in it all day so he can go back to it. Maybe that is the problem? We'll try to keep an exact schedule. If he does something good or if he goes to the bathroom outside we'll try to give him a little treat. We got some bone marrow bone things? at Petsmart and some just small treat bones. He likes both of them and even when he's not eating his regular food he'll ALWAYS eat the treat.

As for the water intake - He drinks a lot of water. Well, a good bit. Even if he hasn't eaten much that day he'll always drink his water. His roommate has a dog too and sometimes I'll catch him drinking her water too! So what's this mean?

He's very active especially when we're playing outside. He's just learning how to jump so he jumps over everything and will run around and play. He's even gotten more comfortable in the house and will wonder around by himself now. For a long time he just stayed at someones feet. He'll just need a nap once we get back inside.

I forgot to mention the bathroom situation earlier. It's hard to tell if he goes to the bathroom (#1) outside because he's so small and black he blends right in sometimes. So unless we're just WATCHING him sometimes I think we don't know. He still goes on the floor sometimes but never on the couch or on someone so that's been a help. I think that means he knows when he has to use the bathroom, he just doesn't know he needs to do it only outside.

Some suggestions for a new puppy from me are to buy a few things. Heres a list of thingas I can think of.

-Canine First Aid kit(Its good to be prepared for emergencies)

-Chew toys(TO help when your pup is teething)

-Grooming Brushes, Shampoos, Conditioners, ect. (You puppy is going to be long-haired so your going to need to groom him at home to keep his hair froim being tangled.)

-Crate((If you dont already have one)This helps so much with potty training!)

-Some training books. (Can be borrowed from a library or bought at a store)

-Collar and Leash (Your dog should always be on leash for walks untill he is trained to always come back to you when you call)

Practice putting him in his crate during the day for naps so he can get used to it. Ignore him when he cries, if you let him out everytime he whimpers then he will leanr that he doenst have to sleep in a crate and can get you to let him out anytime he wants.

I'll try to address some of the specifics for you.

Part of this is your inexperience - so let me explain a couple of things.

Puppies are like babies.  There is NOTHING in the rules (as in been in mom's belly for a couple of months and I've been with all my siblings for a while with mom) that has ever told this pup to sleep at night NOT during the day!

It takes them a LONG time before they sleep completely thru the night.  He'll have to potty every few hours for a long time so someone needs to get up with him.  You take him out (ON leash -- don't just let him wander - you need to be in control of him so he doesn't get in the habit of going outside just to PLAY at night), walk him in a circle for a few minutes and go back inside.  No playing, just 'business'. 

Then you go right back in the house to your bed, go to sleep. 

That's the theory.  You don't let him whine and let him out.  nope -- let him out when he whines and you reinforce the whining. 

I like their crate up on the level with the bed when they are tiny -- he'll be happier if he can 'see' you and smell you and YOU can stick your fingers in and say 'shhhhh' and keep him happier than he will be alone.

GRADUALLY you get him to sleep longer ... when he gets up and rattles around you say "shhhh" and try to get him to settle in again ... but if he won't you get up and take him out, bring him in, put him back in the crate and roll over.  he whines?  "shhhhhh"  whines some more?  "SHHHhhhh" but you don't let him out. 

I like a wire crate -- then if he becomes a royal p.i.t.a. I can COVER the crate.  (denial of your presence is a subtle but clear clue to him you aren't happy)

 Most of the time a puppy has four gears

wake up?  PEE ... POOP (err? outside first??? REALLY????? wow!! whatta concept!)

inside ...

EAT .... YUM ...

PEE .... POOP .... (you learn to let him out **immediately** after eating and drinking)

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY PLAY

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

(that's four -- pee/poop, eat/drink, play, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz)

In about 45 minute cycles they play and zzzzzzzzz with a little pee/poop and eat/drink thrown in to vary it!!

Generally they sleep little more than half an hour to 45 minutes at first.  Then they PLAY HARD often ... playing brainlessly until they crash.  zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Add food .... then they might sleep and then PLAY *****REALLY HARD*****.  But you need to get them *outside* right after the food part so they can elminate and then PLAY.

They'll need to pee/poop after they wake up, after they eat, and ... after they play ... if for some reason they don't finish the pee/poop part because they get distracted  **by** play ... well, then you can always stop one of the above to pee or poop!! (that's in the puppy rule book -- trust me -- it's at the top of every page!! LOL)

My serious point is -- you need to take him to potty EVERY time after he eats, EVERY time after he wakes up and EVERY time after he breaks from playing.  Or as near to that as you can. 

Pups truly need to not make any decisions on their own -- if they decide when to eat ... they're gonna decide when they want to poop and you don't want that.  They also are not always good judges of when they should eat and shouldn't. 

If you free feed (which is what you're doing by leaving the bowl down) you miss out on a lot of valuable bonding time AND valuable information about your dog.  If you never know exactly how much the dog eats (and if you have two dogs you won't know who is eating whose food -- and a pup needs  specific nutrition and the older dog does *not* need puppy food). 

The pup needs to eat at certain intervals to keep up his blood sugar -- and he shouldn't be gorging at the wrong times.  Give him too much food he will sleep too long and then be too hungry at other times.  He may associate the discomfort of eating too much and then be reluctant to eat at other times.  So even it out for him and TELL *him* how much he's allowed to eat by simply giving him the portion.

That actually may elminate the on/off appetite. 

Many dogs don't have a good internal sensor to tell them when to stop eating -- and particularly not puppies.

Now -- the other thing I'm not hearing you say is that he plays and frankly, I would be UBER concerned about a pup that isn't zooming periodically and playing hard.  Pups generally aren't happy just being held all the time -- they should*NOT* be actually -- they should be playing and zooming and just ... well, doing SOMEthing ... even if it's ... er ... wrong. 

Now ... after they have played, chewed on a toy or whatever they are doing that is 'play' then they will zonk asleep.  But it's like that four gears -- wake up -- poop/pee, play, eat/drink, poop/pee, maybe play and then zzzzzz, then repeat from the beginning all day. 

Does he drink EVERY time he pees?  Is his pee almost odorless and colorless?  That should concern you -- a pup drinking to excess could be a sick pup.

If this pup is truly lethargic -- if he isn't balancing having the zoomies with sleeping, then VET ... now. 

Play HARD with him in the late evening and walk him with lots short walks late in the evening (don't make a puppy walk for long long miles long walks -- they aren't strong enough yet) but that will help him sleep.

But it takes a good long while (and several months usually) for him to truly learn to sleep thru the night.  And even then, honestly, it's not that they stay awake during the day - they just get stronger.  But the periods of napping lessen (and they get stronger and should play longer and longer and HARDER even as they mature). 

But developing a nighttime sleep habit is just that -- HABIT.  They learn to adapt to our sleep schedule -- it's not that it's really all that natural -- it's just what they do to live with us. 

 You've gotten great advice here so far.  I'll add a bit.  These are my best tips that haven't already been stated.

• When you go out to potty, don't rush back in after he's gone.  Spend some time playing or the pup will begin to understand that you take him in when he's done, and if he likes to be outside, he'll just prolong pottying in order to stay out longer.  THIS SUCKS WHEN ITS RAINING!!!
• Measure your dogs food and keep track of what he's eating and when.  This is a great help with all sorts of things, beginning with health.  If he suddenly cuts way back or develops a crazy appetite, you'll know when and how much.  It could be vital info for a vet.
• Since your dog is a mixed breed, I assume the breeder is not a professional, so make sure on your own that the food you are feeding is the best food available.  Take a look through our Nutrition section for some ideas.  Many breeders get deals on foods that sound good like Iams or Pedigree or whatever and really push them, but those simply aren't good foods.
• As for the whining in the crate, if you must take him out, wait for a break in the whining and then take him out.  NEVER take him out mid whine.  

Thanks so much for all ya'lls help. I know most of this seems like it should be common sense (and I've already known some of these things) but with this being my first puppy I do want to do everything right.

Ok, I know someone asked about playing. He will play! The first few days I had him he didn't play much even when we went outside he would just walk right beside my feet, but I think he was just adjusting. He plays a ton now. When we go outside he'll run all around and he LOVES to play chase. It gets me tired! Ha. But I think he's playing normally now. It's a good bit. I think I said yesterday he was learning how to jump so that's one of his biggest things right now. He just jumps all around the house and outside. I have gotten him several toys though and he seems to get very bored with them easily. I can't find one he likes! I ordered him some stuff from dog.com earlier this week though so maybe we can find something in that he'll like. I did buy him a teething bone which he LOVES. He's def teething, poor thing.

Ok so as for the leash - that's something ya'll have all been saying. I have only put him on a leash once when we we went to the park for a walk. When we go outside to potty or play I have not been. He's so small and he can't run very fast so I can catch him before he gets far. Our backyard is fenced anyway. And he's really good about coming when called. He's not quite sure of his name yet but if you snap he usually comes right to you. Do ya'll still recommend a leash?

I tried to do the eating on schedule yesterday and it worked better, I think. He didn't quite finish all the portion I gave him, but almost. So that was complete meals he finished and he ate yesterday! So good. As for the water - I don't think he drinks EXCESSIVE? But, he does drink a good bit. He usually does not go to the bathroom right after that. I think I've figured out he plays in it just as much as he drinks it. He is ALWAYS stepping in his small water bowl and then last night he decided to take a swim in the big dowls water bowl. He can fit in right perfectly so he just dove in. Water went EVERYWHERE and he was soaked. I wanted to be mad but it was just too cute.

His pee is yellow and is not odorless. Ha. It smells like pee!

He went poop twice last night and BOTH times on the floor. We had taken him out several times to try to get him to go so he got in trouble. When he does that, we usually put him at it and say no and make him look at it. We'll give him a little spanking and then take the poop outside and show him where it goes. I just don't think he's gotten the concept yet! We say "go potty!!" when outside and just overcongratulate him when he does and give him a treat. I don't know what else to do. I guess it will just take time.

After putting him in his crate around 11 we usually get up somewhere around 2 and take him out for potty then again around 5 for potty then were up between 8 and 9 and he goes out again then we're up for the day. Is it good to be on a schedule like that or do we need to only let him out for a potty break when he's whining to go?

Hannah D

He went poop twice last night and BOTH times on the floor. We had taken him out several times to try to get him to go so he got in trouble. When he does that, we usually put him at it and say no and make him look at it. We'll give him a little spanking and then take the poop outside and show him where it goes. I just don't think he's gotten the concept yet! We say "go potty!!" when outside and just overcongratulate him when he does and give him a treat. I don't know what else to do. I guess it will just take time.

As others have said, taking him out on leash to potty is a good idea, because you can limit play and help him to focus on the task at hand...going potty.  Like Huskymom said, it totally sucks if it's pouring rain outside and you have to stand there getting soaked while your pup zooms around the yard, lol.

Having a "potty" command is also good.  Begin this by saying the word AS he is going, so he associates the word with the action.  After a while, he will get this association, and you can say "go potty" beforehand.  IMMEDIATELY after he pees or poops, give him a treat and lots and lots of praise.  It won't take long for him to think, "WOW!!  Really awesome things happen when I do this!!"  Carry treats in your pockets so you can always have them handy, since you will be taking him out A LOT.  You have a 3-second window to reward a behavior.  After that, the dog will not associate the treat with the action...his little mind will already have moved on to something else.

DO NOT punish your dog for having an accident in the house.  Remember...he does not understand that this is not appropriate behavior.  Housebreaking a dog is like potty training a kid.  You don't punish a kid for soiling his diaper, neither should you punish a dog for pottying indoors.  It will take time and persistance to get the little guy to understand, but if you are consistent, then you will have success.  Punishing a dog for accidents in the house will likely make him afraid of you...he'll begin to "hide" from you to do his business.  He does not associate the action with the punishment if it is after the fact (remember your 3-second window), and he'll start to think of people as scary.  If he goes in the house and you don't see it until after he is done, all you can do is clean it up, using an enzyme cleaner, such as Nature's Miracle or Simple Solution (available at any pet store) to completely remove the odors, and learn the lesson that you should have been paying more attention.  The best piece of advice I ever got on housetraining was to have this mindset: A dog pees/poops in the house...it's not his fault.  It's MY fault.  If you are able to catch him about to or in the act of doing either, quietly and calmly scoop him up and take him outside and let him finish out there...then of course, treat and lots of praise.  Make it a HUGE deal if he goes potty outside...as if it's the best thing in the world.  If you have to leash him to you while inside so that he is always in your sight, then do that.  I did it with my dog!!  Follow the advice Callie gave about timing your potty trips outside.  Potty trips should follow after each of these - waking up, eating/drinking, and play.  I call it "pre-emptive strikes," lol.  The more often you take him out and he does his business outside, the less accidents he will have indoors, and the faster he'll pick up on the idea of only "going" outside.

Good luck, and don't forget, we need puppy pictures!!

very important: socialize. Look for a puppy play group or class near you and go NOW. Take the puppy all over the place- he needs to be exposed to the world NOW. The socialization window closes around 16 weeks of age, and if he hasn't had good interactions with many dogs and people you are likely to have life-long behavioral problems.

oh, and stop what you doing right now about the punishments for potty in wrong place. No spanking of puppies, ever, for any reason, particularly for potty accidents. All that teaches the puppy is that it's dangerous to potty when people are present. Which creates a dog that won't potty outside on a leash (because you are present), and a dog that will sneak off and potty in odd parts of the house where you aren't present. If the puppy has an accident in the house, it's 100% YOUR FAULT. Puppies need to be taken out often. Get a timer, set it for two hours. Every two hours march the puppy out to the potty place, and wait. If puppy potties, you throw a party and play with puppy or take puppy for a short walk. In the house the puppy is either in his crate or is being directly monitored by you. That means 100% attention on the puppy at all times to prevent the puppy from developing any bad habits like eating furniture or peeing on the rug. If the pup starts to potty in the house, just briskly scoop up puppy and go outside. It takes weeks of intense diligence to housebreak a puppy. Every accident you let the puppy have inside (remember it's YOUR fault) delays the process.

Hi Hannah, welcome to the board and congratulations on your puppy!  What great advice you've been given here.  Read this over and over again as needed.  Such words of wisdom has been shared with you.  I commend you wholeheartedly for coming here to ask questions and receive advice.  You might also want to get some books to read on raising a puppy.

Ask away, anytime.  We need pictures too!

Oh goodness!! I'm glad ya'll caught me in time about the punishments. It only happened once because we thought it would help so I'm glad I mentioned it. My spanking was probably like a love tap anyway. Ha.

Thanks so much for ya'lls help and advice!! I'm sure I'll be here lots for answers to questions I may have. I appreciate all ya'lls answers so much.

I've generally been posting from my work computer so I haven't been on my personal computer much so once I get to it I'll be sure to post ya'll some pics!!

Welcome, Hannah!  Your new puppy sounds so cute!

First a warning - Xylitol.  That is a newish sweetner in sugar-free products - cookies, candy, gum, toothpaste, mouth wash, etc.  Xylitol is deadly to dogs!!  It radically drops their blood sugar and damages their liver.

If you even suspect that your dog has gotten some Xylitol, get to the vet fast.  Otherwise, it could be too late.  One breath mint with Xylitol can kill a small dog.  Big dogs can consume a small amount of Xylitol with collapsing, but there is still the problem of possible liver damage.

You need a doggie first aid kit (link).  Figure out the needed dosages for your dog (current weight and projected weights).  Tape those numbers to the bottles.  Practice giving your dog fluids (use water) with a baby syringe so you know how to do it. 

Emergencies are not the time to be figuring things out!!  Insect bites to the face can swell the breathing passages.  Dogs will eat things that you need to get out of their stomaches (plastic, coffee grounds, corn cobs, chocolate, cocoa mulch, etc, etc).  They will also eat sharp objects like fishhooks or destroyed X-mas ornaments.  For those you need the flavored cotton balls and vet monitoring.

Now to happier topics.  Your pup will sleep best in a crate in the bedroom on eye level with you.  Being alone is very scary to a new pup.  A towel with the scent of the mother and littermates would have helped.

Traditionally people have used a hot water bottle (wrapped in a towel) and a ticking clock to simulate the mother.  Now we have things like the Snuggle Safe Microwave Heatpad (link) and the SnugglePuppie (link).  The latter has a heartbeat sound, but the heatpacks get expensive and using microwaved rice doesn't last all night.  (The site for the Snuggle Safe also has the SnugglePuppie, but only one version.)

Even with a happy puppy you still won't get to sleep all night.  Take the pup's age in months (3) and add one.  That means the pup will probably need to pee about every 4 hours (some go longer at night).  For housetraining purposes, when the pup wakes up at night and whimpers, you should take him outside on leash.  No playing - just pee and back to bed.  To produce the whimper, the pup should only have enough room to lie down and turn around - otherwise you are teaching the pup to pee in her crate.

As others have said, punishing a dog for soiling has only negative consequences.  You need to learn the dog's schedule and make sure he is outside at the right times.  The less a pup soils in the "wrong" places the faster your housetraining will go, so the pup's feet should not touch the "wrong" places except for the first 30 minutes after eliminating outside.

Dogs don't generalize well so don't pee in the kitchen doesn't necessarily mean don't pee in the livingroom or even don't pee in someone else's kitchen.  Slowly increase the area of the house that the pup is allowed in and feed the pup in the new area.  Dogs don't like to soil in their eating area.  More housetraining ideas (link).

You need to socialize as much as you can very quickly.  However, keep the pup away from dogs that you are not positive are healthy and keep the pup off of unfamiliar dirt and grass areas until you finish the puppy shots.  Parvo can live for a long time in such areas.

See this post for socializing ideas.  Teaching your pup now what is "normal" will avoid fear problems later.  You don't want a dog that barks at beards or turbans or crutches.  You don't want a dog that won't step on a grate or that freaks out when you turn a vacuum cleaner on. 

Have fun with your new puppy!  We really do need a picture. 

I had such a good weekend with my puppy. Ya'lls tips and extra reading material has helped so much!

Check out this picture I took while we were playing outside. It turned out great!