calliecritturs
Posted : 4/15/2011 11:30:26 AM
Absolutely what Jackie and everyone else said. However, to encourage you to GET those books let me give you a few home truths -- not meant to be snarky at all, but honestly you can screw up with a puppy and reap the consequences for a *very* long time!
1. It's probably not separation anxiety yet but handling this wrong could certainly birth it.
2. This is a small puppy - this dog needs to go out **during** the night -- you need to have the dog in your bedroom, to be perfectly honest so you can get up and take it out -- it's all steps in Housetraining 101 and how to get the dog trained so next year is easier!
3. All chemicals are potential hazards -- and I'm ever so serious. Literally, pesticides can cause more than poisoning -- they can cause life-threatening diseases like IMHA (and trust me, you really don't *want* to have to know what that is!! But it's bad!). So you don't even let the dog on grass where pesticides have been used like that until a certain amount of time has passed and you may want to change what you use.
4. Panic thou not. Taking the dog to the emergency vet in the middle of the night? If you got your regular vet you are **fortunate** to have one who will meet you there!
I'd wager probably 99% of us have had to pay big money for "emergency vets" (like $150 to walk in the door before any treatment??). But you learn quick with a dog that pre-planning and being proactive is sooooo much easier. A lot of that comes with experience (and it sounds like you don't have a lot -- that's not a judgment, that's simply trying to encourage you).
They are babies. They have no judgment at all at that age. He's trying to learn it all, trying to learn to please you, and he's already been taken away from mom, siblings, and bumped from one place to another and suddenly he winds up all alone, he's gotta potty and he *knows* someone is gonna be unhappy if he does! Probably him!. Besides -- he's just a baby and he's scared and alone -- so he has a hissy fit until someone comes, but like a child who cries themselves sick -- so did he.
But he also could have been licking his feet and ingested that junk from the lawn.
Vets only know what you tell them, and often they will jump to the most easily discernable answer. But they tend to simply be reacting to what they see -- they aren't looking "deep" but rather for whatever explains this the most easily.
The folks on here tend to be really helpful -- but the suggestions made here for you to do more training and read some books -- they are actually the wisest advice you could get. When humans get up set it's easy to make snap judgments (like "I gotta get a good night's sleep -- put the dog in the laundry room where he can't chew the dresser!";) but those can have bigger results than you planned on.
Investigate things like crate training -- a 12 week puppy probably needs to be in a crate in your room during the night. Maybe a little cuddle time until lights out but then pop him in the crate next to the bed, toss him a couple of treats and everybody say "Good Night John Boy .... Good Night Mary Ellen, Good Night Pup ..." and you can manage things from there. It **does** take management tho -- it's not easy particularly with a small pup and inexperienced owners.
But we'll back you up and give you the benefit of our collective experience.
And btw -- yeah, there IS such a thing as doggy Xanax, but it's nothing you **want** to have to need -- so you train the pup now so you avoid the 2 year old dog who *is* an emotional wreck later. Right now he's just a baby who is scared to death to be alone. Dogs are pack animals. They need you.