Puppy help

[Driver24]

My puppy which I have had now for a few days will do nothing but whine when left alone. She has an outdoor kennel and run and anytime she is in this and we are not around she will be whining and crying and yapping.

Last night we brought her in and she slept in a Guinea pig run in my bedroom.

I tried stepping up the time we are gone yesterday but at around 15 mins she will behind whining and barking and today it is no time at all.

I had read about leaving her then going back and spacing the times out. But what do you do if when you are going to go back she is whining?

Still go back and not give her any attention until she is calm? Or stay away until she is quiet which may take a good while?

Thanks in advance

First puppy I have had my other dog I got at a few years old and things were a lot easier!!

 

[JoanneF]

The best way to AVOID separation anxiety developing is to not put them in the position to be anxious in the first place when they are young and impressionable. Unfortunately many people make the mistake of allowing a puppy to cry in the hope that they grow out of it, when actually all they have done is cement in the puppies mind that being left alone is indeed a terribly anxious thing, and for many dogs this fear becomes a learned habit.

I think having her in your room is fine. Remember she has just been separated from her mum and littermates and that is traumatic. Being separated from you too is tough for her.

Gypsysmum is good with advice on this. But I think if you have found that around 15 minutes is a trigger point, try going back to her at around 12, before she gets distressed. And slowly build up from there.

 

[Driver24]

Trying to not put her in the position of being alone and crying is exactly what I'm trying to avoid. However when me and the wife are wanting to cook and eat it's tricky to keep going out. After a bit of work this morning she's got up to 20 minutes. How well do they normally progress from this or is it a very long and slow or do they get to a point they can jump? Do you just keep going for it all day and what if you need to go out or even leave them for a few hours because of work?

 

[gypsysmum2]

It helps enormously if breeders put a bit if time and effort in and separate puppies for short periods when they are still with them.

You are doing the right things by popping back and showing yourself to your puppy when she is quiet. The idea is that they learn to wait quietly until you return. This behaviour becomes successful for them and so they repeat it. Crying should not be successful in bringing you back. You always have to set them up for success. This means gauging what your puppy can cope with and working with that. If they can only cope with a few minutes then work with that.

A quiet puppy is let out and played with while a noisy one is ignored until there is a short break in the noise when you quickly let them out.

In between all this training you have to be alert to the fact that they puppy may need to be let out to toilet etc. This is where being tuned in to your individual puppy comes in.

We live in the real world and we do have to go out and leave them sometimes. The best way is to arrange it so that the puppy is fed, watered, toileted, warm and tired. Be as quick as you can so that you can return to a quiet puppy and you will soon have cracked it.

During your everyday interaction with your puppy try to organise your attention so that you instigate any attention the puppy gets. Ignore any needy behaviour and look out for independent behaviour in order to reinforce it with attention. Try not to ignore a puppy that is playing independently with toys. This is the behaviour that you want the puppy to repeat. Any attention seeking should be ignored. This goes for things like stealing and jumping up etc. Wait for the good behaviour and then give attention. All this builds independence and confidence.

Don't forget to socialise, socialise, socialise The best place to do this is at an APDT Puppy Class. They will help with all the issues that crop up and you will interact with all the other puppy owners who are going through the same things as you.

 

[Driver24]

Thanks for the reply!

We had to go out to buy a crate and a few other bits and left with her not whining and came back an hour and 20 later to find her not whining.

We went into the kennel and once settled gave her some fuss

We have just come in from giving her some fuss after her being on her own for an hour and half.

If at some point we leave her and she whines should we stand by the gate to let her out but not let her out until she stops whining or just leave her to finish that whine or stand where she can't see us and then let her out once the whine has finished?

Once again many thanks! We have finally got some peace!!

 

[Raven oaktree]

How old is the pup , and is she always out doors in a kennel alone?

 

[gypsysmum2]

I would just wait outside until the whining stops. Do not talk or interact with her, just wait her out. Quiet dog gets attention, noisy one doesn't.

Are you going to crate train her so that she can spend more time indoors? If so, do make sure that the crate is treated like a fantastic new toy and that it is never used for punishment. She should love going in her crate and it should be looked on as a safe haven for her.

 

[Driver24]

The pup is 8 weeks so still young.

The idea is to have her in her kennel although we have been told we need to keep her inside for at least 2-3 weeks before getting her in the kennel.

My concern with this is will she end up being an inside dog then or will the transition to kennel from inside be an easy one?

We have also been advised to buy a puppy play pen for inside the house to go with her crate.

She's happy enough in her crate to sleep but won't always play in there, put the blanket down over and she will whine a bit then sleep. Is this right or is it better to try and tire them out for their sleep at night?

Me and my other half are finding it tough with her, although I've had a failed sheep dog from a farmer she was a lot easier(and a few years older) and my wife has had a puppy but he was also a lot easier. There has been some tears already as she seems to whine a lot and howl which after a short while really does get to you while your waiting for the pause to go back or even to just let her out after we have nipped out. Or even for me and my wife to get a little peace!

Thanks again for the advice, we do appreciate it. Maybe we are so paranoid to try and do everything right to get a good happy puppy we are worrying too much? We are also paranoid to spend too much time with her incase this gives her the impression we will always be there, which we won't and she will need to be able to play and occupy herself.

Cheers

 

[Raven oaktree]

Personally a baby this young i don't think you can spend too much time with them , especially considering she is alone , away from mum and siblings ..but thats just me . I'm sure other people will think differently

 

[theanchorage]

Firstly please don't worry and spoil the pleasure of having a new puppy, but she is only little and this is what puppies do, if you wanted to avoid this stage then you could have had an older dog but you chose to have a baby. All the previous advice is excellent and it really is a matter of patience and time before you suddenly think "oh, she hasn't cried for a week" it will happen, it's a bit like a new human baby sleeping through the night you think they never will and then bingo! Personally I don't believe that spending time with their humans makes dogs clingy, I think it makes them part of the family and especially with some independent breeds the way to teach stay with me is to have them with you when they are young. Keep us posted.

 

[Driver24]

Thanks for all the advice.

She has now settled more and has spent the day outside in her kennel and run, she will when as we leave but it normally stops not long after we are out the gate.

We have seen her be out playing on her own and just lieing about on her own not whining or crying. She is still sleeping besides us but the plan will be to soon have her out overnight.

We have also had a dog trainer come to give us some advice on ways to train her, she is very very clever and a quick learner. She's learn sit, paw, lie down and a few other things to do with manners and we are just trying to keep he going!

First puppy and where some may have thought it was normal I was no good with the whining, it was shooting straight through me!

Just got to get her to settle better now in the back of the pick up and used to traveling. Is there any good way to get them used to this or is it just something they get use to over time? My older collie is perfect at this and even on long drives(5 or more hours) will just sleep in the back till we get where we are going.