Australian Shepherd Mom! - Paige

[MaryK]

Boy am I exhausted this morning! Crate training is no fun. Woke up at 1am, took her out to poddy came back in at 2, then back out again at 6am and in again at 7 (she gets play time after she goes). I am up for the day and enjoying my coffee while enjoying the satisfaction of having tired her out. She's a sleeping fur ball all cuddled up with her stuffed bear and I'm slightly jealous. I need a nap too. Overall lesson, I am crazy for doing this. At one point throughout the night, i woke up after a dream that I should've mixed water in with her food. Then after I had taken her out and put her back in, I got worried because she went quiet in her crate so fast! I thought she might've choked on her blanket so I get up to go peek at her, she's just laying there, flopping around, getting comfortable. Fellow puppy Mom's, I am a bundle of nerves and so worried about messing this up! Please lend some sound advice! I love her, I want her raised to be a balanced dog which will not happen if I can't stop worrying about every move I make! Yikes. View attachment 2791View attachment 2792

First Paige is absolutely ADORABLE LOVE HER She's got very cheeky eyes

Welcome to Puppy Land and new 'Puppy Mom Syndrome'. It's perfectly natural and normal to experience all those emotions, in fact, if you didn't then we may all start to worry!

I'm always a nervous wreck when I first get a new puppy, lack of sleep of course goes with the territory and doesn't help. Wondering if they're o.k. when they're quiet (instead of thanking our lucky stars). Worrying about doing the right thing by them. It's all part of the experience, even if you're an experienced Puppy Mom.

The big thing to remember is, we've all made mistakes, done things we think OMG that wasn't right. But the biggest and most important things to remember are, LOVE AND PATIENCE, never scold, hit or abuse (which I know you won't do)or allow ANYONE to do this to your puppy (believe me some people will think they know best) if it doesn't feel right to you then stop them - fast - and don't worry about offending, Paige is your puppy not theirs!

Take training at Paige's pace, whatever that is, she'll show you herself and accept it if she's a scatterbrain, some of the best puppies I've ever had or trained were scatterbrains at first. Make sure she knows you've always 'got her back' in new strange surroundings. Things which we take for granted can be scary to a youngster, like with Leaf, dogs barking behind a fence terrified her, but I along with her Big Bros Zeus who was totally amazing, helped her to understand they weren't as scary as she thought. Plenty of treats, taking it easy, not forcing her to pass - though Zeus helped here by putting himself next to the 'scary dog fence' and slowly walking past - does help to have such a loving Big Bro.

Research diet, it's very important, I feed raw and home made meals (cooked in a crock pot).

Check your vets, you need ones who care not just for Paige but consider your feelings as well. Very important a good vet!

A good Positive Reinforcement Doggy School and please Puppy School, it's amazing how much this helps the new puppy and, in some ways more importantly, a new Puppy Mom.

Make sure her toys are all 'puppy safe', no bits which can be swallowed. Kong toys are great and pretty tough too.

Socialize her, but don't force her into situations which may scare her, take it easy. To a new Puppy the world's a big, wide place to be explored, but it can be scary too, so make sure you take her baby steps at a time. Some puppies are full of confidence, my beautiful Rakins was, others like Leaf need a helping 'paw' to gain confidence.

And above all HAVE FUN, they're only wee puppies for such a short time. You'll be fine and any specific problems you may have, feel free to start a new post. ENJOY PAIGE she's just adorable.

 

[freedomdreams]

Welcome to Puppy Land and new 'Puppy Mom Syndrome'. It's perfectly natural and normal to experience all those emotions, in fact, if you didn't then we may all start to worry!

I'm always a nervous wreck when I first get a new puppy, lack of sleep of course goes with the territory and doesn't help. Wondering if they're o.k. when they're quiet (instead of thanking our lucky stars). Worrying about doing the right thing by them. It's all part of the experience, even if you're an experienced Puppy Mom.

I wholeheartedly agree with MaryK, I am a new puppy mom all OVER again, and my boyfriend is experiencing the puppy dad stuff for the first time as well. Don't worry, like others have said- we all make mistakes and worrying is part of the territory.. as well as no sleep. Everything will turn out fine, just be forgiving to yourself as well sometimes worrying is not bad at all, it's exactly like being a parent! Just have fun too and enjoy their puppy stage they grow up so fast.

 

[running_dog]

How are things going with Paige... she is so gorgeous, can we have more photos, please, please, pleeeeeeeeeeeease!

 

[paigegirl]

Hello!! I haven't updated here in a while, sorry about that! Paige has been such a joy to have around. Will admit, I had a few more days when I felt like I couldn't be more irritated with her but, I removed myself from her and calmed down. Thank goodness. I think I was largely interpreting her playfulness incorrectly which might've been a result of reading too much on the internet about how dogs are supposed to behave instead of just getting to know Paige as she is. All of the conflicting information left me a very confused Mom! One person's advice that has resonated with me time and time again was that if my dog isn't doing something right, it's not because she is disobeying me, it's my fault for not being clear in giving instructions. So I thought, she doesn't have to be better, I have to be better! Which for me, worked perfectly. She's a week shy of 4 months old now and I feel like we've got this relationship thing pretty down pat! I realized that she hates being squirted with a water bottle, so when she does something she isn't supposed to do- I just put my hand on the bottle and she stops. I don't actually have to squirt her at all! She loves to climb into our laps and move around till she finds a comfortable position to sleep in. Taking her for walks has been a joy, she loves surfing in the weeds/bushes/tall grass/anything green! So far she's able to sit, stay, high five, shake, jump, roll and she's so-so with fetching. She loves stinky cheeses and having her butt petted! To all of you above who wrote so many helpful, wonderful things. THANK YOU!! I can't communicate enough how helpful you all were in making me feel less crazy in those early days. I may have more trying days to come but for now, I'm quite happy with the rhythm we've found! Here are some pictures of her from a pup up until today!

 

[paigegirl]

Oh, a few more things to add. Because of this little fur ball of mine, I have begun to spend SO much time outside in my backyard and truly grow to love the outdoors! I think I spend most of my day reading/studying outside with her or running and playing with her. She's hilarious, she loves to chase me and then BE chased. When it is her turn, she cheats and runs circles around the tree. When I stop chasing her around the tree and hide, she stops, pokes her head around the corner barks and then tries to get me running again. It's hilarious. I have picture of her and my Mom playing this game and it is a crack up! She has many chew toys. Some given, some found. She has managed to find every branch our yard has to offer as well as some unfortunate neighbors' beanie. Hey, if he wants to hang his clothes on our fence, his stuff is up for grabs when it blows over! Normally, I would've given it back but by the time I found it, she'd chewed a huge hole through the top of the beanie head! haha! Our neighbors have a Jindu, Border Collie, Lab, Beagles and so on. All of the dogs are well mannered, vaccinated and have future play dates set up with Paige. Yesterday, the Jindu and Border Collie broke down our mutual fence and came into my yard. Boy was I thankful interactions stayed peaceful! I guess after months of sniffing each other through the fence they felt quite comfortable with each other. Paige has her first play date next week. Guess who it's with? Her biological mother and another aussie pup that's two days younger than her. I'm meeting the breeder for a little play date and am quite excited to see if Paige and her Mom remember each other at all!

 

[paigegirl]

Oh my goodness, so many add-ons. Mary K, I feed her Taste of the Wild puppy formula-Bison, she loves it. It's grain free and full of high protein for her quick metabolism! As for her cheeky eyes, they match her cheeky personality too! Thank you for all of the information you provided in your earlier post, I have done most of those things except the puppy class-which is coming soon! Thank you again!!!

 

[southerngirl]

WOW Paige is truly adorable. I'm glad you have figured out who Paige is personality wise so you now how to train her now a way that works. It sounds like the two of you are great for each other. Her trick list is looking great she'll now a bunch of trick by time she is one. Have fun and enjoy her being a puppy it passes to quickly surprisingly when she is an adult you'll actually miss her being a pup(chewing everything, boundless energy, taking things that's not her's and all that good puppy stuff). Pl

 

[brody_smom]

Oh, a few more things to add. Because of this little fur ball of mine, I have begun to spend SO much time outside in my backyard and truly grow to love the outdoors! I think I spend most of my day reading/studying outside with her or running and playing with her. She's hilarious, she loves to chase me and then BE chased. When it is her turn, she cheats and runs circles around the tree. When I stop chasing her around the tree and hide, she stops, pokes her head around the corner barks and then tries to get me running again. It's hilarious. I have picture of her and my Mom playing this game and it is a crack up! She has many chew toys. Some given, some found. She has managed to find every branch our yard has to offer as well as some unfortunate neighbors' beanie. Hey, if he wants to hang his clothes on our fence, his stuff is up for grabs when it blows over! Normally, I would've given it back but by the time I found it, she'd chewed a huge hole through the top of the beanie head! haha! Our neighbors have a Jindu, Border Collie, Lab, Beagles and so on. All of the dogs are well mannered, vaccinated and have future play dates set up with Paige. Yesterday, the Jindu and Border Collie broke down our mutual fence and came into my yard. Boy was I thankful interactions stayed peaceful! I guess after months of sniffing each other through the fence they felt quite comfortable with each other. Paige has her first play date next week. Guess who it's with? Her biological mother and another aussie pup that's two days younger than her. I'm meeting the breeder for a little play date and am quite excited to see if Paige and her Mom remember each other at all!

First of all, SHE IS SO CUTE! Thanks for posting the new pics. It's great to hear how well things are going with Paige. She sounds and looks like a real bundle of joy.

One word of caution. I started playing the chasing game with Brody when he was younger, and we both really enjoyed it. I soon learned, though, that it isn't really a good idea. He started stealing items in the house in order to initiate the chase game when he was bored. Also, it could come back to bite you if you ever have issues with recall. It is good for your dog to chase you in this situation, but you don't really want to encourage your dog to run away from you!

 

[running_dog]

Well I didn't think she could get more gorgeous but somehow she has!

My mum uses a water bottle to squirt Gus with when he is reactive. The only thing with my mum is that most of the time she misses Gus with the water and soaks the passersby instead . I try to redirect him with tug but he's so strong he usually ends up injuring me.

I also love the time I spend outdoors with the dogs. My day doesn't feel quite right if I haven't had a walk with Zac,