STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Tati · Chanel

JoyceBaby23 or anyone else with little dogs....

JoceyBaby23 · Gucci

Oh cute! What are going to name her?

That's my little guy in my avatar. He is so awesome.

I also crate trained my little puppy. Small dogs are WAY more difficult to train than larger dogs. They get really anxious and are hyper a lot of the time. Also their little bladders are super small so when you first get her, you really should be taking her out like every hour. You can't get angry with them for accidents because they really can't help it when they are that small.

You need to have a LOT of patience. Small dogs are so different from what you are used to.

Also start training her immediately. But the time my little guy was 10 weeks, he could sit and lay down and after another week he could shake. Most smaller dogs are WAY smarter than your typical medium/large dog.

Oh, and I can't help you with the cat situation. We have had our puppy for over a year now... and our dog and 2 cats are still fighting like cats and dogs (pathetic pun). The cats are very territorial and protective. The best advice I can give is introduce them to each other VERY slowly. Also make sure the cat has an area of the house that the puppy does NOT have access too. It is important for them to feel safe. (We still keep the dog restricted to the kitchen and living room.. that way the cats can have the entire upstairs to themselves.)

I'll write more later when I have a few more minutes.

-- Edited by JoceyBaby23 at 17:12, 2006-07-28

twinkle · Coach

i have a small dog too and i second what Jocey said. its basically impossible to prevent accidents when they are really little b/c they want to pee every 20-30 min. I have my little one trained to go on wee-wee pads (always have one in my bathroom) and outside. So if she can't hold it in time, she knows to go on the pad. At first I trained her to go on the pads exclusively, and then as she got older we started taking her outside as well. Now she is 8 mos. and only goes on the pads when she's home during the day & I'm at work.

I think having an older dog already that knows the drill will help, b/c they learn from each other.

if you need any more advice or anything, PM me. brussells griffins are soooo cute!!! please take pix.

Jahni · Dooney & Bourke

All I can say is Good Luck. Vivy (that's her in my avatar) is almost 3 now, and she still has "accidents." I put it in quotes because I really think she only goes in the house when she's mad at me about something...

I tried using puppy pads but she wouldn't have any of that, she would rather go on the carpet or tile right beside the pad. She also is not a fan of grass...she prefers to potty on concrete. She's lovely....really...

twinkle · Coach

Jahni wrote:

All I can say is Good Luck. Vivy (that's her in my avatar) is almost 3 now, and she still has "accidents." I put it in quotes because I really think she only goes in the house when she's mad at me about something... I tried using puppy pads but she wouldn't have any of that, she would rather go on the carpet or tile right beside the pad. She also is not a fan of grass...she prefers to potty on concrete. She's lovely....really...

aw jahni, vivy is sooo cute, i'm sure she's worth it

was she introduced to pads & grass right away? cause usually if you introduce them too late they avoid them...

Jahni · Dooney & Bourke

twinkle wrote:

Jahni wrote: All I can say is Good Luck. Vivy (that's her in my avatar) is almost 3 now, and she still has "accidents." I put it in quotes because I really think she only goes in the house when she's mad at me about something... I tried using puppy pads but she wouldn't have any of that, she would rather go on the carpet or tile right beside the pad. She also is not a fan of grass...she prefers to potty on concrete. She's lovely....really... aw jahni, vivy is sooo cute, i'm sure she's worth it was she introduced to pads & grass right away? cause usually if you introduce them too late they avoid them...

lol..she's totally worth it...i never thought i'd be so crazy over an animal...but she's sooo not an animal.

I got her when she was four months old and she had been in a crate for most of those four months. She was the runt of her litter and so the breeder used to just carry her around everywhere (because she was sooo cute!)when she wasn't in the crate, therefore she was already realllly spoiled when I got her. I tried to use a crate with her when I first got her, but once she got a taste of life on the outside, she wasn't going back in. So now I have the world's most spoiled dog...at one point, she wouldn't even eat unless I fed her with a SPOON!! sooo not kidding...but I finally couldn't take it anymore and let her go without food for about a day and a half before she climbed down off her high horse and ate out of her bowl...

yep, this is me with my DOG. Can you imagine what my kids are going to be like? Teachers are going to hate me and my children.

Tati · Chanel

oh my gosh! im getting scared to go pick her up on tuesday!

i was thinking i would be getting up every 2-3 hours at night to let her out of her crate, sounds like i wont be sleeping at all for a while...... yikes!

twinkle- i will definately try and post some pictures of her when i get her.

JocyeBaby23 - her name is Audrey, after Audrey Hepburn

thanks for the advice girls, even though it mostly scared me of my future with her