Hi all, well we got tyson last week, he's about 8 weeks old, and he's a joy, we love him but man its alot of work! I forgot how much work it takes to handle a new puppy. Potty training is prolly the most frustrating; especailly when its been raining for almost 3 straight days. The other thing is the howling and whining when crating him. Up in the middle of night etc. etc. Well just wanted to say what we've been going thru and see if that sounds about right. Any tip or hints for boxer owners is much appreciated.
new pup, is this what i should be expecting?
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Cuda was 6 to 7 weeks when I got her. She potty trained in the first week and never had an accident......ever. I have never crated her either. I am lucky enough to be able to take her with me everywhere. Boxers require alot of attention and you need to somehow figure in an hour with them in the morning and an hour in the evening minimum. They are like kids except they mind better than kids. They are the most loveable pups I have ever seen but they need their lovin' too.
Enjoy your pup and lets see some photos.
Chris
Enjoy your pup and lets see some photos.
Chris
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sounds normal! ignore the whining. If you come when he cries he will make that connection and it will only get worse. there are a few threads in the puppy section that have some great info..
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We brought Jaxon home at 7 weeks. Sounds like you're experiencing a typical puppy!!! This is what Jaxon's first 3 weeks home was like. He caught on to potty training fast, but he hates the rain! I had to take him outside with an umbrella a few times. Jaxon would cry when we crated him at night for about a week. He sleeps fine through the night, but at the first sign of daylight (or lights turned on) he's up and wants to go out! To me it felt very much like bringing home a newborn..just when I thought I had his schedule figured out..he'd change it. He will be 6 months old on the 4th of December. He's completely potty trained, he sleeps in the crate all night until at least 7 a.m., he stays in his crate while we are not home too. Good luck!!!!
We never crated our puppies at night. We used a large plastic tote beside the bed with fleece in it, this is also what we used during the day when they were napping. It was large enough that they couldn't get out so they would whine when they woke up. At night we would hold them until they fell asleep and then put them in their tote. They slept until they needed to potty usually 2-3 hours and started to whine so I took them out, they pottied and I brought them back in. I usually laid them beside me in bed until they fell asleep and then put them back in the tote. They never woke up when I put them in the tote. They woke up during the night only to potty and then back to sleep. As they got older they slept more and got up less. When they got too large for the tote we put them on their doggie mat by the bed. Of course our babies all have to have blankets on at night and do wake up if they roll out of them, then we get woke up to cover them back up. 8O Other than that this worked great for us. (we do use a baby gate at our bedroom door even when they are older to keep them from going in the kids rooms and knocking them out of bed) 
But to answer your question it sounds just like a normal puppy!
But to answer your question it sounds just like a normal puppy!
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That's pretty normal puppy behavior...Try adding an old shirt of yours in the crate, leave a radio on playing something soothing or an old fashioned alarm clock that ticks. You can also partially cover the crate with a blanket to make it more like a nest as well....It may sound cruel, but let him whine, if you start giving in and paying him attention, he will quickly learn to use that against you....
Well, last night I tried the crate thing and lets say i didnt get much sleep. He was waking up the entire house and I have kids who have school. I ended up having to him in a room alone and close the door so we could sleep. I hated to do that but what other choice do i have? I took him out this morning and all was good, after he played around for a min, he went in my kids room and curled up next to them and fell back asleep. It seems as long as he is near us like in bed or on the sofa, he's quiet and sleeps, but the min. I put him in his crate or like before where we put him in the laundry room with a baby gate he yelps, crys and barks. Not for 5 mins either, more like 30 mins. off and on. On the potty part; most of the time like this morning, I'll bring him outside and he wants to run back inside and potty in the house! I guess its just gonna take time, but it is frustrating. Thanks for the comments!
G
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·once he's done with that stage you will enjoy it so much better, hard parts getting to that point .. just keep showing him the door and getting used to a routine.
Duke has always stayed out at night. He has no problem waking me up to go to the bathroom, I think he enjoys it. When he was a puppy puppy, he used to paw at my face, he's getting better at not pawing at me. He has always slept with us, I don't think he would have it any other way. Me either, especially now, its cold, he's nice and warm. But good luck. I hope it gets better.
My pup ran right into his crate the first night home (saturday). He has slept all though the night, except for last night when he decided 2am was a good time to play. He wanted out, and he also decided to pee in his crate.
I can only assume pups are a lot like horses (I train horses), they are all different.
I took him out because I live in an apartment complex, and really can not have him howl at 2am (so I cant just ignore it-- I do that during the day when people wont care), but mom was not happy. I did not yell at him, I just did not play with him and told him to settle. We learned what "stay" meant-- meaning he learned last night at 2am-- so I cleaned up his potty, then he went back into his crate. I put my finger up and said stay, he looked at it, laid down then put his head down. I decided that if I was in there he would want me to give him attention, so I gave him the room (he was in his crate, but in my room alone) and I slept in the family room. He went right back to bed the rest of the night, so that was my first experience with howling in the middle of the night.
When he woke up today he yelped and I knew it was because he had to go potty. We went out, but I was so tired. When we came back in he ate and then I wanted him to go in the crate. I closed my door and picked up everything on the floor--- then kept the crate door open. I accidently dosed off and woke up two hours later to a sleeping puppy in the crate. So he went to bed when I wanted him to, and I think last night worked.
again this is just my experience with the crate training and howling-- I dont know if that will work for your dog, and I dont feel im an experienced enough puppy owner to say "yea go ahead and do it."
But best of luck! They are a lot of work aren't they!
also wanted to say when he went back to bed after the initial 2am incident I had the TV on weatherscan that plays non stop smooth jazz-- with no commercials. So maybe you want to put a radio in there and play some soft classical or jazz music.
I can only assume pups are a lot like horses (I train horses), they are all different.
I took him out because I live in an apartment complex, and really can not have him howl at 2am (so I cant just ignore it-- I do that during the day when people wont care), but mom was not happy. I did not yell at him, I just did not play with him and told him to settle. We learned what "stay" meant-- meaning he learned last night at 2am-- so I cleaned up his potty, then he went back into his crate. I put my finger up and said stay, he looked at it, laid down then put his head down. I decided that if I was in there he would want me to give him attention, so I gave him the room (he was in his crate, but in my room alone) and I slept in the family room. He went right back to bed the rest of the night, so that was my first experience with howling in the middle of the night.
When he woke up today he yelped and I knew it was because he had to go potty. We went out, but I was so tired. When we came back in he ate and then I wanted him to go in the crate. I closed my door and picked up everything on the floor--- then kept the crate door open. I accidently dosed off and woke up two hours later to a sleeping puppy in the crate. So he went to bed when I wanted him to, and I think last night worked.
again this is just my experience with the crate training and howling-- I dont know if that will work for your dog, and I dont feel im an experienced enough puppy owner to say "yea go ahead and do it."
But best of luck! They are a lot of work aren't they!
also wanted to say when he went back to bed after the initial 2am incident I had the TV on weatherscan that plays non stop smooth jazz-- with no commercials. So maybe you want to put a radio in there and play some soft classical or jazz music.
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try covering the crate..works great makes them feel secure..or try sleeping with him see if he can make it through the nite..its all personal preference i think...
good luck
good luck
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