how will i cope with a baby - i cant even cope with the dog!

[magicbubble]

my husband is away for the next two months so we have been using doggy daycare. i swear i need the dog daycare today! the doggy is hyper and im too washed out to walk him further than the back garden! he wont stop woofing at every slightest noise, hes been sick over my nice washed floor, chewed james slipper, and put muddy footprints up my hoovered stairs moments after i had done them as he escaped through the baby gate! oh dear im going back to bed!

 

[Matila10]

Hahaha i know the feeling! Everytime My dog barks uncontrollably, I think the same thing!

 

[LadyHutch]

I have my moments where I think this too. Thank God I insisted we crate train ours. It's a nice 1hr vacation when I need it.

Try crate training. It helps also to try teaching tricks to your dog. It will help you bond with it so you are less irritated, and keep them occupied which will calm them down. It takes time and patience, but you can train from the couch. Check out this site: https://www.clickerdogs.com/crate_games.php the videos are amazing of what you can teach your dog...Look susan garrett up on youtube for more videos. If you spend 20 mins twice a day training, you will notice a markedly better behaved pooch.

I also got tennis balls for mine, and spend several minutes a day just throwing it around the room for her to chase to wear her down a little. She is always game and the running keeps her moving so she isn't such a handful. I worked with her for about a half hour on returning the ball to me (keep treats in your hand), and now she races around after her ball, brings it back and I throw it for her again. If your living room is big enough and your dog is small enough, you can burn a lot of energy with this.

tell DH he must walk the dog before he leaves the house in the mornings when he is home and when he gets home from work. If he is out of town, maybe a neighbor kid can be corralled into helping? Check the paper, often you can find professional dog walkers who can take the pup off your hands for a bit and get them out of the house. Their services are usually pretty cheap, cheaper than doggy daycare.
Try a Kong. Stuff it with peanut butter...will keep him occupied for a good chunk of time.

Finally, work hard to get your pup on a schedule...Meals, naps, bedtime, playtime, walks. Write down the times these things are supposed to happen and get everyone on board to make them happen at those times. A schedule will help your pup get used to when it is an appropriate time to play and will give them a mental game to look forward to, keeping them a little more occupied.

 

[LadyHutch]

P.S. Training your dog now is going to be paramount when to help you when the baby is born. We got ours when I was just a few weeks pregnant with the last...DH really wanted a dog and I told him it was now or never, since I wasn't going to have an untrained puppy around a newborn. Lucky for me, I am a SAHW, so I had time to work with mine. She's still really hyper and not entirely where I want her, but she has also come a long, long way. I would not have an untrained dog at this point. Mine knows basic commands and a few tricks, and it's a godsend that she sits on command.

Its easier than it seems. Get some hotdogs, cut em into small pieces and spend just 20 mins twice a day. Start slow and easy, the first thing you want to teach is that yours looks at you in the face when you say it's name. You can do this by saying "Fido!" and putting a treat up to your eyes. Do this over and over until Fido gets it. When Fido looks at you when you call his name, give him the treat. Rinse, repeat =).

 

[Groovychick]

 

[magicbubble]

I have my moments where I think this too. Thank God I insisted we crate train ours. It's a nice 1hr vacation when I need it.

Try crate training. It helps also to try teaching tricks to your dog. It will help you bond with it so you are less irritated, and keep them occupied which will calm them down. It takes time and patience, but you can train from the couch. Check out this site: https://www.clickerdogs.com/crate_games.php the videos are amazing of what you can teach your dog...Look susan garrett up on youtube for more videos. If you spend 20 mins twice a day training, you will notice a markedly better behaved pooch.

I also got tennis balls for mine, and spend several minutes a day just throwing it around the room for her to chase to wear her down a little. She is always game and the running keeps her moving so she isn't such a handful. I worked with her for about a half hour on returning the ball to me (keep treats in your hand), and now she races around after her ball, brings it back and I throw it for her again. If your living room is big enough and your dog is small enough, you can burn a lot of energy with this.

tell DH he must walk the dog before he leaves the house in the mornings when he is home and when he gets home from work. If he is out of town, maybe a neighbor kid can be corralled into helping? Check the paper, often you can find professional dog walkers who can take the pup off your hands for a bit and get them out of the house. Their services are usually pretty cheap, cheaper than doggy daycare.
Try a Kong. Stuff it with peanut butter...will keep him occupied for a good chunk of time.

Finally, work hard to get your pup on a schedule...Meals, naps, bedtime, playtime, walks. Write down the times these things are supposed to happen and get everyone on board to make them happen at those times. A schedule will help your pup get used to when it is an appropriate time to play and will give them a mental game to look forward to, keeping them a little more occupied.

would you believe - i try all those things! hes just really in need of a good decent walk today i think. i really dont think i can be bothered. poor boy

 

[LadyHutch]

Oh I believe it. Even though I do these things, mine can still be an amazing handful. Sometimes I wish the dog whisperer lived next door =)

 

[menageriemom]

I hear you!
My two dogs (Rottweiler/Husky mix and Labrador/Basset mix) are pretty much perfect angels in the house, but things like the excess hair (I take a plastic grocery bag full of hair off the Rottie mix every 2 weeks, I swear - plus I have to vacuum and sweep for it daily) selective hearing when there is a person walking their dog by the yard, or going on a mad hunt to track down the cat's "buried treasures" and coming in with muddy paws just throws me over the emotional edge right now - I am just so exhausted!

The cat is a totally different story. One cat is 10x more of an issue and hassle than 135lbs of combined dog! However, they are all part of the 'family' so it's just a matter of letting the frustration go.

And LadyHutch, I can't speak enough for crate training! Luckily we don't need them any more but they provided a huge piece of mind when I didn't have an area for them to be gated off in.

 

[Phantom]

Trade him for a cat. lol

 

[magicbubble]

oooohhhh no i love him to bits i couldnt do that. plus im allergic to cats as much as i love them - they make me achoo

the crate training is good. it really works and only has to be for the dogs first year of its life if you get it from puppy. unfortunately husband thinks its cruel, even though my mums dogs all love their crates and choose to go in them of free will whenever they fancy a lie down. so instead, our dog has a kitchen and baby gates - like a big crate but not quite as effective as a small one i feel

 

[bump0911]

I sympathise with you entirely. We got a doggy as a substitute baby while we were trying... big mistake!! He is good 99% of the time but at the slightest noise he goes mental! I do wonder how I am going to be able to cope with a baby and the dog!!

 

[JacquiKeren]

I cant even stand the sight or smell of my dog at the moment....darn sickness. to be fair she is as good as gold and we have her crate trained so shes happy in there for a few hours with a kong. I just gave her apple, forgetting that your not meant to and she sicked it up, then tried to eat it! eugh!! my tummy cant deal with the thought of that right now......yuk!

Least my oh has kept her busy taking her for a run this morning....shes knackered....YEEESSS!

 

[sweetpea01]

Seriously we have trained both of our dogs using dog whisperer techniques and it works! Buy the book and read it , it makes alot of sense. At first it is hard because it takes so much discipline to do as an owner, but once they are trained it has made such a difference in our dogs behavior. they will sit out on our porch and all the dogs around us are barking and they don't make a peep because they know better. I leave my shoes laying around and they don't touch them. They are very close to perfect dogs now....of course we have our issues with them sometimes still but they are very good dogs and I think it is only because they know my husband and I are the pack leaders and they respect the boundaries we have set up for them...anyways...give it a try and buy the book.

 

[Lunaty]

We have two big dogs no our house, A Pitbull and a Husky/malamute ..
They are absolutely lovely in the house, but do not take to other dogs at all! It took us a little while to get hierarchy sorted as both are bitches, and both have a very strong will to dominate.. But with a strong hand and some Dog whispering techniques it has all worked itself out.. (as long as we do not leave them alone with one bone LOL).

Which means that with walking them (and they HAVE to be walked at least a good hour loose so they can run!) one needs to be muzzled and the we just go places where the least other dogs are.. Not to mention that the Husky has a slight tendency to run off as soon as she sees other dogs (yes she is the dog aggressive one, not the Pitbull) and gets selective hearing too.. sigh..

Some days it really puts me off because we wanted the dogs to actually be able to have nice strolls on the beach not to have to play the avoid everyone game.. but they both are wonderful with our son and the husky just loves him to pieces!
SO yes, we will keep at it, and hope that with old age they will give up creating trouble with other dogs hahaha

 

[yazzy]

I don't know where I would be without my dogs, they are the one thing that however I am feeling make me smile every day. I have 4 dogs - Akita, 2 Rottie's and a Staffie and they are as good as gold, I do however run a dog training school so I suppose they should be lol! I was feeling really run down a few weeks back so they lacked their usual walks but they just seem to adjust, now i'm feeling a lot better it is doing me the world of good getting back out for our normal walks everyday...ahhh I do love em!

 

[ohbananas]

Oh, I so know where you are coming from. I wanted to leave mine outside the other night since they wouldn't stfu. (It was -40 out, so needless to say I didn't.) But I called my OH and said I was going to strangle them. Now I am babysitting an extra one for the next couple days (weeks?), I dunno. So 4 dogs under 10 pounds = one giant headache.

 

[Bumpontherun]

Ha ha, we have two great Danes, believe me a baby is waaaay easier!

 

[Docility]

Oh my, I also have one of those dogs! She's sweet as can be...but boy does she love to bark. Sometimes it drives me crazy.

 

[Aster]

Some great advice on this thread, we have 2 dogs and I am a bit worried about coping with them but I think that walking is such a huge key to keeping them a bit calmer!!
Really want to get the dog whisperer book though, it sounds good and he has great techniques.

 

[magicbubble]

Some great advice on this thread, we have 2 dogs and I am a bit worried about coping with them but I think that walking is such a huge key to keeping them a bit calmer!!
Really want to get the dog whisperer book though, it sounds good and he has great techniques.

i agree about the walks. my dog is so much better when he has had a bit of excersise. but this past couple of days i have struggled cos i have felt quite poorly. he has his doggy daycare tomorrow so that will tire him out for wednesday but i am stuck on how to tire him out on my own on his walks. i am really trying to get him to run and chase things - balls and sticks so he gets tired. but he plays for 2 minutes then gets lost in the world of interesting sniffy smells and plods around near me i keep wanting to see other dogs cos i know he will run with them but there are none aound. think i need to change his walk times