Help with new puppy!

Our pup is 13 weeks old, and has just been with us a few days now. I have a few questions (first time puppy owner!) if anyone can help please.

She sleeps in a crate at night and when we have to do the school run, morning and afternoon. Other than that, she's pretty much been following me around. But I'm finding that because I literally have to watch her for every second, that I'm getting nothing done. I've put her into the crate a few times when I couldn't watch her, but I don't want to overdo it and have her spend too much time in there. How long is too long in a crate? And is there any other way around this?

I have a 2.5 yr old and a 4.5 yr old, and she jumps up on them. The older one is ok with her, but the 2.5yr old runs away shouting. I wouldn't say that he's afraid of her, but he does not want to be jumped at! How can I teach her not to jump at people (she jumps at us too, not just the kids)? She also tries to jump up on the chairs when anyone is sitting.

I've been taking her outside to pee/poop and trying to get her to go in a corner of the garden, but it's hit and miss. Would we be better off to put something on the part of the grass that we want her to use, like those bark chip things (because otherwise, grass is grass as far as she's concerned)? I really want to keep her to a corner because the kids will be out playing in the garden.

She seems almost hyper-active, and always over-excited, especially when the kids are around. Is there anything I can do to calm her down?

How long will it take before the madness starts to calm down ? Will I ever be able to stop watching her for every second and get some work done?

I feel so clueless, even though I read so much before we got her

Hi, congrats. You have a full house there with 2 little ones and a puppy. There are a lot of good threads about puppy training here, do a search.

My experience with house breaking was taking the puppy out every one to 2 hours on a leash and bringin her to the area you want her to pee and poop. Then treat and praise when she goes.

You might set up an expen with toys and a water bowl as an alternative to a crate when you cannot watch her.

Good luck.

To answer one query, the simplest way of stopping her jumping up is to teach her to sit. Hold a titbit just above her nose, say Sit, move it slowly backwards - she lifts her head to watch it, her backside automatically goes down, and voila! a sit. Then she gets the treat and praise. Next step is to teach her that she will get fuss and attention when she's sitting but not when jumping up. Everyone in the house needs to reinforce this with a firm but gentle Sit, a titbit and praise. Your children are probably old enough to help if you show them how, but don't let them shout Sit or do it too often - she's only a baby, after all!

The noise and movement of the children probably encourages the pup to dash about, not wanting to miss anything, so a playpen in a quieter spot where she isn't disturbed and can have a toy or a snooze should help. It also gets her used to being left alone for short periods.

Enjoy your puppy!

Kate, Oliver and Aled

Rosie Posie said:

She sleeps in a crate at night and when we have to do the school run, morning and afternoon. Other than that, she's pretty much been following me around. But I'm finding that because I literally have to watch her for every second, that I'm getting nothing done. I've put her into the crate a few times when I couldn't watch her, but I don't want to overdo it and have her spend too much time in there. How long is too long in a crate? And is there any other way around this?

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Welcome to puppyhood! I would not leave her in the crate more then a couple of hours only if needed. Any puppy needs constant supervision. Not only to prevent potty accidents but also to keep them from getting hurt. The more bad habits she picks up now (accidents, chewing etc) the harder they will be to fix later on. Just goes with having a puppy. At 13 weeks my pup would be okay in the kennel overnight for about 6-7 hours and very short times during the day. Also keep in mind the more time she spends in the kennel the more energy she will have when you let her out.

Rosie Posie said:

I have a 2.5 yr old and a 4.5 yr old, and she jumps up on them. The older one is ok with her, but the 2.5yr old runs away shouting. I wouldn't say that he's afraid of her, but he does not want to be jumped at! How can I teach her not to jump at people (she jumps at us too, not just the kids)? She also tries to jump up on the chairs when anyone is sitting.

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Agree that teaching her to sit when she walks up to you. Also eventually training the "off" command.

Rosie Posie said:

I've been taking her outside to pee/poop and trying to get her to go in a corner of the garden, but it's hit and miss. Would we be better off to put something on the part of the grass that we want her to use, like those bark chip things (because otherwise, grass is grass as far as she's concerned)? I really want to keep her to a corner because the kids will be out playing in the garden.

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Time to invest in a pooper scooper and start picking up the poop. Although some dogs tend to go in a more specific area I have never had a dog that was reliable to only use one spot in the yard. Grass is Grass as far as my 4 are concerned too.

Rosie Posie said:

She seems almost hyper-active, and always over-excited, especially when the kids are around. Is there anything I can do to calm her down?

How long will it take before the madness starts to calm down ? Will I ever be able to stop watching her for every second and get some work done?

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Give her lots of play time but most of this is because she is a puppy. Proper training may help a little. My 1 year old pup is still a total spaz. I swear he has the non stop energy of a terrier. He will go outside and run, run, run & run. Then come inside and terrorize everyone. He knows the off command but at times is too excited to care.

I did get lucky because my pup was potty trained at 6 months old and he never really chewed. This is NOT the norm. Most need supervision until 1 or 2 years and some for there whole life. Just depends on the dog.

To answer one of your questions "When will the madness calm down"
I dont want to alarm you but my Leo if 4 and the madness still hasnt calmed down:badgrin:

Thats what makes them so much fun.
Enjoy your pup they really are the best breed you know:-D

Two things: first, be sure to download the free-copy of trainer Dr Ian Dunbar's book After Your Get Your Puppy from www.dogstardaily.com (in the downloads section) -- it will really help you with all training and behaviour issues!

Second: please be sure to read through the links on safely and happily mixing dogs and children -- especially in the case of very young children such as yours.

http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/showthread.php?9729-Kids-toddlers-babies-and-dogs-can-they-mix

You should have a puppy x-pen or somewhere safe and kidfree that the puppy can go, and be sure to manage all interactions between children and pup at arm's length. Tragedies can happen otherwise on either side through accidents especially with a young dog and without careful management and careful restriction on what small kids can do in their direct interactions with a pup (if kids are running around with the puppy freely and there's a lot of excitement and high-pitched kid noise, this is likely why your pup is getting over-excited -- which you do not want, as it can lead to problems and biting); there's a risk of the puppy ending up a fear-aggressive (bite prone) adult around kids, of being very afraid of small children, and of accidental bites. I especially recommend these links:

http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/kidsndogs.html
http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/toddlersndogs.html

You want to make sure everyone stays safe on all sides. Over years of doing rescue I have had so many cavaliers come in that cannot be rehomed in homes with young kids because that is where they initially came into rescue from, due to problems created by kids that were not supervised around the dog and the dog either became fear aggressive and a risk around children, or there was a biting incident, or the dog was now terrified of any small kids and thus no longer any fun for the family. As all the trainers say: supervision and management and consistency 100% of the time, at all times, makes for a happy mix of dogs and small kids; and the responsibility lies always with the parent.

It sounds like you are still in the early days, i was keeping a very close eye on Mimi for the first few weeks but i also found that i must have got her just enough toys for her not too want to chew on things, we have had not problems with her chewing any furnature, the only thing is when she is shut in the kitchen if there are clothes in the basket she will take them out but i think thats just because of the smell of us on them as she does not chew on them. The easiest way we got to getting Mimi not to jump up was when she comes up to a child we asked them to stand there with their arms folded and look up, Mimi got bored that she wasnt getting attention so she started to sit infront of people to get fuss. This was quite easy to do because we stuck at it. I have found that cavs do love attention a whole lot more than other dogs my family have had.

Thanks for the replies and links everyone

Karlin said:

You should have a puppy x-pen or somewhere safe and kidfree that the puppy can go

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All we have is her crate. It's big enough for her bed and toys and some extra room (just enough for her to turn around in). Obviously if she and the kids need to be separated to calm everyone, she has to go in there, and to keep the kids away from her, I have to take them to another room (as they're too young to be left alone), and that's why I was concerned that doing this (i.e. putting her in the crate at times during the day) would be too much?

Kate H said:

Hold a titbit just above her nose, say Sit, move it slowly backwards - she lifts her head to watch it, her backside automatically goes down, and voila! a sit.

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Unfortunately, she doesn't even have the patience to sit and watch it, as soon as she spots it, she's leaping and jumping all over me trying to get it Extremely excitable!!

Wow you have got your hands full with three kids! I call mine the furry kids and it is like having kids sometimes. They do settle down eventually but maybe because you have two very young children Rosie is more excitable. Jasper still try's to jump up especially when it's feeding time but I always get him to sit or he doesn't get it. He sings for his food it's so funny and Holly does little twirls! Good luck with Rosie I'm sure you will get there eventually. They are a beautiful dog and that's their nature to always be with you that's why I love them so much.

The only real way to calm down an energetic dog is to tire them out, mentally and physically! A nice recipe for a tired dog is to start with a crazy ball game to get the big energy out, go on a nice walk, then come back and practice some training techniques. Rinse and repeat as needed! Congrats on your puppy, before you know it you will feel like he was always part of the family

Since you are a first time puppy owner I would highly recommend taking some basic puppy classes. It's good socialization for the puppy and will help you with the skills you need to train her. It is best to do it sooner then later.