PUPPY QUESTIONS

dennylilly · ‎04-07-2010

I need some advice on the puppy I will be getting in a couple months. I currently have two 12 year old dogs- A Chihuaha and a mix breed Schnauzer-Corgi. I also have two 16 year old cats who are sisters. All seem to be in good health but the mix has slowed down quite a bit in the last couple years. I am planning on getting a Golden Doodle- we were going to wait till our older dogs were gone to get a puppy but this is from a friends dog and this will be her last litter and we really wanted one of her puppies so we decided to go ahead and get one now.

That is the background story - so here is the advice I need. How do I best integrate this dog into the family? My Chi was trained on pee pads and to this day has issues with peeing in the house. Is there a danger that the puppy will smell the odors (though we clean-dogs can smell the odors) and this will hinder her housebreaking? I put pee pads down for the Chi because she uses the rugs anyway so this helps but I don't want to EVER use pee pads to train again. I learned my lesson on this.

I'm starting to really dread this new puppy and wonder if this was a wrong decision---I was advised to get the new puppy into obedience training immediately and I do plan to do this.

We also have two homes- summer and winter. Cats stay with my grown children at our main home so I figured I should train the puppy there and only take her to summer home after potty training is fairly established.

Also have doggie doors and invisible fence at both homes. Oh boy! More complications to endure! We are sad about the future deaths of our four pets and know having a new young one is a blessing, but how do I navigate all these issues?

If anyone has dealt with some of these issues I desperately need advice about now...the momma is due to give birth to her puppies soon! I will welcome my new girl Harlie end of June /early July.

Thanks!

hoosieroriginal · ‎03-04-2012

Golden doodles are VERY high energy, high strung - like OMG high strung - I have two neighbors with them and they are really needing some training. I don't know how all of your old dogs are going to handle that, but good luck.

ValuSkr · ‎03-15-2014

Can you build another home - just for the dogs? Or just an addition to the winter home? You can use it as a play or family room after the older pets pass.

dennylilly · ‎04-07-2010

@hoosieroriginal wrote:
Golden doodles are VERY high energy, high strung - like OMG high strung - I have two neighbors with them and they are really needing some training. I don't know how all of your old dogs are going to handle that, but good luck.

really? my friends dog is very laid back and calm. I know puppies have alot of energy - I DO have alot of experience with dogs as we have had many over the years. This is the first time having a large dog and I felt this would be a great difference from the small barky dogs I've had in the past. I have had poodle, yorkie, terriers and once we had a large dog a Husky/shepard who was wonderful...

dennylilly · ‎04-07-2010

haha Not feeling very postive so far....

spud188 · ‎09-23-2010

Bringing a puppy into a Senior home of 4 is unfair. Wait till they have croaked and then start over.

dennylilly · ‎04-07-2010

@ValuSkr wrote:
Can you build another home - just for the dogs? Or just an addition to the winter home? You can use it as a play or family room after the older pets pass.

we love our pets....sorry this is discouraging

dennylilly · ‎04-07-2010

@spud188 wrote:
Bringing a puppy into a Senior home of 4 is unfair. Wait till they have croaked and then start over.

Really? I guess I really didn't even think of that. Unfair to all pets or just the puppy? Why?

faeriemoon · ‎03-14-2010

@hoosieroriginal wrote:
Golden doodles are VERY high energy, high strung - like OMG high strung - I have two neighbors with them and they are really needing some training. I don't know how all of your old dogs are going to handle that, but good luck.

Agree.

OP, if your decision is not a done deal, I would re-think it.

Adding: As a general rule, all of the "doodles" are hyper. Golden doodle, labradoodle, Irish doodle...

SaRina · ‎04-17-2015

@dennylilly wrote:
@hoosieroriginal wrote:
Golden doodles are VERY high energy, high strung - like OMG high strung - I have two neighbors with them and they are really needing some training. I don't know how all of your old dogs are going to handle that, but good luck.

really? my friends dog is very laid back and calm. I know puppies have alot of energy - I DO have alot of experience with dogs as we have had many over the years. This is the first time having a large dog and I felt this would be a great difference from the small barky dogs I've had in the past. I have had poodle, yorkie, terriers and once we had a large dog a Husky/shepard who was wonderful...

..... then you should know the answer to your question, which is fairly common knowledge, especially for anyone who has had more than one animal in their home.

My priority would be the animals currently in your home -- their safety and well-being. Personally, I wouldn't allow my urgent feelings of needing to adopt this puppy now to control what I choose to do. It sounds like you have a good balance in your home that could easily be upset by introducing a new puppy. If you must proceed, make sure you introduce your animals to the new puppy on neutral ground. The puppy will require a tremendous amount of your time and attention. Make sure that doesn't override your time and attention from your other pets.

Again, I would want my current pets to feel 100% comfortable, particularly since it sounds like they are getting on in years, before bringing in someone new.