First time dog mom

Here are some pawsome advice

Hey lovebugs, I am so excited because I had been thinking of how I would write this for awhile. As you all know I am a huge dog person. I had been wanting a fur baby since my husband and I got married three years ago. However, living in a small condo downtown, it didn't seem right for us at that time. Plus, both of us worked full time so we wanted to make sure when we did get a puppy that we would have time to spend with him or her. As we all know the pandemic happening drastically changed everyone's lives. It allowed me to work from home until further notice so after discussing it with my husband, we decided that my 28th birthday gift would be a fur baby!

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To say I was excited would be an understatement. I was over the moon thrilled. Like I said, I had been wanting to get a puppy for awhile. Moving into our new home didn't seem fully completed without a sweet little bundle of fur to share it with us. Patrick and I started looking five weeks before my birthday. Due to my allergy restrictions and asthma, I knew that I wanted a dog that would be hypoallergenic and perfect for someone like me. I had always loved the look of goldendoodles, and once I found out that there were hypoallergenic my husband and I were sold. We searched for a good breeder for about two weeks and all of them seemed to be sold out of puppies, which was a bit devastating. Not only did I feel defeated but I felt like we would have to wait another year to find our little fur baby. However, a week before my birthday we found an amazing breeder that said they still had a litter of puppies for sale. We decided to go the next day to see some of the puppies. The night before the breeder sent me a couple of pictures of some of the puppies but one in particular caught me eye.

After seeing the picture of this adorable baby girl I was so excited to meet her. I wanted to make sure that not only she bonded with us but we made a lasting impression on her. The next day my husband and I drove 4 hours to go and meet our puppy.  I remember getting to the house and seeing all the bundles of fur running around and playing. Patrick and I kind of stood back and observed as we spoke to the breeder. It's so funny because as we were watching the dogs, a adorable puppy started to waddle up to me and sniff around me. Of course, I immediately picked her up and was greeted with a nice little comforting lick. I immediately feel in love with her compassionate personality and how she seemed attached to me. The breeder was stunned and laughed because that puppy happened to be the one I said I wanted in the pictures, it turned out to be my Sadie. It was so weird how she was attached to us even at the first meeting. I do believe in fate and I honestly believe she is meant to be in our lives. She was only 7 weeks at the time so sadly we had to leave her for one more week before picking her up the week after. 

I thought I was fully prepared for dog parenting y'all. The amount of Youtube videos I have watched is insane. Not only did I have everything ready for her at arrival but I thought that I would have every answer to every question pertaining to Sadie, was I wrong? Absolutely! Nothing really went as planned and that is what prompted me to write this blog post because I want to share some tips that I have after being with Sadie for over a month.

No more sleep

Okay, so I know you're probably reading that title and are slowly freaking out so let me clarify. You will be able to sleep but it may not be as much as you're used to. When we first brought Sadie home we were lucky that she did sleep through most of the night. However, we would periodically get up a couple of times during the night and we knew it was because she would have to use the bathroom. We thought long and hard and decided to not use the puppy pads. Instead, we have slowly trained her to only get up around 2 am, and 7 am, to use the washroom. Was it like that in the beginning? No, she would literally get up every 2 hours and whine to use the potty - so sleep kind of went out the window. However, over time you will decide what is best for you and your fur baby! Do you research, feel out your puppy and the rest will come in time.  

To Bite or not to bite

Sadie is a bitter and I was NOT ready for that. I had a toy poodle growing up and she basically never bit anyone. Therefore, I was not expecting Sadie to be as nippy as she is. In fact, all she does it nip everything, my leggings, my hands, my legs...really anything in sight. At first, I am NOT going to lie I was hurt by it. I kept thinking like a human response that she is biting me because she isn't bonding to me and she doesn't like me. I legit went through a slight depression because I felt like she didn't loved me as much as I expected her too. This is a normal feeling it takes time to bond with your pup and if you have those feelings there's nothing wrong with you. It's a new adjustment and just like new things it takes time. Everyone's process is different so go easy on yourself. After talking with a trainer online she said that  of course Sadie is teething so she will bite whatever is in front of her. However, she also explained that because Sadie loves and has bonded with me her nipping is a form of playing with me. I had noticed that she didn't nip or bit anyone else but me. I took it negatively but in fact it was the opposite. She considers me family and when you're comfortable with someone you can fully be yourself with them. If you puppy is nipping what I have found to help is positive reinforcement with toys, the kong, and tug of war toys. They have been life savers for me. Is Sadie fully a non nipper? No, but she is getting so much better! The thing is magic doesn't happen over night so be patient and keep practicing. 

The snug factor!

I thought Sadie would immediately come home with me and snuggle all day. I was completely wrong, in fact, Sadie is such a independent little lady. She loves to explore, run around, and do her own thing. Is that a bad thing, no? Was I a bit down about it at first, yes. Then I had to sit back and realize that these little fur babies have their own personalities, their own ticks, and their own lifestyles. They fit nicely with ours but we have to realize that they're their own person. What we sometimes want they don't want, and that's okay. Today was the first day that Sadie actually came up to me and wanted to snuggle. It all comes with time. Even though Sadie may look like a giant snuggly teddy bear that doesn't mean that she wants to snuggle all day.

Love and more love

When all else fails spread the love. If you truly shower your pet with affection they will know it. There's so many ways you can show your pet that you love them. It can be through time spent, or with a special toy, or just positive reinforcement. I read somewhere that we are the center of our pet's world. When we feel down or useless our pets are our number one fans. Let that sink in. No matter how crummy you feel you pet will always love you. Pets don't judge but they adore you unconditionally and there's so much magic in that. So, when all else fails love them with all your heart. Everything else will fall into place. I hope my helpful tips can be of service to you as you potentially think about getting a puppy or have one already. Remember, to give your fur baby all the love in the world because they deserve it. Thanks for reading! Have a happy Monday, love bugs.

xoxoxo
​Rachel