What's a typical day once you get a puppy?

Hello everyone, I hope someone might offer some insight into what will happen if I get a puppy!

I'm researching like mad but have yet to find a description of a typical day when you have a puppy/young dog in your life. For example, with an 8 week old, I'm after information such as:

Up at 5am for a garden visit, feed, water
Play plus brief first steps in training until puppy get's tired
Puppy will then sleep again till 8am
Repeat every 3 hours for the first week
(note - this routine is from my imagination, not what might be required at all!)

If anyone is familiar with Gina Ford and her 'Contented Baby' book - it's that kind of routine description I'm after. That way at least we'll have a rough idea what we're in for! I guess routines will differ according the breed - I'm interested in a reasonably large dog, say the size of a GSD.

Does that make sense ? Sorry for such a basic question but I want to be as prepared as poss. Thanks for reading my post and for any feedback you might have.

A typical day starts very early as the puppy will need to be taken out during the night so, depending on what time the last meal & drink & pee & poo occurs, you will probably need to get up at around 1.00 - 2.00 a.m. and again at 5.00 - 6.00 a.m. (maybe more frequently).

Young pups need 4 meals per day so you must be there to provide breakfast, lunch, dinner, supper at regular times every day.

Puppies do need to sleep a great deal, but when they are awake they need constant attention if housetraining is to be accomplished quickly & with the least possible stress for dog & owner. Pup will need to be taken out for elimination purposes as soon as it wakes (even after a short nap), after every meal/drink, after playing, and every hour or so in between. Never take your eyes off pup when it is awake. Watch for the 'toilet signals' - circling, sniffing the floor.

If your pup is unconfined then you need to keep a constant watch to ensure that it does not chew inappropriate items and that it is not in a situation where it could hurt itself.

You also need time to play with the pup, talk to it, cudlle it, all of which help the bonding process.

You will need to make time in your day to take your pup out to become familiar with the world and to socialize him with various people. Prior to final vaccs this has to be done with the pup in your arms.

Having a puppy can be very tiring for the first few weeks, but the effort that is put in is well worthwhile.

I recommend that you read Gwen Bailey's 'The Perfect Puppy' as that will answer many of your questions and provide good guidance

You have a fabulous answer to your question from Shadowboxer. I will add a couple of points too

1. Your life will change drastically - for the better.

2. If you're puppy's/dog's unwell, it can't tell you what's wrong - you have to work it out.

3. Children become independent as they grow older - dogs are always dependent on you - more so at the beginning and ends of their lives, which could be in excess of 18 years.

4. It ain't cheap - get some insurance (M&S are very good).

5. Hope you like walking in all weathers 'cos dogs don't care what the weather's like.

6. Do you mind total strangers coming up to you because they are interested in your dog? This will happen a lot. (especially if I'm about )

7. Once you have one, you'll always have one.

8. With a GSD you'll spend a fair amount of time grooming. This also helps the bonding process and can be very pleasurabe for the dog.

The very best of luck to you - we are always on hand here to give advice should you need it, but we do insist on pictures of your pup (when he/she arrives) as our reward

Shadowboxer and Vicki, thank you both! That was just what I was looking for.

Also many thanks for the book suggestion SB. I've been looking on Amazon at puppy/dog books and the choice is boggling so recommendations are excellent for a novice such as myself.

And Vicki, I love walking in all weathers. If anything, I especially love it when it rains. Well, as long as I have my waterproofs on! Nothing like feeling nature at it's most raw. Mad, eh?! I also walk 2 large hounds 3 times a week and love those chats with strangers too.

Lots more to learn so it's very likely I'll pop up with more questions. But it's early days - puppy pics will be months off yet unfortunately. Would photos of the hounds do in the meantime ?

Hi Tillytails Just thought I'd mention another good book along the lines of Gwen Bailey's... it's called "The K.I.S.S. guide to raising a puppy" and the Author is Liz Palika.

It's similar to The Perfect Puppy although I found it more comprehensive....

It's also a shame you missed Discover Dogs as it's a great opportunity to get to know different breeds if you're still unsure which one to go for... the next one is in November but in the meantime, if you know at least the groups you're interested, you could visit a few shows and chat to some breeders.... it helps a lot

Also be aware that the first few weeks of owning a puppy are really difficult... have a look at this thread:

http://www.dogweb.co.uk/talkdogs/pup...row_26454.html

But it DOES get better, and you get back a thousand times what you put in at the beginning so it's well worth investing a good amount of time in training - you will be well rewarded for it

Finally, don't be shy, I'm sure owners on DogWeb of breeds you are interested in would not mind you sending them a Personal Message, or you can put up a thread in the Breed Clubs section where owners of your breeds will be more likely to notice it

Good luck in your search

Hi tuti and thanks for the additional book recommendation - I'm making notes! I'll click on that thread and take a good read of that too. But I can see why some people get a puppy without realising what they're in for and it all ends in tears.

I wanted to go to Discover Dogs in November but the advance tickets had sold out online and then we got involved in something else that weekend. However, I am going to Crufts on the Saturday and there's a local dog show at the end of Jan in the meantime.

And thanks again everyone for taking the time to reply and for your good wishes - makes me feel most welcome here! :smt023

my life is one long round of feeding, cleaning,playing, more cleaning, more feeding, more cleaning, doing a bit of housework while puppies are asleep, feeding, even more cleaning, doing dinner (have to feed the humans sometimes)wouldnt have it any other way lol

lol unless you get one like my Dusty who WILL NOT go out in the rain and just sits on her rear end refusing to move!

and if she has to pee she tiptoes out and across the grass (it's so funny to watch) pees and tiptoes back in again!

Anyway i'm so glad to see someone really thinking about it first! Too many people go out and get a dog on a whim and can't cope, well done you! xxx

Oh dear. I didn't realise I'd have to do that when I got a puppy. Major rethink required

Random, are you sure you've not got a cat? Sounds very familiar..

Hi Tillytales an interesting question, first I would take away the word 'Puppy' and substitute 'Baby' instead , this may sound silly but to all intents and purposes that is what a new puppy is, a dependant baby. The difference between the two is a puppy's period of complete dependency lasts a much shorter time than that of a human baby. I am amazed how often people fail to realise the similarities and think a puppy is a small dog that comes ready trained and with few needs.

Like any baby removed from its mother a puppy will cry, some more than others, no doubt they feel very small, afraid and unprotected in the big outside world , also they cry instinctively in order to attract their mother's attention so that she can answer their call and protect them from predators.

To grow a strong healthy puppy its meals need to be small, nutritious and regular, to me that means 4 meals a day = ever 6 hours and of course a puppy has no control over bladder/ bowels and needs to be taken out frequently and never scolded for soiling in the house, an action over which it has no control..


When getting a new puppy I know for the first couple of weeks I will be pretty tied up while the initial bonding takes place and trust starts to be built. Most of the time where I go the puppy goes so that I can observe it and be aware when it wants to go out. Carried in my arms or in a little box it goes in the car or down the fields seeing as many new things as possible, cows /sheep/tractors /aircraft all greeted with a voice that says 'look at this isn't it exciting ' so the puppy learns there is nothing in the world to be afraid of. Short training sessions start very early, each new thing learnt becomes part of the daily routine to be used frequently and so reinforced/automatic .

As the bond between myself and the puppy develops so does it's confidence and I can start to leave it for short periods always giving it the chance to go out to be clean first. I come and go ignoring it so that my absence becomes no big thing, a growing trust reassures the puppy I will always return.

As the weeks progress and the puppy is fully vaccinated the world is explored further with short walks, by four months my little one will have control over bodily functions and can be left for longer periods.

All this takes just a few short months, it may sound like a lot of hard work but if you want a puppy to bond with you and to grow into a happy well balanced dog you need to put the effort in, the rescue centres are full of dogs who once belonging to people who didn't bother.


Those who are prepared to take the time and put in the effort are rewarded with a loyal, obedient and most of all happy companion...