Friday, April 30, 2010

Puppy Love

Harley 72

This is my new love.  We just got him yesterday, he is a 9 week old German Shepherd.  We named him Harley.

Harley 76

He spent the night in his crate next to our bed, only woke us up once last night.  He is super cute and seems to be very intelligent.  We met his mama and papa, his papa is about 95 lbs and a gorgeous, but intimidating looking fellow.

Harley 80

Anyone out there with any advise on raising a puppy?  It’s been a very long time since we had a puppy.  He will be spending some time in his crate while I am working. 

I love each and every comment, thanks for visiting me.   Marla

6 comments:

  1. Ohhhhhh! He's just the sweetest!!!! I just love puppy breath. His face is so wonderful, the way his "eyebrows" make him look like he's deep in thought.

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  2. I had the best book Deborah Wolfe's bestselling book, 'Good Dog'. Here are some things I learned from it.
    1.make sure you have his chew toys around then when he picks up anything inappropriate you take it out of his mouth, say no and then put one of his toys in his mouth and praise him.
    2. never allow biting for play. Firmly say "no bite" and put one of his toys in his mouth.
    3. if he jumps up on you grab his paws and hold on for dear life. He will pull and wiggle and chew at your hands but hold them a REALLY long time. You will only have to do this a couple times before he decides not to jump up on people. It doesn't hurt him like a knee to the chest does and smart dogs learn this fast.
    4. put him on his leash and walk him quickly around your yard. Every time he gets close to stepping into your garden beds a quick tug and a sharp "out" and keep walking in circles around the yard at the edges of the gardens.
    5. Only give a command once. "Harley, sit". If he doesn't sit you don't repeat the command, just repeat his name. "Harley" and place him in a sit position. He heard the command the first time. If you keep repeating it without making him do it there is no lesson learned.
    6. When teaching him to come have him on the leash. Make him sit and then call him with whatever you like to say such as "Harley with me". Give a little tug on the leash and have him come. Reward with a special tiny treat and a big "good boy". Repeat this and give a treat. Third time no treat. Fourth time maybe a treat maybe not. The key is to make him want to come "with me" because it can be really good, but of course he can't get a treat every time. Remember that you only say "Harley with me" once then after that it is just "Harley!" and a tug. In his mind he is thinking treat, treat, treat.
    Well I think the book may have been shorter than my whole response. Best of luck with Harley.

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  3. Awwww, Harley is precious! We had a lot of fun going through puppy obedience classes at PetSmart. It's great for them to be around other dogs and people. Have fun with your puppy!!!

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  4. Marla he is adorable! Be blessed. Cindy

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  5. Marla he's so cute, and who mentioned puppy breath? love it.
    one thing when training a new puppy is to be consistent. If he is biting at your hand or chewing on something inappropiate it may be cute now, but not when he is 100lbs and those teeth mean busy. so keep up with all the rules now. looking forward to tracking his progress.

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  6. Hi Marla! What a cutie! I couldn't tell you a thing about puppies! Now if that were a kitten...lol! I scrolled down and took a peek at your thrifty finds...fabulous! Did you see where the Atlanta bloggers had a private sale at A Classy Flea sponsored by Susan at Between Naps on the Porch last night? I must say that they missed all the good stuff...you had already bought it! Happy week!...Debbie

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