Might be getting a puppy... can this be done?

So I have two cats already, Baylee and Jordan, and my DH has been wanting a puppy. We found a 6 week old girl (Chihuahua mix) through an animal shelter and, if all goes well, she might be coming home with us on Wednesday.

Anyway, I've been doing my homework on having a puppy and read that a dog that age can only hold their bladder for about 2-3 hours at best. We are out of the house M-F from 6:30am until about 4:30pm. My DH will be coming home on his lunch break to let her out (she's going to be crate trained) and play with her... but that's still leaving her alone for quite a long time at once.

Okay so I've read about people who, for small dogs, "litter box train" them. I was thinking of doing something like that - having the crate be large enough for her and a litter box and letting her use that while we were away... does this sound like an ok idea? Or should we just crate train her and suffer for a while with accidents in there til she grows up and her bladder starts to mature?

I guess I need to hear from people who've been through this... I've never had a dog before (DH has) and I want to know if this is going to be cruel for her or will work okay.

Oh yeah, and in 2 weeks I'll have 2 weeks off for Christmas vacation so I'll be home all day with her.

There is lots of great advice to be had about house-training and many other aspects of puppy ownership. Books are an invaluable tool for the dog owner!

First on the list is How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With by Clarice Rutherford, D.H. Neil and My Smart Puppy: Fun, Effective, and Easy Puppy Training with DVD by Brian Kilcommons, Sarah Wilson.

There's going to be SO much that's new to you! You'll have a great time but early, consistent training is the key - for all aspects of your puppy's development, and these two books will help you establish understanding and patterns that will last your dog's lifetime.

Oh, and big hugs to you for rescuing

Well, my sister has a Chihuahua, and he's now 9 years old...she bought him as a young puppy. They're believers in the whole, "let's litter train our toy breed" thing, and claim it's effective for tiny dogs, but quite honestly, you'll be better off training your new puppy to go outside as other dogs do. Personally, I have NEVER seen little Zippy use his litter box...and who can blame him? It is a cat's nature to bury it's waste after defecating, so that predators can't detect it's location...but really, it's not an innate thing with dogs, thereby making it really hard to do. Zippy really has never been housebroke successfully...he's a bit confused as to where he's supposed to do his business, and has always had accidents in the house. IMHO, I think crate training a young puppy is the way to go. There are many, many web sites that detail how to do crate training...and it needs to be done with a lot of PATIENCE and positive reinforcement...crate training must never be a punitive way to train a dog. But, another thing to realize, is that 6 weeks is TERRIBLY young for a new puppy to be away from it's mother...most breeders won't home a puppy until at least 8 weeks...many times between 10-12 weeks of age. Now, since this is a shelter puppy, I'm assuming that this pup doesn't have a mother...but if for some reason he does, I would seriously question why a shelter would adopt this animal out at this tender age. Anyway...I am going to operate under the assumption the puppy doesn't have a mother. Because of this, realize that the puppy is in a phase where he or she is missing some serious socialization from his littermates, and from his mother. This can lead to behavior problems down the road...PLEASE have puppy take puppy classes, and obedience training. Also, extra patience will be necessary. Once he has had his full series of vacs from the vet, he will need to be exposed to other dogs, children, your cats, and a variety of humans in order to be well-socialized.

A puppy this young (and at his teeny size) will need to be taken outside once every 45 minutes to 1 hour during the day, and probably 2-3 times during the night. A puppy that is crated should be able to sleep through the night with no accidents once he is around 10 weeks, possibly up to 12. Patience is the key, and do your reading on crate training, and behavioral training as well.

Good luck! I bet he's a little doll!

Thanks for your help... I have been thoroughly researching crate training and definitely realize that 6 weeks is so young... which is why I'm concerned about this whole thing. I mean, okay, well we'll get her and she'll be 7 weeks old but still, she can't be in a crate for more than 2 hours at that age without needing to go potty... which will be necessary due to our work schedule, at least til Christmas vacation.

I will definitely have the puppy take obedience training once she's old enough (I believe it's between 9-10 weeks) and my DH and I look forward to taking her around when she's still young (but had her vaccinations, like you said) to get her accustomed to another animals and people.

As for the animal shelter... here's what I know... she and a littermate and her mother were about to be put down at an animal shelter when a no-kill animal shelter rescued her. My husband met one of the reps of the animal shelter at his work and she was talking about these little girls so he showed me (and they put the puppies aside so that they wouldn't get adopted out before us). When we went there, the mom was still there but she was in her own cage and the two puppies were next to her in the next cage. I'm not sure why they were separated and I didn't think to ask until after we got home, but from what my husband understands, the mom is very hyper and jumps a lot (as we noticed) and they wanted to separate the pups from her, plus so that she wouldn't have as much anxiety once they were adopted out. This is not official, just my own DH's musings on the situation.

I'm not sure... I have my doubts on whether this is a good idea, but then she was an absolute angel and I'd love to have her with us... so for now I've decided that it's out of my hands and if everything works out, then she was meant to be with us - and if not, then next time we look, maybe we should look for an older dog.

Is there a reason the shelter is adopting out a dog that young? I've never known a shelter that would let a puppy go so young... Chihuahuas especially should be kept with their mother and littermates if possible or if not at least with a good knowledgeable foster home until at least 9-12 weeks if not longer...
Chihuahuas and other toy breeds need to be carefully monitored when they are young (up to I believe 14 weeks old) as they are prone to hypoglycemia among other things. I would not leave a Chi puppy that young home alone.

If you do bring this puppy home, please read up on toy breed puppies before you do so and be prepared!
Here is an article on Chihuahuas and hypoglycemia:
HYPOGLYCEMIA: New Chihuahua Owners Need To Read!- -- http://blueboychihuahuas.com/articles/hypoglycemia.html

Originally Posted by Nekochan

Is there a reason the shelter is adopting out a dog that young? I've never known a shelter that would let a puppy go so young... Chihuahuas especially should be kept with their mother and littermates if possible or if not at least with a good knowledgeable foster home until at least 9-12 weeks if not longer...
Chihuahuas and other toy breeds need to be carefully monitored when they are young as they are prone to hypoglycemia among other things. I would not leave a Chi puppy that young home alone.

If you do bring this puppy home, please read up on toy breed puppies before you do so and be prepared!
Here is an article on Chihuahuas and hypoglycemia:
HYPOGLYCEMIA: New Chihuahua Owners Need To Read!- -- http://blueboychihuahuas.com/articles/hypoglycemia.html

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I was thinking the same thing. It's recommended to wait till 8-10 weeks before seperating them from thier mother. As for the litter training, I wouldn't recommend doing that. I have a chihuahua and it's much easier to just take him outside.

Boy I hate to be a wet blanket, but it does not sound like a good idea to me at all. Even assuming you get a 7 wk old puppy (which is the absolute youngest any responsible person would adopt out a puppy unless there were extenuating circumstances such as the mother rejecting the pup), there is little point in having a puppy if you are not going to be there to train and observe. Two weeks to spend with a puppy is nothing, it takes weeks/months to teach them bite inhibition, and potty training can be quick (couple of days) or long (accidents well into them being over 6 months old).

A puppy that age holding it for 2-3 hours? At that size, more like 1-2 hours. And you are going to put the poor thing into a cage and leave her caged up all day while you work? More than likely what is going to happen is:

1) Every time you return home and take puppy out of the crate, you will have messy poo/pee to clean up. If you go the "pee pad / litter box" route you will have a confused dog who will not understand that some places indoors are ok to poo/pee on but other places are not.
2) Puppy is going to cry and whine and make it impossible for you to get a goodnight's sleep for the next six months
3) Because no one will be around to observe/train/watch the dog during waking hours, bad habits such as nipping, shredding, etc will develop and you will have a hard time untraining these.

If you do go ahead with it, do not put a "litter box" in the crate with the dog. The crate is supposed to be a doggy "safe place". Dogs normally will not soil the same place where they sleep, eat and / or play. If you train that out of a dog by forcing it to poo/pee where she is supposed to hang out all day, you basically open the door for her to regard it as ok to poo/pee ANYWHERE since you have broken a natural doggy taboo.

Believe me, I am a hard core dog lover and I can understand wanting a dog! But puppies, especially the teeny ones, require a ton of training. Leaving them alone most of the time is asking for trouble and I see enough people posting on dog boards asking for advice on what to do after things get out of hand. Pinkdaisy you may want to consider sweet talking DH into getting an adult dog who has already been housebroken and who knows some basic commands. They need love and rescuing too, and you will not be tearing your hair out in the Spring over the little monster in your house.

Good luck whatever you decide!

I am against litter box, and paper training any dog, it just teaches them it's ok to go in the house, or confusses them. I want my dogs to know that under no circumstance is it ok to go in the house (accidents can happen, of course) I really don't have advise, you have recieced some good advice I can really add to it, but I would like to say, I have worked at "kill shelters" foster homes arn't always available. 7 weeks is when we allow babies to go to new homes, if it is healthy, eatting, ect. Some times they really have a better chance of survival at a home then in a shelter. Stress on the mom can lead to drying her milk up, rejecting, or hurting her pups, and many other things. An extra 3-5 weeks in a shelter waiting for them to become 10-12 weeks can mean the difference between life and death, especially with young pups and kits. Their immune system isn't as strong as an adult or could be weakened by being in there, not to mention any little health issue that comes up, the little young ones are the first to get it, and die. I have seen so many young kittens die because of URI, if they were in a home and not in the shelter being subjected to it, they may be alive still. As soon as URI start showing up at the shelter, the little kittens are the first to get it, then they rarely come out of it, and they die or get PTS, so I can see why they allow young 7 week olds go to new homes. In my home where it is safe from a new animal comming in and getting them sick, obviously, I keep them with mom and litter mates till 12 weeks, at a shelter where an animal with god knows what can come in at any time and then they get sick and die. So I think they have a better chance of surviving at 7 weeks in a home then at a shelter.

Originally Posted by ClaireBear

I was thinking the same thing. It's recommended to wait till 8-10 weeks before seperating them from thier mother. As for the litter training, I wouldn't recommend doing that. I have a chihuahua and it's much easier to just take him outside.

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This is absurdly too young for a shelter (NO LESS!) to let a toy breed go at this age. The recommended age for Chis and Chi mixes is actually longer than the other breeds (10-12 weeks at least).
6 or 7 weeks is the age BYB's let their litters go for gawd sake!

Whatever you decide, I would have a word with the shelter about this and ask if she can stay with her mum for several weeks more. Also, I ditto against the paper/litter training. It only serves to confuse the dog.. Take the puppy outside. Hire someone to come in if you can't be there (every 3-4 hours).

Good luck.

Originally Posted by celestialrags

...so I can see why they allow young 7 week olds go to new homes.

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Thank you, I noticed everyone was attacking the animal shelter and it seemed like a good place to me. I've only adopted one other cat from an animal shelter and this one seemed more thorough... after all, they are setting up the appointments for vaccinations and spaying for a while and making us come to their vet (across the street, not affiliated with them, just the one they chose), plus they ask that they can come check up on the pet in the future, etc. And they automatically microchip their pets.

I don't know, from all of what I just mentioned, plus talking to the rep, I felt like they actually cared about the animal, rather than getting one out the door and the next one in. So I do think they have their reasons.

As for 2dogmom... sigh. Trust me, I've stayed up late at night thinking this through. Thinking about getting up every couple of hours to take her out, to listen to her whining, training her... I've done a lot of reading on the topic and research. I think the reasons why we think she is perfect is because:
from what we've seen (we spent a while with her on Saturday) she's a lot more calm than some other dogs, and very sweet. She's smaller than our cats and I know they get nervous about animals that are larger than them... so if the puppy is smaller right now, they can get used to her while she's not intimidating. Some adult dogs that are rescued have issues from abusive previous owners, aren't cat-friendly, have bad habits already... That's our theory anyway.

Anyway, right now I've decided that it's not in my hands... that even though I'd love for her to come into our home, and there are reasons for her to not come into our home... right now it's out of my hands. It's up to the owner of this house to decide if she'll let us have a puppy this young, it's up to the adoption agency, and quite frankly it's up to God.

I do know that if she can't come into our home, then yes, I will definitely look for an adult dog for the future.

And okay, no on the litter box... I thought it might be a possibility but I'll throw it out the window.

Originally Posted by Loveysmummy

This is absurdly too young for a shelter (NO LESS!) to let a toy breed go at this age. The recommended age for Chis and Chi mixes is actually longer than the other breeds (10-12 weeks at least).
6 or 7 weeks is the age BYB's let their litters go for gawd sake!

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We are all well aware of the recomended age. But, given they are in a shelter where at any time a dog could come in with bordatella, parvo, distemper, ect they are at a very high risk of becoming sick. At a breeders home they are safe from the risk of unknown animals infecting them. They need to learn puppy behaviours from mom and littermates, right? But, what can they possible learn from mom and sibs while in a cage? They wont (or shouldn't be ) in a cage when they get adopted, so they will learn more from the new owners after going to their home where they will also be safe from diese. So to keep a puppy from 12 weeks at a shelter could possible kill them. Ideally a foster home until that age would be best, but it's not alway possible, so getting them out of the environment that could be very dangerous for them and in a home so they can get adjusted is the best they can do.

Ari! You're here! Wow - good to see you my dear.
In the time you've been gone, we got Sandy (Moochy) and we got her at barely 6 weeks. She was able to go to work with Eric every night at the studio so she was socialzed from a human/noise standpoint very early: music, parties, sirens, traffic, noise - just lots of it. She was never without the two of us, or one or the other. At home, we got great advice from a dog trainer specializing in puppies - big key. She said to treat her as if we had a newborn: you wouldn't leave your baby alone or alone with the kitties, and we followed that advice and it worked like a charm. We suprvised her every move with firm rules and "NO" but never, ever yelled or hit, ever. Never. Litter was just a loud "NO" and cheese for positive reinforcement. I think we have a stash of cheese still in the litter closet, just for her. LOL! We kept her on a long leash downstairs when we were there, and she slept with us in a little bed - with a long leash so we wouldn't worry at night, and then she got her own "grown up" crate at 6 months. She took 1 month to acclimate to the crate and she loved it. It was her "private place" and we used it only for sleeping. It was never used as a punishment because then she'd reject being in it. But we smothered her with love and patience and knew it would take 6 months for the cat/dog household to integrate. PATIENCE AND TIME. If you can't spare it - hold off.

Now, two years later, I woke up Sunday morning to Sammy at my feet, Saba at my head, and Sandy crashed out between Eric and I, all toasty and warm...the entire family in bed and everybody is well-adjusted and accepting of everyone else.

We spent $50 on 1 hour with the trainer and it made all the difference!
...and we got a mixed breed that would be compatible with the littles and not try to eat them!

Hey all, thanks for all the help. Well, everything worked out and we brought her home on Wednesday... here she is:



We've named her Lola, she's 7 weeks old now and is itty bitty. I find myself looking for answers HERE on TCS because the dog forums I've visited are scary, lol!

Awww....just look at that little poo-tinky munchkin!!!! Lola is an adorable puppy! I'm still glad you rescued her, even if she's too young...she appears to be a happy-looking girl!

I too have yet to find a dog forum that I feel comfortable with...TCS is still my favorite place for ALL animals, even though cats rule here. What would I have done while my 3 kitties were growing up without TCS? And now that I'm married to my hubby and his two dogs (was 3, but Ginger was PTS last Monday ), I find that there are lots of great dog people on here too.

Besides Chihuahua, what else is she? She has a terrier look about her in the face...

Feel free to ask away...I'm sure Lola will present you with new challenges each week. The key to puppies is PATIENCE coupled with a lot of WORK...do all of your homework on crate training, housebreaking, get her enrolled in puppy classes, the medical stuff arranged, etc. She'll be a lot of fun!

she's tooo cute!!!

Oh my, she is adorable. I can seee why she stole your heart!
Good luck with the little munchkin!

Ohhhh cuteness! Yes, dog forums can be scary - you need to be pretty thick-skinned and very willing to put up with quite a lot of people who will jump down your throat.

Unfortunately, the dog world is one that is full of controversy, conflicting ideas, and a great deal of abuse, abandonment, neglect, misinformation and ignorance. Dog forums can be very hard-nosed and judgemental, and you need to have a good understanding of why people can be that way to last very long on them! I got pretty depressed pretty quickly with the forum that I'm on, and it took me a while to get used to it, and to understand the motivations behind some of its members and stick around long enough to make friends there.

This site, however, is completely lovely, and there are a few people here who really know what they are talking about with dogs, so it's probably a good idea to confine your questions to the people here that you know!

I totally agree Sarah... some forums I've visited make me feel completely clueless... and like everything I'm doing is harmful for my puppy!

Okay on that note... can I ask a question, if people are still reading this thread? Okay, so we're working on crate training Lola but in the mean time we're keeping her in the bathroom. We have a puppy pad down for her (and now that her upset tummy is getting better both training and keeping her there will be much better for everyone).

Here's my thing... she sleeps there at night. I have a tendency to wake up in the middle of the night but when I go near her door, all is quiet... she's either asleep or otherwise not upset. Should I wake her up to take her outside? Or just let her sleep? Part of me thinks that what we're doing is making it okay for her to go to the bathroom whenever she wants... but then she's still so young her bladder control isn't great so I excuse it.

Cats are so much easier, lol!

Nope - don't wake her. They are creatures of habit, and if you start waking her for an outside potty visit, she'll continue to need one throughout her life.

She's just a bub - toilet training is trying and frustrating, because unlike babies, you cannot put a nappy on a dog and change it! They make messes everywhere, but it's important to remember that by observing their behaviours to find out when they need to go, and enthusiastically praising for going in the right spot, as time goes by and her bladder control improves, she will be able to hold on for long enough to get outside.

And don’t yell at her or anything if she has accidents – that can just intimidate them into trying to hide their messes from you, because they don’t understand the reason behind the scolding, except for that it’s somehow associated with her pottying. I’m sure you wouldn’t do that anyway!

Complete toilet training takes up to 12 months. But don’t despair! After three to six months you’ll be 90% of the way there.

Originally Posted by KitEKats4Eva!

Unfortunately, the dog world is one that is full of controversy, conflicting ideas, and a great deal of abuse, abandonment, neglect, misinformation and ignorance. Dog forums can be very hard-nosed and judgemental, and you need to have a good understanding of why people can be that way to last very long on them! I got pretty depressed pretty quickly with the forum that I'm on, and it took me a while to get used to it, and to understand the motivations behind some of its members and stick around long enough to make friends there.

This site, however, is completely lovely, and there are a few people here who really know what they are talking about with dogs, so it's probably a good idea to confine your questions to the people here that you know!

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I agree that this is a great site. But not all dog forums are that bad! I finally found one that I like. This was after one nasty one about Labrador Retrievers, one where are as KitEKats4Eva says, people jump down your throats, and one that is very nice but got completely taken over by the vegan crowd. I tried another one once for about 5 posts and it was AWFUL, just like KiteKats4Eva said! There is a fith one that I am trying now that seems ok, I am not sure yet. Dog people are not that bad! It is just hard to give a warm welcome to yet the 1000th noob who posts about how to "bread" their dog, how they have to give up their 10 yr old dog because they just had a baby and it is too too hard to have baby and a dog, bla bla bla. But anyone who asks for help gets it. If some moron does jump down your throat we take care of them. If you want details PM me and I can steer you away from the nasty ones, I hate them too!

So anyway, do not wake puppy up in the middle of the night, but make it a routine to get the dog outside ASAP in the morning. This should become a habit, you have the best chance that she will need to go when she wakes up and this will make housebreaking so much easier.