Hello,
I'm new to the forum. I've got a puppy who's coming on to 9 weeks old, and would like some help in figuring out how much to play/train in a day.
We've had a home visit from a puppy trainer, who's made me feel bad saying I 'probably don't do enough with him' and that's why he doesn't yet know recall and several other commands, and why he nips at people's toes.
We have told our children to stop playing when he chases them, play bites them, and to stand still with their arms crossed without running, flapping about, shouting and so on, when he does that.
I realise that a puppy is a big time commitment, and I am home all day except for various schoolruns/kids activities. I do not, however, want to spend every waking hour just doing puppy related things.
I play with him, and have started walking on leash training, and he is responding well. He is sitting consistantly well when told, except when over-excited. He is starting to learn recall, and even today started to bring back the toys I threw for him. He is quite well toilet trained, in 5 days that we've had him, he's only had one accident in the house. I try to give him free access to the garden, and go out there with him regularly, to encourage him to go and praise him when he does go.
My issue is, how much to play with him, so that he gets enough stimulation/training, but not so much that it becomes too much and he gets overtired and overexcited. I can see when he feels that way, cause suddenly he doesn't remember anything he's been taught and starts jumping up and playbiting. I stop playing then, but he still gets a bit wild around the house and garden. It is sometimes a bit hard to try and figure out, is he acting up because he is tired, or acting up because he needs more play?
If anyone could give me some idea of roughly how much active play and/or training I should give him in a day, that would be very helpful, as the trainer made me feel guilty, but at the same time there are other things to do in the day, and while I realise Charlie will need time and commitment, he isn't the only thing in my life.
Once he has completed his vaccinations, I will start taking him for walks, and again it would be helpful to know how much to start with and how to build up...
Another thing is about timing... Charlie obviously has his moments when he is lively, and the times when he is tired. He has his own doggy room in the house, with his crate/bed, and I put him in that room for meals, some games, and when I have to be away, so he can't harm himself with anything in the house or destroy things when I'm not there to keep him out of trouble.
First question is, when I put him there, he cries and whines. The trainer said to ignore it, which I'm quite okie with, but I wonder when he will get used to being put there without getting upset? I know they are pack animals and don't like to be alone, but no dog can be with their owner all the time. How long does it usually take for puppies to settle and be alright on their own whenever they are left?
Second question is (and that is the one about timing), I was ideally planning to get him to play and have an active time before I leave, so he feels more tired and less wanting to play when I have to leave him, and he could just sleep while I'm gone, but it never seems to work, he always seems to get tired at some point well before and fall asleep, obviously I don't want to overwhelm him by keeping him awake, but he is not so sleepy when I leave him. He has kong toys and chew toys to keep him busy.
Although I'm home a lot, my going outs are not routinely the same everyday, as my daughters finish school at staggered times and also have different activities on different days of the week, so it means I can't give him a regular 'every day is exactly the same' schedule, will that be fine with him, or will that upset him? For instance today I was home all morning, but the evening schoolrun will take a while, whereas tomorrow I'll have to be out a bit in the morning after the morning schoolrun, but the evening schoolrun will be much quicker. Is that going to confuse him, or will he be alright with me just coming and going as the day demands?
I'm feeling quite confused, talking to trainer, breeder, vet, as to what to do, and I'm starting to feel very stressed that every minute of the day is spent either being busy with Charlie or with him whining that I'm not busy with him, or with me just feeling plain worried and guilty about everything. Right now he is asleep, and I wish he wasn't cause the long schoolrun will come up while he's awake and alone...
Once he's had his vaccination, would the routine work better if, on long schoolruns, I took him along? Maybe he would then be kept busy with me, and be more tired when coming home, rather than whining and then totally desperate for a game and company as dinner and homework has to be done?
I had read so much before, and he is an easy pup as far as I can tell, he is my first dog, but I am feeling overwhelmed with things right now and if anyone has any advise that would be lovely. I hope to fall in a routine with Charlie, but just struggling to know what and how much is needed and how much is too much...
Sorry for such a long first post... I've had four kids and know what it's like to deal with 'small creatures' and how demanding it can be, but somehow with Charlie I feel a bit overwhelmed, and I don't know why cause as I said he seems like a very good pup, and I feel I should be overjoyed with him rather than constantly worried and overwhelmed.
New puppy play/train schedule 
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