[Ospreysmom]

My boyfriend and I just adopted a great 1 year old dog we named Osprey. I have been wanted a dog for 2 years. I am going to school to become a vet tech and we adopted him through my college. We get dogs from the county animal control and adopt them out while we alter them, do dental cleanings, and care for them as learning experiences. Osprey stayed with us over Thanksgiving and my boyfriend said we could keep him. He is smart, friendly, full of energy, and handsome. :dog-love: My professor says he is a cattle dog mix. These two weeks have been really hard. It was not the best idea to adopt a dog right before finals, but that's the way it worked out. We also have two cats. They have been highly stressed by the dog and I feel so guilty. He is not house trained, but other than that he just has some minor behavior issues. He will chase the cats if they run, and that is really stressing me out. I am also constantly worried that Osprey will jump the fence, run out the door, or get loose while on a walk. :dog-crazy: I feel like I have to constantly entertain him and that has left little room for studying. I failed an exam last week because I was so tired and didn't have time to study. :dog-cry: The worst part is that I find myself losing my temper after he chased a cat or play bit. I have swatted his behind because of it, although I was hoping I could use positive reinforcement training. I feel overwhelmed with training him. I want to take him to training classes, but it will be after Christmas before we can. Finally today I've let my boyfriend watch him and I am shut up in the bedroom. I am hoping that my anxiety will decrease after my finals are over, but I know a lot of stress is coming from Osprey. I feel like a bad pet parent to him and the cats. I feel like a failure. I wanted a dog for so long, but I never imagined this stress. Has anyone gone through this? What got you over the hump and able to enjoy your new family member?

 

[Rain]

Yep, I went through it with my current dog Zody.

I got him having over 17 years of dog ownership behind me, and my old boy Shadow had passed away around 6 months before I got him. So I really wasn't prepared for the way I felt.

I had been wanting another dog when I got Zody, but I got him and wondered what in the world I was doing with him. There was no immediate connection like with my last two, and after having him for a few days I wanted to give him back to my friend who had given him to me. He loved her and was just putting up with me, and I wanted my old boy back.

Slowly the feelings passed. I learned to love him for who he was, and he learned to love me. I stopped wanting him to be like my two former dogs (I realize now that that's what I was wanting), or my idea of what I wanted him to be. Once I stopped doing that our bond formed.

I'd recommend that you take a step back from him, make sure he's exercised, and fed, then give him a nice chew or a Kong stuffed and frozen, then go study. It's important to remember you don't have to entertain him 24/7.

For the cats check out this thread.. http://www.dogforum.com/training-behavior-stickies/introing-cats-dogs-23536/ and keep him on a tether so that he cannot practice chasing the cats.

 

[laceyj19]

Been there. I hadn't owned a puppy in nine years (adopted an older dog after my Great Dane), and I had forgot how much work they were. I felt so overwhelmed because I suddenly had to watch her constantly, ensure everything was puppy-proofed, catch behaviour I liked, and redirect behaviours I didn't. I also took for granted all the activities I could do with my older dogs- like hiking, biking, and physically challenging training. A puppy couldn't do those things, and I really missed doing them.

I would cry and be generally cranky. For me, my puppy depression only really lasted 2-3 weeks. I adjusted, and things became easier as Nevy became more house-trained and adapted to my schedule.

Hoping things get better. <3 Raising dogs can be a lot harder than people give us credit for!

 

[Redwood]

My father leveraged a 10 week old puppy onto me right before finals as well, and it had a ... rather negative effect on my grades. Is there any chance you could perhaps ask someone else to watch your new pup for the time ti takes you to finish finals? It won't affect your ability to bond later.

 

[kathyt]

I totally understand. My hubby and I adopted a rescue a little over a month ago. I've had dogs before and thought I knew what I was in for, but I wasn't expecting to feel so overwhelmed, anxious and at times exhausted. Like you, we have two cats and that helps to add to the chaos. My cats are the instigators. Egging the dog on to chase them. It has gotten better here. It takes time to bond and for life to get back to normal. It slowly is and it will for you too. One of the things that really helped me was coming across a thread here that was about these very same feelings. Finding out that others went through the same thing was helpful.

 

[kathyt]

Oh, I forgot to add, your dog is so darn cute! Very good looking!

 

[Ospreysmom]

Thank you to everyone who replied! I am feeling a little better. I got some quality study time in over the weekend. Osprey is busy learning not to potty inside. We still have made no headway with the cats. When they start freaking out, I almost think that Osprey sees them as a threat to me. We're just trying to keep everybody separated right now. I took Osprey on a walk today, and we walked by someone's house who's dog was in the front yard. The dog ran up to us and Osprey started to jump on top of him. That dog didn't like it understandably so. Osprey is still pretty recently neutered, before that he like to hump a lot. I suppose I need to add that to the listof behaviors I want to correct..

 

[KayWilson]

Believe me puppy blues are totally normal. I had them when I got my dog, after having a nice, quiet senior for 14 years. Only thing that healed was time and crawling up in a ball and having a good ugly cry.