Meet "I Love Lucy" (Aka Lulu). Lulu is now 8 months old and is starting to calm down a bit, but I thought I'd recap some of the wonderful lessons I've learned having a puppy in the house (for the first time ever). I grew up in the country where all dogs are kept in the yard or a pen, so I had a lot to learn.1. Never feed your puppy grapes. Evidently, they make them very sick and can cost you $850 in vet fees. Lulu spent an entire day at the vet with an IV under constant observation and my hubby spent two days home from work watching her every move. I had no idea that grapes can be deadly toxins to puppies and at the time, didn't even realize what caused the problem. Now I know that when I watched in amazement at how much my puppy loved grapes the night before the vet trip, I really was making a stupid move.
2. Don't purchase a soft-sided crazy-expensive crate - just go for the metal prison-like one. I thought I was being all cool buying this high-tech, collapsible crate with zippers on all sides, etc, etc. I also thought Lulu might appreciate my attempt to make the crate experience a little more appealing (no prison-like bars). Well, we came home one day to find her head stuck through a huge hole she'd made in the side. I again thought I was being smart by flipping the hole over on the bottom, then she soon learned to open the zipper. Back to the store we went and another couple hundred dollars later, we bought the metal prison-like crate and she loves it.
3.DO NOT steam clean your brand new carpet if your puppy pees on it. It only makes the smell worse and the urine feeds on the moisture. The best thing to use is a odor-neutralizing powder. You can find them online and in speciality stores. Capture carpet cleaner works great.
4. Brushing your pup can really help and almost eliminate the shedding. We use a Furminator every day on Lulu and she loves it. As soon as I pull it out of the drawer she runs over and rolls on her back.
So, we are still learning to live with Lulu and she with us. My son calls her his little sister and she is definitely a member of our family. See for yourself how cute she is!
Aside from the whole breeder thing, I love this! She has SUCH a precious face - I wish I could have gotten the video to load to see her in action ;-)
ReplyDeleteThe other thing I learned when I had my first puppy... that all shoes (expensive or not) go in the closet when not being worn. My pups have GREAT taste in heels...
I updated the video, so should work better now!
ReplyDeletei love love love her! so beautiful.
ReplyDeletewe have a golden too. his name is boudreaux. he'll be 3 years old in december. the furminator is our best friend-- especially in the summer!
Grapes are bad, as is chocolate, onions, garlic, and anything with artificial sweetners in it. Trident gum or Orbit gum is especially bad becuase it contains Xylitol which causes severe hypoglycemia and liver failure. There is a lot of stuff people need to know about dogs before ever owning one. Puppy proofing your home is absolutely essential as is monitoring everything they can get into. Keep up with heartworm and frontline. Certain chew toys are bad for them as well. Large chunks of rawhide can cause obstructions if not careful. The list goes on and on. Educate yourself before the vet bills accumulate.
ReplyDeleteI want a puppy so bad but hubby says we need to wait a few more years :( I had no idea that they could not eat grapes--wow.
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