Puppy's first week home--couple questions?
Hi everyone!
So it's been a week since I took my lovely little Jax home. I've never owned a corgi before (I only had a German Shepherd, and Jax is a LOT different than my shepherd), and I'm still getting used to his amount of energy. Is it normal for a corgi pup to play for 10-15 minutes then immediately pass out and sleep? He'll sleep for 30 minutes then get back up and want to play. I swear he gets like....16 hours of sleep a day and I only get 4-5 :(
Also, my boyfriend and I live in an apartment. We're still looking for a new place with a yard or at least a good lawn, since all we have is our living room and the balcony. It's becoming a struggle to take him on walks since he hasn't gotten his 12-week shots yet, so what can I do to wear him out in my apartment? I bought him tons of Kong toys, ropes, and squeakers...but he plays with a toy for a minute and becomes uninterested. Toys won't wear him out as much as playtime.
One last question! He has a VERY bad habit of getting very nippy when he gets excited. I usually get on ground-level with him when he plays with chew toys, but sometimes he'll walk over to me and just CHOMP on my neck. He'll even climb on things to get to my neck. It really hurts, and of all the places he bites me he always chooses my face or neck. I gently bop him on the head and say "NO" but he hasn't stopped. He drew blood the other day and people at work were asking why I had a gash on my neck. It was very painful and embarassing. How can I get him to stop that, without being too negative on him?
Thanks all SO much. He's a wonderful addition to the family but it's definitely a lot more work than I thought!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth, Hermione and Luna on
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sorry, think I screwed up my first one.
anyway, I'd like to second/third/fourth the "loud yelp/completely ignore" move. worked for us! Also have EVERYONE in the house do this as well. Consistency is important.
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Permalink Reply by Kathryn Harbour on
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Ellie was nippy when we first got her, but I would firmly hold her snout and say "No bite". Then she would lick me and after a while the nipping stopped. They are smart and it doesn't take long for them to understand that Mom/Dad doesn't like that behavior.
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Permalink Reply by Joelle Soupe on
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Ah... corgi biting. They all do that as puppies; Charlie is almost 7 months now and he doesn't nip AS much anymore. The yelping never worked for me (believe me I tried so many pitches); it doesn't phase him. What did work was the walking away, leaving the room, which many have talked about below.
I read once that some dogs really don't understand what "no" means, even if you do it in a mean voice, until they're much older. I found this to be very much the case with Charlie, as he is only started to understand "no" now (he started responding to "no" around 5.5/6 months).
Don't bop him on the head, it only gets him more excited! I used to have gashes all over my hands and feet; trust me it will go away with consistent correction PLUS their teeth will be much more blunt when they're older. Puppy teeth are like razors! Consistent correction for me is to stop play, leave the room (or pick him up and put him in a small room by himself for 2 minutes (they don't need long to get the point). Charlie gets time outs now if he's bad (excessive yapping, feet nipping - this is a herding thing) in the bathroom. Lights off, no toys, door closed. I do not let him out until he's quiet and it's been at least 1 minute. He is generally a good boy after I let him out!
Note that not only are "time outs" good because it teaches him that whatever behavior he just did = stop play, but it also helps calm them down since corgis seem to get overexcited easily; sometimes if I just tell him to stay in the "down" position for a little bit, he calms down on his own and is on better behavior. Other times it takes a full time out in the bathroom.
Hope that helps! Trust me, it WILL get better when they're older if you correct consistently and wait patiently for his adult teeth to come in :p
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Permalink Reply by Vicki/Kurt Pegel on
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Ok so on the average how long does it take for them to stop the biting, my hands hurt constantly from all the razor teeth cuts. I live in my grubby sweatpants, and only put on my work pants a few minutes before i walk out the door. We are doing the time out right now since nothing else worked. Hoping time out works for us too, Just wondering how long it normally takes?
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Soldier on Vicki/Kurt! It will take a few more months; your sweatpants may not survive, but your feet will; but just be patient and consistent! I'm assuming your corgi is about 2 months old right now, i'm going to say 2 more months of vigilant time outs until you can go most of the day without being nipped.
Last tip for you when you are just too tired for time outs, spray your feet with Grannick's Bitter Apple Spray, and he'll leave your feet alone after the first nip for at least a while that day. Don't make this your go-to thing though; Grannick's is too expensive for that and you'd probably like to have dry feet for the majority of your day. Just when you're too tired... you know :p.
If he has been extra bad, during his time out make alot of noise outside like you're having tons of fun without him. I learned this from a friend's dog's trainers and modified it a bit (he said to put them in a box; I don't care for that method, but I did do the "yayyy so much fun that Charlie is missing out on while he's in time out!" thing). This reinforces the feeling that they are missing out on the good stuff because they did unacceptable behavior; apparently in wolf packs play time is second only to meal time in importance, and the leader will ostracize a pack member who has "acted out" during play time to punish them. They must be able to hear, but not see (seeing makes them still feel like they're a part of it) the fun that's happening without them. Squeak toys loudly and make gleeful noises. You will feel stupid, but it works!
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Permalink Reply by Ozzie & Bebop on
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Wow, I'm laughing out loud right now, because Dexter and Bebop sound IDENTICAL! Same age too! At first I thought I was going to have a nippy dog, but he rarely does now. At times he'll try, but I won't allow it. Quite a difference from the beginning!
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So glad to hear things got better for you. Sophie is 12 weeks and we have had her for 3 weeks. The time out seems to be helping the best out of anything. I was off work all day today and she was pretty good. It seems she is the worst when we are outside, thats when the pulling on the pants really gets crazy. I am confident that things will continue to get better. She is doing so well in other areas, potty training, and she can sit, lay down, and shake :)
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Permalink Reply by Laura and Tommy Jefferson on
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Hang in there!! Tommy was my first puppy ever and I was shocked at how much work and what a little stinker he was! He was very nippy too and never interested in toys (he still really isn't with the exception of balls).
But I started taking him to classes as soon as he was old enough and they have done him a world of good!! He is eight months old now and is turning into a lovely gentleman!
Also it will be much easier for you once you have a yard for him to run off energy in!
BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!!! :)
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