Traditional dog food has been the go-to option for pet owners for the longest time, but despite commercial dog meals available in the market these days, more and more people are resorting to homemade dog food.
While some do so to have a greater control over what their dog consumes, others take this decision to feed their dog based on their breed, size, and level of activity.
Not everyone, however, has the time to prepare elaborate dog meals every day, which is the reason why simpler meals come in handy.
Are you someone who is wondering what kind of homemade meals will be the best suited for your furry little friend? Have you been thinking about these things while planning these meals?
Well, worry not, for we atPet Food Brands are here to help you out with everything you need to know about preparing homemade meals for your doggo.
Recipes for Homemade Dog Food
Every dog needs a certain percentage of protein, carbs, and fiber in their diet. When you make meals for them at home, it could be tricky to narrow down the kind of ingredients you may want to include in those meals.
Here are some simple yet effective recipes that will be a mix of healthy and delicious for your pet:
Beef Stew
To prepare beef stew as a meal for your pet buddy, you will need a pound of ground beef, half a cup of peas, one carrot, and one sweet potato.
Cook it till the beef’s pink color fades away. Make sure not to throw away the fat, as it can be good for your dog. Add in the potato and carrot, pour in some water, and cover the mixture for it to start boiling.
Gradually, turn the heat down and allow 20 minutes for the concoction to simmer, post which you can add the peas and cook for five more minutes. Let the dish cool down, and then proceed to serve it.
Chicken and Brown Rice
To make chicken and brown rice, you will need one tablespoon of vegetable oil, a cup of cooked brown rice, a quarter teaspoon of potassium chloride, and a quarter pound of cooked skinless chicken.
After cooking the rice and the chicken, wait for them all to cool down and then mix in the other items till they resemble a mashed form. This works great especially for a dog that weighs about 20 pounds, and you can measure the ingredients based on your dog’s size.
Turkey and Vegetables
The mixture of turkey and veggies serves as a fabulous source of proteins, minerals, and vitamins for your dog.
The ingredients include two shredded carrots, half a cup of peas, one piece of shredded zucchini, three pounds of ground turkey, three cups of baby spinach, a tablespoon of olive oil, and one and a half cups of brown rice.
After making the brown rice, set it aside for it to cool down. Heat up the olive oil on medium flame and cook the ground turkey in it till it turns brown. After five minutes, post which the turkey will be done, break it apart into a crumbly form.
Mix the rice and vegetables into the turkey and cook this entire mixture for about five minutes. Once you see the spinach wilting, take the vessel off the stove and leave it to cool down before serving it.
Tips for Homemade Meals for Your Dog
Suppose you have decided to switch to homemade meals for your little pet, but now your mind is racing thinking what are the vital points to remember to ensure that you’re giving the best of everything to your dog.
The following are some essential tips to keep in mind:
Do your research and see to it that neither are the meals nutritionally deficient nor nutritionally toxic. Discuss with your vet to know the exact quantity of nutrients to add to the meals.
Make use of supplements and do so only after consulting with a professional. Some of the supplements to add to homemade dog meals are fish oil, vitamin E, and vitamin B.
Keep changing things up every now and then. Don’t feed the same meals to your dog every day.
If you wish for the meals to be budget-friendly, you can mix a bit of kibble to the homemade food.
Conclusion
Before you decide on the kind of homemade meals to make for your dog or even think of making the switch from traditional dog food to homemade ones, make sure to discuss the topic with your veterinarian.
Once you get the green signal from them, you can proceed to create nutritious and well-balanced meals that will be great for your canine companion.
Chance is the most friendly, loveable puppy and he loves socializing with both people and dogs alike! He has a lot of fun playing with his Kong toys, playing fetch, going for runs and hikes, and spending time with his Grandparents. Chance just graduated from puppy school at Miracle K9 Training in Cleveland and is doing great with following commands. He lives with his parents, Rob and Katelyn, in Cleveland and he's looking forward to spending time at Kelley's Island on Lake Erie this Summer. He loves to go on the boat and swim in the lake! He has a lot of energy and is always making his family laugh at the way he rolls on his back for belly rubs, and frolics in the grass while playing. He never ceases to bring a smile to our face each and every day.
Our little guy has turned into 60 pounds of pure love and is the absolute center of our world. He is such a sweetheart and honestly has the goofiest personality I’ve ever met. He befriends every human and animal he meets and just wants to love on everyone. His best friend is my parents’ 8 lb yorkie (pictured below) and his favorite activities include playing in the woods with his dad, car rides, boating in the summer, finding the biggest sticks to bring home on walks, going to the dog park, and snuggling with mom. I had a hard time picking my favorite photos from the last 8 months but here are a few! He recently got a big boy haircut as we prepare for warmer months ahead…safe to say he is living his best life and we are just so grateful we found you!
Poppy is so so so loved! She weighs about 25lbs. She looooves any toys that squeak! My favorite thing Poppy does is she chooses a stick on our walks (no matter the size) and carries it the whole walk. I also love when she tries to catch a ball, she tries to use her arms like a human!
Moki loves chasing balls and playing with her sister Coco. Her favorite activity is chasing Coco around the backyard and wrestling with her. The two of them also snuggle together sometimes. She makes us laugh when she slithers up on our laps on the couch (when she's not supposed to) and it's also funny how she "talks" with a toy her mouth when she's excited to play. Moki weighs 32lbs.
She is my best friend ever. Daisey loves being outside. We go on 2 or 3 walks a day for 4.2 to 5.4 miles total if we do 3 here in the subdivision we live in in TN. She loves camping and all the attention she gets from other campers. She sticks to me like glue, following me all around the house. Sometimes we just sit on the front porch as well, weather permitting. Daisey weighs about 34lbs.
We just love Freddie- we are totally obsessed! He weighs 40lbs. Loved bully sticks and loves to destroy stuffed toys and fight his dog bed. He is always excited to greet everyone and loves to be outside playing and running!
Charlie is 45 pounds of furry fun with occasional attitude. He brings us laughs, loves children, playing ball, and squeaky toys.
Aslan has learned from his cat siblings and loves to bird watch with them. Often, he'll take the prime bird watching real estate and sit with his nose against the glass. He's adopted our daughter and has taken his place as her friend and protector. He also takes the majority of her bed at night. He loves to run around, play, and go for walks and runs. He tries to play catch, but hasn't perfected the 'catch' part. His older English Bulldog sibling doesn't mind since catch is his speciality! We learned this winter that chasing snowflakes and leaves in the wind is one of his favorite things to do. My daughter taught him the 'spin' command and when asked he will 'spin' and chase (and catch) his tail. He loves to make her laugh and when she's upset or down he'll often do this to try to make her smile. Aslan is a great friend!
Vetster Tips to Ensure You Choose the Right Vet for Your Dog
Making sure your pet is healthy and happy is a vital part of dog ownership. Naturally, if there are any issues or health problems, you want to get them sorted out as soon as possible. This means having the services of a good vet to turn to, as they can deal with all sorts of issues from routine healthcare services to treatment and even advice with specific problems such asyour dog eating poop.
Finding the right vet can be challenging for many pet owners, particularly if they do not have friends or family to turn to for personal recommendations. It is important to do your research, and as part of this, there are a few key things that you should look at. In this article, we will provide some tips to help you to choose the right vet for your dog.
What to Look At
There are a few important points to consider when deciding which vet to choose for your dog’s healthcare needs. Some of these are:
Ease of Getting Appointments
One of the things you need to look at is how easy it is to get an appointment. Some vets make it really easy to just go online and book an appointment when convenient, and this takes a lot of the stress out of the process. Some even offer online consultations, which means that getting advice and treatment is far less stressful for both you and your dog. So, take some time to look at the appointments and approximate waiting times. Also, consider how many vets work there, as the more vets there are, the easier it should be to get a speedy appointment when needed.
Range of Services Offered
Another thing to look at is the range of services offered by the vet, as this can impact suitability. Your dog will most likely need access to a range of services, such as routine healthcare services, dental services, and more. Some vets offer a full range of services to cater to your dog’s every need when it comes to health. There are some that even offer access to kennels if you are going on vacation or nutritional expert advice to help you to maintain your dog’s health.
Reviews from Other Dog Owners
A very important step to take before you make up your mind is to look at online reviews of the vet from otherdog owners. This can provide you with a lot of reassurance, and it means that you can make a more informed decision about the vet you choose. There should be plenty of reviews online, and you can read through these at your own convenience and from the comfort of your own home. You can learn more about the levels of service, the ease of getting an appointment, and the overall reputation of the vet.
These are some of the important factors that you should look at before you make your decision.
Maple & Boaz are the proud parents of six squishy new babies: five girls and one boy. These little ones are absolutely precious. When first born, puppies depend completely on their mama, so we’re blessed that Maple does such a great job caring for them. She nurses them almost constantly it seems and snuggles with them (sometimes Maple nurse them while lying on her back with her belly up in the air – it makes us laugh!). How sweet are these faces? The pups are less than 24 hours old in these pictures.
Our kids have given the puppies temporary names (the pups won’t know their temporary names when they join their families, but our family has fun naming them anyway). The girls are Pancake (pink collar), Waffles (purple collar), Snow Cream (green collar), Doughnuts (yellow collar), and Syrup. The little boy’s temporary name is Sap. We are in the midst of maple sugaring season, so the kids thought it would be fun to give some of the puppies names that reflect one of our favorite winter time activities.
At first puppies can’t yet walk. Their eyes and ears are closed. They can’t go to the bathroom on their own. And they can’t maintain their own body temperature. Fortunately God gave puppies a natural instinct to pile together for warmth, so they snuggle together in a giant puppy heap. And they also cuddling around Maple as she snoozes contentedly, surrounded by her new family. EEGs have revealed that the brain activity of infant puppies is the same when asleep and awake. But these little pups are busy eating, growing, and developing. Maple’s puppies twitch and pop in their sleep, as all healthy newborn puppies should. This activated sleep helps them build muscle tone.
Your puppy’s birthday is February 1st, and your puppy will be ready to come home with you March 29th-April 1st.
weekly puppy tip #1: nap time is essential!
Think about a napping place – The puppies spend most of their lives sleeping now, but did you know that your new furbaby is going to need lots of sleep when you bring her home, too? Puppies, just like small children, require naps throughout the day. When your puppy is sleeping, try to allow her to rest untouched (it’s okay for noisy life to carry on around her while she snoozes, but it’s best not to physically disturb her as much as possible). This may mean that you need to guide her to a different spot than the one she’s initially chosen. Puppy Culture estimates that an 8-10 week old puppy sleeps 3 hours and then is awake for 1 hour before going back down for another nap. AKC gives some helpful insight into the importance of puppy sleep:
Although puppies may seem like little bundles of energy, in fact, they sleep 15-20 hours a day. One minute your puppy may be a miniature tornado, and the next he’s fallen soundly asleep, almost mid-activity. Sleep is essential to healthy growth: during sleep his central nervous system, brain, immune system, and muscles are developing. All of that sleep also helps him rest up during growth spurts… household members, especially children, should leave your puppy alone while he is sleeping. Plan his day so that active time is followed by quiet time for sleep. He’ll most likely be ready for a nap after playtime or a walk, sleep for a while and then wake up ready for anything. Your puppy may nap every hour or so, sleeping from 30 minutes to as long as two hours. All of this sleep is perfectly normal.
It’s hard to believe that these munchkins are already one week old! They have grown so much! These puppies may still seem incredibly small but they’ve really packed on the pounds, in fact they’ve all doubled their birth weights and passed over the 1lb mark. That’s a lot of growing! These sweet little pumpkins continue to dedicate their entire lives to eating and sleeping – and it shows! They are fat little sausages with adorable wrinkles and rolls.
They twitch and pop involuntarily during their sleep, developing muscle tone for the near future. This phenomenon is known as “activated sleep.” In a few short weeks, these rolly polly puppies will be bouncing around playfully. Their legs, while still wobbly, have already gotten stronger and the puppies wobble around on them instead of just army crawling as they did initially.
The puppies have now had their toenails trimmed for the first time. When you take your puppy home, it’s important that you continue to regularly trim her nails. Right now we trim the puppies’ nails with human baby nail clippers. For our adult dogs, we use a dremel to keep their nails short. We like to keep the puppies’ nails short so they don’t accidentally scratch Ivy while nursing. Plus nail trimming is going to be a regular activity throughout their lives, so we want to introduce them to it at an early age. We’ll continue to clip little nails frequently over the next two months.
In addition to snuggling these sweet nuggets, we also introduce the pups to a new scent each day, and we’ve also started doing early neurological stimulation (aka ENS) with them. ENS involves stressing the puppies just slightly in very specific ways in order to improve their physiological response to stress in the future.
weekly puppy tip #2
Make a puppy experience plan – Compile a list of places you want to take your puppy and experiences you want your puppy to encounter. Any day now, these little eyes will be ready to soak up the sites, and we’ll now start introducing the puppies to items that differ in appearance. We have a thought out socialization plan, working hard to expose your puppy to as much as possible during her time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility then shifts to you as you continue the socialization process. Exposing your puppy to new people, situations, sounds, smells, textures, etc. is extremely important. Give your new puppy a few days to adjust to her new home and new routine. Then begin giving her short, positive experiences (yummy treats make everything more positive!). Don’t try to do too much in one day, as you don’t want to overwhelm or stress her. Start developing ideas of how to want to socialize your new puppy.
Your goal is for your puppy to meet a minimum of 100 different people by the time she’s six months old. Dr. Ian Dunbar, a puppy socialization expert, raises the bar even higher by recommending that puppies meet 100+ people during the first month at home. If you hope to visit a local nursing home or hospital when your puppy gets older, secure some crutches, walkers or wheelchairs to expose your puppy to at home. Meeting people is just one component of socialization. Think about outdoor experiences that you and your puppy can safely enjoy together. Consider what predictable dogs you can introduce your puppy to (dogs who are predictable, friendly, healthy, and will model good behavior for your pup). Remember, adult dogs aren’t always fond of puppies so be sure to monitor them together. Do you know anyone with a woods or creek where you can take your puppy for a short romp? Remember, you want every experience to be POSITIVE (i.e. bring yummy treats and hand out the praise). Making a plan now, before you bring your puppy home, will help ensure that you follow through with a variety of positive exposures once you have your new little fluff ball at your side.
Check out AviDog’s free e-book for more ideas about what to add to your puppy experience plan. Baxter & Bella also has some great ideas for socializing your puppy.
two weeks
These puppies are so stinking precious! And they’re incredibly chunky! It’s fair to say that Maple is diligent about making sure her puppies are well fed. Despite their rotund bellies, the pups are beginning to take wobbly steps. Don’t they look much more like little dogs than they did last week? The puppies are still in a calm, quiet environment. Soon they’ll be ready for the chaos of our main living area but not quite yet. They get around their whelping box fairly quickly on wobbly legs, and it’s fun to see them attempting to walk instead of belly crawl.
The biggest, most exciting change since last week is that puppies’ eye have just started opening. It’s so fun to see them looking back at us. Eye opening is a process that doesn’t happen all in one day. Now that they can see, the puppies are a little more active, making them harder to photograph. As you can tell, we weren’t able to get that perfect group picture this week, but these little sausages are pretty cute anyway, aren’t they?
The puppies have all had their toenails for a second time. It’s important to keep their toenails short now so the pups don’t accidentally scratch mama Maple when they’re nursing. Toenails grow quickly. Be ready to trim your new pup’s nails every few weeks when she joins your family.
These sweet dumplings are getting so big! As you’ve probably already noticed from the pictures, they’ve all moved out of the ribbon collars and into their big puppy break free collars. We use break-free collars to keep our littles safe from the risk of strangulation, but these special safety collars feel like “normal” collars to the puppies, so they’ll go home used to the feel of wearing a collar.
The puppies continue to enjoy nursing regularly. It’s a crazy, active puppy pile as they all search for the perfect milk tap. Once the milk starts flowing, they all settle down and enjoy the delicious warmness filling their chunky bellies. Their happy tails tell us that they enjoy nursing.
Left to right we have: Syrup (white collar), Snow Cream (green collar), Sap (blue collar), Waffles (purple collar), Pancake (pink collar), and Doughnuts (yellow collar). Go back and look at their newborn pictures from just two weeks ago. Isn’t it amazing how much growing and changing these wee little pups have done already?
weekly puppy tip #3: age appropriate exercise
Glance over Puppy Culture’s exercise chart. Familiarize yourself with what sorts of activities are appropriate for your puppy at different stages of development. You want to give your puppy a variety of unique positive experiences, but your puppy is still growing & developing, so you don’t want to push your puppy too far. For instance, climbing up one to two stairs is an appropriate challenge but climbing a flight of stairs is not a good idea for a young puppy (a study done on 500 dogs showed that puppies allowed to climb a flight of stairs regularly before 3 months old were more likely to develop hip dysplasia). Remember, free running and playing is a great option because your puppy can rest whenever she feels inclined to do so. If you’d like to read more about puppy exercise, check out AviDog’s puppy exercise guidelines. This article from AKC also gives some helpful puppy exercise tips.
three weeks
Aren’t these little pumpkins really looking like miniature dogs now? They even sit awkwardly and walk around, albeit a bit clumsily. Look at those open eyes! When puppy eyes first open, they’re blue and cloudy but as the eyes change from their cloudy blue appearance, they open more and the puppy’s vision becomes crisper. We give the puppies different objects to explore, and it’s fun to watch them interact with each toy. The pups still spend the majority of their time snoozing, but they’re also starting to play with each other. Their clumsy play right now looks like it’s happening in slow motion.
With their eyes open, the puppies decided to start climbing out of their whelping box and have moved into their first puppy pen. Maple still has free access to her puppies, but they can’t climb out in search of her. Maple spends a lot of time with her crew. She loves to lay on her back with her belly in the air while nursing the pups. It’s a hilarious sight to behold! In their tiny puppy pen, the puppies are still in a quiet, darker environment so the puppies aren’t overly stimulated. They’ve grown and matured a lot, but they’re still not quite ready for the stimulation of the main part of our house. We hold them regularly and give them toys to explore, one at a time. The puppies are also beginning to listen to a habituation soundtrack, which helps acclimate them to different sounds. We play the sounds quietly right now and will gradually increase the volume as the puppies grow.
They puppies have recently discovered that they can bark, and sometimes a seemingly random high pitched bark rings out. They surprise themselves with the sounds that come out of their own mouths!
All of the time these babies spend eating shows! These chunky monkeys continue to grow like crazy. Each puppy weighed 10-12oz at birth and now they’re all hovering around 3lbs, which means they’ve more than tripled their birth weights in just 3 short weeks. Sap (blue collar boy) is the largest pup weighing in at a whopping 3lbs 12oz!
weekly puppy tip #4: be the leader your puppy wants you to be
It’s essential that you establish yourself as the pack leader. Your puppy doesn’t want to be in charge – that’s a scary place to be! Your puppy wants to look to you as the leader, but you have to show yourself as worth of the role by being the leader (this also helps set your kids apart as ranking higher in the pack than your new pup). Some easy ways to establish your leadership include:
Sit down with your puppy each night before bed and briefly touch your puppy EVERYWHERE. Kneel on the floor with your puppy sitting between your legs. Start by petting your puppy’s head and tell him “head, head.” Then check his mouth, telling him “teeth, teeth,” and look inside his ears telling him “ear, ears.” Briefly go over your puppy from nose to tail in this fashion. This helps establish that you’re allowed to touch your puppy anywhere and everywhere. (see the video below)
Set boundaries so there is at least one place in your home that your dog isn’t allowed to go in your home (i.e. not allowed to jump on your bed, not allowed to sit on a particular couch or not allowed into a certain room).
Teach you puppy to sit and wait for you to walk out the front door before her and give her the “okay” before she is permitted to walk through it. If you’ve been consistent, your puppy will offer a sit and wait for a release word (i.e. “okay”) before coming inside by 3 months old. When she’s old enough to start walking freely up and down stairs, teach her to wait for you to finish climbing/descending the stairs before she comes.
Encourage your puppy sit and wait for you to give her the “okay” before she is allowed to approach her food bowl. Periodically pick up your puppy’s food bowl while she’s eating, reward her with a yummy treat, and return the food bowl. (we’ll talk about the Toy Trade Game and other educational games you can play with your puppy next week).
Teach your puppy to do a long down during meal times. Buy a soft rug or bed and teach your puppy to go lay on it on command. We have our own adult dogs lay on a rug in a down stay during dinner. Maple was doing a down stay along side them at 6 months old for the entire length of our meal – which means your puppy can do it at a young age, too!
four weeks
I can’t believe how quickly these babies are growing up! The biggest news of the week is that they moved downstairs AND they’ve also explored the great outdoors for the first time. At first pups needed a calm, quiet environment without too much stimulation. But now they’re ready for the chaos that exists in the main part of our home! The pups moved into a small puppy area earlier in the week, and we will gradually expand their puppy play yard during the upcoming weeks. We’ve introduced, and it is fun to find puppies sleeping in it. We continue to give the munchkins new toys to spark their curiosity. And we continue to snuggle them. They shower us with kisses, and we shower them with kisses, too! The pups have sniffed noses with some other dogs besides their mama (Abria enjoys being an auntie), they’ve enjoyed goat milk, they’ve started playing with each other (it’s hilarious to watch because it’s like watching them play in slow motion)… So much has happened this week! The growing and developing puppies do in the first four weeks is absolutely outstanding! In just one month, these pups have gone from being unable to walk to playing with each other. In just one month, they’ve gone from having eyes & ears that are shut to curiously exploring the world around them. In just one month, they’ve gone from being entirely dependent on Maple to using a potty area in their pen, interacting with each other, and giving us kisses! It’s so fun to watch all of that growing and developing unfold. Hopefully you’ve been enjoying the Instagram story videos of the puppies this week. I shared a cute video this evening of the puppies lapping up goat milk. We took their pictures right after they eagerly engulfed the goat milk, so you can still see some of their adorable milk mustaches in the pictures if you look close enough. The puppies are still enjoy mama Maple’s delicious, nutritious milk. I can’t imagine nursing a litter of babies! It doesn’t look like fun, but Maple still nurses of all her sweet babies. Sometimes she still nurses them while lying on her back with her belly in the air, but more commonly now, she sits while they nurse or even occasionally stands. It’s a crazy chaotic scramble of puppies as everyone climbs over, under, and on top of everyone else trying to secure a milk tap before anyone can snag it. It’s easy to tell when the milk starts flowing because the pups suddenly calm and you can hear their little gulps as they melt into a moment of pure milk enjoyment.
weekly puppy tip #5: Get ready to play educational games with your puppy!
Did you know that there are fun games you can play with your puppy that teach him beneficial skills? It’s great to incorporate regular educational games into your puppy’s routine, so read through these suggestions, add any needed supplies to your puppy shopping list, and get ready for puppy playtime!
Ball On The Wall – Encourages retrieving
Supplies: A ball that your puppy can carry in her mouth
How to play: Sit on the floor about 1-5’ from a wall. Put your legs in a “V” and sit facing the wall with your puppy between you and the wall. Toss the ball at the wall, encouraging your puppy to go after it. Give your puppy lots of praise when she brings the ball back!
Variation: Once you’ve mastered Ball On The Wall, try playing retrieve in a hallway with all the doors closed (so your puppy can’t run away with the ball).
Toy Trade – Prevents resource guarding
Supplies: A toy that your puppy likes but doesn’t highly value and a high value treat
How to play: Briefly play with your puppy using the toy. Ask your puppy for the toy by offering her a high value treat. Reward & praise her for giving you the toy, and give the toy back to her as soon as she finishes chewing. Gradually work on having her give you objects of higher value (i.e. a bone).
Variation: Work on teaching your puppy the command “give” and ask her to drop the toy/bone on command in exchange for the high value treat.
Hide & Seek – Encourages recall
Supplies: Yummy treats
How to play: Run away from your puppy, hide behind a corner, tree, couch or other object, and call your puppy to encourage her to find you. When she does, give her lots of praise and a yummy treat.
Variation: Play Ping Pong by having a partner play with you and take turns hiding. While the first person is rewarding the puppy for coming, the second person hides.
five weeks
This is such a fun age! These puppies are cuter every day! Their individual personalities are showing through. They’ve transformed from little guinea pigs who can’t see or hear to actual miniature dogs who run around and play and give kisses. And they already enjoy belly rubs, which is fun too. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed the short video clips on our Instagram story. I’m trying to share short videos there so you can see what the puppies are up to each day.
These puppies have started eating a mush of softened TLC puppy kibble mixed with fresh goat milk. Soon they’ll be chowing down on dry kibble, but for now while their teeth are coming in, the soften food makes for a perfect meal. Maple continues to nurse them throughout the day. The puppies trot about, exploring the world around them. They enjoy playing with the different toys in their pen, and they enjoy playing with each other, too. The pups don’t sit still for long, except for when they’re on your lap or sleeping, so pictures are challenging – unless they’re sleeping! In between their short bursts of energy, they still spend much of their time snoozing. If you sit on the floor, you’re sure to have a lap full of puppies! The puppies have had their toenails trimmed again, and they’ve also had their bottoms shaved with clippers. We’ve started locking them in crates overnight (with their buddies – no one is confined alone at this age), and they all hold their little poos until morning. Then, when we take them outside first thing in the morning, it’s rewarding to see the whole group all pottying at the same time! We’ve some days of wonderful weather for the puppies to spend time enjoying the great outdoors. The pups have also been on two road trips this week where they’ve been able to explore new environments and meet new people. We feel that it’s important for puppies to experience different environments starting from a young age, so we work hard to start that socialization during their time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility passes onto you and then it’s your turn to continue the socialization process. Hopefully you’ve worked on a puppy experience plan like we talks about in puppy tip #2! It’s been a fun week for these little pups, and we’re thoroughly enjoying them.
IF YOU HAVEN’T RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM TLC, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.
Weekly Puppy Tip #6
Pick out and sign up for a puppy class – A puppy class is essential both for socialization and manners. Look for a class that emphasizes positive reinforcement, as learning & training should be a fun game at this point. Clicker training is a plus. This article from AKC gives some pointers about what to look for in a puppy class. Many dog training facilities will allow your new friend join their puppy class around 12 weeks of age, once she has received her second set of immunizations. Allison Camp from Pups Unleashed offers a local puppy class. She’ll be temperament testing the puppies in about 2 weeks and assisting with matching. Temperament testing always an exciting day!
We prefer in person puppy class over virtual hands down, but having online recourses is incredibly helpful, too. Timberidge Goldendoodles is excited to be partnering with Baxter & Bella. These online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner – there are even a variety of resources to help you now as you prepare for your new furry family member. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family.
Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
Here’s a short video from Baxter & Bella’s about how to train your puppy to respond positively the someone ringing your doorbell. You can take this same principle and apply it to a variety of other circumstances, such as teaching your puppy to walk calmly past another dog who is going crazy. You can find more free puppy training videos here. Remember, the best thing you can do to prepare for your new puppy is to prepare yourself!
six weeks
It’s been another busy week full of fun puppy adventures. The puppies have played outside A LOT! The puppies have ventured on another road trip this week. It’s good for them to get used to playing in different locations/ new environments, and they’ve enjoyed exploring the new situations. Plus with this crazy Cincinnati weather, the puppies have experienced pottying outside in the everything from rain and snow to 70 degree sunshine. We’re working hard to expose these pups to a variety of sights, sounds, smells, environments – and in just a few short weeks, it will be your turn to continue that socialization process with your new pup. Another new excitement of the week is that the puppies have officially started eating dry kibble. They have been eating TLC puppy food for some time now, but at first we moisten it and then gradually transition to completely dry. We’ve even given the puppies some fun food games to try such as two different snuffle mats and even hunting for kibble amongst plastic bottles and balls. All dogs have a natural foraging instinct, so the pups have a blast with these games that play on that.
weekly puppy tip #7
Get ready to groom! – Your puppy has had her nails clipped and hair trimmed during her time with us, so she has already had her initial introduction to a lifetime of being groomed. Take her to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. The groomer will bathe her, trim the hair out of her eyes, give her a sanitary clip, and trim her nails. Since she will need regular grooming throughout her life, both she and the groomer will benefit if she becomes accustomed to being groomed from a young age, even before she’s ready for a full haircut.
When should she have her first big girl haircut? The wavy adult coat will start replacing the soft, fluffy puppy coat around 5-6 months of age. You’ll notice the new hair coming in is kinkier than the pure fluff on top. Waiting to cut the hair until the adult coat makes its debut beneath the layers of puppy plush helps ensure that the adult coat remains soft. Many poodle groomers and poodle fanciers claim that shaving a poodle or goldendoodle down before her adult coat starts coming in could damage the adult coat, affecting the texture. While there isn’t any substantiated evidence that this is true, it’s worth avoiding just in case. That doesn’t mean that your puppy might not benefit from a puppy clip in the meantime! Don’t let your puppy’s hair get out of control! As aforementioned, take him to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. When the time comes, check out the grooming section on our website for a variety of goldendoodle haircut pictures. Learn more about your Goldendoodle puppy’s first trip to the groomer. We have a plethora of haircut resources under the “grooming” tab on the main menu bar.
Waiting until 6 months for the first full big girl clip does NOT mean you’re off the hook for grooming at home! You should regularly groom your puppy: brushing her hair, cleaning her ears, brushing her teeth, clipping her toenails, and checking her for any anomalies (i.e. ticks, cuts, etc.). You want your puppy to become accustomed to being brushed and handled all over from a young age. We HIGHLY recommend doing regular bonding/body handling exercises with your puppy (demonstrated in the video shared on weekly puppy tip #4). Goldendoodles are a breed that like routines (thanks to those poodle ancestors), so it’s nice to do bonding exercises every night just before your put your puppy in her crate for bed. It’s easy to incorporate different parts of grooming into your nightly bonding exercises, just doing a little here and a little there since young puppies don’t have the attention span for lots of grooming at once.
getting ready
Puppy supplies
We’ve created a puppy shopping list to guide you as you prepare to bring your new pup home! Go ahead and pick up a Snuggle Puppy (with a heartbeat) to bring with you on meet & greet day. If you have a crate, you’re welcome to leave that with us that on meet & greet day as well and we’ll start getting your puppy used to her new future “bedroom.”
Baxter & Bella: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
These are all short 1-3 minute videos that are helpful to watch. You’ll learn how to teach your puppy and get ideas for establishing good behaviors from day one. These videos show Amy Jensen training Chili, her young goldendoodle puppy
If you’re eager to learn more, Baxter & Bella’s online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family. Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
If you plan to do service or therapy work with your puppy, the harness introduction and “touch” are both important to start early on. In addition, watch GoodWill or Facebook Marketplace to find assistive mobility assistive such as a cane, crutches, walker, wheel chair, etc. that your puppy may encounter during therapy visits. You’ll want to familiar your puppy with those items early on.
Puppy Culture: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
You will have to put the free course into your cart and check out. Much of this program you can just listen to without actually watching, so this is a great have this on hand while you’re driving. If you only have time to watch part of this course, I recommend watching: Class 1 part 2 about setting up your puppy’s spot at home and Class 2 part 1 about structuring your puppy’s day.Bringing your puppy home by Puppy Culture
You may live in a lovely wooded setting or perhaps in another area where wild animals move frequently. While living with them near may be the norm for you, there’s always a risk of them invading your property.
If you own a pet, especially a dog, you may notice the critters visiting your home frequently or might even have the occasional instance of one attacking. But why is does that happen? Can your dog attract wild animals?
This article will tell you how your dog may end up attracting wild animals in your yard or even into your home, followed by nine tips you can follow to prevent these incidents.
Do Dogs Attract Wild Animals?
Dogs sometimes attract wild animals and may even lead them to your home. These wild animals primarily include foxes and coyotes and may sometimes attract predators like bears, depending on where you reside. The following are some ways in which dogs can attract wild animals to your home:
Feeding Your Dog Outside
Feeding your dog outside, whether it’s a Goldendoodle, Dalmatian, or any other breed, can invite unwanted guests looking for food. Many opportunistic animals such as raccoons, skunks, and mice may end up visiting you in search of yummy leftovers.
An Unleashed Dog
Leaving your pet dogs unleashed and unsupervised is the most dangerous thing to do, especially if you live close to the woods. It may move around to sniff out neighboring dogs and to discover animals, that could potentially pose a threat to your dog.
Probably the biggest threat posed by unfamiliar animals is disease and parasites. Your dogs likely finds animal excrement a delightful treat, but he can acquire various unwanted parasites, diseases, and bacterias from doing so. Allowing your dogs to run around unleashed when you’re not supervising could pose a risk to your dog’s health.
If you keep your dog unleashed when it’s outside, it can roam around in the woods and could encounter wild animals. Some animals, such as a skunk, may not cause physical harm to your beloved dog but could leave a terrible aroma for you to deal with. Other animals could potentially fight or attack your dog if he takes an interest in them.
A Girl Dog in Heat
A dog ‘in heat’ is when a female dog is in her most fertile stage in the menstrual cycle and is more sexually active. During this time, female dogs secrete specific hormones that attract male dogs. Sometimes, the scent of these hormones can attract coyotes, wolves, and foxes as well who desire to mate with your girl. Spaying your girl helps prevent attracting these wild animals into your yard and it also helps prevent your girl from acquiring any sexually transmitted illness the intruder may carry.
Dog Excretions
Dogs and other territorial animals like marking their territories by secreting a certain hormone. This hormone can be strong enough to attract animals in the wild, leading them to your place as your dog will still carry that smell. Besides pheromones, dog saliva, poop, and urine can draw wild animals to your property, particularly those who feel that their territory is potentially being threatened.
The Problem With Attracting Wild Animals
Threats for Your Dog
Wild animals can carry a wide range of parasites, diseases and bacterias that you don’t want your pet to contract. Although some of them may be stopped with vaccines or treated if caught early enough, others could be fatal for your dog.
Menstruating female dogs going through ovulation will secrete higher levels of pheromones, attracting wild canines who will compete to establish dominance and earn the chance to mate.
Purely domesticated dog breeds often don’t know how to interact with wild animals and could accidentally end up in the fight.
Some dogs have a high prey drive and naturally love chasing after little critters. Your dog could potentially acquire deadly diseases from consuming an infected animal. For your dog’s health and safety, it’s best to discourage even little creatures like chipmunks and mice from visiting your yard.
Threats for You
Wild animals can damage your property. Something as little as a mouse who is visiting in hopes of snacking on your dog’s leftovers can potentially cause a lot of damage.
Some of the diseases that wild animals carry can affect humans too. And if you kept a pet dog as a companion for your baby, your child could end up contracting something like round worms.
Wild animals can bring parasites into your home, which may be hard to eliminate. Fleas can be exterminated but the process of eliminating them from your home isn’t any fun, particularly if you have a lot of carpet, upholstered furniture or stuffed animals.
How Can You Prevent Wild Animal Invasion in Your Home?
Owning a dog doesn’t have to attract wild animals to your home. Here are some helps tips for discourage (or at least not encourage) unwanted critters from coming around and also tips for keeping your dog safe in a yard that wild animals visit.
Protect Your Dog
Spay or neuter your dog: fixing your dog helps lessen their sexual desires, which in turn keeps them less interested in potential partners, both wild and domestic. Spaying your female dog will ensure she doesn’t give off excess pheromones that make her irresistible to local canines. Neutering your male dog helps prevent him from wondering off in search of a female canine who is in heat.
Feed your dog inside: mice, raccoons, and other small animals are opportunistic feeders who are always in search of a tasty meal. If you feed your dog outdoors, there will undoubtably be tiny crumbs left or even just the scent of food in the food bowl, which may attract little mouse noses.
Keep your dog inside at night: goldendoodles are sweet, friendly natured dogs who should be allowed to sleep indoors at night. There will be rare occasions, though, when your dog needs to go to the bathroom overnight. It’s okay to take him outside, but it’s best if you can go out with him. Keep in mind that skunks and raccoons are nocturnal animals, which means they’re usually active at night.
Supervise your dog’s outside time: it’s great for your dog to experience the joy of regular unleashed outdoor time, but you should always be supervising. Don’t give your dog unregulated outdoor time by himself for hours on end. Additionally, invisible fences are a great tool many families enjoy, but remember that while an invisible fence may keep your dog in, it does not keep other animals out.
Scoop the poop: while it’s never a bad idea to clean up your own dog’s poop, wild animal feces presents a larger issue. Your dog can acquire unwanted diseases, parasites, and bacterias from eating the excrement from wild animals. Do your best to scoop up those deer, rabbit, and mice pellets before your dog makes a meal of them.
Protect Your Place
Build a fence: a physical fence helps keep some animal invaders out. If your pup likes feasting on deer excrement and you’d like to discourage deer from visiting, you’ll want to build a fence that’s at least 6′ tall. Keep in mind that a fence will not keep out climbing animals like raccoons or small rodents like mice.
Use repellents: once you determine which animals are troublesome for your yard, you can research repellents to discourage them from coming around. Before using a chemical deterrent, check the label to verify whether it’s safe to use around your pets. Installing motion activated lights may help repel some visitors without the use of chemicals.
Don’t feed wild animals: if you don’t want scavengers to come to your yard in search of a meal, don’t feed any wild animal. Skunks are notorious for nibbling dropped seed found under bird feeders.
Remove shelter: take a look around your yard for places a wild animal may find attractive for taking up residence. Mice, chipmunks, and snakes may make their home in your woodshed. A skunk may find a hole under your stoop and make himself a cozy home right by your house. If you remove areas where wild animals can take shelter, you will help discourage them from hanging around.
Conclusion
Dogs are amazing companions who add so much to our lives. Follow the steps mentioned above to help keep your best friend safe and healthy from wild animals.
Goldendoodles are adorable dogs that look like they’re wearing a golden crown. They have long hair, big ears, and a soft coat. If you are planning to welcome a Goldendoodle into your home, it is high time that you started anticipating some names for your puppy. After all, a unique and special puppy deserves a unique and special name.
Some names are better than others for dogs, although there are many ways to name them. For example, you shouldn’t give your dog a name that sounds similar to another word. Also, don’t pick a name that has too much meaning. Instead, choose something that describes your dog’s personality with ample cuteness.
Goldendoodles are an adorable breed that originated in Australia & America. There are many reasons to love these dogs, including their friendly nature, loyalty, and intelligence. Their coats come in many colors, including white, black, red, blue, and gold.
Here is a list of names that will give you the idea of choosing the beautiful name for your Goldendoodles.
Unique and Interesting Names for Male Goldendoodles
Goldendoodles are cross breeds of Golden Retrievers and Poodles. Its friendly personality and intelligence have made it very popular over time.
Goldendoodles are known for their playful personalities, great temperaments, and smart minds. They also love attention from their owners.
When naming your male Goldendoodle, you want something appropriate for a boy. Even though it’s impossible to predict how your puppy will behave once he’s fully grown, you can usually get a good idea of what kind of name best describes his character.
We’ve added a few of the most well-liked Goldendoodle boy names, as well as a few unique and cool ones. You can make your Goldendoodle stand out from the crowd with these names:
Einstein
Gus
Cisco
Jack
Hobi
Ryder
Pilot
Greg
Taffy
Duke
Curly
More
Chester
Jax
Sunny
Shaggy
Bullseye
Alaska
Versace
Bear
Hansel
Bennett
Apollo
Macchiato
Gucci
Hector
Griz
Journey
Zachery
Griff
Happy
Larry
Hickory
Galaxy
Rufus
Wrigley
Mack
Zeus
Ogilvy
Dasher
Rocco
Simpson
Teddy
Oakley
George
Chestnut
Rio
Harry
This list doesn’t end here. There are so many cool Goldendoodle names that you can also find; just hover over to PuppyLists, review thousands of ideas, and take your pick.
Names for Goldendoodle Girls
Many popular girl’s names work well for female Goldendoodles, too. Here are some beautiful Goldendoodle naming ideas for girl dogs and puppies.
Armani
Carrie
Maple
Penny
Luna
Thandie
Sandy
Aurora
Rapunzel
Chrysanthemum
Bella
Goldie
Dorothy
Gretel
Theia
Honey
Rosie
Lucy
Duchess
Hermione
Shakira
Molly
Sadie
Mocha
Zoe
Daisy
Daffodil
Chia
Maggie
Marigold
Gemelli
Hyacinth
Willow
Aurelia
Rapunzel
Shirley Temple
Names for Mini Goldendoodle Boys
It’s a wonderful experience to bring home a new Goldendoodle puppy, especially a mini boy. You can enhance the magic even more by giving him the ideal name.
By providing you with this awesome list of mini doodle names, we hope to inspire you to find the ideal male Goldendoodle dog names! There is something for every kind of mini Goldendoodle boy and owner because we give you both common and uncommon choices.
Our suggestions for a unique mini Goldendoodle boy’s name may help you find the right name. These names will make him stand out among other dogs.
Bigsby
Dandelion (Dandy)
Tater Tot
Nugget
Teddy
Simba
Minnie
Cashew
Moose
Fritz
Tater Tot
Peanut
Cheerio
Chip
Joy
Chip
Pistachio
Rotini
Winnie
Max
Cashew
Poppy
Skip
Goliath
Scruffy
Curlicue
Nugget
Buttercup
Boomer
Scooter
Tinkerbell
Buttons
Tank
Male Goldendoodle Names Based on Physical Characteristics
If you want to name your dog something special, why not go for a unique name that reflects his personality or physical characteristics?
Some owners opt for a name that matches their breed, such as a Golden Retriever named “Retriever.” Others prefer to pick a name that sounds good, such as “Buddy” or “Snoopy.” Still, others choose a name that has meaning, such as “Puppy” or “Honey.”
Listed below are names derived from physical characteristics.
Fuzzy
Everest
Coco
Oreo
Copper
Blaze
Onyx
Bear
Hershey
Harry
Mocha
Blanco
Fozzy
Shiloh
Pepper
Clifford
Curly
Reeses
Shadow
Freckles
Names Based on Personality
You can’t go wrong with a Goldendoodle if you want an happy, fun, smart pet. And since they are such a versatile breed, you can choose from several names to suit their personality.
Consider giving your dog a name that reflects some of its personality if you’re trying to find a unique name. You might choose something like “Buddy” or “Honey.” Or maybe you’d prefer something more whimsical like “Puppy,” “Cookie,” or “Dolly.”
Buddy
Bingo
Albert
Smartee
Newton
Scout
Jolly
Spirit
Zippy
Buster
Noodles (Goldendoodles are always using their noodles!)
Chance
Bandit
Rover
Ami (short for amiable)
Shadow
Banjo
Champ
Comedy
Happy
Dood
Akamai (Hawaiian for “smart”)
Fang
Bravo
Beaker
Brownie
Everest
Comet
Sunny
Wiley
Captain
Einstein
Wiggles
Spot
Bowser
Sparky
Old-fashioned Boy Names
Names from the past are returning in style and passed down through generations. Why? Because these names still sound cute and adorable.
The popularity of old-fashioned boy dog names has increased over the years. These names include such classics as Henry, Milton, Wesley, and even William.
Let’s have a look at some of the old-fashion Goldendoodles boy names:
Ralphie
Archie
Alfred
Franklin
Walter
Otis
Louie
Milton
Norman
Henry
Wesley
William
Bill
Theo
Elmer
Ferdinand
Oscar
Elvis
How Do You Pick The Right Name?
Do not overthink the name you choose for your puppy or dog. There’s no reason to agonize over picking something too long, complicated, or descriptive. In fact, naming your pet just might be easier than you thought.
There are many ways to choose the perfect name for your dog. A good rule of thumb is to pick a name that sounds friendly, kind, funny, and also shows off his/her personality. Choosing a name for your dog is important because it reflects who he is and his personality. Therefore, choosing a name that suits him perfectly is essential.
Goldendoodle Name Trends
Many dog owners love their dogs and want them to have unique names. Mythological and power-filled names are not as common in Goldendoodles.
The most common Goldendoodle names are very human-sounding. They also have creative names like “Maverick” or “Annie” for their gentle, silly nature.
All in all, Goldendoodle names don’t vary that much from the names chosen by people who adopt other breeds. Across several breeds, the most popular names of last year were: Bella, Luna, Daisy, Max, Charlie, and Cooper.
Changing your dog’s name can be a good idea for a variety of reasons. Some owners don’t want to change their dog’s name because they believe it has a special meaning or represents something important. Others simply want to give their dog another name. Goldendoodles have become increasingly popular over the past few years. Their popularity in America has soared in recent years. If you want to give your dog a unique name, choose something unique and trendy.
Do Goldendoodles Learn Their Names Quickly?
Your dog has been living with you for a few months now, but he still won’t answer you when you call by his new name. How much longer will it take before he learns his name?
Dogs are known for being loyal companions. They love their owners unconditionally, and they also enjoy spending time together. Getting your dog trained at an early age is the key to success. The sooner you begin training him, the better.
Dogs are smart animals. They can recognize human faces, read body language, and even respond to commands. This makes them perfect candidates for obedience training. Start teaching your dog his name from the very beginning.
Puppy owners can expect their dogs to be fully trained to walk alongside them in six months to one year. A puppy’s age, size, and amount of training will determine how long it takes to train.
Goldendoodles tend to be friendly, affectionate dogs that often make excellent family pets. While this depends on the individual dog, Goldendoodles tend to blend in well with other pets. As a pet, you may be overwhelmed by how curious they are. They will chew anything that comes their way. Knowing how to keep a puppy chewing the right things is essential. By doing so, you can keep your puppy safe.
Conclusion
When naming your dog, you should consider his personality, breed, and gender. A nickname is also something to consider, as well as other things.
Thanks for taking the time to read our article on names for Goldendoodles. Hopefully, it will provide you with a lot of inspiring ideas. Feel free to share it with anyone who might benefit from it.
When you Google hyper dogs, you may find American golden retrievers and standard poodles at the top of most lists. After all, both were bred to be working dogs, and Daily Paws notes that these specific breeds are “bundles of energy [that] will keep you on the move all day long.”
Hence, it should come as no surprise to find the highly affectionate crossbreed, goldendoodles, are more than just a bundle of cuteness. While they’re widely considered ideal family dogs due to their friendliness and social personalities, it’s important to know that goldendoodles require regular interaction in order to manage their high energy levels.
Although not every goldendoodle is hyper, goldendoodles have generally earned a reputation for being so. Timberidge focuses on raising goldendoodles with a manageable level of energy, which is part of why we choose to breed English goldendoodles. If you’re not looking for a hyper Goldendoodle, it’s essential that you find a breeder who focuses on temperament rather than color. Likewise, it’s also essential that you likewise focus on temperament and not color.
If you already have a high energy goldendoodle, here is a list of tips on how to better raise hyper goldendoodles to assure a good quality of life for your both…
Training
Thankfully for owners, the two parent breeds of goldendoodles are also at the top of the list when it comes to highly trainable breeds.
The important thing to remember in training hyper breeds is consistency. Tampa Bay Times featured Scott, a 2-month-old goldendoodle whose owners, the Hawk family, stressed the need to communicate the ground rules of dog care to other household members.
For one, children may be tempted to allow the puppy to jump up on them to display affection. However, this is unwanted behavior that may risk hurting someone, especially when Scott grows into an 80lb adult dog. Make sure that cue words like “down” or “sit” are used universally so that the puppy doesn’t get confused.
Toys and distractions
Don’t let their adorable teddy bear appearance fool you — just like puppies from any breed, some goldendoodles are enthusiastic chewers and this unwanted behavior can be exacerbated when they’re lonely, bored, or anxious from lacking an outlet for their boundless energy.
Chewing is a completely natural behavior as this allows our furry friends to keep their jaws strong and their teeth clean. This is where toys and distractions come in.
Our previous article on Puppy Chewing describes a puppy play yard that keeps your goldendoodle safe from chewing on the wrong things. This doesn’t stop their instinct to chew, but productively redirects their behavior towards a suitable outlet to engage and entertain them at the same time.
Pet liability insurance
While most people have heard of pet insurance, most aren’t aware that pet liability insurance exists. Our friendly goldendoodles don’t mean any harm, but accidents can happen, especially if a curious puppy is left unsupervised or goes without training. An untrained friendly standard goldendoodle could accidentally knock over your elderly neighbor while enthusiastically delivering a good morning greeting.
In a time like this, having pet liability insurance is a lifesaver, according to Sound Dollar. Policies cover financial compensation for repairing or replacing property your dog damages, and even medical fees or legal expenses in case of a lawsuit if your goldendoodle accidentally harms another dog or human.
This is particularly timely as dog owners are now considered liable for injuries caused by their pets in 29 states in the US. Training and providing toys are always great and non-negotiables, but it is crucial for owners to remember that our puppies can unintentionally damage things and make mistakes. So it is on us to take responsibility.
Exercise regimen
Ultimately, prevention is always better than cure. Don’t wait for the accident to happen. Instead, work on getting all your goldendoodle’s energy out with exercise on a daily basis.
While some say that the average healthy adult dog requires at least 30 to 60 minutes of exercise every day, SF Weekly claims that a goldendoodle’s fitness needs actually varies according to age, health, energy level, and breeding type. The important thing is to not limit or restrict them to a single exercise routine.
Instead, make exercise a part of their life because that’s what they truly love to do. This creates opportunities, not just for training, but also bonding so that you and your goldendoodle can stay happy, fit, and active together.
Goldendoodle fur is so soft and snuggly. It’s one of the things we love most about our beloved pooches. Unfortunately, matting is one of those things that we need to pay extra attention to. Mats are not just surface knots. They are a bunch of hair knotted right at the level of the skin, which makes them incredibly hard to get rid of. Let’s learn together how to prevent them so as to avoid shaving our furry friends bald!
Mats start out as small knots but quickly and easily snowball into big, huge unmanageable clumps of fur. You might think to yourself, “I brush my dog a lot. Why would he get mats?” Fur can clump up and mat for many reasons. Roughhousing and friction are two major causes. Think about your own hair. If you rubbed your hair on your pillow all night and didn’t brush it the next morning, you would have knots. Prevention is key. Brush your dog daily! I can’t stress it enough.
Water also makes mats tighter. If your Goldendoodle has mats, it’s never a good idea to bathe him/her before brushing them out, or if it’s too far gone, you may need to shave the matted fur prior to bath time. Our doodle likes to swim in our pond. As much as we love watching him swim with our kids and splash around, his fur is always a disaster after. We have to make sure to brush him as soon as he’s done shaking the water off. As a matter of fact, it’s easiest to untangle mats when they’re small, so prevention is essential. Here are some practical ways to prevent matting:
Short hair doesn’t mat. In fact, if you keep your doodle’s hair ¾” or less in length, you seldomly need to brush it (it’s still a good idea to brush your dog regularly to keep her used to being brushed though). If you want that adorable shaggy teddy bear look, daily brushing is essential for preventing mats. Doodles with curlier coats will require more frequent brushing to prevent mats than those with wavy or straight coats.
Swimming in chlorine causes mats, so keep that in mind prior to letting your doodle join you in the pool. It’s wise to keep your doodle in a short summer clip if she’ll be swimming in a chlorinated pool regularly.
Putting a coat or jacket on your doodle for hikes in the fall can help lessen the number of burs that become tangled in hair. Be sure to promptly remove any burs that do find their way into your dog’s coat, so they don’t develop into unruly mats.
There are certain areas that are prone to mats, such as under your dog’s ears. Pay extra attention to those areas and address mats quickly. It’s okay to cut out a mat with a pair of blunt tipped scissors. Removing a mat will keep it from growing larger. If the mat is too close to the skin, cut it as close to the skin as possible, comb out what you can of the fur that’s left, and keep an eye on that area over the next few weeks. You’ll be able to remove the base of the mat as the hair grows out.
Harnesses are a wonderful tool for walks, but allowing your goldendoodle to wear a harness all of the time or to play with other pups while she’s wearing her harness could lead to mats. Harnesses aren’t bad, but be sure to regularly brush your dog’s chest and other areas that the harness touches.
Using these brushes/combs together is really helpful in the prevention of matting because it helps tremendously if you brush your dog’s fur correctly in the first place.
I hope you found this helpful to give you some encouragement in keeping your pooch mat-free without the help of a costly groomer all the time.
These pups are ready to go home with you August 19th-21st.
happy birthday: June 24
Gideon & Nylah are the proud parents of EIGHT squishy new babies: four girls and four boys. These little ones are absolutely precious. When first born, puppies depend completely on their mama, so we’re blessed that Nylah does such a great job caring for them. She nurses them almost constantly it seems and snuggles with them. Nylah naps in the whelping box with puppies all over: snuggled under her tail, cuddled under her chin, tucked under her elbows, bedded down in her fur on her back, and snoozing at the milk bar. With a 20lb mama and eight puppies, there are literally puppies everywhere, and it’s absolutely the cutest thing. How sweet are these faces? The pups are about 24 hours old in the picture below. Enjoy those pink noses because they’ll soon start to blacken up.
At first puppies can’t yet walk. Their eyes and ears are closed. They can’t even go to the bathroom on their own. And they can’t maintain their own body temperature. Fortunately God gave puppies a natural instinct to pile together for warmth, so they snuggle together in a giant puppy heap. And they also cuddle around Nylah as she snoozes contentedly, surrounded by her new family. EEGs have revealed that the brain activity of infant puppies is the same when asleep and awake. But these little pups are busy eating, growing, and developing. Nylah’s puppies twitch and pop in their sleep, as all healthy newborn puppies should. This activated sleep helps them build muscle tone.
weekly puppy tip #1: nap time is essential!
Think about a napping place – The puppies spend most of their lives sleeping now, but did you know that your new furbaby is going to need lots of sleep when you bring her home, too? Puppies, just like small children, require naps throughout the day. When your puppy is sleeping, try to allow her to rest untouched (it’s okay for noisy life to carry on around her while she snoozes, but it’s best not to physically disturb her as much as possible). This may mean that you need to guide her to a different spot than the one she’s initially chosen. Puppy Culture estimates that an 8-10 week old puppy sleeps 3 hours and then is awake for 1 hour before going back down for another nap. AKC gives some helpful insight into the importance of puppy sleep:
Although puppies may seem like little bundles of energy, in fact, they sleep 15-20 hours a day. One minute your puppy may be a miniature tornado, and the next he’s fallen soundly asleep, almost mid-activity. Sleep is essential to healthy growth: during sleep his central nervous system, brain, immune system, and muscles are developing. All of that sleep also helps him rest up during growth spurts… household members, especially children, should leave your puppy alone while he is sleeping. Plan his day so that active time is followed by quiet time for sleep. He’ll most likely be ready for a nap after playtime or a walk, sleep for a while and then wake up ready for anything. Your puppy may nap every hour or so, sleeping from 30 minutes to as long as two hours. All of this sleep is perfectly normal.
Blueberry, the little blue collared boy, decided to be a non-conformist during the one week photoshoot last night, and it made me laugh! Everyone else may be happy sleeping on their bellies, but evidently he already prefers sleeping like a goldendoodle! This breed has so much personality, and your new pup will certainly keep you smiling. We think it’s funny to see our big dogs snoozing on their backs with their bellies in the air like Mr. Blueberry in this picture. Nylah will even sleep like that in the whelping box when she’s relaxing with her crew. The four pups on the left are the boys and the four pups on the right of the picture are the girls in both the pictures above and below.
It’s amazing that even at this young age we can start seeing hints of what the puppies’ adult coats will be like! Most of the puppies look like they’ll have beautiful curls like their mama, but a few look like they’ll be a little less curly. Take a look at these two boys. Can you see how the darker colored pup already has waves and the lighter color pup’s hair looks much straighter? Now go back and take a peek at the newborn picture. Can you see how the tiny curls were already beginning to be evident on some of the pups at only one day old? Isn’t that so cool?!
These little sausages twitch and pop involuntarily during their sleep, developing muscle tone for the near future. This phenomenon is known as “activated sleep.” In a few short weeks, these rolly polly puppies will be bouncing around playfully. Their legs, while still wobbly, have already gotten stronger and the puppies attempt wobble around on them instead of just army crawling as they did initially. Hopefully you enjoyed the Instagram story video of them switching and popping.
The puppies have all had their toenails. It’s important to keep their toenails short now so the pups don’t accidentally scratch mama Nylah when they’re nursing. Toenails grow quickly. Be ready to trim your new pup’s nails every few weeks when she joins your family. Right now we use human nail clippers on the pup’s toenails because they’re so tiny.
weekly puppy tip #2
Make a puppy experience plan – Compile a list of places you want to take your puppy and experiences you want your puppy to encounter. Any day now, these little eyes will be ready to soak up the sites, and we’ll now start introducing the puppies to items that differ in appearance. We have a thought out socialization plan, working hard to expose your puppy to as much as possible during her time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility then shifts to you as you continue the socialization process. Exposing your puppy to new people, situations, sounds, smells, textures, etc. is extremely important. Give your new puppy a few days to adjust to her new home and new routine. Then begin giving her short, positive experiences (yummy treats make everything more positive!). Don’t try to do too much in one day, as you don’t want to overwhelm or stress her. Start developing ideas of how to want to socialize your new puppy.
Your goal is for your puppy to meet a minimum of 100 different people by the time she’s six months old. Dr. Ian Dunbar, a puppy socialization expert, raises the bar even higher by recommending that puppies meet 100+ people during the first month at home. If you hope to visit a local nursing home or hospital when your puppy gets older, secure some crutches, walkers or wheelchairs to expose your puppy to at home. Meeting people is just one component of socialization. Think about outdoor experiences that you and your puppy can safely enjoy together. Consider what predictable dogs you can introduce your puppy to (dogs who are predictable, friendly, healthy, and will model good behavior for your pup). Remember, adult dogs aren’t always fond of puppies so be sure to monitor them together. Do you know anyone with a woods or creek where you can take your puppy for a short romp? Remember, you want every experience to be POSITIVE (i.e. bring yummy treats and hand out the praise). Making a plan now, before you bring your puppy home, will help ensure that you follow through with a variety of positive exposures once you have your new little fluff ball at your side.
Check out AviDog’s free e-book for more ideas about what to add to your puppy experience plan. Baxter & Bella also has some great ideas for socializing your puppy.
two weeks
Have you ever heard the term “dog pile”? Well now you know where that phrase comes from! Puppies naturally gravitate towards each other. If they’re spread apart, it’s usually because they’re hot. It sure doesn’t seem like sleeping in a heap could be all that comfy, do you think? Goldendoodles are notorious for being silly sleepers. Last week, Blueberry was the nonconformist who wanted to snooze on his back during the group photoshoot. Today, Plushy (green collar) is the back sleeper. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if your puppy enjoys sleeping on her back like this when she joins your family.
Plushy (green collar)
These puppies are so stinking precious! And they’re getting little round bellies, too! The puppies have all broken the 1lb mark, which means that they’ve doubled their birth weights. They may seem big in the pictures, but they’re still so tiny! One pound. That’s a whole lot of growth since they were born, yet still a small fraction of what they’ll be as adults. Despite rotund bellies, the pups are beginning to take wobbly steps.
Don’t they look much more like little dogs than they did last week? Next week they’ll look even more like miniature dogs. It’s so fascinating to watch the incredible growth and development that happens in such a short amount of time. The puppies are still in a calm, quiet environment. Soon they’ll be ready for the chaos of our main living area but not quite yet. They get around their whelping box fairly quickly on wobbly legs, and it’s fun to see them attempting to walk instead of belly crawl.
Gingie (purple)
The biggest, most exciting change since last week is that puppies’ eye have just started opening. It’s so fun to see them looking back at us. Eye opening is a process that doesn’t happen all in one day. When puppy eyes first open, they’re blue and cloudy and the pups peer through little slits that are barely open. But as the eyes change from their cloudy blue appearance, they open wider and the puppy’s vision becomes crisper.
the boys
The puppies have all had their toenails twice now. It’s important to keep their toenails short now so the pups don’t accidentally scratch mama Maple when they’re nursing. Toenails grow quickly. Be ready to trim your new pup’s nails every few weeks when she joins your family. Right now we use human nail clippers on the pup’s toenails because they’re so tiny.
weekly puppy tip #3: age appropriate exercise
Glance over Puppy Culture’s exercise chart. Familiarize yourself with what sorts of activities are appropriate for your puppy at different stages of development. You want to give your puppy a variety of unique positive experiences, but your puppy is still growing & developing, so you don’t want to push your puppy too far. For instance, climbing up one to two stairs is an appropriate challenge but climbing a flight of stairs is not a good idea for a young puppy (a study done on 500 dogs showed that puppies allowed to climb a flight of stairs regularly before 3 months old were more likely to develop hip dysplasia). Remember, free running and playing is a great option because your puppy can rest whenever she feels inclined to do so. If you’d like to read more about puppy exercise, check out AviDog’s puppy exercise guidelines. This article from AKC also gives some helpful puppy exercise tips.
3 weeks
the boys
I realized that I haven’t shared the temporary names for this crew with you yet. Our kids always take great joy in naming the puppies and begin thinking of names weeks before the puppies arrive. This litter is a little extra special because Nylah’s two human brothers helps select names. The boys: Plushy (green), Blueberry (blue), Tux (red), and Peter Puppy Tail (red). The girls are: Orangie (orange), Gingie (purple), Diamond (pink), and Hwin (white).
the girls
Aren’t these little pumpkins really looking like miniature dogs now? Look at those open eyes! When puppy eyes first open, they’re blue and cloudy but as the eyes change from their cloudy blue appearance, they open more and the puppy’s vision becomes crisper. We give the puppies different objects to explore, and it’s fun to watch them interact with each toy. The pups still spend the majority of their time snoozing, but they’re also starting to play with each other. Their clumsy play right now looks like it’s happening in slow motion.
Diamond (pink)
Look at those adorable curls on her forehead! All four girls are going to have beautiful coats of fluffy curls – just like their mama. It’s fun to see those tiny waves on their foreheads becoming more pronounced. The puppies have had their toenails trimmed again. Those front toenails grow so quickly. They puppies have recently discovered that they can bark, and sometimes a seemingly random high pitched bark rings out. They surprise themselves with the sounds that come out of their own mouths!
Hwin (white)
These puppies may still seem incredibly small, but they’ve really packed on the pounds. In fact, a few pups have crossed over the big 2lb mark and rest are rapidly approaching it. That’s a lot of growing! These sweet little pumpkins continue to dedicate their entire lives to eating and sleeping – and it shows! And all this growing means that they’ve graduated to big pup collars! We use break-free collars to keep our littles safe from the risk of strangulation, but these special safety collars feel like “normal” collars to the puppies, so they’ll go home used to the feel of wearing a collar.
weekly puppy tip #4: be the leader your puppy wants you to be
It’s essential that you establish yourself as the pack leader. Your puppy doesn’t want to be in charge – that’s a scary place to be! Your puppy wants to look to you as the leader, but you have to show yourself as worth of the role by being the leader (this also helps set your kids apart as ranking higher in the pack than your new pup). Some easy ways to establish your leadership include:
Sit down with your puppy each night before bed and briefly touch your puppy EVERYWHERE. Kneel on the floor with your puppy sitting between your legs. Start by petting your puppy’s head and tell him “head, head.” Then check his mouth, telling him “teeth, teeth,” and look inside his ears telling him “ear, ears.” Briefly go over your puppy from nose to tail in this fashion. This helps establish that you’re allowed to touch your puppy anywhere and everywhere. (see the video below)
Set boundaries so there is at least one place in your home that your dog isn’t allowed to go in your home (i.e. not allowed to jump on your bed, not allowed to sit on a particular couch or not allowed into a certain room).
Teach you puppy to sit and wait for you to walk out the front door before her and give her the “okay” before she is permitted to walk through it. If you’ve been consistent, your puppy will offer a sit and wait for a release word (i.e. “okay”) before coming inside by 3 months old. When she’s old enough to start walking freely up and down stairs, teach her to wait for you to finish climbing/descending the stairs before she comes.
Encourage your puppy sit and wait for you to give her the “okay” before she is allowed to approach her food bowl. Periodically pick up your puppy’s food bowl while she’s eating, reward her with a yummy treat, and return the food bowl. (we’ll talk about the Toy Trade Game and other educational games you can play with your puppy next week).
Teach your puppy to do a long down during meal times. Buy a soft rug or bed and teach your puppy to go lay on it on command. We have our own adult dogs lay on a rug in a down stay during dinner. Maple was doing a down stay along side them at 6 months old for the entire length of our meal – which means your puppy can do it at a young age, too!
Orangie (orange)
four weeks
I can’t believe how quickly these babies are growing up! There have been so much happening this week! The puppies have moved downstairs, tasted kibble, played with Maple’s puppies, enjoyed exploring outside, gone on a road trip, had their bottoms shaved with the clippers, slept in a crate together overnight, met a bunch of new faces during Maple’s meet & greet… It’s been a busy week! At first pups needed a calm, quiet environment without too much stimulation. But now they’re ready for the chaos that exists in the main part of our home, and the vastness of exploring the great outdoors! The pups moved into a small puppy area earlier in the week, and we gradually allowed them to play in the bigger puppy play yard (aka Puppy Town). We continue to give these munchkins new toys to spark their curiosity. And we continue to snuggle them! They shower us with kisses, and we shower them with kisses, too! We’ve also started taking them outside. First once a day for a brief period and now more frequently. Trotting on wood chips, bounding through the grass, climbing over rocks – it’s great for the puppies to experience a variety of surfaces and textures. These pups have had their toenails trimmed for the third or fourth time now, they’ve sniffed noses with some other dogs besides their mama (Abria enjoys being an auntie), they’ve enjoyed fresh warmed goat milk, they’ve had fun playing with each other and with Maple’s puppies… So much has happened this week! The growing and developing puppies do in the first four weeks is absolutely outstanding! Scroll up and look at the pictures from last week and compare them to this week’s pictures. Isn’t it incredible how much these puppies have grown and changed in such a short time?!
Plushy (green)
Diamond (pink)
The puppies are still enjoy mama Nylah’s (and mama Maple’s!) delicious, nutritious milk. I can’t imagine nursing a litter of babies! It doesn’t look like fun, but Nylah still nurses of all her sweet babies. It’s a crazy chaotic scramble of puppies as everyone climbs over, under, and on top of everyone else trying to secure a milk tap before anyone can snag it. It’s easy to tell when the milk starts flowing because the pups suddenly calm and you can hear their little gulps as they melt into a moment of pure milk enjoyment. The puppies have also started eating moistened TLC puppy kibble, and they think it’s pretty tasty too. Soon they’ll be chowing down on dry kibble, but for now while their teeth are coming in, the soften food makes for a perfect meal. Your little one will be accustomed to eating TLC puppy food. You should be receiving an email directly from TLC in the next week. In our weekly puppy tip below, you’ll learn about the trade game. Once your new fluffball is adjusted to your home, you can periodically use your puppy’s dinner bowl to play the game, working on preventing resource guarding. Taking a few minutes to work with your puppy while she’s young can go a long way in preventing unwanted behavior. Pick up a pack of hot dogs or other delicious treat and occasionally pick up your pup’s bowl while she’s eating, exchanging her kibble for a sliver of hot dog, and then returning her food bowl to her (see the trade game from weekly puppy tip #5).
Peter Puppy Tail (red)
Gingie (purple)
5 (and a half) weeks
weekly puppy tip #5: Get ready to play educational games with your puppy!
Did you know that there are fun games you can play with your puppy that teach him beneficial skills? It’s great to incorporate regular educational games into your puppy’s routine, so read through these suggestions, add any needed supplies to your puppy shopping list, and get ready for puppy playtime!
Ball On The Wall – Encourages retrieving
Supplies: A ball that your puppy can carry in her mouth
How to play: Sit on the floor about 1-5’ from a wall. Put your legs in a “V” and sit facing the wall with your puppy between you and the wall. Toss the ball at the wall, encouraging your puppy to go after it. Give your puppy lots of praise when she brings the ball back!
Variation: Once you’ve mastered Ball On The Wall, try playing retrieve in a hallway with all the doors closed (so your puppy can’t run away with the ball).
Toy Trade – Prevents resource guarding
Supplies: A toy that your puppy likes but doesn’t highly value and a high value treat
How to play: Briefly play with your puppy using the toy. Ask your puppy for the toy by offering her a high value treat. Reward & praise her for giving you the toy, and give the toy back to her as soon as she finishes chewing. Gradually work on having her give you objects of higher value (i.e. a bone).
Variation: Work on teaching your puppy the command “give” and ask her to drop the toy/bone on command in exchange for the high value treat.
Hide & Seek – Encourages recall
Supplies: Yummy treats
How to play: Run away from your puppy, hide behind a corner, tree, couch or other object, and call your puppy to encourage her to find you. When she does, give her lots of praise and a yummy treat.
Variation: Play Ping Pong by having a partner play with you and take turns hiding. While the first person is rewarding the puppy for coming, the second person hides.
Peter Puppy Tail (red)
Gingie (purple)
Check out how much these puppies have grown since last week! Peter Puppy Tail & Gingie, pictured above, are the last two puppies I shared pictures of last week (if you’re on a computer, their pictures this week should be in line with their pictures from last week). They’ve gotten bigger and fluffier and cuter, haven’t they? Haven’t they changed a lot in one week?
Five weeks is such a fun age! These puppies are cuter every day! Their individual personalities are showing through. They’ve transformed from little guinea pigs who can’t see or hear to actual miniature dogs who run around and play and give kisses. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed the short video clips on our Instagram story. I’m trying to share short videos there regularly so you can see what the puppies are up to each day. You’ve probably noticed that a number of those videos have been outside. The pups been going outside to potty multiple times a day now (rain or shine!).
The puppies have started eating dry TLC kibble now. At first they ate soften, moist kibble and now they’ve transitioned to straight dry kibble. Nylah (and Maple) continues to nurse them throughout the day. The puppies trot about, exploring the world around them. They enjoy playing with the different toys in their pen, and they enjoy playing with each other, too. The pups don’t sit still for long, except for when they’re on your lap or sleeping, so pictures are challenging – unless they’re sleeping! In between their short bursts of energy, they still spend much of their time snoozing. If you sit on the floor, you’re sure to have a lap full of puppies! Each night we divide the litter in half and put the pups in two crates for the night( everyone is in a crate with their buddies – no one is confined alone at this age).
Tux (black)
Weekly Puppy Tip #6
Pick out and sign up for a puppy class – A puppy class is essential both for socialization and manners. Look for a class that emphasizes positive reinforcement, as learning & training should be a fun game at this point. Clicker training is a plus. This article from AKC gives some pointers about what to look for in a puppy class. Many dog training facilities will allow your new friend join their puppy class around 12 weeks of age, once she has received her second set of immunizations.
We prefer in person puppy class over virtual hands down, but having online recourses is incredibly helpful, too. Timberidge Goldendoodles is excited to partner with Baxter & Bella. These online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner – there are even a variety of resources to help you now as you prepare for your new furry family member. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family.
Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
Here’s a short video from Baxter & Bella’s about how to train your puppy to respond positively the someone ringing your doorbell. You can take this same principle and apply it to a variety of other circumstances, such as teaching your puppy to walk calmly past another dog who is going crazy. You can find more free puppy training videos here. Remember, the best thing you can do to prepare for your new puppy is to prepare yourself!
6 weeks
It’s been another busy week full of fun puppy adventures. The puppies have played outside A LOT! The puppies have ventured on another road trip this week. It’s good for them to get used to playing in different locations/ new environments, and they’ve enjoyed exploring the new situations. We’re working hard to expose these pups to a variety of sights, sounds, smells, environments – and in just a few short weeks, it will be your turn to continue that socialization process with your new pup. Another new excitement of the week is that the puppies have officially started eating dry kibble. They have been eating TLC puppy food for some time now, but at first we moisten it and then gradually transition to completely dry. If you haven’t received an email from TLC, please let me know. The puppies have a blast playing with Maple’s pups and they have enjoyed sniffing noses with some adult dogs besides mamas Nylah & Maple this week too. Hopefully the Instagram story videos of the pups with Ivy made you smile. We were all laughing watching Ivy pull her blanket around the kitchen with numerous puppies hitch hiking rides!
weekly puppy tip #7
Get ready to groom! – Your puppy has had her nails clipped and hair trimmed during her time with us, so she has already had her initial introduction to a lifetime of being groomed. Take her to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. The groomer will bathe her, trim the hair out of her eyes, give her a sanitary clip, and trim her nails. Since she will need regular grooming throughout her life, both she and the groomer will benefit if she becomes accustomed to being groomed from a young age, even before she’s ready for a full haircut.
When should she have her first big girl haircut? The wavy adult coat will start replacing the soft, fluffy puppy coat around 5-6 months of age. You’ll notice the new hair coming in is kinkier than the pure fluff on top. Waiting to cut the hair until the adult coat makes its debut beneath the layers of puppy plush helps ensure that the adult coat remains soft. Many poodle groomers and poodle fanciers claim that shaving a poodle or goldendoodle down before her adult coat starts coming in could damage the adult coat, affecting the texture. While there isn’t any substantiated evidence that this is true, it’s worth avoiding just in case. That doesn’t mean that your puppy might not benefit from a puppy clip in the meantime! Don’t let your puppy’s hair get out of control! As aforementioned, take him to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. When the time comes, check out the grooming section on our website for a variety of goldendoodle haircut pictures. Learn more about your Goldendoodle puppy’s first trip to the groomer. We have a plethora of haircut resources under the “grooming” tab on the main menu bar.
Waiting until 6 months for the first full big girl clip does NOT mean you’re off the hook for grooming at home! You should regularly groom your puppy: brushing her hair, cleaning her ears, brushing her teeth, clipping her toenails, and checking her for any anomalies (i.e. ticks, cuts, etc.). You want your puppy to become accustomed to being brushed and handled all over from a young age. We HIGHLY recommend doing regular bonding/body handling exercises with your puppy (demonstrated in the video shared on weekly puppy tip #4). Goldendoodles are a breed that like routines (thanks to those poodle ancestors), so it’s nice to do bonding exercises every night just before your put your puppy in her crate for bed. It’s easy to incorporate different parts of grooming into your nightly bonding exercises, just doing a little here and a little there since young puppies don’t have the attention span for lots of grooming at once.
seven weeks
The puppies are so much fun! They bound around outside, finding things to chew and places to explore. They also sneak around the house, trying to investigate new places. We continue to take the puppies on new and different adventures. It’s fun to see their curiosity! The pups enjoy any new toy we throw their way, and they are still very fond of their slide and adventure box (they especially seem to have a blast tugging on the blue blanket).
Be sure to pick up a special extra yummy chew that your puppy only gets during (daytime) crate time
Aren’t these pups adorable? Now scroll back and look at their newborn pictures. Isn’t it marvelous that in just seven weeks they’ve transformed from little guinea pigs into gorgeous, fluffy puppies?!
weekly puppy tip #8
Fostering the children/dog relationship – Goldendoodles are family dogs by nature, but there are a few steps you can take to help set your puppy and your kids up for a lifetime of friendship:
When your puppy is sleeping, let her sleep – your puppy is growing & developing and she NEEDS that sleep. Teach your children to respect a sleeping puppy by not interrupting her. Your puppy’s crate should be her safe retreat. When she’s in her crate, allow her to enjoy safe, undisturbed quiet time- this doesn’t mean that you all need to tip toe quietly around when the puppies napping! It just means that when the puppy is napping, let her enjoy that peaceful sleep untouched and wake up on her own good time.
Involve your children in daily puppy care – allowing your children to participate in caring for the puppy will help grow the bond between them and their furry friend. It also helps the puppy learn associate good things with little people and helps her see the children as above her in the pack order. Younger children particularly love being helpers. Our kids enjoy (aka fight over) feeding the dogs, letting them out of their crates, opening the back door to let the dogs in/out, etc. We let them help brush the dogs with much supervision (remember, we want all puppy experiences to be POSITIVE!). Our children also love holding leashes on walks (children should only take your dog on a walk with adult supervision). If you don’t trust your puppy to not pull a young child over, you can attach two short leashes to one dog so both you & your child have a leash to hold. Be cognizant of your child’s age and maturity level. Older children can be more actively involved and younger children can be involved in smaller ways.
Encourage your children to play with the puppy – puppy nips and jumps can be intimidating for some children. Teaching children how to act calmly around a puppy and how to play intentional games such as fetch and educational games (see some suggestions under week 3) can help both the children and the puppy learn how to interact with each other. Explain to your children that your puppy isn’t trying to hurt them when she’s nipping – she’s asking them to play with her.
Include your children in puppy training – when you enroll your puppy in a puppy kindergarten class, ask about bringing your child along (assuming he’s old enough and mature enough to participate). Our children enjoy practicing sits and downs with our dogs, dolling out hotdog slivers to the eager participants. Our dogs think it’s great! Be sure to always supervise children/puppy training sessions.
Teach your children to respect the puppy – sometimes it’s challenging for children, especially young ones, to distinguish between their favorite stuffie and a real-life fluffy puppy. Many children need to be patiently taught to be gentle and kind with animals. “No hugging dogs” is a rule in our home because a preschooler bear hug around the neck is too much our small dogs (our dogs don’t mind but we’re afraid they might accidentally get hurt since they’re significantly smaller than the ones dolling out the hugs). If there are times when you aren’t able to supervise your children’s interaction with your puppy, it might be best (and safest) to put your puppy in her crate. Remember, that crate should be your puppy’s safe place. This article by AKC has more helpful tips about teaching children to respect dogs.
Establish a safe place for your dog, usually either a dog bed or crate. Teach your children that when the puppy is in her safe place, they need to let her alone and they may not touch her. Your puppy will learn that she can retreat to her safe place if she becomes overwhelmed with a situation or if she just needs a nap.
getting ready
Puppy supplies
We’ve created a puppy shopping list to guide you as you prepare to bring your new pup home! Go ahead and pick up a Snuggle Puppy (with a heartbeat) to bring with you on meet & greet day. If you have a crate, you’re welcome to leave that with us that on meet & greet day as well and we’ll start getting your puppy used to her new future “bedroom.”
Baxter & Bella: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
These are all short 1-3 minute videos that are helpful to watch. You’ll learn how to teach your puppy and get ideas for establishing good behaviors from day one. These videos show Amy Jensen training Chili, her young goldendoodle puppy
If you’re eager to learn more, Baxter & Bella’s online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family. Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
If you plan to do service or therapy work with your puppy, the harness introduction and “touch” are both important to start early on. In addition, watch GoodWill or Facebook Marketplace to find assistive mobility assistive such as a cane, crutches, walker, wheel chair, etc. that your puppy may encounter during therapy visits. You’ll want to familiar your puppy with those items early on.
Puppy Culture: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
You will have to put the free course into your cart and check out. Much of this program you can just listen to without actually watching, so this is a great have this on hand while you’re driving. If you only have time to watch part of this course, I recommend watching: Class 1 part 2 about setting up your puppy’s spot at home and Class 2 part 1 about structuring your puppy’s day.Bringing your puppy home by Puppy Culture
Carrot (red), Strawberry (pink), Snoopy (purple), Star (yellow), Chester (blue), and Tucker (green)
Maple & Boaz are the proud parents of six squishy new babies: two girls and four boys. These little ones are absolutely precious. When first born, puppies depend completely on their mama, so we’re blessed that Maple does such a great job caring for them. She nurses them almost constantly it seems and snuggles with them (sometimes Maple nurse them while lying on her back with her belly up in the air – it makes us laugh!). How sweet are these faces? The pups are less than 24 hours old in the picture above.
Our kids have given the puppies temporary names. The girls are Strawberry (pink collar) and Snoopy (purple collar). The boys are Chester (blue collar), Tucker (green collar), Star (yellow collar), and Carrot (red collar). If you’ve ever read Cricket in Times Square, you may recognize the named Tucker & Chester.
At first puppies can’t yet walk. Their eyes and ears are closed. They can’t go to the bathroom on their own. And they can’t maintain their own body temperature. Fortunately God gave puppies a natural instinct to pile together for warmth, so they snuggle together in a giant puppy heap. And they also cuddling around Maple as she snoozes contentedly, surrounded by her new family. EEGs have revealed that the brain activity of infant puppies is the same when asleep and awake. But these little pups are busy eating, growing, and developing. Maple’s puppies twitch and pop in their sleep, as all healthy newborn puppies should. This activated sleep helps them build muscle tone.
weekly puppy tip #1: nap time is essential!
Think about a napping place – The puppies spend most of their lives sleeping now, but did you know that your new furbaby is going to need lots of sleep when you bring her home, too? Puppies, just like small children, require naps throughout the day. When your puppy is sleeping, try to allow her to rest untouched (it’s okay for noisy life to carry on around her while she snoozes, but it’s best not to physically disturb her as much as possible). This may mean that you need to guide her to a different spot than the one she’s initially chosen. Puppy Culture estimates that an 8-10 week old puppy sleeps 3 hours and then is awake for 1 hour before going back down for another nap. AKC gives some helpful insight into the importance of puppy sleep:
Although puppies may seem like little bundles of energy, in fact, they sleep 15-20 hours a day. One minute your puppy may be a miniature tornado, and the next he’s fallen soundly asleep, almost mid-activity. Sleep is essential to healthy growth: during sleep his central nervous system, brain, immune system, and muscles are developing. All of that sleep also helps him rest up during growth spurts… household members, especially children, should leave your puppy alone while he is sleeping. Plan his day so that active time is followed by quiet time for sleep. He’ll most likely be ready for a nap after playtime or a walk, sleep for a while and then wake up ready for anything. Your puppy may nap every hour or so, sleeping from 30 minutes to as long as two hours. All of this sleep is perfectly normal.
It’s hard to believe that these babies are already one week old! They have grown so much! These puppies may still seem incredibly small but they’ve really packed on the pounds, in fact they’ve all doubled their birth weights and passed over the 1lb mark. That’s a lot of growing! These sweet little pumpkins continue to dedicate their entire lives to eating and sleeping – and it shows! They are fat little sausages with adorable wrinkles and rolls. And all this growing means that they’ve graduated to big pup collars! We use break-free collars to keep our littles safe from the risk of strangulation, but these special safety collars feel like “normal” collars to the puppies, so they’ll go home used to the feel of wearing a collar.
They twitch and pop involuntarily during their sleep, developing muscle tone for the near future. This phenomenon is known as “activated sleep.” In a few short weeks, these rolly polly puppies will be bouncing around playfully. Their legs, while still wobbly, have already gotten stronger and the puppies wobble around on them instead of just army crawling as they did initially.
weekly puppy tip #2
Make a puppy experience plan – Compile a list of places you want to take your puppy and experiences you want your puppy to encounter. Any day now, these little eyes will be ready to soak up the sites, and we’ll now start introducing the puppies to items that differ in appearance. We have a thought out socialization plan, working hard to expose your puppy to as much as possible during her time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility then shifts to you as you continue the socialization process. Exposing your puppy to new people, situations, sounds, smells, textures, etc. is extremely important. Give your new puppy a few days to adjust to her new home and new routine. Then begin giving her short, positive experiences (yummy treats make everything more positive!). Don’t try to do too much in one day, as you don’t want to overwhelm or stress her. Start developing ideas of how to want to socialize your new puppy.
Your goal is for your puppy to meet a minimum of 100 different people by the time she’s six months old. Dr. Ian Dunbar, a puppy socialization expert, raises the bar even higher by recommending that puppies meet 100+ people during the first month at home. If you hope to visit a local nursing home or hospital when your puppy gets older, secure some crutches, walkers or wheelchairs to expose your puppy to at home. Meeting people is just one component of socialization. Think about outdoor experiences that you and your puppy can safely enjoy together. Consider what predictable dogs you can introduce your puppy to (dogs who are predictable, friendly, healthy, and will model good behavior for your pup). Remember, adult dogs aren’t always fond of puppies so be sure to monitor them together. Do you know anyone with a woods or creek where you can take your puppy for a short romp? Remember, you want every experience to be POSITIVE (i.e. bring yummy treats and hand out the praise). Making a plan now, before you bring your puppy home, will help ensure that you follow through with a variety of positive exposures once you have your new little fluff ball at your side.
Check out AviDog’s free e-book for more ideas about what to add to your puppy experience plan. Baxter & Bella also has some great ideas for socializing your puppy.
two weeks
These puppies are so stinking precious! And they’re incredibly chunky! It’s fair to say that Maple is diligent about making sure her puppies are well fed. Despite their rotund bellies, the pups are beginning to take wobbly steps. Don’t they look much more like little dogs than they did last week? The puppies are still in a calm, quiet environment. Soon they’ll be ready for the chaos of our main living area but not quite yet. They get around their whelping box fairly quickly on wobbly legs, and it’s fun to see them attempting to walk instead of belly crawl.
But seriously, aren’t these little sausages getting cuter and cuter each week?! These sweet dumplings are getting so big! The puppies continue to enjoy nursing regularly. It’s a crazy, active puppy pile as they all search for the perfect milk tap. Once the milk starts flowing, they all settle down and enjoy the delicious warmness filling their chunky bellies. Their happy tails tell us that they enjoy nursing. Hopefully you enjoyed the Instagram story clip of the puppies nursing.
The puppies have all had their toenails. It’s important to keep their toenails short now so the pups don’t accidentally scratch mama Maple when they’re nursing. Toenails grow quickly. Be ready to trim your new pup’s nails every few weeks when she joins your family. Right now we use human nail clippers on the pup’s toenails because they’re so tiny.
The biggest, most exciting change since last week is that puppies’ eye have just started opening. It’s so fun to see them looking back at us. Eye opening is a process that doesn’t happen all in one day.
weekly puppy tip #3: age appropriate exercise
Glance over Puppy Culture’s exercise chart. Familiarize yourself with what sorts of activities are appropriate for your puppy at different stages of development. You want to give your puppy a variety of unique positive experiences, but your puppy is still growing & developing, so you don’t want to push your puppy too far. For instance, climbing up one to two stairs is an appropriate challenge but climbing a flight of stairs is not a good idea for a young puppy (a study done on 500 dogs showed that puppies allowed to climb a flight of stairs regularly before 3 months old were more likely to develop hip dysplasia). Remember, free running and playing is a great option because your puppy can rest whenever she feels inclined to do so. If you’d like to read more about puppy exercise, check out AviDog’s puppy exercise guidelines. This article from AKC also gives some helpful puppy exercise tips.
three weeks
Aren’t these little pumpkins really looking like miniature dogs now? Look at those open eyes! When puppy eyes first open, they’re blue and cloudy but as the eyes change from their cloudy blue appearance, they open more and the puppy’s vision becomes crisper. We give the puppies different objects to explore, and it’s fun to watch them interact with each toy. There’s one toy that rattles a little, and we can hear them exploring it from the other room. The pups still spend the majority of their time snoozing, but they’re also starting to play with each other. Their clumsy play right now looks like it’s happening in slow motion.
weekly puppy tip #4: be the leader your puppy wants you to be
It’s essential that you establish yourself as the pack leader. Your puppy doesn’t want to be in charge – that’s a scary place to be! Your puppy wants to look to you as the leader, but you have to show yourself as worth of the role by being the leader (this also helps set your kids apart as ranking higher in the pack than your new pup). Some easy ways to establish your leadership include:
Sit down with your puppy each night before bed and briefly touch your puppy EVERYWHERE. Kneel on the floor with your puppy sitting between your legs. Start by petting your puppy’s head and tell him “head, head.” Then check his mouth, telling him “teeth, teeth,” and look inside his ears telling him “ear, ears.” Briefly go over your puppy from nose to tail in this fashion. This helps establish that you’re allowed to touch your puppy anywhere and everywhere. (see the video below)
Set boundaries so there is at least one place in your home that your dog isn’t allowed to go in your home (i.e. not allowed to jump on your bed, not allowed to sit on a particular couch or not allowed into a certain room).
Teach you puppy to sit and wait for you to walk out the front door before her and give her the “okay” before she is permitted to walk through it. If you’ve been consistent, your puppy will offer a sit and wait for a release word (i.e. “okay”) before coming inside by 3 months old. When she’s old enough to start walking freely up and down stairs, teach her to wait for you to finish climbing/descending the stairs before she comes.
Encourage your puppy sit and wait for you to give her the “okay” before she is allowed to approach her food bowl. Periodically pick up your puppy’s food bowl while she’s eating, reward her with a yummy treat, and return the food bowl. (we’ll talk about the Toy Trade Game and other educational games you can play with your puppy next week).
Teach your puppy to do a long down during meal times. Buy a soft rug or bed and teach your puppy to go lay on it on command. We have our own adult dogs lay on a rug in a down stay during dinner. Maple was doing a down stay along side them at 6 months old for the entire length of our meal – which means your puppy can do it at a young age, too!
four weeks
Tucker (green) & Strawberry (pink)
I can’t believe how quickly these babies are growing up! The biggest news of the week is that they moved downstairs AND they’ve tested kibble for the first time! At first pups needed a calm, quiet environment without too much stimulation. But now they’re ready for the chaos that exists in the main part of our home! The pups moved into a small puppy area earlier in the week and we have been gradually expanding their puppy play yard. We introduced a crate yesterday, and it was fun to come downstairs this morning to find all six puppies sleeping in the crate! We continue to give the munchkins new toys to spark their curiosity. And we continue to snuggle them! They shower us with kisses, and we shower them with kisses, too! These pups have had their toenails trimmed for the third time now, they’ve sniffed noses with some other dogs besides their mama (Abria enjoys being an auntie), they’ve enjoyed goat milk, they’ve started playing with each other (it’s hilarious to watch because it’s like watching them play in slow motion)… So much has happened this week! The growing and developing puppies do in the first four weeks is absolutely outstanding! In just one month, these pups have gone from being unable to walk to playing with each other. In just one month, they’ve gone from having eyes & ears that are shut to curiously exploring the world around them. In just one month, they’ve gone from being entirely dependent on Maple to using a potty area in their pen, interacting with each other, and giving us kisses! It’s so fun to watch all of that growing and developing unfold. Hopefully you’ve been enjoying the Instagram story videos of the puppies this week.
Chester (blue) & Star (yellow)
The puppies are still enjoy mama Maple’s delicious, nutritious milk. I can’t imagine nursing a litter of babies! It doesn’t look like fun, but Maple still nurses of all her sweet babies. It’s a crazy chaotic scramble of puppies as everyone climbs over, under, and on top of everyone else trying to secure a milk tap before anyone can snag it. It’s easy to tell when the milk starts flowing because the pups suddenly calm and you can hear their little gulps as they melt into a moment of pure milk enjoyment. The puppies have also started eating moistened TLC puppy kibble, and they think it’s pretty tasty too. Soon they’ll be chowing down on dry kibble, but for now while their teeth are coming in, the soften food makes for a perfect meal. Your little one will be accustomed to eating TLC puppy food. You should be receiving an email directly from TLC in the next week. In our weekly puppy tip below, you’ll learn about the trade game. Once your new fluffball is adjusted to your home, you can periodically use your puppy’s dinner bowl to play the game, working on preventing resource guarding. Taking a few minutes to work with your puppy while she’s young can go a long way in preventing unwanted behavior. Pick up a pack of hot dogs or other delicious treat and occasionally pick up your pup’s bowl while she’s eating, exchanging her kibble for a sliver of hot dog, and then returning her food bowl to her (see the trade game from weekly puppy tip #5).
weekly puppy tip #5: Get ready to play educational games with your puppy!
Did you know that there are fun games you can play with your puppy that teach him beneficial skills? It’s great to incorporate regular educational games into your puppy’s routine, so read through these suggestions, add any needed supplies to your puppy shopping list, and get ready for puppy playtime!
Ball On The Wall – Encourages retrieving
Supplies: A ball that your puppy can carry in her mouth
How to play: Sit on the floor about 1-5’ from a wall. Put your legs in a “V” and sit facing the wall with your puppy between you and the wall. Toss the ball at the wall, encouraging your puppy to go after it. Give your puppy lots of praise when she brings the ball back!
Variation: Once you’ve mastered Ball On The Wall, try playing retrieve in a hallway with all the doors closed (so your puppy can’t run away with the ball).
Toy Trade – Prevents resource guarding
Supplies: A toy that your puppy likes but doesn’t highly value and a high value treat
How to play: Briefly play with your puppy using the toy. Ask your puppy for the toy by offering her a high value treat. Reward & praise her for giving you the toy, and give the toy back to her as soon as she finishes chewing. Gradually work on having her give you objects of higher value (i.e. a bone).
Variation: Work on teaching your puppy the command “give” and ask her to drop the toy/bone on command in exchange for the high value treat.
Hide & Seek – Encourages recall
Supplies: Yummy treats
How to play: Run away from your puppy, hide behind a corner, tree, couch or other object, and call your puppy to encourage her to find you. When she does, give her lots of praise and a yummy treat.
Variation: Play Ping Pong by having a partner play with you and take turns hiding. While the first person is rewarding the puppy for coming, the second person hides.
Carrot (red) & Snoopy (purple)
five weeks
This is such a fun age! These puppies are cuter every day! Their individual personalities are showing through. They’ve transformed from little guinea pigs who can’t see or hear to actual miniature dogs who run around and play and give kisses. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed the short video clips on our Instagram story. I’m trying to share short videos there so you can see what the puppies are up to each day.
Chester (blue)
Strawberry (pink)
These puppies have started eating a mush of softened TLC puppy kibble mixed with fresh goat milk. Soon they’ll be chowing down on dry kibble, but for now while their teeth are coming in, the soften food makes for a perfect meal. Maple continues to nurse them throughout the day. The puppies trot about, exploring the world around them. They enjoy playing with the different toys in their pen, and they enjoy playing with each other, too. The pups don’t sit still for long, except for when they’re on your lap or sleeping, so pictures are challenging – unless they’re sleeping! In between their short bursts of energy, they still spend much of their time snoozing. If you sit on the floor, you’re sure to have a lap full of puppies! The puppies have had their toenails trimmed again, and they’ve also had their bottoms shaved with clippers. We’ve started locking them in crates overnight (with their buddies – no one is confined alone at this age), and they all hold their little poos until morning. Then, when we take them outside first thing in the morning, it’s rewarding to see the whole group all pottying at the same time! We’ve had wonderful weather for the puppies to spend time enjoying the great outdoors, although we’re careful about how long the puppies are outside in one session since it’s been pretty hot. The pups have also been on two road trips this week where they’ve been able to explore new environments and meet new people. We feel that it’s important for puppies to experience different environments starting from a young age, so we work hard to start that socialization during their time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility passes onto you and then it’s your turn to continue the socialization process. Hopefully you’ve worked on a puppy experience plan like we talks about in puppy tip #2! It’s been a fun week for these little pups, and we’re thoroughly enjoying them.
Tucker (green) – yes, he fell asleep sitting up!
Snoopy (purple)
Weekly Puppy Tip #6
Pick out and sign up for a puppy class – A puppy class is essential both for socialization and manners. Look for a class that emphasizes positive reinforcement, as learning & training should be a fun game at this point. Clicker training is a plus. This article from AKC gives some pointers about what to look for in a puppy class. Many dog training facilities will allow your new friend join their puppy class around 12 weeks of age, once she has received her second set of immunizations. Allison Camp from Pups Unleashed offers a local puppy class. She’ll be temperament testing the puppies in about 2 weeks and assisting with matching. Temperament testing always an exciting day!
We prefer in person puppy class over virtual hands down, but having online recourses is incredibly helpful, too. Timberidge Goldendoodles is excited to be partnering with Baxter & Bella. These online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner – there are even a variety of resources to help you now as you prepare for your new furry family member. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family.
Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
Here’s a short video from Baxter & Bella’s about how to train your puppy to respond positively the someone ringing your doorbell. You can take this same principle and apply it to a variety of other circumstances, such as teaching your puppy to walk calmly past another dog who is going crazy. You can find more free puppy training videos here. Remember, the best thing you can do to prepare for your new puppy is to prepare yourself!
six weeks
It’s been another busy week full of fun puppy adventures. The puppies have played outside A LOT! And it’s been another week of crazy weather here, so the puppies have practiced pottying outside in both rain and shine. This puppies have traveled several different locations besides our home this past week. It’s good for them to get used to playing in different locations/ new environments, and they’ve enjoyed exploring the new situations. We’re working hard to expose these pups to a variety of sights, sounds, smells, environments – and in just a few short weeks, it will be your turn to continue that socialization process with your new pup. Another new excitement of the week is that the puppies have officially started eating dry kibble. They have been eating TLC puppy food for some time now, but at first we moisten it and then gradually transition to completely dry. If you haven’t received an email from TLC, please let me know.
weekly puppy tip #7
Get ready to groom! – Your puppy has had her nails clipped and hair trimmed during her time with us, so she has already had her initial introduction to a lifetime of being groomed. Take her to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. The groomer will bathe her, trim the hair out of her eyes, give her a sanitary clip, and trim her nails. Since she will need regular grooming throughout her life, both she and the groomer will benefit if she becomes accustomed to being groomed from a young age, even before she’s ready for a full haircut.
When should she have her first big girl haircut? The wavy adult coat will start replacing the soft, fluffy puppy coat around 5-6 months of age. You’ll notice the new hair coming in is kinkier than the pure fluff on top. Waiting to cut the hair until the adult coat makes its debut beneath the layers of puppy plush helps ensure that the adult coat remains soft. Many poodle groomers and poodle fanciers claim that shaving a poodle or goldendoodle down before her adult coat starts coming in could damage the adult coat, affecting the texture. While there isn’t any substantiated evidence that this is true, it’s worth avoiding just in case. That doesn’t mean that your puppy might not benefit from a puppy clip in the meantime! Don’t let your puppy’s hair get out of control! As aforementioned, take him to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. When the time comes, check out the grooming section on our website for a variety of goldendoodle haircut pictures. Learn more about your Goldendoodle puppy’s first trip to the groomer. We have a plethora of haircut resources under the “grooming” tab on the main menu bar.
Waiting until 6 months for the first full big girl clip does NOT mean you’re off the hook for grooming at home! You should regularly groom your puppy: brushing her hair, cleaning her ears, brushing her teeth, clipping her toenails, and checking her for any anomalies (i.e. ticks, cuts, etc.). You want your puppy to become accustomed to being brushed and handled all over from a young age. We HIGHLY recommend doing regular bonding/body handling exercises with your puppy (demonstrated in the video shared on weekly puppy tip #4). Goldendoodles are a breed that like routines (thanks to those poodle ancestors), so it’s nice to do bonding exercises every night just before your put your puppy in her crate for bed. It’s easy to incorporate different parts of grooming into your nightly bonding exercises, just doing a little here and a little there since young puppies don’t have the attention span for lots of grooming at once.
Here’s a quick video from Baxter & Bella giving you a safe method for helping your puppy become comfortable having the hair around her eyes trimmed. Your puppy is going to need those pesky little hairs trimmed out of her eyes throughout her life, so you’ll be thankful that you got her accustomed to that from a young age. Take this same principle and apply it to other aspects of grooming, such as nail trimming and teeth brushing. This method helps create positive emotional responses in your puppy towards grooming, which is exactly what you want! Baxter & Bella has other short helpful grooming related videos on their Instagram page (posted in October & November 2021).
vet check: August 4th
The puppies visited our friends at Hopewell Animal Hospital. I am please to report that all seven puppies are healthy! The pups received their first of three doses of the DHP vaccine. You should schedule an appointment with your vet for your pup to receive a second dose when she is 12 weeks old (around 09.08.22) weeks of age and third dose at 16 weeks of age (around 10.06.22). Your puppy’s birthday is June 23rd.
seven weeks
The puppies are so much fun! They bound around outside, finding things to chew and places to explore. They also sneak around the house, trying to investigate new places. We continue to take the puppies on new and different adventures. It’s fun to see their curiosity! The pups enjoy any new toy we throw their way, and they are still very fond of their slide and adventure box.
Be sure to pick up a special extra yummy chew that your puppy only gets during (daytime) crate time.
GusZiva
MillieTucker
Otis
Aren’t these pups adorable? Now scroll back and look at their newborn pictures. Isn’t it marvelous that in just seven weeks they’ve transformed from little guinea pigs into gorgeous, fluffy puppies?!
weekly puppy tip #8
Fostering the children/dog relationship – Goldendoodles are family dogs by nature, but there are a few steps you can take to help set your puppy and your kids up for a lifetime of friendship:
When your puppy is sleeping, let her sleep – your puppy is growing & developing and she NEEDS that sleep. Teach your children to respect a sleeping puppy by not interrupting her. Your puppy’s crate should be her safe retreat. When she’s in her crate, allow her to enjoy safe, undisturbed quiet time- this doesn’t mean that you all need to tip toe quietly around when the puppies napping! It just means that when the puppy is napping, let her enjoy that peaceful sleep untouched and wake up on her own good time.
Involve your children in daily puppy care – allowing your children to participate in caring for the puppy will help grow the bond between them and their furry friend. It also helps the puppy learn associate good things with little people and helps her see the children as above her in the pack order. Younger children particularly love being helpers. Our kids enjoy (aka fight over) feeding the dogs, letting them out of their crates, opening the back door to let the dogs in/out, etc. We let them help brush the dogs with much supervision (remember, we want all puppy experiences to be POSITIVE!). Our children also love holding leashes on walks (children should only take your dog on a walk with adult supervision). If you don’t trust your puppy to not pull a young child over, you can attach two short leashes to one dog so both you & your child have a leash to hold. Be cognizant of your child’s age and maturity level. Older children can be more actively involved and younger children can be involved in smaller ways.
Encourage your children to play with the puppy – puppy nips and jumps can be intimidating for some children. Teaching children how to act calmly around a puppy and how to play intentional games such as fetch and educational games (see some suggestions under week 3) can help both the children and the puppy learn how to interact with each other. Explain to your children that your puppy isn’t trying to hurt them when she’s nipping – she’s asking them to play with her.
Include your children in puppy training – when you enroll your puppy in a puppy kindergarten class, ask about bringing your child along (assuming he’s old enough and mature enough to participate). Our children enjoy practicing sits and downs with our dogs, dolling out hotdog slivers to the eager participants. Our dogs think it’s great! Be sure to always supervise children/puppy training sessions.
Teach your children to respect the puppy – sometimes it’s challenging for children, especially young ones, to distinguish between their favorite stuffie and a real-life fluffy puppy. Many children need to be patiently taught to be gentle and kind with animals. “No hugging dogs” is a rule in our home because a preschooler bear hug around the neck is too much our small dogs (our dogs don’t mind but we’re afraid they might accidentally get hurt since they’re significantly smaller than the ones dolling out the hugs). If there are times when you aren’t able to supervise your children’s interaction with your puppy, it might be best (and safest) to put your puppy in her crate. Remember, that crate should be your puppy’s safe place. This article by AKC has more helpful tips about teaching children to respect dogs.
Establish a safe place for your dog, usually either a dog bed or crate. Teach your children that when the puppy is in her safe place, they need to let her alone and they may not touch her. Your puppy will learn that she can retreat to her safe place if she becomes overwhelmed with a situation or if she just needs a nap.
getting ready
Puppy supplies
We’ve created a puppy shopping list to guide you as you prepare to bring your new pup home! Go ahead and pick up a Snuggle Puppy (with a heartbeat) to bring with you on meet & greet day. If you have a 36″ metal crate, you’re welcome to leave that with us that on meet & greet day as well, and we’ll start getting your puppy used to her new future “bedroom.” (We have plenty of crates, so all of the puppies will get used to sleeping in a crate at night, so please don’t feel like you have to bring one. I do highly recommend sending a snuggle puppy though.)
Baxter & Bella: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
These are all short 1-3 minute videos that are helpful to watch. You’ll learn how to teach your puppy and get ideas for establishing good behaviors from day one. These videos show Amy Jensen of Baxter & Bella training Chili, her young goldendoodle puppy
If you’re eager to learn more, Baxter & Bella’s online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family. Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
If you plan to do service or therapy work with your puppy, the harness introduction and “touch” are both important to start early on. In addition, watch GoodWill or Facebook Marketplace to find assistive mobility assistive such as a cane, crutches, walker, wheel chair, etc. that your puppy may encounter during therapy visits. You’ll want to familiar your puppy with those items early on.
Puppy Culture: first 2 weeks with a new puppy
You will have to put the free course into your cart and check out. Much of this program you can just listen to without actually watching, so this is a great have this on hand while you’re driving. If you only have time to watch part of this course, I recommend watching: Class 1 part 2 about setting up your puppy’s spot at home and Class 2 part 1 about structuring your puppy’s day. Bringing your puppy home by Puppy Culture
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkPrivacy policy
