New Furbaby! Pic and Questions

CA.Giraffe

Meet my new furbaby, Nikita!

She's a 6-week-old German Shepherd. Her mom died about 10 days ago, and the litter of 13 was rescued. She's been to the vet, is healthy, has her first shots and has been dewormed.

I grew up with Shepherds, but they were adult rescues. I've done some reading, but I was wondering - is there anything I need to do differently than, say, a puppy who's 8-10 weeks old? She's on solid food and wants to eat all. the. time. She's great about letting us know when she wants to go out. What else should I be working on with her? Is there anything else I need to know or watch out for?

Thanks!

 

MrsMack10612

I have nothing constructive to say.

BUT OMG THAT FACE!  What a cutie!

itzMS

Precious. You're lucky you have the couple of extra weeks with her to train her. They learn so easily when they're young.

My puppies always loved chewing on electric cords and corners of cabinets...so make sure she knows what her chew toys are ASAP! :-)

cwaggoner07

She probably should have been kept with her litter until at LEAST 8 weeks for socializing. You may have some troubles with her biting and chewing.

I would recommend to start planning and get her into obedience school around 4-5 months (I recommend that to ANYONE, not just because of the litter thing). If you've never had a dog before, I would try to attend class, and not do the thing where you drop them off for a few weeks. I learned SO much at my classes. So much that my mom went back with my same dog so that SHE could learn more about how to work with him. He was a pro, but it was her who wanted to learn.

Remember anything you let her do now, she will do when she's full grown. This applies to putting her in your lap, letting her on the couch, and anything else. It's not BAD necessarily, just something to think about. That's why you see so many huge dogs sitting in their owner's laps. They don't realize they have gained 70 pounds. 

There are lots of dog lovers, and people way smarter than me on these boards. I've learned a lot, so ask if you have any questions, or let us know anything you have learned that could help us out.

Good luck and congrats!

harper0813

She is a DOLL. Sorry, I don't have anything better to contribute.

CA.Giraffe

Thanks! I'm so excited she's mine.

We have a 1.5-year-old Lab, but we got her at 12 weeks and I felt like her training went a little differently because of that. She's also trained as a bird dog, so a lot of what we did with her won't apply to Nikita.

We also have a kitty (tortie), with whom Nikita slept last night. Hopefully having the other animals around will help with the socialization. DH was introduced to Nikita when he went to pick up the Lab from the kennel yesterday (we had been on vacation) - the tech asked if we would be interested in a playmate for our Lab, and pointed him in the direction of the rescue. By the time I got off work and we headed over there, only Nikita and one sister remained, so I felt it was best for us to take her rather than leave her until she was a full 8 weeks.

She definitely wants to chew! Shoelaces and toes, mostly. We picked up some puppy-size toys for her to chew instead, and work to have those around to redirect her when she's chewing on something else. I sit with her on the floor, since none of our animals are allowed on the furniture. And I'll certainly be looking into some formal training for her soon.

Peaseblossom55

I never owned a dog so I can't offer any advice but what a cute puppy!

KDM323

So cute!

Just keep an eye out for chewing and as the others have said...keep in mind that whatever you think is "cute" now may not be so cute when she's 75 lbs. (jumping, being in your lap, getting on the furniture, etc)

I highly recommend crate training!

AddieCake

Cuteness!   I don't know much about dogs, so that's all I've got. Additionally, I miss you, so maybe you could find time to Knot once in a while, despite being an old married hag!

Ajuliana

Crate train! It will save you so much time in potty training. Also, resist the urge to pull her up into bed with you. My beagle used to go potty at 3AM and then I'd pull her into bed...at 10 weeks I took her out but she cried if I tried to crate her again...now at 14 weeks she fakes that she has tp go and whines, but once I open her crate she jumps into thebed.

[Deleted User]

Ya, the chewing can be an issue. For any young puppies you can help this with training but not the training most people expect. Of she bites you while playing you don't have ro scold her but mimick a loud sharp puppy yelp and she will immediately back off. It is how puppies would normally learn their boundaries with their litter so i would reinforce that.

Our lab was so bad with chewing things she was not allowed to that we ended up using bitter spray and cheyenne pepper to train her. Spray the bitter spray on things she shouldn't chew or rub cheyenne pepper over it. It does not sound nice, but it won't hurt them and eventually they get the idea. Let them chew and then give them a firm no and immediately replace with a toy (not sprayed of course) :-)

Good luck! She is adorable!!!

Maggie0829

What a ball of cuteness!!  So fluffy and tiny and little floppy ears and I just want to give her a big squishy hug and lots of kisses!

QueerFemme

Don't bring her out into the world until she is at least 12 weeks. I know that is hard. But, no petsmart, no walks in your neighborhood.  And honestly, take off your shoes in the house.  At that age, she is at a very high risk for parvo, especially because she didn't get those last antibodies from her mother from nursing.  Parvo is EVERYWHERE.  If friends come to visit and meet her, make them take off their shoes and wash their hands until she has been through her puppy vaccines.

 

Jessa617

Training isn't any different for a 6 week old compared to an 8 week old. The important things to remember is consistency. Also, start touching her paws a lot and her ears alot so she can get used to being touched in places that most dogs hate. If she starts to bite, grab her "cheeks" and firmly say "no". Do not smack her nose or any of that, that could bring out aggressive behavior as she gets older. GSD's definitely should go to some kind of training/obedience school. Usually that's later on (closer to 5 months or so). Crate training is something that I'd typically recommend but if you already have one well-behaved dog, she will learn a lot from him. If she jumps up on people definitely nip this in the bud while she's young so she doesn't make a habit of it.

My main tips:

Frequently touch/rub her paws and ears
Obedience Training
Redirect any biting/nipping
NO TABLE SCRAPS (this will help prevent any begging or bad dinner habits).

CA.Giraffe

@AddieL73 - Darn married life keeping me away from the Knot! I've missed you too...and apparently I missed a considerable amount of drama. Almost didn't recognize the place!

Thanks for all the suggestions for my furbaby. I think I'm most excited because I'm off work for three weeks beginning Monday, so I'll be home all the time with her for awhile.

@FierceFemme - I have no intention of taking her out in public for awhile. We live on acreage, so she has tons of room to run and play and train without risking her health. We even have a mobile vet (large and small animals), so she's not exposed for any of her shots or vet visits.

The rescue started her on crate training. We have a crate for her, but last night we just left it open so she could come and go as she pleased. The kids are home with her today and tomorrow, so she's not cooped up.

No human food for any of our pets! Animals who beg are one of my pet peeves. The Lab isn't allowed in the kitchen or dining room, so hopefully Nikita will pick up on that.

OjitosVerdes

I don't have any advice either, but what a adorable little baby!

QueerFemme

CA.Giraffe said:

@AddieL73 - Darn married life keeping me away from the Knot! I've missed you too...and apparently I missed a considerable amount of drama. Almost didn't recognize the place!

Thanks for all the suggestions for my furbaby. I think I'm most excited because I'm off work for three weeks beginning Monday, so I'll be home all the time with her for awhile.

@FierceFemme - I have no intention of taking her out in public for awhile. We live on acreage, so she has tons of room to run and play and train without risking her health. We even have a mobile vet (large and small animals), so she's not exposed for any of her shots or vet visits.

The rescue started her on crate training. We have a crate for her, but last night we just left it open so she could come and go as she pleased. The kids are home with her today and tomorrow, so she's not cooped up.

No human food for any of our pets! Animals who beg are one of my pet peeves. The Lab isn't allowed in the kitchen or dining room, so hopefully Nikita will pick up on that.

sounds like you have everything covered.  Just be careful if you have any wild animals that cruise your acreage.  I hate seeing lil rescue puppies end up with parvo.  I just rescued two 5 week old boxer puppies that were positive for parvo.  Worst 2 weeks ever, trying to keep those babies alive.  Mostly I hate seeing people with brand new puppies trotting them through Petsmart or Petco.  People need a clue!

Congrats on the new baby.  She is so beautiful!

AllieBear725

Our German Shepard was stubborn as heck! He chewed through everything too. Be sure she gets a lot of exercise!

Dreamergirl8812

awebb04 said:

Ya, the chewing can be an issue. For any young puppies you can help this with training but not the training most people expect. Of she bites you while playing you don't have ro scold her but mimick a loud sharp puppy yelp and she will immediately back off. It is how puppies would normally learn their boundaries with their litter so i would reinforce that. Our lab was so bad with chewing things she was not allowed to that we ended up using bitter spray and cheyenne pepper to train her. Spray the bitter spray on things she shouldn't chew or rub cheyenne pepper over it. It does not sound nice, but it won't hurt them and eventually they get the idea. Let them chew and then give them a firm no and immediately replace with a toy (not sprayed of course) :-) Good luck! She is adorable!!!

Yes! I was going to say that. Deodorant works too for surfaces. No one wants to lick deodorant.

Also, you said she eats all the time so you're probably already doing this, but make sure she has access to food after she's been really active. I've seen puppies play! play! play! and then their blood sugar drops so drastically that they have a seizure.

KeptInStitches

I have nothing constructive to contribute besides PUPPY! Oh she's so adorable!

SummerGrl15

Oh, she is too cute!! Enjoy her!!

BostonGIrl4732

So cute!  Darn it!  I just stopped looking at pictures of GSD puppies yesterday.

I think everyone has it pretty much covered.  As she gets older, make sure you have stuff for her to do to exercise her brain.  With my parents' dog, we hide treats before we bring her back in the house from her pen.  We have a few challenging toys for her as well.

[Deleted User]

Nope. Nope. Nope. You should get rid of her.  Immediately.  Here, send her to me, I'll take on that burden. 

 

 

I am so jealous. Too cute.