Holy Moly! You got a puppy, a new member of the family, it’s a thrill. Then you start to realize it’s not all sunshine and rainbows and there are going to be a few little changes in your life. You might experience puppy blues during these changes.
What is Puppy Blues?
It’s the stress you feel after bringing a new puppy home. You can feel depressed, defeated, anxious. You might start to think that have made a mistake and being a puppy parent isn’t for you.
You can feel these feelings anytime while raising a puppy or during different stages of puppyhood. Me personally puppy biting and teething was the worse part of puppy hood those sharp little teeth hurt! But it’s ok we kept reinforcing no biting and even though it was hardest habits to break we didn’t give up and now we have a gentle soul.
I’m making this article to inform puppy parents or any new pet parents that they are not alone. It is ok to take a break from puppy for your own sanity. On this blog page we hope to give you tips and tricks for raising your puppy and making the stressful parts a little less stressful.
Now that we have established that puppyhood can be a roller coaster here are some things that you can do to make it a little more durable.
- Take a small break.
Really, it’s good to schedule YOU time. For you and the puppy just make sure the puppy has everything they may need before you go.
- Cry it out.
The puppy not you. But if you need to cry it’s ok to let it out. Puppies cry a lot and if you’re positive their needs are met, or they have some way to have their needs met by themselves, its ok for a puppy to cry until he/she can self soothe.
- Schedule and routine
Having a set schedule for your puppy can make the days a little bit easier for both parties. Always being fed at the same time, potty breaks, play times, bed, time, and naps. Gives structures and helps you and your puppy feel less anxious of something going wrong.
- Schedule some outings
This is a very important schedule going outside. To the grocery store or just a quick walk by yourself, it’s very important that your puppy gets used to the idea that you won’t always be inside the house. This is super important for people who work from home.
- Headphones!
Puppy will always want to follow you or be around you, but you must not give in to whining when they want something. So, get you some headphones so you can properly ignore puppy whining for attention.
- Consistency.
Try to be consistent with not only your schedule but also when training your puppy. If you don’t practice a little bit every day you won’t see much progress with behavior. It’s recommended that you spend 10 minutes training your puppy every day.
These are a few things to help when you’re having a roof day with a pup. But most importantly just take it one day at a time if you’re consistent it goes by fast and honestly there are more cute moments than bad. I have a 1-year-old puppy and I’ve seen a lot and while it was difficult at times, I sometimes find myself missing the first day I brought him home. He slept like a log he cried when I put him down to eat dinner. But that same week at 8 weeks old he learned how to sit. Its important to celebrate the small milestones because things happen so fast when you are raising a puppy.