To tell you a little bit about myself. I'm a 28yo male who enjoys a fairly social life style. I'm excited to get out to some of the many dog friendly venues that are all around Portland. I'm a cook and generally work nights, but have all morning to spend with my dog before work(I start around 2pm). In my time off I enjoy brewing beer, working on cars/motorcycles, and spending time at the bar. Hopefully Brixton will enjoy hanging out at the bar as well. Hi I'm trying to get myself ready for my bully coming home in 4 weeks and reading and learning as much as I can about raising and training him. I know a lot of people with bulldogs have a larger house and a family that are around the dog.
I have a small 2 br apartment and a roommate. I trust my roommate with my dog, but don't expect her to be responsible for the dog. I'm trying to work out how my schedule will work with the dog and how I will manage my dog when I'm away from home.
Currently the thoughts were that I would have an exercise pen with a bed and a few toys and a potty pad on the other end for when I'm away from home at work (8 hours). My options are that the pen can be in the kitchen, or in my personal bathroom (3'x6'). I will try to arrange to be able to go home on my lunches, but that isn't a guarantee. For the first few months I won't be going out at night and will be spending all of my spare time at home with the puppy working on crate training and obedience training.
From the methods of crate training that I've been reading about one really sticks out to me. It's a 1 hour schedule broken up into 3 phases
1. nap in the crate. 15 minutes or more. If the puppy is sleeping , leave him.
2. OUTSIDE TO POTTY immediately after nap 5-10 minutes
3. FREE TIME with family. Eat & Drink . Up to 30 minutes of play .
then repeat the process. Is repeating this process every hour a little over the top? I was thinking that it would really drive home the purpose of the crate. What have you had the most success with?
I'm wondering what methods and how long it took you to house break your dog. Should I plan on keeping my dog in an exercise pen when I'm gone even when the dog is done being potty trained? What kind of advice would you give to a single "parent" raising a puppy.
-Loki
I have a small 2 br apartment and a roommate. I trust my roommate with my dog, but don't expect her to be responsible for the dog. I'm trying to work out how my schedule will work with the dog and how I will manage my dog when I'm away from home.
Currently the thoughts were that I would have an exercise pen with a bed and a few toys and a potty pad on the other end for when I'm away from home at work (8 hours). My options are that the pen can be in the kitchen, or in my personal bathroom (3'x6'). I will try to arrange to be able to go home on my lunches, but that isn't a guarantee. For the first few months I won't be going out at night and will be spending all of my spare time at home with the puppy working on crate training and obedience training.
From the methods of crate training that I've been reading about one really sticks out to me. It's a 1 hour schedule broken up into 3 phases
1. nap in the crate. 15 minutes or more. If the puppy is sleeping , leave him.
2. OUTSIDE TO POTTY immediately after nap 5-10 minutes
3. FREE TIME with family. Eat & Drink . Up to 30 minutes of play .
then repeat the process. Is repeating this process every hour a little over the top? I was thinking that it would really drive home the purpose of the crate. What have you had the most success with?
I'm wondering what methods and how long it took you to house break your dog. Should I plan on keeping my dog in an exercise pen when I'm gone even when the dog is done being potty trained? What kind of advice would you give to a single "parent" raising a puppy.
-Loki