Meet Winston (8 weeks)

[craigdickinson]

Meet the newest members of the family - Winston.

Both parents are health tested, hereditary HUU Clear and BOAS tested with a score of Excellent, sire holds a Bronze Bulldog Breed Council Health Certificate, is Putman scored and Heart tested.

After a 3-hour car journey on Sunday, we brought home this little dude.





It has been a very challenging two days. We are crate training and its proving to be a testing challenge. Crying when he has no attention and not being cuddled.

Yesterday was really tough, I work from home upstairs in the office. I have him in the living room, in his crate while I work and on conference calls. I check on him every two hours to take him outside, and have little bit of free time and play time. Yesterday was hard going, he would constantly crying, for attention.

Today, I have put a t-shirt in there with my smell, he seems to have settled a lot more around his toys and Kong, and is only having the odd grumble. I am praying he is getting use to his crate and routine, not to the fact that he is so worn out from yesterday and being left in there overnight (crying most of the night).

We leave him overnight, the breeder advised not to go down every few hours to take him out.

 

[BullyBoston]

What a sweet baby!!! Welcome Winston!!

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

 

[Reggies Parents]

Ahhh, he's so cute!! Hello to a fellow UK member, where abouts are you?

Looks a lot like Reggie at that age, except Reg has more red on his face :D
He cried for a while too, especially if he could sense there was someone in the house. It does get better! We made the mistake of taking away his 'mums smell' blanket too early though, as soon as we gave it back he settled again.

 

[craigdickinson]

Ahhh, he's so cute!! Hello to a fellow UK member, where abouts are you?

Looks a lot like Reggie at that age, except Reg has more red on his face :D
He cried for a while too, especially if he could sense there was someone in the house. It does get better! We made the mistake of taking away his 'mums smell' blanket too early though, as soon as we gave it back he settled again.

South Wales, near Swansea.

I hope it gets easier - unfortunately we did not get a mums smell blanket, the breeder did not provide one. Perhaps my fault. He does however like cuddling to my t-shirt. It's hard work and stressful, I am glad you said it gets better. As I am starting to REALLY worry, as I do a lot my conference calls from the house. This week i have purposely held back as he can be overheard.

He is crying for like 30 minutes solid, I think he is wearing himself out then going to sleep. But I am going down every 2 hours, to take him out play etc.

I am only feeding him in his crate, and giving him little treats before bed etc from inside. So hopefully it’s exciting for him to be there. At the moment he is not interested in the Kong etc.

I am just hoping he will start accepting his crate, and stop calling out for attention. He cries even if we are in the room, watching TV. which is no more than 2 feet away from his cage. He can see us, but he just want to come out. I think he is testing us? I have to be cruel to be kind and ignore

 

[Reggies Parents]

We are only in Bristol so if you are ever over this way let us know!!

He will get used to being on his own, its only been a couple of days bless him. Its hard for them being alone for the first time.
It helped with Reggie to leave his crate door open so he could get in & out as he pleased, and we always left safe toys in there. Make sure you replace the 'your smell' item every now & again.
We were told toilet breaks once an hour at that age, maybe that will help if its possible?

Also, as you are in the house with him - have you thought of letting him come in the office with you? Not during conference calls (for obvious reasons!) but maybe a bit more time with him is what he needs at the start?
Reggie wasn't that bothered about Kong's either, but perhaps you could set up a corner covered with newspaper, put some toys down & something to chew on (puppy nylabone etc). We found just leaving him out, even if not really interacting with him, helped. I talked to him when I could & that seemed to help keep him calm.

 

[craigdickinson]

We are only in Bristol so if you are ever over this way let us know!!

He will get used to being on his own, its only been a couple of days bless him. Its hard for them being alone for the first time.
It helped with Reggie to leave his crate door open so he could get in & out as he pleased, and we always left safe toys in there. Make sure you replace the 'your smell' item every now & again.
We were told toilet breaks once an hour at that age, maybe that will help if its possible?


Also, as you are in the house with him - have you thought of letting him come in the office with you? Not during conference calls (for obvious reasons!) but maybe a bit more time with him is what he needs at the start?
Reggie wasn't that bothered about Kong's either, but perhaps you could set up a corner covered with newspaper, put some toys down & something to chew on (puppy nylabone etc). We found just leaving him out, even if not really interacting with him, helped. I talked to him when I could & that seemed to help keep him calm.

Thank you for the reassurance (about him being on this own) this helps as i have started to worry a little. Hopefully tonight (3rd night) in his crate he will be a little more settled as he is crying for extended period of time. I am hoping it will get easier as the little guy is crying solid for 20, 30, sometime 40 minutes for me to come back. I think he stops and sleeps, as he is exhausting himself, this is repeated several times throught day and night

He does like to start nibbling things already if not under hawkeye. Having him in the office I thought might cause issues when he actually needs to go in his crate. I am going to try tough love for now, and stick with him downstairs, as I won’t be able to keep a close eye on him while answering emails etc. The plan was as he gets older I would start to open up the cage and give him free roam of the living room, then open the door to the kitchen etc until he can come up stairs with me (6-12 months down the line).

I was going to change the t-shirt daily for him, so it’s a strong scent.

 

[Reggies Parents]

Thank you for the reassurance (about him being on this own) this helps as i have started to worry a little. Hopefully tonight (3rd night) in his crate he will be a little more settled as he is crying for extended period of time. I am hoping it will get easier as the little guy is crying solid for 20, 30, sometime 40 minutes for me to come back. I think he stops and sleeps, as he is exhausting himself, this is repeated several times throught day and night

He does like to start nibbling things already if not under hawkeye. Having him in the office I thought might cause issues when he actually needs to go in his crate. I am going to try tough love for now, and stick with him downstairs, as I won’t be able to keep a close eye on him while answering emails etc. The plan was as he gets older I would start to open up the cage and give him free roam of the living room, then open the door to the kitchen etc until he can come up stairs with me (6-12 months down the line).

I was going to change the t-shirt daily for him, so it’s a strong scent.

Took about a week I think, for Reggie. We started playing with him until he was tired, letting him fall asleep wherever he wanted (on my lap usually in the first couple of weeks). Then I'd very carefully lift him into the crate & on his bed. If he woke a little I'd sit by the open door & kind of absently smooth him while watching tv or something - so to him I wasn't paying him full attention, more just a reassuring presence. He'd usually go to sleep again after that, and we'd tiptoe out of the room
The first couple of weeks are the hardest!

 

[Reggies Parents]

Ooh, also - do you leave something on for him?? We leave the tv on, quiet, and the voices seem to help.
We've also just found some calming music on Youtube, that seems to work as well. Just make sure you are back with him before it finishes, last week I accidentally left it on autoplay and came back to heavy metal videos!!

 

[craigdickinson]

Ooh, also - do you leave something on for him?? We leave the tv on, quiet, and the voices seem to help.
We've also just found some calming music on Youtube, that seems to work as well. Just make sure you are back with him before it finishes, last week I accidentally left it on autoplay and came back to heavy metal videos!!

Yes during the day we have the TV on for him. I actually have it turned up pretty loud usually on a radio talk show so its constant talking. Noise is not an issue, he is not phased by the washing machine, even the hoover.

Its just this reassurance thing! I am hoping everyone who puppy trained to a crate/pen faced the same battles. It sounds like the case, and i am simply panicking over nothing. It will (hopefully) just take time, we just need to stick to our guns.

 

[cefe13]

Little Winston is adorable! Now, I hope you don't mind my saying this, but I think you should try to keep him close to you and not leave him to cry. If he's crying he needs you! In that respect, pups are like human babies - it's important that they connect and the best way to do that is to spend as much time together as possible. He will need to sleep a lot (perhaps on your lap instead of in the crate?) and he will need to go out every hour or two (doesn't take much time but will a way to bond and play for a few minutes). I honestly think that the more time you invest in him now, the easier things will be, and it will also help him develop into a relaxed family dog. I worked from home when Castor was small (although it was in the summer so easier as we were off work part of his puppyhood) and Castor literally grew up on my lap and by me feet while I was working by my computer.

Good luck!

 

[craigdickinson]

Little Winston is adorable! Now, I hope you don't mind my saying this, but I think you should try to keep him close to you and not leave him to cry. If he's crying he needs you! In that respect, pups are like human babies - it's important that they connect and the best way to do that is to spend as much time together as possible. He will need to sleep a lot (perhaps on your lap instead of in the crate?) and he will need to go out every hour or two (doesn't take much time but will a way to bond and play for a few minutes). I honestly think that the more time you invest in him now, the easier things will be, and it will also help him develop into a relaxed family dog. I worked from home when Castor was small (although it was in the summer so easier as we were off work part of his puppyhood) and Castor literally grew up on my lap and by me feet while I was working by my computer.

Good luck!

Not at all, i am trying to soak up as much advice as possible. I am reading on these forums as much as possible. Due to the nature of my job i can't have him constantly crying due to the clients I deal with.

I have a little rest bite for the next few days as my wife is home and will be down stairs in the same room as him working. He is certainly getting more cofident he makes a huge fuss of me, its like having a shadow at your feet today. Yesterday we was too scared to roam. Now he wants to be everywhere

 

[Manydogs]

My pups were usually loose,but when they were put up sometimes during the day,they had a crate,with a pen around it,so they were not "locked in" the crate.They had more room and They usually would nap in the crate,on their own. At bedtime, then they were closed in the crate, but taken out to "go" about every two hours,as they got older,the time expanded. If I left the house,they were in the pen,with toys. They never learned to chew on bad things, and now that they are grown, they no longer need the crate. @craigdickinson Winston is a cutie! He can not spend all his time in a crate.

 

[craigdickinson]

This is what i have got, he has room for his bed, water and chew toys.

 

[TyTysmom]

I have to agree with not letting him cry. One thing that I'm sure you've learned already is bulldogs love to be near their owners. They are very attached. It doesnt matter where I am, Tyson is right there, and has to be touching me in some form. How about putting his bed near your desk area where he can snooze and relax while you work... give him some toys to play. He'll be near you but entertained. He is seriously the cutest ever, that little face is to die for!

 

[cefe13]

This is what i have got, he has room for his bed, water and chew toys.

View attachment 103890

Looks nice with the garden just outside!

Not sure he needs the water in there, though? If you use a crate (which to me is out of the question, not only because it is actually against the law in Sweden to crate dogs) it should surely be for short periods of time and for a pup I would think it better to have his water and food bowls for instance in the kitchen? Anyway, great that your wife will be able to spend much time with him becvause I think a dog is more like a child than like a guinea pig or other animal that you keep caged!