Puppies don't teach puppies (all good things)

We have Shane and Lexie in the house for a few more days. They are good playmates with active supervision. They do puppy things like trying out scruff shaking, pinning, leg grabbing, tail grabbing, ear pulling, collar grabbing, etc, etc and have to be redirected LOTS, sometimes time-outted, sometimes broken up for periods of time. So young, these behaviours are nothing more than that however if they have the chance to keep practicing these behaviours, you can have a monster on your hands. This is why puppies aren't good at actively teaching each other which behaviours are acceptable. They are great for wearing each other out, learning bite inhibition and practicing good behaviours but it ALWAYS bugs me the amount of times owners ask if their puppy is going to play with other puppies.

Yes, they will. But really, you are looking for teenage/adult dogs with good manners to play with your puppy. They will be the ones that teach him the good behaviours.

So today, because I'm feeling under the weather and not up to active puppy supervision I'm rotating puppies. Shane gets an hour out, Lexie gets an hour out, we get half an hour outside together with active supervision, rinse and repeat until daycare this afternoon -Lexie is too young to be in the group yet, so is set up with a butt-load of toys.

Yes, the pups will spend a little more time in their crate, but they will spend 0 time participating in behaviours that might have to be dealt with later down the road. They will also get to spend time with me individually instead of always being distracted by each other. They will learn from the older dogs that play does not include tons of roughness. They will learn to settle for periods of time in the house.
In rotating them I can teach them what I need to faster, minimize distraction and create time for rest.

I also create two tired adult dogs from rounds and rounds of babysitting.

Jinks and Beckett takes the brunt of babies. Jinks is a thing of beauty with two puppies to keep care of. Her 3 hours of exercise a day turns into a short half hour walk and a ball session in the yard. Since we've had Shane her needs are MUCH more easily managed. Plus, she is turning into a couch potato when pups are on nap time.

About a week after Lexie goes to her new home, we'll be having a new puppy foster.

Coli is a male, 14 week old Formosan Mountain dog x Border Collie (possibly). He will be roughly 25-40 pounds, very outgoing so I hear. He has some general interest but nothing concrete, so if you know of anyone looking for a medium-sized pup with a fair amount of energy he might be a good candidate :) He has been raised in a vets' office with many people, dogs and cats coming and going. Three of his siblings (litter of 7) are off to new homes straight from Taiwan :)

It sure is puppy time around here and rescue lately. Fall rush with mums I guess. Puppies never seem to come in spades over summer when the most people are looking! This is probably a good thing though.

We're thinking about taking a brief fostering/boarding break for a few weeks after Coli is adopted -so mid/late November most likely. Nothing huge, just a week or two to catch up on things that have been piling up.

Will try for some more puppy pictures tomorrow if I'm feeling up to it. I have a feeling this cold/flu might be one that stays for more than a day or so :(.... it was bound to catch me eventually I suppose.

Emily Out