New Chow Owner.. Any Advice Welcome

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TeddyChow
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New Chow Owner.. Any Advice Welcome

Post by TeddyChow »

Hi Guys,

New to this forum and the chow world. I recently adopted my baby girl chow - Teddy - who is 8 weeks old today. Ive had her for about 10 days now. For the first few days i kept her to adjust and worked from home for the week to take care of her. Shes adjusted greatly, and has zero accidents around the house. Very well behaved when strangers come over, its either she smothers them with love (especially if they are girls ), or run under the couch and hide if she didnt get along with a new person.

This isnt much concern to me now as i have a lot of socializing to do. So here comes my main concerns. I live with a roommate, and thus far i am the one putting the rules on my Teddy. Sometimes when im harsh on her, ie: when i stop her from chewing something like an electric wire, and i give a little louder of a voice.. shed whine and run away for a bit. Then turns around and wants some more affection. The issue though is now that she is comfortable around the house, she has grown to be fonder of those in the house that do not set the rules or put her in the crate for the day. She still greets me warmly with a wagging tail and plays as soon as i arrive, but dismisses me after 2 mins. I love her to bits and i want her to associate me with good things. Does she hate me everytime i try to discipline her? or am i reading her wrong ?

My second question, where id really need some of your help. She sleeps with me in my room, right under my bed on my side, which i love and find relaxing..But every day i get a wake up call at 6 am her trying to jump on the bed so i take her outside. I do and she does her business relatively quickly, then wants to play and exhaust some energy to then pass out again. I dont have to be up so early, and so far its been hard to manage my time with this. How can i push that timing further ? Ive tried tiring her out before bedtime and having a later walk in the night to discharge but so far it only pushes the time back 20 mins maximum.

third: shes been doing great with obedience commands which is greatly surprising. She already sits on command, but moreso does it without me commanding her when i have a treat in my hand. I know shell grow to be well behaved but some trainers have advised to push back the obedience training till she is 3 months old. Is that accurate or should i start ASAP ?

Any advice on this would be great!!

This is my baby girl
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Laura
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Re: New Chow Owner.. Any Advice Welcome

Post by Laura »

Congrats on your baby. I will share a few thoughts. As far as the 6am wake up call, that will improve as she gets older. She is a baby and can't hold it as long. Think of it as having a baby and those sleepless nights. It's short term.
Regarding her training please only use positive reinforcement. There is nothing wrong with working on manners, potty training, and the like right now. I do think she is young for a lot of expectations and formal training. I did take mine to a puppy class but not until they were 3-6 mos old. Do make sure you are socializing her in every possible way. It sounds like you have lots of people in and out at home but also take her to other people's homes, to the park, dog park, to Petsmart, everywhere you can. Expose her to noises, other animals, groomers, vets, cars, etc. When mine were little we would pop by the vet just for a treat and some loving so that it wasn't just a 'bad things' place.
Puppy proof the house. I have one who was into everything he could get and one who never bothered anything. They do outgrow the chewing, puppy biting, and tearing stuff up. Depending on her nature she may also become more aloof as she gets older and may not want everyone who pops by in her face. One of mine loves everyone after 5 minutes and another who is all chow aloofness and has no interest in attention from anyone. Don't force her to accept attention and teach people to let her come to them and to not always go straight for her head. Most chows do not like hands coming at their head out of the blue.
She was taken from her mom and siblings too early so she missed out on some learning opportunities from them. Just be patient and love her. I am a firm believer that raising a chow with love and kindness produces a wonderful adult chow. All of this alpha nonsense and domination and harshness is a load of bs. Build trust with her and consistency. Chows are stubborn and have a mind of their own but they are also usually calm adults, protective, and love their human. Enjoy the crazy, sometimes frustrating puppy phase because it will literally be gone in the blink of an eye. Don't stress over a bunch of rules and training. Pick a sound that means no and use it with her, set her up for success by puppy proofing, keep a toy between your hand and her mouth while getting through the horrible play biting nipping stage and use your no sound or high pitched ouch sound when she gets you and stop play for a bit. This too they outgrow but it hurts in the short term!
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Chloe (left) Shuggy (right)
TeddyChow
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Re: New Chow Owner.. Any Advice Welcome

Post by TeddyChow »

Thanks so much for the advice Laura.

Shes doing well so far. But id need some more advice from you guys..

She hates being held and caressed. I was instructed by my breeder to handle her daily and give her a massage in order to get her used to being touched. She was doing well the first few days but recently she just whimpers and tries to escape after 2 mins of being in my arms.

I work a 9 to 5 job, so i have her in a playpen during these hours, i come for 2 hrs on lunch to take her out and play with her then back to the pen and some jazz music to keep her company. But when im back home at 5, shes so excited to see me, we walk outside for a few mins (infront of my yard in order to avoid other dogs as she hasnt had her full set of vaccines yet) play for a bit and shes all good. She settles down and takes a small nap then right after around 7, she is in hyper mode, running around the house with no regard for her safety or for the items in her way. Shes not interested in playing with toys or chewing or anything, she simply just guns across the room, for an hour or 2 this stays until another small nap, and the hyperness continues from 10 to 12 pm. After that its usually bed time, and she always slept with me in my room, under my bed... The last 2 days when i take her to my room, close my door and tell her goodnight, she reactivates in hyper mode and doesnt fall alseep. She even starts whimpering and scratching at the door. I then take her downstairs thinking she needs to go out, i do so, but all she wants to do is play with the snow ( as i live in Montreal), so i take her back inside and she falls asleep in the living room. If i reattempt to take her upstairs she would go crazy again.

Any advice on what this might be indicating??

Thanks a bunch!
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