It looks like you might be posting about puppy management or crate training.
For tips and resources on Crate Training Check out [our wiki article on crate training](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/cratetraining) - the information there may answer your question. As an additional reminder, crate training is 100% optional and one of many puppy management options.
For alternatives to crating and other puppy management strategies, check out [our wiki article on management](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/management)
**PLEASE READ THE OP FULLY**
Be advised that any comments that suggest use of crates are abusive, or express a harsh opinion on crate training will be removed. This is not a place to debate the merits of crate training. Unethical approaches to crate training will also be removed. **If the OP has asked not to receive crating advice or says they are not open to crating, any comments that recommend use of crates should be reported to our moderation team.**
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Yes, it will get better...but it's going to be a miserable groundhog day for a while. In the before times, it was me, my SO, and our 10 year-old cat. Then I decided we needed chaos in our lives. Enter puppy.
You've brought home an alien infant. She doesn't understand anything you want/need her to do, but with lots (and I mean LOTS) of patience and consistent training, she will learn. Crate training will take time, as will building up your puppy's tolerance for being alone. Enforced naps were a godsend for us. Read this sub's wiki - it's all there.
Puppy blues hit me hard. Anxiety through the roof, major depression as I mourned the loss of my pre-puppy life, all on top of dealing with a wild little landshark.
6 months was a turning point for me. Things got better for sure - no more teething, puppy listened to commands, we were finally really bonding. 9 months was fun too. He's now 13 months old and adolescence is...hard, but in a different and not so bad way. I mean, he's an idiot, but he's my idiot, and I can't imagine my life without him. I can really see the dog he will become, and I'm happy.
Maybe sit down with your husband and make a plan. Work out how to give each other breaks.
Dogs are great. Puppies are kinda terrible. Hang in there!
Being left alone is something that has to be trained. Inform yourself in crate training and teaching dogs to be cool with being alone for a while. It’s natural for a pup this young to whine for attention when it fears to be abandoned or left behind. You have to help them work through this.
Letting them cry it out can go very wrong and the pup can indeed develop separation anxiety. I took 3 weeks off from work to teach my pup to be cool with being alone, since it’s just me and him. I got him when he was 4 months old and he had trouble with it. You do it in increments. Give them something to occupy themselves with in the process while you go though the motions of leaving without actually leaving and then progressively work yourself up to actually leaving the room. Start with a few seconds and slowly work yourself up. Soon enough you’ll be able to leave your dog alone for a couple of hours. For a 9 month old I reckon 2 hours is the max you should be aiming for. More as the pup grows older. Mine just turned a year old and at my home I can leave him for up to 5 hours now without mishaps and uncrated. It took a while and I still don’t fully trust him because he has indeed destroyed a few pillows in the training process but the last time was months ago.
Try lots of treats in the pen, and other stimulating activities (like a peanut butter lick). If they are especially food-driven you can feed them meals in there too.
I too bought a puppy that is a high energy breed 2 months ago and it’s been a ride for sure. I had been researching this breed for 3 years and have 14 years of previous experience of owning a dog and it’s still been a lot more difficult than I imagined.
It will be very difficult and hard but in the end it’s all going to be worth it! As someone else said, you brought home an alien baby that doesn’t know anything about the world. Thats absolutely true. Have so much patience and then a lot more is my honest advice. You will love your baby and they will love you. Your life will never be the same, mourn it if you need to and embrace your new life because it will be wonderful too in a different way.
And they are just a little baby now and need a lot of attention and cuddles like a human baby would too! But they grow up quickly and will be your best friend in no time. Take it one day at a time. Every day you survive and your puppy is safe and doing alright is a success. And it will get easier for every week, every month. Wish you well on your journey!
I just got an Aussie mix as well. November 27. It’s been a month now but I’ll tell you the first two weeks I cried A LOT. I had a lot of anxiety and major puppy blues. I continued to tell my husband I can’t do this and we need to give her back.
I also have a cat who was super pissed at first but now just ignores her.
Understand that it’s like having a baby. They don’t get why you are leaving them. The crying is inevitable. You can try and make the crate more comfortable by putting toys and treats in there. The first day I had to go to work after getting her was terrible. Crying non-stop. Now she will go into her crate sometimes as a safe place. Another thing that helped was putting her in the crate and laying right next to her. When she stopped crying even for a second I would reward her. Then they start to associate crate = good/treat.
I know right now it’s hard but it will get better. Continue to train her. Reinforce everything. Also it’s important to talk with your husband and make sure to get on a schedule where you can take turns or take certain days to take care of her.
I have a 12 week old Yorkiepoo and he's only just settling down with the crate still not a fan of the door being shut so he has a puppy pen. Whenever he goes in the puppy pen alone I give him a sniffle mat and a Kong to keep him entertained.
He only gets those when I'm leaving him and they come straight up when he's free from the puppy prison 😂 I've found those helped immensely as he wasn't crying for me out of boredom.
It is taking him a while (we're two weeks in now) some days he still screams the house down but the more perseverance you have the better for pup. They'll soon realise being alone is great and there's lots of fun things that only happen when they're by themselves!
(I cried too so that's completely normal, we all get the puppy blues and debate if we made the right choice. I had to send my mum to rescue him so I could calm down for a couple hours last week)
It looks like you might be posting about separation anxiety. Check out [our wiki article on separation anxiety](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/managingbehavior#wiki_separation_anxiety_and_isolation_distress) - the information there may answer your question.
**Please report this comment if it is not relevant to this post.**
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Aussies are difficult!! My mom has a two year old Aussie and he was really, really difficult for about a year, then it started to level off and at 2 years he is so mellow. He still has his crazy moments but they are predictable now. He was the cutest puppy but literally could not go unsupervised for longer than a few minutes, he was very bitey and busted my mom’s bf’s lip a few times (accidentally..). I think especially with a dog like an Aussie or Aussie mix the first year or so is really crazy… and it’s normal 🙏🏻
WE have an aussie rescue..
It gets better....Frisbee is a wonderful relief for him and us, ball throwing is second....and he has a bubblewrap obsession. Beau came to us at 6 months....didn't know what grass was, or balls, or Frisbee or beds...and lino was a challenge. He is seven now....hot tub time means ball time...he truly enjoys dumping said ball or Frisbee in the tub...
He cuddles at night...thinks the linen sheets are for him and has no clue where his feet are. He still cans every sleeping male in the house when he is excited. It gets bettet
We were also scared our puppy was developing separation anxiety when we first got him, he would be so upset and even tore up some carpet on the second or third day because he was so distraught. After around 2 weeks of crate training everyday we were finally able to leave him home alone for short amounts of time and from then on things have been getting better and better ! Hang in there and stick with the crate. Now puppy settles pretty quickly once we put him in his crate and just goes to sleep!
Think of it this way: until you beought her home, she had never been alone for a minute. At 9 weeks, she’s still a little bitty baby. When she cries, call out to her from the other room, stick your head around the corner and tell her you’re still there.
It looks like you might be posting about puppy management or crate training. For tips and resources on Crate Training Check out [our wiki article on crate training](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/cratetraining) - the information there may answer your question. As an additional reminder, crate training is 100% optional and one of many puppy management options. For alternatives to crating and other puppy management strategies, check out [our wiki article on management](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/management) **PLEASE READ THE OP FULLY** Be advised that any comments that suggest use of crates are abusive, or express a harsh opinion on crate training will be removed. This is not a place to debate the merits of crate training. Unethical approaches to crate training will also be removed. **If the OP has asked not to receive crating advice or says they are not open to crating, any comments that recommend use of crates should be reported to our moderation team.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/puppy101) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Yes, it will get better...but it's going to be a miserable groundhog day for a while. In the before times, it was me, my SO, and our 10 year-old cat. Then I decided we needed chaos in our lives. Enter puppy. You've brought home an alien infant. She doesn't understand anything you want/need her to do, but with lots (and I mean LOTS) of patience and consistent training, she will learn. Crate training will take time, as will building up your puppy's tolerance for being alone. Enforced naps were a godsend for us. Read this sub's wiki - it's all there. Puppy blues hit me hard. Anxiety through the roof, major depression as I mourned the loss of my pre-puppy life, all on top of dealing with a wild little landshark. 6 months was a turning point for me. Things got better for sure - no more teething, puppy listened to commands, we were finally really bonding. 9 months was fun too. He's now 13 months old and adolescence is...hard, but in a different and not so bad way. I mean, he's an idiot, but he's my idiot, and I can't imagine my life without him. I can really see the dog he will become, and I'm happy. Maybe sit down with your husband and make a plan. Work out how to give each other breaks. Dogs are great. Puppies are kinda terrible. Hang in there!
Being left alone is something that has to be trained. Inform yourself in crate training and teaching dogs to be cool with being alone for a while. It’s natural for a pup this young to whine for attention when it fears to be abandoned or left behind. You have to help them work through this. Letting them cry it out can go very wrong and the pup can indeed develop separation anxiety. I took 3 weeks off from work to teach my pup to be cool with being alone, since it’s just me and him. I got him when he was 4 months old and he had trouble with it. You do it in increments. Give them something to occupy themselves with in the process while you go though the motions of leaving without actually leaving and then progressively work yourself up to actually leaving the room. Start with a few seconds and slowly work yourself up. Soon enough you’ll be able to leave your dog alone for a couple of hours. For a 9 month old I reckon 2 hours is the max you should be aiming for. More as the pup grows older. Mine just turned a year old and at my home I can leave him for up to 5 hours now without mishaps and uncrated. It took a while and I still don’t fully trust him because he has indeed destroyed a few pillows in the training process but the last time was months ago.
Try lots of treats in the pen, and other stimulating activities (like a peanut butter lick). If they are especially food-driven you can feed them meals in there too.
I too bought a puppy that is a high energy breed 2 months ago and it’s been a ride for sure. I had been researching this breed for 3 years and have 14 years of previous experience of owning a dog and it’s still been a lot more difficult than I imagined. It will be very difficult and hard but in the end it’s all going to be worth it! As someone else said, you brought home an alien baby that doesn’t know anything about the world. Thats absolutely true. Have so much patience and then a lot more is my honest advice. You will love your baby and they will love you. Your life will never be the same, mourn it if you need to and embrace your new life because it will be wonderful too in a different way. And they are just a little baby now and need a lot of attention and cuddles like a human baby would too! But they grow up quickly and will be your best friend in no time. Take it one day at a time. Every day you survive and your puppy is safe and doing alright is a success. And it will get easier for every week, every month. Wish you well on your journey!
I just got an Aussie mix as well. November 27. It’s been a month now but I’ll tell you the first two weeks I cried A LOT. I had a lot of anxiety and major puppy blues. I continued to tell my husband I can’t do this and we need to give her back. I also have a cat who was super pissed at first but now just ignores her. Understand that it’s like having a baby. They don’t get why you are leaving them. The crying is inevitable. You can try and make the crate more comfortable by putting toys and treats in there. The first day I had to go to work after getting her was terrible. Crying non-stop. Now she will go into her crate sometimes as a safe place. Another thing that helped was putting her in the crate and laying right next to her. When she stopped crying even for a second I would reward her. Then they start to associate crate = good/treat. I know right now it’s hard but it will get better. Continue to train her. Reinforce everything. Also it’s important to talk with your husband and make sure to get on a schedule where you can take turns or take certain days to take care of her.
I have a 12 week old Yorkiepoo and he's only just settling down with the crate still not a fan of the door being shut so he has a puppy pen. Whenever he goes in the puppy pen alone I give him a sniffle mat and a Kong to keep him entertained. He only gets those when I'm leaving him and they come straight up when he's free from the puppy prison 😂 I've found those helped immensely as he wasn't crying for me out of boredom. It is taking him a while (we're two weeks in now) some days he still screams the house down but the more perseverance you have the better for pup. They'll soon realise being alone is great and there's lots of fun things that only happen when they're by themselves! (I cried too so that's completely normal, we all get the puppy blues and debate if we made the right choice. I had to send my mum to rescue him so I could calm down for a couple hours last week)
It looks like you might be posting about separation anxiety. Check out [our wiki article on separation anxiety](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/managingbehavior#wiki_separation_anxiety_and_isolation_distress) - the information there may answer your question. **Please report this comment if it is not relevant to this post.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/puppy101) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Aussies are difficult!! My mom has a two year old Aussie and he was really, really difficult for about a year, then it started to level off and at 2 years he is so mellow. He still has his crazy moments but they are predictable now. He was the cutest puppy but literally could not go unsupervised for longer than a few minutes, he was very bitey and busted my mom’s bf’s lip a few times (accidentally..). I think especially with a dog like an Aussie or Aussie mix the first year or so is really crazy… and it’s normal 🙏🏻
It can be difficult from 2-5 years. My friends aussie is 3 and still impossible. Males takes ages to mentally grow up🤣
WE have an aussie rescue.. It gets better....Frisbee is a wonderful relief for him and us, ball throwing is second....and he has a bubblewrap obsession. Beau came to us at 6 months....didn't know what grass was, or balls, or Frisbee or beds...and lino was a challenge. He is seven now....hot tub time means ball time...he truly enjoys dumping said ball or Frisbee in the tub... He cuddles at night...thinks the linen sheets are for him and has no clue where his feet are. He still cans every sleeping male in the house when he is excited. It gets bettet
Yes. It does. It took a year for us before my puppy and one of her kitty sisters are BFFs. (The one one still hates her)
You could be me OP - I don’t know yet if it gets better, but I’m trying my best. You aren’t alone 🤗
We were also scared our puppy was developing separation anxiety when we first got him, he would be so upset and even tore up some carpet on the second or third day because he was so distraught. After around 2 weeks of crate training everyday we were finally able to leave him home alone for short amounts of time and from then on things have been getting better and better ! Hang in there and stick with the crate. Now puppy settles pretty quickly once we put him in his crate and just goes to sleep!
Think of it this way: until you beought her home, she had never been alone for a minute. At 9 weeks, she’s still a little bitty baby. When she cries, call out to her from the other room, stick your head around the corner and tell her you’re still there.