All Roads Lead Back To...The Puppy Manual

We are on day three with Jam. We've had him three nights. Last night was the worst.

Crying. Getting up three times to pee (he peed three times). And then crying each and every time I placed him back in the crate.

Argh! What's a puppy raiser to do?

Actually, there is something to do. Read the puppy raiser manual again. It's easy to get in a rut and think, after two puppies, that you have the routine down, but the puppy raiser manual has been completely revised and updated. If you want to know if you have the most up to date copy, look for a section called Puppy Socialization. If you don't have that, you don't have the most recent copy.

Upon reading the manual again and scouring the brand new puppy section for advice, I found this sentence:

"We highly recommend a crate be used for bedtime and naps."

Well, of course! Jam viewed his crate as a little jail cell. In fact he was napping right now. Why not go upstairs and do some napping and blogging crateside?



Here he is sitting pretty in his crate. At first all he wanted was out. But he is pretty comfortable sitting inside with the door open and lounging around.


Because he was a sleepy puppy, he drifted off quite quickly.



I wish we had been smart enough to consult the revised manual sooner, but at least we are rereading it now. Remember, when in doubt, check the manual. As opposed to children, guide dog puppies do come with a manual!