change in behavior

[molly14]

With in the past 3 days Molly has started acting worse then she did the first week we had her when it comes to crating her and has had a few accidents in the house.
First, I am going to explain how well things have been going up until this past Thursday. The first week we got Molly we got very little sleep. We have been using crate training, which my husband was not fond of at first, but he has come on board. However that first week any noise she made he would want to let her out, but we learned to ignore her unless she pitched a real fit, which told us that she either had to go out bad or had already gone in her crate. After 2 nights, we made the crate smaller since she must have had too much room. After that first week, Molly went to sleep just fine. We might have heard a short whine about 5 minutes after going up to bed, but but that would be it until 5:15 (6 on a good day) the next morning when she needed to go out. It had also been about 3 weeks since Molly had an accident in our house. She has been asking to go out and would sit near the door and wait. She still had a few accidents at our friend's house that would watch her while we are at work. At the vet one time, she had to go out and she kept barking and fussing, I got the hint, brought her out, and she went. I was impressed that she was asking to go out in a strange place.

So, now to last week. Molly has been nipping a lot more, but she is teething. She had lost all of her front teeth by Tuesday. However, when i would try to get her to stop chewing something, she would try to nip me. When i would try to put her in timeout, she would make that very hard. Since she has been doing so well with potty training, she have stopped using the leash all the time, so I need to grab her collar to put her in timeout. She made that hard, so I actually had to grab the scruff of her neck to get her in there. My husband doesn't like this method so we haven't used it, so I am wondering if me grabbing her scruff could lead to this change, if she doesn't feel safe with me. Thursday night we didn't get much sleep. We put her to bed around 10, like usual and headed to be ourselves. She kept fussing, so I thought she needed to go to the bathroom again. She only peed before bed so I thought maybe she had to make a BM. I waited for her to quite down and I took her out. Nothing. She went back in her crate, and me back to bed. She stared again. We waited 20 minutes and she still continued. My husband brought her out and she peed. I tried to set up a fan for her thinking she was hot, but all she did was bark at it. I put it away, her in the crate, and we went to bed. She still fussed. We ignored her at this point thinking that since we had taken her out the past 2 times, she would keep whining and barking for a while thinking we would eventually take her out. I eventually fell asleep. My husband woke me up around 2:30. She was still whining and barking. At this point I figured there was an issue. We took her out. She ran to her water dish and started "attacking" it. It was empty and she wanted water. We gave her some and took her out. She peed. We put her back to bed. She whined for a minute and that was it until she woke us up around 7. Since school is out and I am home for the summer, I went back to bed once my husband was up and ready for work. Around 9 she woke me back up behaving the same as the night before, and when I took her out, she wanted water, not to go out. Most of Friday she was fine, but acting a bit submissive: ears back when she would approach someone and she would roll over onto her back. She would do this before when excited (she also excited pees), but not all the time. Friday night she was asking to go out a lot, but just to play and explore. We have invisible fencing for her, so we can let her out and just watch her from a distance. She will come when called. At some point, she ended up peeing by the door and then wouldn't go over it to go out. I didn't notice it at first and thought she was being weird not wanting to go out. Then I stepped in it. I thought this was weird because we were in the room with her and I had been letting her out when asked. She went to be fine on Friday night. Then last night, I we were going through the same routine, but I watched her closer. When we were getting ready for bed we brought her out to make sure she went potty. We put her to bed and she started barking and whining again. I waited til she was quite for a moment, and went to give her water, and noticed a mess in the dining room. I have not clue when that occurred, but it had to be shortly before bed time. My husband took her out but nothing. I tried to give her water, but she didn't want it. We put her back to bed. She started again. My husband waited a while and then took her out. She peed. She also drank her water. She was good the rest of the night. Today she woke me up around 6:15. She is quiet and not quite her usual self. I think her teeth are really bothering her. She keeps rubbing her face against furniture and chewing on blankets and towels, but doesn't want an ice cube (which she usually loves) or her rawhide. She is also licking A LOT and whining.

Any thoughts on why should could be acting this way? She has a vet appointment on Tuesday, which I will ask the vet about the change in behavior, but I was hoping some of you may have some thoughts. Anything would be appreciated.
Thank you.
Jessica

[gogogiraffes]

Maybe she itches? Have you changed her food? I know other people will have more input but that was the first idea that I got.

Oh, btw, Gizmo didn't want any rawhides when he was teething. You can try (http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...443&lmdn=Brand) Gizmo killed these, and when we went back into Petsmart he went up to them and carried them around and cried until we got them. He also never picked up a toy until some teeth were gone.

[molly14]

No, we haven't changed her food. I am however trying to switch her to twice a day feedings. I am slowly giving her less at lunch and more at breakfast and dinner.

Thursday was her first bath since we got her. She whined a lot during it and tried to get out a few times, but all and all I think it went well. The shampoo was perfect coat tender puppy care shampoo.

Also, her schedule has changed last week, but I thought it would be for the better. I am a teacher and I am home for the summer. So, she does not get as much alone time in her crate, but she still gets nap time.

Thanks for the info about the keys. I will look into them tomorrow night at puppy class.

[gogogiraffes]

You can also freeze some toys as well. I'm sorry you can't use ice cubes, Those were my life savers. I'm not sure about freezing a wash cloth. Or a kong? We do that for Gizmo. Peanutbutter in a kong and we had the puppy kong and those are suppose to be good for teething.

Did you try the stick rawhides? Gizmo did switch to liking those during teething.

[Corgis4me]

One recommendation someone gave me was to soak one of those dog ropes in low sodium chicken broth and then freeze; give that for Molly to chew on

Or you could try the Chilly Bone, made of a canvas material, you just wet and freeze. I think PetSmart and petco sell them also.

Dog Toys: Chilly Bones at Drs. Foster & Smith

Is Molly's crate in your bedroom?, and she's about 17 weeks old now? during the day I wouldn't depend on her to be consistent with showing you that she needs to go out potty, even though she's been pretty good at doing that, she's still young and having accidents, and since you are off for the summer, I would take her out more frequently. if she is still have accidents in the house, she needs to be watched more carefully and maybe on a more frequent "outing" schedule, and she may be drinking a lot more water since its summertime.

I personally wouldn't be offering her water in the middle of the night. If she has access to water all day and the bowl is being replenished for her; I would give her one last offering an hour before bedtime, and then I would remove her water bowl . She needs to learn that night time is for sleeping, not drinking water - I would think a 4 + month old dog wouldn't need to be getting up to potty outside one or two times a night, but thats just my opinion. Are you giving her enough time before bed to pee and poop if she needs to or is it a quick in and out right before bed?

[gogogiraffes]

We also, just got this, Gizmo loves it.

Booda Dogzilla Deep Freeze Arctic Bone Dog Toy at PETCO

This is the thing that caught my eye.. Rubber is infused with vanilla & protein making it deliciously crave-able. I haven't smelt the vanilla but the first time Gizmo got it, he loved it.

And remember, petsmart does have a return policy if you aren't happy with it.

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by molly14

No, we haven't changed her food. I am however trying to switch her to twice a day feedings. I am slowly giving her less at lunch and more at breakfast and dinner.

You don't need to do it slowy, just cut out lunch and give her a bit more at breakfast and dinner.

Also, her schedule has changed last week, but I thought it would be for the better. I am a teacher and I am home for the summer. So, she does not get as much alone time in her crate, but she still gets nap time.

Any change of schedule, even if it's a good one, can be upsetting to dogs. (Like babies). Give her some time to adjust.

Another thought, could she have a bladder infection? I think I'd have the vet check a urine sample and rule that out. With her wanting more water and peeing more, well could be an UTI.

Peggy

[gogogiraffes]

Good thought Peggy!


Let us know Tuesday if the vet says anything!

[Peggy]

Also baby teething gels can be used on a puppy's gums too. Try one of those for her.

Peggy

[gogogiraffes]

Originally Posted by Peggy

Also baby teething gels can be used on a puppy's gums too. Try one of those for her.

Peggy

I used the baby stuff on myself before I got my wisdom teeth out only because it tasted better

[molly14]

You can also freeze some toys as well. I'm sorry you can't use ice cubes, Those were my life savers. I'm not sure about freezing a wash cloth. Or a kong? We do that for Gizmo. Peanutbutter in a kong and we had the puppy kong and those are suppose to be good for teething.

Did you try the stick rawhides? Gizmo did switch to liking those during teething.

We have tried freezing a wet sock. We have done the puppy kong with PB. The thing with molly is, she loves those, but all she does is lick them. She is not one for chewing on them, so PB is often left in the kong. We also have a kong bone that you stick those snowman shaped treats in. She will bit off the treat sticking out, but will leave the rest of the treat in the bone and won't try to get them out. She does love to chew a towel we have given her and our floor mats. She used to love ice cubes, but lately she has no interest. But thank your for the suggestion. Any idea on how to make her chew things she can but leave other things alone. We are trying to teach her leave it, but we aren't making much progress.

Is Molly's crate in your bedroom?, and she's about 17 weeks old now? during the day I wouldn't depend on her to be consistent with showing you that she needs to go out potty, even though she's been pretty good at doing that, she's still young and having accidents, and since you are off for the summer, I would take her out more frequently. if she is still have accidents in the house, she needs to be watched more carefully and maybe on a more frequent "outing" schedule, and she may be drinking a lot more water since its summertime.

I personally wouldn't be offering her water in the middle of the night. If she has access to water all day and the bowl is being replenished for her; I would give her one last offering an hour before bedtime, and then I would remove her water bowl . She needs to learn that night time is for sleeping, not drinking water - I would think a 4 + month old dog wouldn't need to be getting up to potty outside one or two times a night, but thats just my opinion. Are you giving her enough time before bed to pee and poop if she needs to or is it a quick in and out right before bed?

Molly's crate is down in our living room. We sleep upstairs. She does go out quite often. She is usually taken out about every hour, unless she is sleeping, and then I take her out as soon as she wakes up. Both accidents she had were at night, and seemed to be shortly after she had been out (but I am not 100% sure on that). She spent a lot of time outside both nights there was an accident. I will start to watch her like a hawk like when we first got her. I just thought since she had gone so long without an accident that I could trust her more. She has been drinking a lot more as it has started to get warmer.

Usually we pick up her water by 8 and put her to bed by 10, but we couldn't figure out what was bothering her and at 2:30 in the morning when she is barking at her water bowl, I didn't know what else to do to so I gave her water and she was good for the night. This does seem unusual to me, especially not going to sleep. That is why I posted. I am concerned something is wrong with her. Instead of giving her water, do you think there is something else I could do to quiet her. Ignoring her did not make her stop. It could be what Peggy said:

Any change of schedule, even if it's a good one, can be upsetting to dogs. (Like babies). Give her some time to adjust.

I plan to look into a few of the teething suggestions that you all have had. I will also try to get a urine sample to bring to the vet on Tuesday. Thanks for the suggestion.

You don't need to do it slowy, just cut out lunch and give her a bit more at breakfast and dinner.

good to know. Perhaps I can wait another month to do this then and she will be a little older. I just need her to be down to twice a day by september 1st when I go back to school.

[Corgis4me]

Originally Posted by molly14

Usually we pick up her water by 8 and put her to bed by 10, but we couldn't figure out what was bothering her and at 2:30 in the morning when she is barking at her water bowl, I didn't know what else to do to so I gave her water and she was good for the night. This does seem unusual to me, especially not going to sleep. That is why I posted. I am concerned something is wrong with her. Instead of giving her water, do you think there is something else I could do to quiet her. Ignoring her did not make her stop.

You had mentioned in your first post that she had went to the bowl at 2:30 in the morning when you let her out and that it was empty so you filled it up and than she drank. I'm thinking on the evening before, maybe she wanted a drink close to the time you normally remove the water bowl before bed, but it was empty and thats possibily why she was whining in the middle of the night because she was thirsty.

Would you be willing to move her crate into your bedroom or in another room close to your bedroom; she may rest easier at night if she is closer to you.

[molly14]

You had mentioned in your first post that she had went to the bowl at 2:30 in the morning when you let her out and that it was empty so you filled it up and than she drank.

If the bowl is empty we usually leave it down. But you do bring up a good point that maybe she didn't get the last bit in that she wanted. I will have to check that more carefully and perhaps call her over and offer some water before we remove it.

Would you be willing to move her crate into your bedroom or in another room close to your bedroom; she may rest easier at night if she is closer to you.

We have talked about this from the get-go, but she is not allowed upstairs yet (all carpet and not housebroken). Plus we thought it would be a bit of a pain having to bring her upstairs to crate her before we head out. Also then we would have to take her out from the upstairs when we get home and it was hard for her to make it out of the crate for us to pick her up before peeing when we first had her. She is better now, so perhaps that could work.

If we did move her up there, I am concerned that our stirring around (we don't often sleep through the night) and our cat being in and out of the room throughout the night. Do you think she could sleep through this or would be able to settle back down easily if we did wake her?

Last night went okay. She whined and barked for a little while (maybe 20 minutes) but we shut our door and watched TV for a little while and she was quite until about 5:30 today.

[Corgis4me]

Originally Posted by molly14

We have talked about this from the get-go, but she is not allowed upstairs yet (all carpet and not housebroken). Plus we thought it would be a bit of a pain having to bring her upstairs to crate her before we head out. Also then we would have to take her out from the upstairs when we get home and it was hard for her to make it out of the crate for us to pick her up before peeing when we first had her. She is better now, so perhaps that could work.

Sorry I missed that about you sleeping upstairs. I can understand where you are coming from and you really don't want her going up and down the steps yet at such a young age. I would just make sure water is offered to her before you remove the bowl in the evening and then not overplay with her during the hour or so before bedtime which would make her thirsty. Just make sure she has a long enough outing before bed to pee and maybe poop, which it sounds like you are doing and watch her more like a hawk during the day. It sounds like she gets to go out often.

Originally Posted by molly14

If we did move her up there, I am concerned that our stirring around (we don't often sleep through the night) and our cat being in and out of the room throughout the night. Do you think she could sleep through this or would be able to settle back down easily if we did wake her?.

I really wouldn't worry about this distracting the dog. Like with babies I think it is best that they get used to the everyday noises and distractions that go on in a home; they learn to sleep through it. I'm a light sleeper myself at times. I have 3 cats and two teens - sometimes my cats are quite active at night, other times they sleep, but none of the late night commotion(coming and going) that goes on in my home at times seems to bother cody when he's sleeping.

Originally Posted by molly14

Last night went okay. She whined and barked for a little while (maybe 20 minutes) but we shut our door and watched TV for a little while and she was quite until about 5:30 today.

That's good news. Others have posted on here to put an article of clothing with your scent on it in the crate; that might help her settle down better at night also.

[gogogiraffes]

Originally Posted by Corgis4me

Others have posted on here to put an article of clothing with your scent on it in the crate; that might help her settle down better at night also.

I do think sort of. Gizmo gets a blanket in his crate with him when he's in there. and I make sure, if its a new one or I know I'm going to switch it within the next day or so. I carry it around with my every day stuff and sleep with it. So I know it smells like me, I know that if I didn't he would have a hard time.