# Observations/Questions after 1 week with pup



## HomersDad (12 mo ago)

So I’ve had Homer for 10 days now. I got him at 7 weeks (I know, I know) and overall the experience has been great!
—He’s more or less housebroken in the sense of that he knows to go to the door when he needs to go. Accidents typically occur when I’m having a lapse in giving him my undivided attention. Once his bladder is bigger I think that will solve itself. 
—He nips a LOT! When I follow advice I’ve read here about dramatically saying ow, stopping play, etc., he just thinks I’m playing. He does this especially when he’s very excited after a long nap or something. *Any other ideas?*
—He’s gotten really good about his crate. Especially at night. Last night I think he would have been able to go all night (about 11:30-5:30 for me) without going outside to potty, but I got up and took him out around 4 just because I wasn’t sure it was good for him to hold it that long at his age. *Would it be ok to let him hold it for 6 hours if he doesn’t cry? *It was the first time he didn’t whine at some point in the night.
—*Is it too early to start with training for “sit”, “come”, and “drop it”? *Sometimes he can be defiant about coming in from the yard. Think he finds it funny haha

He’s so sweet (when he’s not being a little ginger terrorist) and so smart. And they weren’t kidding about the Velcro thing. He’s gaining weight pretty quickly, and the vet said he looked great and had a lot of character. He really does. He has a swagger about him. I guess I’ll keep him!


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## Gabica (Jan 20, 2018)

Love these pictures, he is loving life for sure. I have several of those puzzle feeders and they have been super handy when trying to mentally tire them out as pups.
He is still only 8.5 weeks old, meaning his attention span is super short. So anything you do, just expect that he may be good with it for 10 seconds and then moves onto the next subject. The nipping will take some time, another one which worked with one of my boys was just quickly offering a high value chew toy instead of my hands.
I would not want to have him more than 4 hours at this point even during the night without the ability to go out to potty, gradually increasing every 2-3 days. Chances are that it will change quickly, but the last thing you want is crate accidents once he was doing so well. One of mine was sleeping thru 8 hours by 11.5 weeks in his crate, but every puppy is different, some take longer.
It looks like you guys have started building that good relationship which is key for training, so go for it. Just keep it very positive, playful and the actual training sessions short. My best success has been to combine play with training. It will also give you an opportunity to elaborate on what his main motivators are.
Enjoy your little terrorist, they grow up way too fast.


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## Matt C (Nov 30, 2021)

Super cute pictures!
I’m interested in this thread as a would be vizsla owner.


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## KarenS (11 mo ago)

Yes, me also! I had considered getting two puppies but the concensus seems to be that it'd be extremely difficult. Not sure at the mo.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Never too early to start training. Keep it super fun short sessions. Prepare yourself for the sharkie phase!


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