# New puppy advice



## QueenTilly (Jul 7, 2020)

Hi all 👋🏻

My family got a vizsla puppy (Queen Tilly) about a week ago now! She is 9 weeks old now and generally so much fun! I have been reading through a lot of the puppy forum posts and have a few concerns I would love to hear opinions/advice on! 

First is the so called ‘sharkies’ Tilly is baaad when it comes to these. First thing in the morning she is out of control biting our hands extremely hard, we try to trade with a toy or say no or ignore or cry ouch but it doesn’t seem to work. Tomorrow morning we will try with a frozen tea towel - apparently that is meant to help. Biting in the hands we can handle, however she has also started biting and attacking our pant legs when she’s in a particular mood. She will also growl and bark at us in this mood and really snap for our hands. This is a little bit scary and I’m not sure this is really normal puppy behaviour?? Some days she seems to go from either being asleep or being uncontrollable and biting barking and growling there isn’t an in between. 

Second is her eating everything on the floor in the garden. We want her to run around and play but she much rather settles and just chews up rocks, sticks, plants, etc. We tend to leave her when it’s nothing dangerous and only intervene when it’s a rock. Is there any good way to distract her and get her to run around and let off some energy? We have tried toys or safe sticks but she always looses interest. The breeder put her on a reduced meal plan of 170g three times a day instead of four to counteract some over sensitive bowls causing her to wake multiple times in the night to need the toilet. I’m wondering if maybe she is just hungry? How much should a 9 week old vizsla pup weigh? She is around 4.9kg now And does look quite skinny. 

I really love her to bits but when she gets in her provocation mood it is impossible to get through to her and it’s quite tiring and unrewarding. Any advice would be hugely appreciated. We are starting puppy school this upcoming weekend so we hope some playtime with other dogs and some Head work will do her good and settle her a bit overall. Looking forward to reading your experiences/tips/comments!!


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## Gabica (Jan 20, 2018)

looks like in between this moods she likes to spoil you too

sharkies... lots of comments and advices on this forum, probably better to read up instead of repeating, but yes, it is normal. with my second boy Miksa (who actually turned out to be awesome) i had to put a bathrobe on top of my pj`s before taking him out to potty in the mornings or i would wake up the neighborhood screaming from pain caused by his needles... the first one Bende went to daycare from 3 months old so he learned from the other dogs earlier the bite inhibition, Miksa did not, so the sharks attacks stopped really after he was allowed to play for longer time with Bende (around 6 months old).

Structure, playtime, tiring out physically and mentally and crating... your pup needs at least 16 hours per day of sleep at 9 weeks. 
I would let the pup eat as much as she wants. If she has sensitive stomach look into probiotics, and the type of food fed.

And yes, it can be a LOT when they are at this age... specially as a first time vizsla owner. but many people on this forum will tell you that it is worth putting in the effort at this age, it will be paid back millions of times. Puppy school and training is as much as for parents as for puppies, enjoy, it can be a lot of fun.


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## freealfin (Jun 8, 2017)

Gabica said:


> looks like in between this moods she likes to spoil you too
> 
> sharkies... lots of comments and advices on this forum, probably better to read up instead of repeating, but yes, it is normal. with my second boy Miksa (who actually turned out to be awesome) i had to put a bathrobe on top of my pj`s before taking him out to potty in the mornings or i would wake up the neighborhood screaming from pain caused by his needles... the first one Bende went to daycare from 3 months old so he learned from the other dogs earlier the bite inhibition, Miksa did not, so the sharks attacks stopped really after he was allowed to play for longer time with Bende (around 6 months old).
> 
> ...


I won't say much because there's nothing I can add to what already has been said BUT I do have an alternative.......and that is to have TWO pups which is what I had 95% of the time. I found that many of problems that are listed here where absent and or almost non existent. The cost?......more....is it worth it?...definitely yes in my book.......just the fun of seeing them play constantly is a BIG pay-off...


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## freealfin (Jun 8, 2017)

Gabica said:


> looks like in between this moods she likes to spoil you too
> 
> sharkies... lots of comments and advices on this forum, probably better to read up instead of repeating, but yes, it is normal. with my second boy Miksa (who actually turned out to be awesome) i had to put a bathrobe on top of my pj`s before taking him out to potty in the mornings or i would wake up the neighborhood screaming from pain caused by his needles... the first one Bende went to daycare from 3 months old so he learned from the other dogs earlier the bite inhibition, Miksa did not, so the sharks attacks stopped really after he was allowed to play for longer time with Bende (around 6 months old).
> 
> ...


Great pictures........how can one NOT love them?..............


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## QueenTilly (Jul 7, 2020)

Thank you all for you comments! Puts my mind at ease ☺


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

It sounds as if you have a normal puppy to me.
The "sharkies" are a trial, and they will go on for a few months, unless, as freealfin pointed out, you have two puppies. You will get through it though. It's just time. It also helps to have a 1m leash attached to their collar sometimes when they're running around the hose, or garden. It's easier to get ahold of the leash, than the puppy!
She will put everything in her mouth. You have to accept that. It is a constant, and you will be continually taking things out of her mouth for many months. Again, the leash will help.
170 gr. three times a day ,seems a little bit under what I would want to see. I would want to get a little bit more in her if I could, but she'll eat, what she eats.
Get her through all of vet checks and vaccines and then maybe try to slowly adjust her diet if required. A little bit of live cultured, organic yogurt, might help her stomach if she continues to have sensitive stomach issues.
A year from now, you'll remember this phase with fonder memories. You just gotta get through it.
She's a beauty for certain.

As for the tea towel, I like to dampen them first. Not soaked, but just damp. Sometimes the sensation of the cold, moist, frozen, towel, relieves the discomfort of teeth coming in and falling out. When she gets a little bit older, an ice cube works also. She should have most of her adult teeth by 6-7 months old, so there are a few months of teething ahead.


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## freealfin (Jun 8, 2017)

gunnr said:


> It sounds as if you have a normal puppy to me.
> The "sharkies" are a trial, and they will go on for a few months, unless, as freealfin pointed out, you have two puppies. You will get through it though. It's just time. It also helps to have a 1m leash attached to their collar sometimes when they're running around the hose, or garden. It's easier to get ahold of the leash, than the puppy!
> She will put everything in her mouth. You have to accept that. It is a constant, and you will be continually taking things out of her mouth for many months. Again, the leash will help.
> 170 gr. three times a day ,seems a little bit under what I would want to see. I would want to get a little bit more in her if I could, but she'll eat, what she eats.
> ...


A puppy running around loose with a leash attached to the collar (harness OK) is asking for trouble..Dragged leashes have a bad habit of getting caught on things or wedged under doors or car tires. I have seen it happen a few times. Once in a dog park parking lot. Leash wedged between a car tire and the ground and the dog ended up on his back with severe larynx damage. My re-homed male has larynx damage either from that or the owner jerking the leash hard trying to stop him from pulling on it......


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

Ahhh, thank you. I need to clarify.
This is done under close supervision and in the house, or yard.
I also need to add that the leash is only about 1m long, and I also use a harness almost exclusively for puppies. Finn used to wear a harness more than a collar for the first 5 months. He still goes on the harness when we’re in a parking lot, or near a road.
Outside I use a short pice of rope, or flat nylon weave,with no knotted ends, so that it can slip.


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## QueenTilly (Jul 7, 2020)

gunnr said:


> It sounds as if you have a normal puppy to me.
> The "sharkies" are a trial, and they will go on for a few months, unless, as freealfin pointed out, you have two puppies. You will get through it though. It's just time. It also helps to have a 1m leash attached to their collar sometimes when they're running around the hose, or garden. It's easier to get ahold of the leash, than the puppy!
> She will put everything in her mouth. You have to accept that. It is a constant, and you will be continually taking things out of her mouth for many months. Again, the leash will help.
> 170 gr. three times a day ,seems a little bit under what I would want to see. I would want to get a little bit more in her if I could, but she'll eat, what she eats.
> ...


Thank you so much for your input!!


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## cynrunner (Feb 17, 2016)

QueenTilly said:


> Hi all 👋🏻
> 
> My family got a vizsla puppy (Queen Tilly) about a week ago now! She is 9 weeks old now and generally so much fun! I have been reading through a lot of the puppy forum posts and have a few concerns I would love to hear opinions/advice on!
> 
> ...





QueenTilly said:


> Hi all 👋🏻
> 
> My family got a vizsla puppy (Queen Tilly) about a week ago now! She is 9 weeks old now and generally so much fun! I have been reading through a lot of the puppy forum posts and have a few concerns I would love to hear opinions/advice on!
> 
> ...


HI, I agree with Gunnr, I also used a short leash, in the house, under supervision, when my V was a pup. Cashew also had the sharks, lol! We used Bitter Apple spray, & put it on our hands & arms, & shoes, etc., anything we did not want him to teethe on. It works great, you just have to remember that you have it on your hands so if you put your finger in your mouth, you will realize why the pup does not want to grab your hands anymore, lol! 

This stage will pass & you will forget about it. Evening time, he would get the zoomies, so one of us would take pup upstairs with a ball, throw the ball downstairs, pup would run after it, then I would throw it back upstairs & pup would run up to get it. We just repeated this maybe about 5, 6 times, & then he would settle down. 

Just have to keep them occupied, this phase will pass. Your V is beautiful!


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## PinDave (Jul 1, 2020)

Our experience with Maui is pretty much EXACTLY like yours! Reading your post, felt like I wrote it!😂

The extreme bursts of energy are... well, let’s call it impressive. With respect to the biting (is this what people call ‘sharkies’?), I’ve had luck with grabbing his jaw, or forcing (gently) my arm or hand into the back of his jaw. It shows him that I’m not afraid of his mouth, and kind of takes the power away from him. It makes biting more a liability to him than source of power. Don’t get me wrong, with his needle teeth it’s hurts sometimes, but it’s better than the jumping and biting. The biting is never aggressive - always playful, but when his excitement skyrockets, it gets worrisome. If you are finding that she’s growling in an aggressive manner, that’s a whole other issue.

Maui’s getting better with it, so there is light at the end of the tunnel!


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## Mai nguyen (Jul 15, 2020)

Thanks for your post. Wow! I love dogs like this picture.







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