# New vizsla puppy - Help I'm getting a bit stressed!



## jenwood87 (Jul 17, 2017)

Hi everyone, my boyfriend and I got our first vizsla puppy three weeks ago, she is now 13 weeks old. We thought we had done quite a bit of research surrounding the breed but nothing could prepare us for how much work she is! In some ways we are lucky because she is mostly housetrained and she sleeps through the night, but every time we leave the room during the day she just howls and howls, and this can go on for hours if she feels like it. She seems OK in her crate so I'm just wondering if it is better to leave her in the crate whenever we leave the room for a length of time? I thought it would be better for her to have the run of the kitchen sometimes.

In the first couple of weeks she was really sweet and loving, but she appears to be developing quite a stubborn streak, especially with getting on the sofa (we're about to give up with the no sofa rule because its such a battle). I have ended up shouting at her a couple of times and now she seems to be quite suspicious of me. She won't voluntarily come for a cuddle and she won't come when she's called now. Can anyone give me any tips on how to manage unwanted behaviour without making her anxious? She is so cute and its heartbreaking when she doesn't seem pleased to see me!

I'm getting a bit worried because I have to go back to work next week, leaving my boyfriend (who works from home in the afternoons) and his mum to help out.


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## Pippatheredvizsla (Mar 13, 2017)

We have crate trained our viz from day 1. Anytime that we were not able to watch her (in the house or not) she would go into her crate with a toy or a bone or something. We were lucky and she never had an issue in there, but we started with small amounts of time in there and didn't let her out until she had calmed down (if she was whining). It took a couple days but now she spends the day in there while we are at work (with a break at lunch for a walk/play time). She has no issues with going in and will voluntarily go in there on weekends when we are vacuuming or when she needs a break. She definitely views it as her den. We also have a crate in our bedroom that she used to sleep in every night while she was being house trained. She now sleeps in the bed with us most nights but sometimes opts to start the night in her kennel.






Regarding the couch thing. Do you sit on the floor and play with her? When our dog was little, we didn't want her up on the couch either(this has since been renegotiated haha). How we dealt with this is when she was in the living room and we were on the couch, one of us would get on the floor and play with her so she didn't feel lonely. She probably wants to be up there because it is comfortable and you are there. If you don't already have a dog bed, get one of those and play with her on the floor. Vizslas are sensitive so shouting at her will not get a good reaction. Try correcting her behavior and praising her when she does what you want her to do instead. It goes against our natural tendencies but it pays off in the long run. 






Hope that helps!


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

We've all been there. I remember very distinctly a time when I tried to shower and Scout would just not stop crying. I crated her in my bedroom. She cried. I moved the crate into the bathroom. She cried. I tried, briefly putting her in the shower with me. She cried and I lost my mind. So the good news is that my screaming at her didn't ruin our relationship in the long run, she did eventually learn that the world wouldn't end if I was three feet away from her, and I learned a lesson in patience. 

So there isn't a quick fix to any of this because a great deal of her learning is attached to her age and maturity, but it also depends on your consistency, repetition, and the superhuman trait, patience. So, yes, stick in her crate when you need to get things done or just need a break. Wear earplugs to reduce the howling's effect on your sanity. 

With the couch situation, again know it will take time, as setting realistic, even conservative, expectations can help manage how you view the whole thing. Practically, I would allow her cuddle time while sitting on the floor because she needs that. I would also get a comfy bed, placed nearish the couch which she would only have access to when you can supervise so she doesn't destroy it. Any time she gets up on the couch I would calmly say, "No. Off (or your word of choice)," pick her up, set her on her bed, and verbally praise her/reward with a treat. As a rule of thumb, the praise should be considerably more enthusiastic than the discipline ever is. Then return to the couch, and immediately repeat because she's just followed you back! Keep a bottle of champagne on hand for the day that she doesn't  

Since recall is so important, I would start doing some short training exercises with that as well. Stick her on a leash, excitedly call her while reeling her in with the leash, and lavish praise on her when she gets to you. With enough positive interactions and some time, I'm sure she'll get over this wariness.


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## jenwood87 (Jul 17, 2017)

Thanks so much for all your help and advice, we've been putting her in the crate more during the day and she seems very settled in there, especially if we put a blanket over it. We decided that we will allow her on the sofa after all, but we're working on only allowing her on when we invite her up - this is a bit confusing for her at the moment but we're getting there!

Over the last few days she has begun to growl and bite if someone picks her up when she doesn't want to be picked up. This included at a bbq where my friend's dad picked her up to play with him and she snarled and bit him! From reading some of the other threads I'm reassured that this doesn't mean she is an aggressive dog, but can anyone recommend a way of dealing with this behaviour? It happens at random times, and it is quite unpredictable. At the moment I am just trying to keep calm and continuing to hold her around her chest until she calms down. It has also happened on the sofa a few times, which makes me think she might be guarding it. She has also displayed this "aggression" towards the other dog which we are looking after at the moment, but luckily the other dog is quite submissive so she didn't react to it. At this point I put Effy straight in her crate without saying anything, because I was completely horrified! Will she grow out of this?


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