First of all sorry about your emotional upheaval and secondly take some comfort in the fact that its all perfectly normal!
Internet advice is terrible contradictory and you have got off to a bad start with your new baby - fear not though it can be rectified!
Every dog that we bring home leaves me worrying, panicking and even regretting that I took on the commitment - you are not alone! A puppy is hard work, really hard work they are tiny babies after all, and you should have expected that - the breeder should have told you what to expect.
Crate training
Crate training should be done over a few days and if you are shutting your puppy in without giving her a chance to be relaxed in there then you are causing emotional trauma. Take crate training gently and put a comfy bed in there, feed puppy in the crate and always leave the door open. As the others have suggested give her a warm toy. Trapping her in there will upset her a lot. She is used to being in a group of warm bodies after all.
Play with her as much as you can during the day to exhaust her so that she looks for a bed, then have the crate and bed in a place where she can be in it and close to you, throw treats in and allow her to go in and out ... and leave the door open until she is happy to be in the crate. gradually she will feel secure and go in on her own, then you can start to shut the door.
I suggest you sleep in the same room as her for a couple of nights to rebuild the security which has been lost, have the crate right by where you sleep and leave the door open but put her in there, she will eventually relax, poor little thing must be so confused.
Toileting
Every hour during the day take her out and when she toilets give her a little treat and tell her she is good. Always take her to the same place and always wait for her to go. Ignore her until she has been then make a big fuss. If you see her trying to go in the house take her to the pad and even if a tiny drop lands on the pad do the same praise and reward. Never punish her though because it will break down the trust between you.
I hope this has helped. You will get through these times and she will settle down, just beware of internet advice, always treat puppy positively and never punish her, try to understand why she is doing things instead and reshape her behaviour ! Good luck ! |