STILL doing something wrong!
 

Okay all, I really need help. Well..I don't "need" help because it's a cosmetic thing, nothing serious, but I would still like help.

Bella is a tad over 4months old now...and she STILL won't let me put dresses on her or put bows in her hair.

She thrashes her head around like the exorcist movie when I try to put a bow in. I even tried it when she was in a DEEP sleep and she popped right up and began wrestling with the bow as I tried to put it in.

The dress situation is worse than the bow issue. I put a frilly dress on her just last week. It (was) a pink bodice with a white lace skirt (one piece dress, easy on easy off).

Well...I put it on her and realized I had to pee, so I went to the bathroom, and I swear I only took maybe 2 minutes. By the time I got out she had the lace skirt completely ripped off the bodice and was working her way through the armpit of the main bodice area of the dress.

....what am I doing wrong??:(

I use treats! I praise her when she sits still even for a second....I try to do the 'dress up' when she's either reallly tired or just after a blow dry..as she's tired then too. It doesn't matter..she hates clothes and bows! She's a tompuppy if ever I've seen one.

I'd REALLY like to put clothes on her. She will tolerate a T-shirt, but T-shirts are boring :-(

It's time for some heavy duty dress-wearin' help from the YT people!

i say keep going with the t shirts try to find ones with a ruffle or if you are crafty add a ruffle, keep going with treats

My main trick is to get them dressed up, and make over them like crazy! Oh you're so pretty...blah, blah, blah...ad nauseum.

If that doesn't work, I throw their harnesses and leashes on and we walk until they forget they're wearing clothes, and bows. Walk through populated areas so folks will stop you and comment and want to pet her. It's all about attention!

Make sure the hair band isn't too tight or pulling any hair or skin... loose to begin with is best.

Did you start out with little t-shirts?

I've never had that problem with any of mine - ever, outside of the bows. I guess you're just lucky.:D

I agree to stick with t-shirts for awhile. Do you have small little bands that you can put in her hair right now or do your bows have the bands attached?

I started mine out with bands and clipped in barrettes by catching just part of the hair in the band. She very seldom could get the barrettes out, but I did watch her closely, so she didn't try to eat it!:D

The only thing I can suggest is to keep doing it daily and I would think she'd get used to all of this stuff.

Have you seen the tshirt dresses Sherry makes? I love my girls dresses! They are cute and comfy too!!! Sherry is great to work with!

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Sherry's site is Custom Boy & Girl dog clothingYOU design it by SherrysPetStuff and Sherrys Pet Stuff - Wall | Facebook

Plus, she is teething now. On top of that, she is still a very young puppy. Just keep at it! Daily.:)

Thank you so much everyone, for trying to help my fumbling self. lol! I know it's not Bella's fault, she's just a puppy. :)

I praise her lavishly and dote on her alot while doing it IE: Oooooh pretty Bella!! Aren't you dahhhling....etc etc (yes, add nausea) lol I have no problem getting her *into* the dresses, it's her keeping them on that I have the problems with. =/ They're not too big or too tight, they fit her perfectly, but she doesn't like the feeling of the clothes on her body I think. She's a slinky, too...that girl can maneuver herself out of anything..I should have named her Houdinia.

Walking her is a good idea (still haven't done that yet, but I can now that she's done with puppy shots). I have her fully trained on a leash (inside) now, though, she doesn't tug or pull or lag behind, she's right at my side, so I think outdoor walking should come now. =) Although I might try it in our new backyard first..just to be safe. You're right, that would probably keep her preoccupied long enough to forget about the dress!! Thanks. :)

I LOVE the T-shirt dresses by Sherry..and thank you for that link...she might just be able to bear those, as they're similar to her shirts, only prettier.

We were in PetCo and someone said "aww..what a cute little boy!" the other day. *sigh*

I KNEW I could count on you all to give me some great tips..thank you so much.

My Chloe is almost 3 and she refuses to have any bows in her hair- she rips them out in seconds flat- I just let her be happy how she is.

And sometimes that is all you can do. They are all individuals and their happiness should come first. So, if she continues to refuse to allow herself to be dressed up, there isn't a lot you can do. Like I said, though, she is still a puppy. She may outgrow it and get used to wearing them.

I'm definitely not forcing her to wear bows, lol. As you can see, she doesn't have any in any of her pictures (aside from the one that I pasted on with a program, rofl).

I'll keep trying for a while more, but if she still won't tolerate them..of course I would let her be without them.:rolleyes:

As far as I know she doesn't mind the T-shirts...never tries to wiggle out of them, so yes, I'll definitely look at the ones Sherry makes with the little skirt on the end. : )

For whatever reason, Bella's favorite time to rule the roost is at night before bed..so I'm logging off now to watch her antics..and hopefully help her stay out of trouble. =P

Thanks again everyone!

Lola has not had any problems in the dress department (I think she likes the attention..lol) But the hair situation is very different!! After weeks of trying to get her to sit still and allow me to put a pony tail in her hair we are just starting to get the hang of it!

At first she did the same thing as Bella, trashing her head around like mad! I could barely grab a section of hair, never mind putting in the elastic! My DH wanted to hold her down while I did it, but I said No because I did not want to rely on him every time. So I persisted, everyday, I would take her to the couch and put a pillow on my lap and lay her on the pillow. I'd tell her "down", sometimes I have to tell her a few times because she starts trashing/trying to get up. If she stayed down with her head on the pillow I would give her a treat and just brush her/make the ponytail. All the while telling her shes such a good girl (in a calm, quiet voice). Then when she was pretty relaxed I'd attempt to put in the elastic (the first few try's I could not wrap the elastic enough and was very loose) but I was happy I accomplished even that! Oh and I should add this was not a quick process, sometimes i had to do it several times..lol! And then she would immediately start rubbing her head on the ground to try and get it out!

But now (after about three weeks of persistence) shes finally at the point I do not need the pillow anymore she just sits there and lets me do it (she still gets a yummy treat after!) and it take me less than 5 min. And I discovered distracting her by throwing her favorite ball around for her to fetch would make her forget about her hair and she will leave it alone!:thumbup:

We have not tried actual bows yet, but I'm hoping she will be ok with them now that we have the ponytail part taken care of! But we will see, and good luck! Hope this helps!:D

Just keep at it a little everyday. She'll get use to it. Everyone had great suggestions. Lighter the better at first. Walk & distract, give treats. It all helps!

Hint: and don't use bows like this that are so big they can't hold their ears up, or open their eyes, Lol!

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That is too funny!!! :eyetearss

I did the same thing with Jimmy, the walking. He's much better with clothes now but I'm still working on the hair. :)