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I'm Shay! I’m a cookbook author, lifestyle blogger, travel agency owner, wife and mama who loves making every day special for my family.

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Mix & Match Mama

Pets ·

Puppies.


Hey, hey, hey, today’s post is brought to you by…

…Andrew Shull.

So, as you know, we have a new puppy…

Yankee Doodle Shull born Novemeber 18, 2019.

…because we are pretty darn smitten with our dogs around here.  They don’t get a lot of blog time because, well, they sleep a lot and there are only so many pics I can post of lazy dogs, BUT, we love them so much!!

Since last week, I’ve had so many comments, emails and DMs about puppy training because apparently, a lot of you got dogs for Christmas too.  You know what I said to each and every one?  It’s all Andrew.  Andrew is our very own dog whisperer.  I don’t know if it’s his size or his consistency or his demeanor or if he just communicates with dogs better than I do, but he is the number one alpha dog around here and when it comes to any sort of puppy training, he’s the boss.  I’m realllllllly good at cuddling a dog…I am not super great at potty training one.  (And for the record, the same statement could be applied to potty training humans too.  It took me 2 years to potty train Kensington and Smith.  Andrew potty trained Madeley in one weekend when I was out of town)  I asked Andrew on Monday after more emails if he could address the group with his best tips and his first answer was “they need to all read Cesar Milan’s books” and then when I said “yeah, but that’s not a complete blog post” then his second answer was “okay, I’ll write a few things down”.

This was our first puppy, Tulip.  She is 15 years old now!  She developed epilepsy when the kids were toddlers and for her own health, we had to find her a new home.  She has been living these last 8 years with friends of my parents who do not have small kids at home (and that has really reduced her seizures), and they give me updates all the time.  She’s still only 3 pounds and as feisty as ever 🙂 .

A little back story before we begin…Yankee is our fourth puppy in the almost 16 years we’ve been married.   I do think we’re (er, really him because I just cuddle) getting better training each one, but so much of that is just practice.

Sweet little puppy Poppy!  She will be eight years old this April.  She is like 99% my dog…but listens to Andrew 100% of the time.  Does that make sense?  She loves me the most, but I’m not her boss.  Ha! 

After Poppy, we got…

…little Frenchie Macaroon.  Frenchie turned two in August and has just been the best addition to our family.  The best part about Frenchie?  She totally brought out an even better side of Poppy.  Now that we’ve had two dogs, I never see us going back to just one dog again.  For us, two is easier than one because they have each other.  Now, Frenchie is technically Kensington’s dog, but we all enjoy her sweetness.

And now, we have Miss Yankee.

So, that leads us to today…Andrew’s tips on puppy training.  Here’s what he has to say…

First and foremost, let me say that I am no expert at all when it comes to dogs.  I think I have actually made more mistakes through trial and error than probably most people.  Here we go….

Read Cesar MIlan’s book, How to Raise the Perfect Dog.  For me, this has been the gospel when it comes to raising our dogs.  (And unlike the MMM I only read like 2 books a year.)  I know, I know, shame on me.  The problem I have is that unless I am on vacation where I get more than 5 ½ hours asleep I literally pass out when I pick up a book, BUT this is a really good book and I highly recommend it.

I am going to give you my simple dos and simple don’ts.  (Again, these are all either from the church of Cesar and trial and error on my part.)

Dos…

#1: Select a dog that fits your family.  We like dogs that are social, low energy, and friendly.  Some of this is by breed, but a lot of this is by nature.  Take Poppy and Frenchie for instance.  They are the same breed (Coton de Tulears), but Poppy is very energetic, chirpy, always moving, alpha dog, protective, super friendly, early riser while Frenchie is shy, low energy, super friendly, scared of everything, cuddler, lap dog, and late sleeper.  We had two little kids at home, so we were looking for more high energy when we selected Poppy, but with Frenchie, we were looking for a non-alpha since we already had that at home (and we didn’t want them to clash, we wanted them to complement).  I was very specific with the breeder, she sent me numerous videos and we were able to find the dog that best matched that personality. Cesar describes this a lot in his book.  When it was time to get Yankee, we knew we still had our number one alpha personality, so we needed another dog more like Frenchie to make things harmonious.  I once again spoke many times to the breeder and watched videos (and sent her videos of our dogs!) so that she understood what we were looking for.  Making sure you observe the dog and really get a good understanding of their personality can only help you when bringing a dog into your house.

#2: Always lead the dog. The puppy needs to know that you are the pack leader. A few simple things you can do are going through a door before your dog, and when walking the dog, the puppy should never pull you on the leash and is always beside you and not in front of you. Cesar explains that a dog who thinks it is the pack leader is a stressed out dog.

#3: Crate train, crate train. A dogs crate is their den, their safe harbor. Cesar describes in detail all the tips and tricks, but the crate is not a punishment cage or used for confinement for discipline.  Poppy and Frenchie love their crates so much that it is not unusual for us to see them sleeping in there with the door open.  They love to voluntarily go inside when we have company, there are storms, they want to nap…it’s their safe haven.  A few other things to keep in mind…you can bring home something from their litter that has their siblings and mom’s scent on it for their crate, I also placed in Yankee’s crate the shirt Smith wore the day before I got her because smell is huge for dogs, and these things are comforting.  Always make sure your puppy is calm before closing the door to the crate.  It’s not a punishment, so they should be calm when going inside.  Make sure the crate stays clean and that sometimes, we cover ours with a towel so that it stays super dark and cozy.  Also I believe the fastest way to potty train is with the crate, if used correctly because dogs do not like to lie in their own stuff, so they will hold it and wait until it’s time to go out.  We wake up right now twice in the middle of the night to let her out.  The crate stays clean and she doesn’t have accidents over night.

Don’ts…

#1: Don’t stress out!  Potty training and walking on a leash takes practice and time.  Right now, I put Yankee to bed at 9, and then, I get up at 1:15 AM to take her out.  After that, she goes back to bed and then Shay takes her out at 4:30 AM.  Does waking up in the middle of the night suck?  Yes!  She is a puppy though, and her bladder only holds so much.  Does she whine still at night sometimes?  Yes, but she is getting used to her crate and this routine.  (You have to enjoy the puppy stage though because it goes by really quickly and you’ll miss it one day.)

#2: Don’t get mad about chewing up stuff. Give them something to chew on instead. Puppies explore with their mouths, and they also have teeth coming in.  Chewing a bully stick is good for their mental health (it’s soothing), and it keeps them from chewing on things they shouldn’t.

#3: NEVER, NEVER hit or strike your dog. Instead of force, you need to redirect their attention.  They chew something, move them back and give them a bully stick.  They pee on the floor.  Take them outside and give them positive attention when they go outside.  We use a “kissing sound” for our positive reinforcement.

#4: If possible, don’t isolate your dog. When they are puppies and until they have all their shots, you need to protect them from certain locations (like dog parks), however, they need to be around other people, different environments, smells, and sounds.  We have always liked to invite vaccinated dogs over to play with our puppies.  It’s a great way to socialize them.

Again, I write this as no expert!  I imagine out of all of the people reading this, I am the last person qualified to speak on this topic.  If you remember nothing else about this post, remember this, read Cesar’s book on how to raise a puppy.  

So…in a nutshell, those are Andrew’s tips for having a puppy!  Now, we want to hear yours too!!!!  We could still use your puppy tips over at the Shulls house!!  Please comment and share them with us too!  xo

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Comments

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Yours would be “let your best friend get all the dogs and then your kids can just play with those”. Haha!

  2. Ahna @ Hammers N Hugs says

    Well, there are no sweet puppies to train over here in our house just children. That being said, I need to know the book Andrew read that taught him how to potty train a child in a weekend?! Did I read that right or do I need a second cup of coffee already? Andrew, can we get a post on that?! 🙂

  3. Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says

    So adorable! I’ve always wanted a dog, but many apartments where I live don’t allow pets. Oh well. I’ll live through your blog posts! ❤️✨

    Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
    http://charmainenyw.com

  4. Dana says

    Oooohh..love this! I have so much to say about it because we also learned SO much from Cesar!! We watched his show for many years after having gotten our first dog and then having to let him go with another family after 3 years. Honestly, it was all on us because we had no idea what we were doing and the dog was probably actually a great dog. We didn’t know how important it is to walk dogs, be the pack leader, etc. But 8 years later we did a ton of research on breeds and got a French mastiff (dogue de bordeaux…AKA the best dogs ever!). We got her because there are a lot of break-ins in our area and wanted something that looked scary but would be great with kids. She is a dream! She will protect us if we ever had someone hurting us but never ever bites. The biggest tip I have in terms of discipline is to slowly back the dog into a wall with a calm, assertive state of mind (not angry) and stand over the dog to make sure they know you don’t like what they were doing. It’s hard to explain in text, but it’s amazing!!! They will put their head down, showing that they submit to your leadership. Doing this alone made a huge difference in our dog obeying us and we never hit or yell at her, just calmly show that we’re the boss. I could go on and on about all we’ve learned…watching the show with your kids is a great learning experience, too!

  5. Susan Jeffries says

    Great advice. We have English labs and they are members of our family. We spend ton of time with them and train them well. Dogs are supposed to be family members and it takes a great deal of time to create a great dog! But soooo worth it!

  6. Narci says

    So, we had dinner with y’all the night before we picked up Dixie, and Andrew told me to read that book then too! It is soooo good.

  7. Jenny says

    This is a very timely post for me! We are thinking about getting a puppy…well we’re about 75% there but it scares me! Our youngest is 9 and we have so much freedom now…I just don’t know! Anyway, I think reading the book may help so we know what to expect during the puppy phase. Thanks!

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      I would in a heartbeat but Andrew isn’t a cat person and K is allergic to them!

  9. Angie says

    Might want to ask your vet about the bully sticks. We also used them until our pup broke a tooth while chewing on one. When we took Teddy to get his tooth checked we were told to never give bully sticks, antlers, etc. to your dogs. Instead use something giving like Kong toys. Just a word of advice. 🙂

  10. Laci says

    I agree with everything Andrew shared above and I wish I had read this when I got our dog 6 years ago. I am not even lying when I say it took me two years to get her accident free, took my first CHILD a solid year of potty training, I could keep going but I am horrible at potty training anything apparently!

  11. Katherine Darlington says

    Did Smith know what breed he wanted or did you select the breed then select the dog?

      • Sandi says

        I completely agree the two dogs are better than one are to keep each other company and we’ve had two dogs now for over 20 years (different sets) they are companions we do crate our dogs at night it keeps from a lot of mischief and they love being in the crate together. Our biggest regret is feeding them human food it’s not good for their digestion and once my husband did that they now beg?so my biggest advice in terms of that is never give them table food and you’ll have dogs that do not beg. Other than that we walk them every day and give them a lot of love but set boundaries with them we started that really early and they’re very well behaved. the only thing they do is bark when someone comes to the door we have not figured out how to stop them from doing that?

  12. Molly says

    What will you do with all of your dogs when you travel? We lost the last of our two dogs a few years ago, and we haven’t gotten another one yet because it was always a hassle to find someone to take care of them when we travel or are gone alllll day long.

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      We have found a great family here who takes care of them when we’re gone. Before we got Yankee, we asked them about taking on three dogs (because that is something you have to consider!) and they were excited about it.

  13. Erica says

    You say you need a low energy dog? Not sure a dog w/any part LAB in him can be calm. They are high energy and puppies until at least 3 yrs of age, They need TONS of exercise and stimulation. I have had MANY Labs over the years and this I know first hand,. Beware, the bad behavior is usually a sign of boredom. Hope you understand what you’re in for w/this dog. I am not trying to disrespect or be rude, just stating facts. I am a dog lover and we now have 2 rescue Border Collie sisters. Again, very high energy dogs. The good thing is you have 4 kids w/lots of energy to play w/Yankee. He will need them to tire his little butt out. Best of luck and love with your new family member !!

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Calm meaning within the litter. High energy and alpha dogs are different too. A friend of ours has two labradoodles from this breeder and says they’re both more on the calm side (verses super high energy). Of course, you never know, but when we were looking at the puppies in this litter, we wanted the one that wasn’t in charge. We already have an “in charge” dog at home. We didn’t want conflict with that. Also, my brother has an 11 year old lab who I would say is the most calm dog I’ve ever met. So, not all breeds/dogs are the same. I think it’s always a gamble when you bring any animal into your home.

      • Heather says

        We had an English lab and he was the most calm dog I’ve ever owned. He was so lazy and laid back. I do think it just depends on the dog, their home, and the way you train them. Sadly I found out I was allergic to him so we had to rehome him to our best friends. But he will always have a special place in our hearts. He really was just a sweet big dog who loved to cuddle. Now we have 2 yorkies who are hypoallergenic.

      • Tina says

        Our Just tuned 1 year old labradoodle Penny, is the calmest dog I’ve ever seen. She has been like this ever since we brought her home when she was 12 weeks.

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Both myself and Andrew have only ever had female dogs, so we’re doing it out of habit. Ha!

  16. Leah says

    Love reading this! We just got a puppy last week as well. He was born on November 20. He is a German Shepherd and is going to be BIG! He is our fourth puppy (we currently have two other older dogs) so it is not our first rodeo. But he is our first puppy in 8 years and we forgot how hard it is (to be fair we also have three kids this time around, one of them is 3 months old). My advise would be to not have a puppy and a newborn, but I know in a few years it will be worth the sleepless nights now.

    Where do you keep the dog crates? Our are all in our room, but they wake me up all the time moving around. I feel like we need to reevaluate how we have ti set up.

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Andrew and I both grew up with all female dogs, so that’s just what we’re both accustomed to. Other than that, there’s no rhyme or reason.

  18. Sheila R Lehmenkuler says

    Oh, I love puppies and dogs. We have a new boxer puppy, she just turned 5 months old. Over the years we have own 4 boxers, we love the breed. We were having potty training issues, breeder suggested we hang a bell by the door, kick it everytime we went outside, within 2 days she had it all figured out. Be sure you take your pup out the same door everytime.

  19. Coleen says

    Thank you for sharing this! My husband and I are getting our first dog (as adults… aka our parents won’t be training them) in April. I just ordered the book too!

  21. Stacey Owens says

    Can you tell me where you got Yankee Doodle? He’s so precious, and my in-laws, who lost both of their dogs last year, are looking for a new fur baby.We have a goldendoodle so we’re big fans of the doodles;)

  22. Tarah Sanford says

    I have been hoping you would write a blog post about this very topic! We made a (super impulsive) decision to get a puppy right before Halloween. He is the cutest and sweetest Aussiedoodle named Riggins (after Tim from Friday Night Lights, #TexasForever). I’ve always had dogs, but I’ve never tried training a puppy with 2 young kids at home; I really felt like I was losing my mind. It was super overwhelming, and I honestly and sadly hated being at home at times. He’s now 4 months old, rarely having accidents and sleeping all night most nights. However, he hates his crate. We’ve abandoned it for now unless we all leave the house. Any advice on crate training now?!

  23. Johannah says

    All great tips! When we picked up our rescue puppy the volunteer told us the easiest way to establish yourself as the pack leader is to only allow the puppy to eat once you’ve given them the signal. We just put food in the bowl and Loki doesn’t start eating until we say, “Okay!”

  24. Marsha says

    I’m surprised the puppy still needs to go out in the middle of the night. We raise puppies to be service dogs and all have slept through the night by 8 weeks. (We get them at 7 weeks because they bond with their mom at 51 days and the organization wants them to bond with humans instead due to their future job). The way Andrew wrote it, it sounds like he is waking the puppy up to go out at 1:15. If that is so, I’d suggest you just let the puppy let you know when they have to go out. If they really do, they will whine insistently. Of course, now they could have developed a hard to break habit by being woken up.

  25. Lauren says

    Andrew send joy have the answers to everything lol! All around amazing guy! Love when he chimes in! You guys are the best!

  26. Kelsey says

    I would love to hear Andrew’s advice on potty training kids!! That’s quite impressive- in one weekend!? Any tips would be great!!

  27. BF says

    Hi Shay! You’re not the first person to say how much easier/awesome it is to have two dogs vs. just one dog. My question though is would you actually suggest getting two dogs at the same time? Or start with one and add a second down the road. Wondering what you would do if you had no dogs but looking to get one. Would you get one or two? Are their advantages/disadvantages to getting them together vs separate. Thank you!!

    Also, I’d love other people’s opinions on this too!!

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      I think I would suggest it. Sheaffer just did it two years ago and I know she wouldn’t change a thing.

  28. Jenn says

    What a great post! Our puppy is starting puppy classes next week and the instructor trains with Cesar Milan. We need all the help we can get over here and this post was very encouraging.

  29. Ashley Brown says

    Ahhhh, I was so excited to see this post today! We just got our first puppy (a Coton de Tulear inspired by the great things you share about Poppy and Frenchie) on Sunday and are a big overwhelmed. We love him to pieces though and our kids (8 & 5) are the perfect ages to help out.

  30. Cindy wilcoz says

    Would you mind sharing your breeder? I’m in the process of looking for a dog. I am very interested in a certain personality and it sounds like your breeder is really looking closely at the puppies to determine personalities.

  31. Samantha Higgins says

    Adorable pups & great tips from Andrew. Especially the tip about looking within the litter for the dog that will fit your family/household. Our boxer is 2 but I still may read the book he suggested!

    Sheila L – we have a 2 year old boxer who is VERY high energy mixed with VERY Lazy and a great lap dog although he is 70 lbs. He was pretty hard to potty train (our others weren’t)- knows to go to the door but the bell didn’t work for him. We tried. We crate trained him also. Funny how different things work for different dogs. He is our 4th boxer we’ve had as a family together and my husband had 1 before. Such great dogs!

  32. Kami says

    I trained our maltipoo and resorted to a leash and hooked him to me everyday so I could see his every move and prevent accidents, it worked! Desperate measures!

  33. Erin says

    Those are great tips from Andrew! I wish we knew about this book when we got our Maltese years ago. We did puppy training at PetSmart and they gave similar tips that Andrew mentioned.

    Hope you are enjoying this new puppy! It goes by so fast.

  34. Dana S. says

    This post is perfect timing!! We pick up our7wk old lab puppies next weekend! I appreciate all of Andrews tips, especially the book. We are empty nesters and ready for the challenge and the fun times!!

  35. Robin says

    We have trained a few puppies over the years…always seems to be in the cold winter and snow!? LOL! Our current dog is a Rhodesian Ridgeback and she was a shelter rescue dog. She was about 3 or 4 months when we got her, so she was still small / young – just not the adorable new puppy size. The huge bonus was it literally took an afternoon to potty train her. Just showing her which door to go to a few times and she had it.

  36. Christina says

    It would be so great if you did a blog post on puppy products that have worked really well for you. What crates do you recommend? Beds? Toys? Accessories, etc. Thank you!

  37. Melissa says

    Our puppy is celebrating her half birthday today!! We got her back in September and weren’t able to crate train her. She would escape the crate! (We have no idea how) but when she escaped she wouldn’t pee in the house. So for her potty training just clicked and she knew in order to not have to go in her crate she needed to hold it until we got home. I love that we can give her freedom and she will behave. We do have a camera on her during the day when we have to work but she just lounges around while we are away. Maybe we were just super lucky, but sometimes not crate training works out just fine!!!

  39. Alicia says

    Love your puppy!! We are thinking of getting one. Curious, do you have more than one crate in the house and do you confine Yankee to a small space so that if she has an accident it doesn’t ruin your area rug, couch, etc? Thanks in advance ? ?

  40. Kacy M says

    Cesar Milan is great! And I worked at an animal hospital for 2 summers so I know lots about dogs, have dog sat (but never owned one), so these are great tips from Cesar and Andrew that I’ve seen both in action. Yankee Doodle is so precious!

  41. Bre says

    Do you typically start with the crate just for sleeping and while you’re gone? Or put them in there throughout the day to get used to it?

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      For sleeping, when we’re gone or when we cannot keep our eyes on them (so like while we’re having dinner). Other than that, she’s playing in her pen or with one of us.

  42. Carrie says

    We have a yellow lab and a golden retriever. We will always have two since they keep each other other company. Best thing we did when they were puppies was buy a puppy playpen. It kept us from having to chase them all around the house and make sure they weren’t getting into something. Caesar has a show on tv too. Has Andrew checked it out?

  43. Cassy says

    Such great tips that we use with our dog. We have an English Bulldog named Cooper. He cried at night, despite all that we did. Moved his kennel in our room the third night and he never cried again. We did the worn T-shirt thing with our college kid so that Coop would always know him as one of his pack when he came home.

  44. Amanda Davis says

    I just wanted to encourage peeps to try shelter dogs:) Ours is a sweetheart and there are plenty of ages, sizes and personalities to choose from! No judgement of anyone here – so please no one take this the wrong way – xoxo. My mom actually adopted two yorkie poos from a shelter so you never know what you will find – I know some people need dogs that don’t shed. Most shelters usually have great volunteers that are happy to help match you with the perfect dog. I read up on simple tests to do to make sure my girl was going to be the right fit – you can test for dominance, aggression, etc.

  45. Detroit Duchess says

    Your pups are so cute! We love our Cocker Spaniel, Sport, but we debate getting another dog all the time. I just don’t know if he would love it or hate it. He’s turning 8 this week but I’m not sure if he would mellow out or if he would be super jealous.

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