Sidekick or Stalker?

Woof!

Howdy there! I'm back again to talk about my incessant need for attention today. I'm a small, cute puppy and as such I think I deserve a lot of attention and as I've gotten bigger and a little more confident I'm defiantly letting my owner know about it!

My owner considers me as a little sidekick in her daily life, she takes me to most places she goes and spends a lot of time with me, but this just makes me want to spend more time with her and play more! She thinks I'm getting a little clingy sometimes, so she has started to leave me at home all by myself, and tries not to cave in to my attention demands. It's not that I'm a bad puppy, it's just that I need to be stimulated lots and I also love company being a Pom, I was originally bred from a working dog to become a lap dog, so it's also my genetics that play a part in my behaviour.

Behaviour which is considered bad is when I jump at my owner, and I'm so excited I sometimes nip her with my lil puppy teeth, I get a loud clap when I do this, and the sound isn't very nice so I tend to stop. Making a loud noise is a good way to stop a puppy doing something mischievous. Another example is when I whine and whimper, but my owner knows this is normally down to boredom so I get a walkies or a good playing session with some of my favourite toys. I also don't like to be separated from my owner, but she has started going into a room, but not letting me in, so I learn to amuse myself when I have to, at first I use to bark and scratch at the door, but I've learnt now that she always comes back and gives me lots of attention when she does!

As a small pup I like to be picked up and cuddled, and if I had my way, I'd be carried everywhere, but my owner reminds me that I have four legs and makes me walk nearly everywhere, I enjoy walking now, but I still like being carried like a baby! I love following my owner around the house and often trip her up, which she thinks is dangerous, but it's the attention I'm after, but all she does is clap again, I love it when my friends come over to see me too, but they don't seem that keen on me jumping all over them, so I need to learn to not to do that too, it's so hard being a puppy sometimes, everything is so exciting! Attention is the number one thing I want, I love my owner and just want to be with her as much as possible, but she doesn't want a stalker, she wants a sidekick, so addressing separation anxiety and clingyness issues are very important.

Top tips to remember is that I am a dog, so don't treat me like a baby, even though I'm cuter than one. Remember that you can't be with your pooch all the time so make sure they understand that early on, and don't prolong goodbyes, but make hello's super exaggerated. Keep me occupied with toys and treats so you're not my only source of fun, especially when you're gone. Don't reinforce negative behaviour by caving in and giving me attention when I'm after it, even negative attention is better than nothing, so ignore my cunning ploys. The best thing you need to heed is that I don't need attention all day everyday, by giving me that I'll always demand it- so train your puppy early!

But! Make sure your puppy is actually only after attention and it's not an underlying problem for something else, make sure I have fresh water and food, been to the toilet and had plenty of exercise and stimulus, if your pup is still demanding attention and you can't determine why, please take them to your vet just to make sure its nothing nasty, but then some dogs and pups are known to fake illness just to get attention, but it's best to be safe.

That's it for now, I'm off to get some attention from my owner now, put some of her ideas into practice!

Puppy Kisses and Love

Dexy Do Dah Dog

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