Welcome to Arlo’s journey, a journal of our very own F1b Cavapoo puppy. We start on the first day at his new home from 8 weeks old.
The initial approach will be to report weekly until he is 12 months old, however, this could be extended to beyond his first birthday if we feel it will benefit our readers.
Each update will highlight the training and development of our beautiful dog.
Arlo’s Background
We first got to visit Arlo at 4 weeks old. The breeder was excellent and we had first choice out of the litter. We decided with Arlo because of his wagging tail when holding him and as common with most new Cavapoo owners, it just felt right.
It was almost as if he chose us.
The breeder informed us that Arlo was the largest out of the litter and that this was his recommended choice if he was choosing one himself.
Alto’s dad is a miniature Poodle, while his mum is an F1 Cavapoo. He’s classes as Apricot in colour.
Week one (8 weeks Old)
Arlo was lovely and quiet. He lapped up his goats milk and ate most of his food. We have kept him on the same diet as the breeder used, which was k9 Optimum chicken (puppy) and fresh chicken fillet.
The fillets are supermarket brand, boiled and placed on top of his K9 optimum kibbles. He has half a fillet with each meal. His eating schedule is: 6am breakfast, 1pm, bowl of goats milk, and 6pm, dinner.
Sleeping on first night consisted of crying and waking up almost every hour. We ended up sleeping downstairs with him. This continued for the first week, so yes, we were very tired, considering he often didn’t go back to sleep till after 5am.
Besides this, he was very playful, and a bit fearful. However, the bond was starting to grow quickly. As for potty training, we started this immediately by taking him into a private area of the yard almost every hour, and after meals and play.
His sleep pattern throughout the day was around 18 hours of sleep.
Problems Encountered
Arlo is very clingy and does not like his play pen with the door shut or when he is alone in the room. At first we decided that this was a form of separation anxiety, and just something he/we would have to overcome, but when he literally climbed up the metal frame of the play pen, and threw himself over, we had to make the decision to leave the door open at all times.
This was a minor set back because our plan was for him to sleep in here during the first few months. However, it has now become too dangerous as he will likely do himself an injury if we’re not in the same room.
Our plan is to get a small dog crate, and see how he takes to sleeping in it. Dog crates are beneficial, not cruel and most dog’s tend to like them and feel safe inside.
Overall, week one was as expected. Lot’s of peeing, pooping and crying. Despite this, the bond has stared, and we love him to bits.
Read the next post on Arlo’s journey here.
