Congratulations on your new fur baby, Kelsey!

Kennel training will be key. Eight+ hours is a long time to leave your fur baby alone, but leaving her to her own devices could be disastrous!

As soon as you come home, take her straight out to potty and play. Puppy pads are tricky. She is learning to go where you take her. I never used them for that reason. You’ll need to be very consistent when you begin to transition from the pads to outside. Additionally, if there’s somewhere specific in your yard you want to become her potty, carry her there. I would even suggest you leash her to prevent her from wandering off to another spot. After a short time, she will go there to potty. (I love this because who likes to have to search for doggie doo all over the yard?)

She WILL go where you train her to go. The question is Will you be disciplined enought to discipline her?

Enjoy her!

~Kelley

Michelle,

I’m really sorry to respond so late! We did not use puppy pee pads. At 8 weeks (and until we felt confident she was getting the hang of potty training), we picked her up and carried her to the location we wanted her to tinkle outside. That became her area and that’s where she pottied regularly. HTH! Check back in and tell us how it’s going. ~Kelley

Selma! I don’t know how I overlooked your comment. By now, your sweet fur baby must be double in size. The key to an Aussie’s training is P-A-T-I-E-N-C-E! They are so smart and focused on what they want, they don’t stop to listen. The key is to get their attention. That’s the hard part. We tried to use positive reinforcement instead of getting frustrated when Blossom was too distracted to obey or cooperate when we wanted to work on training. We included training as a part of our routine: crate-time, potty-time, eat, training, playtime, back in the crate. We always went in this order gradually leaving her out of the crate for longer periods as she got older. It’s natural for her to be hyper. Give plenty of neck and belly rubs. And treats when she obeys. She will eventually figure out that she WANTS to listen! Consistency and patience are key to a well-trained Aussie. One day, she’ll be much calmer (and mature) and you’ll forget all the work it took to raise her. 🙂 Enjoy every minute! And check back to give us a report of how she’s doing. Blessings! ~Kelley

Rebecca, what a wonderful gift for your husband! And Ruby Rose is a beautiful name! Come back and post a pic when you can!