New Border Terrier puppy

Hi All

I am one day into owning an 8 week old BT boy, my first ever dog. He's nibbling my pocket as I type.

I feel VERY new to all this and would love to connect anyone else feeling the same or can offer comforting words of advice!

Clive (and Gruff)

Welcome to you both Do you have any specific concerns, or are you just experiencing the 'Aaargh, what have I done?' which is par for the course for new puppy owners? We have some great info for new puppy owners available through this post: Useful Links & Recommended Reading Do have a read, particularly Your new puppy: the first few nights

And most importantly, do you have any photos of Gruff? (Great name BTW.) We do love puppy photos

Hi and welcome from me too. Another fan of the name Gruff, seems fitting for a BT somehow!

Maybe the puppy is called Clive?



Sorry, I have a weird sense of humour, welcome on board - you'll find lots of help in that section of the forum but do remember to shout out if anything's not clear, or if you need more help.

Thanks for the replies all and kind words, I'm not sure anyone would call their puppy Clive?!! Maybe one day...

One early question is any tips on bathing and grooming? Apart from a bowl and water, are there any recommended cloths/towels/other implements? Also, I've bought him loads of chew toys but none seem to interest him more than a few seconds, whereas a twig, cable or shoelace seem irresistible! Is it harmful for him to eat a leaf or grass?

I'd avoid bathing him for a good while, you want him to be completely at home and to trust you - even then, most dogs don't need bathing unless they have rolled in something disgusting, a good brushing every few days should get rid of dander and debris. When you brush, don't do him all over at first - do a little bit then leave the rest for later, or tomorrow. Get through to his skin though, don't just skim the surface.

That said, you will need to decide what you want to do with his coat longer term. Borders are often stripped, which means the top coat is removed. It's not supposed to be uncomfortable but I've heard some people say their dogs don't like it, so they just have them clipped which gives the coat a different texture. It all depends on whether he is going to be shown or be a pet, and how much of a purist you are.

For towels etc, any old towels are fine. I prefer smaller towels but that's just a preference.

Whether it's harmful to eat leaves, the answer is that it depends on the type of leaf; so to be safe, I'd discourage it. If you think about what makes leaves, laces and cables (definitely risky) more fun than toys, it's quite possibly your reaction. If you jump out of your seat and rush to stop him, is that a more animated reaction than when he has his proper toys? If so, there's your answer. Make his own toys more exciting by playing with him, with them. Move them around, encourage him to chase and pounce on them, to give them a good shaking and 'kill' them - he is a terrier after all, bred to despatch small furry animals. So make the toys behave like prey.

And i think Clive would be a great name for puppy (just kidding, but we do have a Miles on here, so ...)

Thanks Joanne!

You say that he has lots of chew toys - I'd make sure he also has plenty of 'ragging' toys. Maybe something along these lines: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fluval-Sma...d=1751813971&sprefix=puppy+toy,aps,104&sr=8-7

Or https://www.amazon.co.uk/KONG-Scrun...s&sprefix=puppy+toy+kong,aps,109&sr=1-20&th=1

Make sure to supervise him just in case he manages to chew of any small pieces though!

Also, make sure not to 'tell him off' when he chews something he shouldn't - puppies of that age - or dogs of any age, really - don't really 'get' that as it doesn't tell them what they should do. Simply distract him, replace it with something he can play with, and do your best to keep him away from anything he shouldn't have, e.g. by blocking access to cables (easier said than done, I know).

Thank you for the photo, he's gorgeous!

So cute !

The happy puppy handbook by Pippa Mattinson is a a helpful read.

That's great thanks to you both!

Another early oddity today - I've been taking him outdoors after every sleep and meal, sometimes followed by a successful wee and once poo. Then this afternoon, I was with him outdoors after dinner for 20 minutes and all he did was play, but the minute we went back indoors he pooed! As if he'd been waiting to poo indoors, am I doing something wrong or is just one of those things?!

Cliveen said:

That's great thanks to you both!

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There will be a few accidents, unless you are a real expert in puppy training! Every time you think 'that'll be the last time ' there always another one waiting to happen.

This guide should help.

Could be too busy playing and then went, once back inside. I would highly recommend staying outside until your pup has been to the loo, which you obviously then praise and reward.

Cliveen said:

Thanks for the replies all and kind words, I'm not sure anyone would call their puppy Clive?!! Maybe one day...

Click to expand...

Well..... My neighbour when I lived in Surrey had a grey whippet puppy called Clive he was a gorgeous dog and so friendly but when it came to eating things Clive gave us all the master class.

One evening I heard a lot of shouting coming from their house but decided not to take too much notice, the next morning she knocked on the door and apologized for the noise and invited me in to see exactly what it had all been about. We had those 1930s houses with the living room and dining room had been knocked through to make it through lounge really nice and big and roomy and Clive had turned the house into a giant snow globe. While she had been out the evening before he had eaten her three-piece suite the whole lot was down to the framework and all of the foam padding was flying around the room in tiny little bits..oops

Mad Murphy said:

Well..... My neighbour when I lived in Surrey had a grey whippet puppy called Clive he was a gorgeous dog and so friendly but when it came to eating things Clive gave us all the master class.

One evening I heard a lot of shouting coming from their house but decided not to take too much notice, the next morning she knocked on the door and apologized for the noise and invited me in to see exactly what it had all been about. We had those 1930s houses with the living room and dining room had been knocked through to make it through lounge really nice and big and roomy and Clive had turned the house into a giant snow globe. While she had been out the evening before he had eaten her three-piece suite the whole lot was down to the framework and all of the foam padding was flying around the room in tiny little bits..oops

Click to expand...

Wow! I'm not sure this story is going to trigger a renewed wave of popularity for the name!