Open to see pictures of puppies!

Hey Reader!
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I forgot how exhausting it is to have a puppy!

Writing this on Monday morning, I’m sucking down my Starbucks and hoping it keeps me alive until lunchtime.

This weekend we babysat a 12-week old Bernese Mountain Dog puppy named Harper.

I know I’m biased, but they don’t get much cuter or sweeter (I mean, just look at that face!). To be honest, I’m already missing those puppy snuggles.

What I’m not missing?

The potty breaks every 10 minutes, or getting up in the middle of the night. She only had two accidents in the house those four days and wouldn’t you know — they both happened while my husband Andrew and my mom were “in charge” of watching her.

But I digress…

I’m not sure why, but whenever we have a new puppy in the house I always feel the need to potty train each one quicker than the last. Logically I get that each dog is different and learns at their own pace. But selfishly, I just want my house to not get destroyed and also have 5 minutes to myself.

I guess it’s a good thing I never had human kids!😂

We’ve always trained our Berners to ring a bell when they have to go potty. The main idea is that when the bell rings, the door opens and they get to go outside. It’s been a simple, effective strategy that they’ve all caught onto quickly.

It can also be a Catch-22.

Suddenly the bell starts ringing when they want to go out and play, explore, or my boys’ favorite — just screw off. Which is SUPER helpful in the mornings when you’re already running late for work and frantically trying to make sure you have your purse, your coffee, your lunch and your sanity.

So how did we “fix” this?

The short answer is, we didn’t. When it comes to potty training, I’ve found consistency wins over logic every time. Even when I knew my puppies were ringing the bell only to go outside to play, I still opened the door.

Eventually, age tempers that desire to constantly play those games (at least in my experience).

Because like the phrase says, “this too shall pass”.

And before you know it, you’re missing that sweet puppy breath, super-soft fur with rolls of loose skin, and uber-adorable snuggles when the inevitable energy crash happens and they turn into a sack of potatoes.

Am I dragging this morning? Yes.

Am I a weekend behind in house-cleaning and side hustle work? Also yes.

Do I regret a second of getting to spend time with this little girl at this age?

Not in a million years.

My house will get cleaned. The work will get done.

Cherish each and every day with your dog.

We never know how many they get.

Hope this helps,

Charlie

P.S.

I’d love to hear about your dog(s). What are some of your potty-training tips and tricks?

I reply to every email so please don’t hesitate to reach out!

If you’re curious about Bernese Mountain Dogs in particular, I have a whole YouTube channel dedicated to them! Just click the link below👇

​>>Bernese Mountain Dog or Golden Retriever? Which is the better breed for you?​