meet my new puppy sammy!

This was filmed last week, she just finished her last round of shots and turned 4 months old on Sunday! Stay tuned for more puppy content + leave your advice below.

twitter | @lindseyrem
instagram | @lindseyrem

-------------------------------

+ VIDEO DETAILS

-------------------------------

FTC. This video is not sponsored.

[rachspeed]

I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS!!!! love her already!!

[wend]

you and sammy were meant to be together, you guys seems to have the same energy and kind soul, love u guys. 💘💘💘

[SOxITxGOES]

I love her and I love how responsible you are with discussing the work involved with pets. I find myself cringing when content creators glamorize pet care because it is not always easy and fun. There is a lot of things that can go wrong and a lot of work involved. I have worked in a vet for 2 years and a rescue for 3. The amount of surrenders we get in the rescue is insane. And a lot of the time it is just because people were not prepared for the time and responsibility of it all. My biggest advice for you is just to socialize her as much as possible when she is fully vaccinated. People, kids, big dogs and little dogs. They say you want to expose them to something with positive association approx. 100x. So like meeting 100 strangers and having it go well, meeting 100 dogs successfully, etc, etc. But one really bad experience can erase progress because ya know, trauma. If your pup has a bad experience with a dog you shouldn’t leave it on a bad note. So for example, a dog gets too rough with her at the dog park, don’t just pick her up and carry her away and leave on that scary note. Give her a chance to cool off, give treats and pets and then almost immediately get her back to socializing with other well mannered dogs. Always go for positive reinforcement because it makes the connection much faster in the brain. You have a 3 second window to reward the desired action. So if she goes potty inside don’t scold. Just take her outside and when she potties outside give a treat immediately. This will take repetition but this will make the association between the desired action and the reward without damaging trust and relationship like negative reinforcement can do. Those are my biggest tips for puppies. Desensitize to dogs and strangers and handling and positive reinforcement training. I am not a dog trainer or expert. I have just worked with 1000+ dogs and I have seen 100+ surrenders and I know the common reasons why they are surrendered. Also beware of other dogs that may have a prey drive and might mistake your pup for a bunny or something. Those are definitely not the dogs to socialize with. I personally hate dog parks because you don’t know that the owners are responsible and you don’t know the status of the other dogs vaccines and social skills. I would suggest socializing with smaller groups in a more controlled setting. With friends dogs or Facebook group play outings. Just because I am paranoid and I have also seen many many dog fights and injuries due to owner negligence in dog parks. That it. Those are my words of wisdom.

TL;DR: socialize dog early, positive reinforcement training, maybe don’t trust strange dogs at dogs parks.

[bluehourrr]

oh my god i just opened youtube and saw this!!!! love u love sammy

[readysetflyyx]

just had therapy and needed a hot minute to breathe/chill out and then this notification popped up 😭 such perfect time. sammy is so precious!!! i’ve been loving your insta stories of her so much, thank u for sharing her w us 🥺 congrats to u both on ur new life together!!!

[myhazyyyy]

it's interesting hearing you say your anxiety has been through the roof because i feel like your videos have been especially calming lately! they inspire me to focus less on "productivity" and find joy in simpler things like cooking. wishing u well and looking forward to puppy content!

[shaunOG]

THANK YOU for adopting. Wishing you and Sammy all the happiness in the world.

[zaraflores]

You look so genuinely happy and it makes me happy 🥺

[ErinSullivan]

I don't know why I'm crying watching this she's just so cute

[sp]

My advice would to be socialize her with people and other dogs as soon as possible (when she finishes getting vaccinated). I would recommend a doggy daycare maybe once to a few times a week.
Also, start training and grooming early. Many new puppies don’t end up coming in for their first groom until they’re older and it can be difficult for them to adjust to such an odd setting when they’re older. Even if you schedule her for just a bath and nail trim or a puppy trim, getting her in sooner and frequently will make it easier on you and your groomer. You can also speak to your groomer about how to maintain her coat at home and how often to bring her in based on the length/style of hair cut you’re wanting.
Lastly, I say this in the kindest way possible; there is a common misconception that poodles/poodle mixes are hypoallergenic and can’t shed which are both not true.

[AllieMerwin]

so sweet! I just got a puppy too and it is definitely a full time job to raise them! the first few weeks I was very sleep deprived but they are so worth it and learn so much in such a short amount of time! sammy is adorable!! congrats😊💕

[amypark]

Hi I got a Lhasa apso x Pomeranian x toy poodle in June! She’s 6 months, 8lbs, and her name’s Astro. Lhasapoos can be picky eaters, so I’ve recently started making her my own dog food. Salmon and sardines are great for their coat, and she loves eggs (scrambled, or soft boiled so that the yolk is still a bit runny and she can lick inside, kinda like a natural Kong!) egg shells are also great for dogs. If she likes to rip paper, give her some romaine to shred up instead, if she ends up eating some (Astro only likes the crunchy white part), it’s good for them anyways!

When she was younger I carried her in a dog sling so she could hear traffic and see people and other dogs from a distance, since she wasn’t fully vaccinated yet. You can also play different sounds like fireworks on YouTube to expose her to them. Try to expose her to kids and men as well! Dogs are more likely to be afraid of men, and kids can be unpredictable.

For baths, I got a shower head w a few diff settings and a pause button that would turn the stream into a trickle- this made it way more quiet and easy to get around the face, she would just close her eyes and stay still so I thiiiink she was enjoying it haha. Also, small breeds are more prone to dental issues so getting her used to brushing her teeth early is good! Astro luckily loved brushing her teeth since she was little :) try to get her used to grooming too! Brushing, and touching their ears, paws and between the paw pads, inside their mouth, and around their eyes. You should trim the fur around the inner corner of the eyes frequently, because if they get too long they can poke their eyeballs and potentially cause blindness. It’s p easy to do, just fluff the hair up and hold a pair of scissors at an angle, so the blades angle up towards between their eyes. Getting them used to having their nails cut will also save money. There are some automatic nail files if you’re afraid you’ll accidentally cut the quick (the blood vessel in their nail that can be painful if cut and cause nerve damage)

Be careful about plants and what essential oils you diffuse! Very common houseplants like pothos, fiddle leaf fig, and spider plant are toxic to dogs. Tea tree oil among others is also toxic. And grapes. Lots of things are toxic but it gets p easy to remember :)

I got a polyethylene leash because I live in a rainy environment, and they’re waterproof. They’re also easy to wipe clean given covid lol. I would drop the leash a lot when she’d meet other dogs, and they get dirty fast, so having something easy to clean is handy.

She was potty trained within a month, and I never punished her for accidents. Just lots of praise when she went outside.

The best phrase I’ve taught her is “it’s okay”. When she would encounter something new, or I could tell somethjng startled her, I’d say it and I can tell she’s calmed down. Like if we’re on a walk and she stops because she sees someone walking towards us, I say it and she’ll start walking again. Or recently she saw some balloons and freaked out haha. I held her up to them so she could smell them and told her it was okay. When I put her on the floor again she continued on our walk no problem.

I know this was long but I got so excited when I saw you got a Lhasapoo!! They’re not a super common breed, and I hope my tips helped!! Enjoy those first couple of months, they go by SO FAST :((

[Karrekarre]

as a pet owner i realized that it's more than the love they bring!! but it's also taking care of another living breathing being other than yourself. i guess that sense of responsibility makes u want to become a better person hence the feeling of happiness, purpose, etc. :)

[laurendavis]

I have raised puppies (two shepherd/rottie mixes!) and my biggest takeaway of raising them is consistency is key. The more you keep with training, the more obedient they will be and the faster they will learn! The worst part of consistency is whatever time you feed them or take them out to pee, they will remember that time and will fight you to do it everyday. When I was working the morning shift I would take them out at 5AM, but now that I work later I've had to try and change their morning walk times lol. Good luck!!! She is so precious ❤️

[sabrinalea]

i resonate so well with needing a dog for mental health throughout this whole pandemic i dont think i could of handled everything without needing to care for my dog it definitely gets you out more and make you feel like you have a companion and loved its the best! sammy is so precious im so happy for you!!

[ac-ucnl]

She is perfect I’m so excited for you 🥺🥺 I’d recommend avoiding puppy pads, especially if you’re home all the time and able to take her out every hour! My pandemic pup is almost 5 months and they confused the heck out of him when we were potty training. As for teething, try to always have a nice hard toy nearby to redirect naughty chewing (we’re still working on this one though rip my couch haha)

[bekkkabby]

I agree that dogs really do provide so much comfort!! I love Sammy sm

[kendratoy]

I got my dog Daisy, on craigslist for the same reason! I was her third home and she was so scared of everything and now she is the sweetest, snuggliest, calmest dog ever!! I'm so happy you got her a good home!! ❤️

[vournalist]

The cutest breathing thing right now is Sammy

[taylorcarson]

hi Sammy!! So excited to watch you grow ☺️🐾