Pupdate: Lucia’s First Trip to the Vet
Hi friends! I seriously can’t believe we’ve had our little Lucia (pronounced loo-sha like the island of St. Lucia for those of you who are new) for exactly 4 weeks today! She has changed our lives for the better and she makes coming home at the end of the day that much more fun. Today I wanted to update you on how she’s been over the last couple weeks including her progress on house training and sleeping through the night, in addition to what the vet told us about what breed she is and how big she’ll get!
We looked online for vets close by with good ratings and ended up deciding on Brookville Road Animal Hospital. We had a great experience there! Lucia was pumped to see/meet other people and dogs (as always), and she did so well. The shots and temperature check didn’t phase her and she was just happy to be there. The doc told us she is smart and VERY food motivated, which we were aware of, and he told us we should use that to our advantage when training her. Girlfriend would do ANYTHING for some peanut butter or kibble, I swear. Below are some updates!
How big will she get?
Based on the fact that she’s gained just 4 pounds since we first got her, the vet believes she’ll likely be 30-40 lbs. I’m happy with that because that’s how big my border collie is and it’s a fun size! Her size doesn’t really matter to us, but it’s cool to know how big she’ll likely get. This means I’d still be able to pick her up if I need to, but still big enough to wrestle around with.
What breed is she?
This is still a big question mark, but we’re pretty sure she has a good amount of Jack Russell in her based on her size, ears, eyes, etc. — however, she is larger and has longer legs than a Jack Russell (Jack’s are very stout with long bodies and short legs), so there’s a larger breed or more mixed in there. People we see out and about seem to agree too! The lab and beagle mix in there is still a possibility as well.
Does she know any tricks?
She can sit and jumps in her crate on command when we bring out the kong at bedtime. She gets so excited for it that she runs inside it before we’re even ready. It’s the cutest thing! She mostly knows how to shake too!
How’s potty training going?
Great! She hasn’t had an accident in the house in weeks and we’ve gotten into a great routine with it. She’s been doing a great job with the bell training too and she rings it anytime she wants/needs to go outside. I love it because you’re still notified by the sound if you’re in a different room. I’ve also found some good methods for getting her to go potty before work. I let her watch me put peanut butter in her kong, then I sit it down and take her outside. She wants to go back inside to get the kong, so she pees QUICK. Works like a charm!
Has she gotten sick?
She did throw up for the first time on Saturday, and we’re not sure why. It would make sense if it was due to eating too fast, but this happened hours after she had eaten and she only did it once. Luckily Justin whisked her to the hardwood so she wouldn’t do it on the carpet, but poor thing thought we were mad at her after and sulked for a while. She slept and cuddled with us for the rest of the day (very out of character for her since she’s usually ready to play — that’s what the photo of her on lap above is from) and half of the next day too. Luckily, she’s feeling better and it was just a one-time thing!
Is she still using her crate and activity pin?
Yes & yes! Instead of just keeping her in her crate at night, we let her use it inside her activity pin so she has some space to get up if she needs to. She hasn’t broken out of it or anything and seems to like it just fine. The crate helps keep the pin in place and not slide around too much on our floor and when she’s tired, she’s more than ready to go in there and sleep.
Is she sleeping through the night?
She was AMAZING at this the first week or so that we had her, but now that she has gotten a bit older, she doesn’t need quite as much sleep and isn’t as exhausted as she used to be. We’ve had a few nights in a row this week where she woke up at 3-4 a.m. barking and whining like crazy, then again at 5 and 6. She hasn’t been sleeping past 5:30 a.m. these past several days, which is fine on work days, but obviously not ideal on weekends. We do our best to wear her out before bed and not let her take too many naps, but on work days when she’s home by herself most of the day, she sleeps all day. She’s an active little thing, so we take her on daily walks and let her run wild in our backyard whenever she wants. Trust me, she’s not always sleeping like she appears to be in the photos I share — that’s just the only time she sits still long enough for me to take a picture! Anyway, we’ll see how her sleep schedule changes over the next few weeks!
Is she getting spayed?
We are having her spayed and we scheduled her to get it done during Justin’s spring break (he’s a teacher) in October. It’ll be nice to have him home to look after her and make sure she’s okay that week!
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That’s an update on our little Loosh! Thanks for stopping by to catch up with our little family and be sure to follow along with me on Instagram to see frequent photos and videos of her — she’s quite the character! I’ve also linked my previous puppy posts below. See you in Friday’s post!
