I don’t know how other people’s experiences with puppies have been, but I hope they are close to my experience. We’ve had our new puppy, a Havanese named Mr. Waffles, for a week now. He is nine weeks old. I don’t know if it is his breed or just him, and we got really lucky because he is such a smart and amazing dog.

I keep thinking -- this can’t be normal? When is the other shoe going to drop (or be chewed)?

His potty training is going way better than excepted. I kept hearing about all these “accidents” that were going to happen, all the time. There have been only a few. One time was because my wife thought he was done with his business. Well, he wasn’t.

The stairs in the garage have been an obstacle for him. He tried right away but couldn’t get it. When we would get to the steps, he would let out a little bark, as if to say “pick me up.” But Monday night, with a little encouragement, he accomplished that task. Luckily I happened to catch it on video right before it happened. I don’t know why I felt the need to hit record, but I’m glad I did. You could call it his “puppy’s first steps.”

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Photo: David Black
Photo: David Black
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Kennel Training has been going really good as well. He doesn't whine when we put him in there for the night. That stopped after the second night. He just lies down and goes to sleep. When we leave the door open he goes in and chooses to sleep in it on his own. Judging from how he naps, I’d have to say he feels safe and this is his home.

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If there has to be a negative, it would be something that puppies typically do - the constant biting. He bites/chews everything from your hand to your hair (good thing I don’t have any). Some of the things he likes to get his teeth on include: hands, hair, clothes, sticks, leaves, shoes, boxelder bugs, his toys, the cat's toys, my daughter's toys – anything he can pretty much find. His sneaky little trick is when he licks your feet and then takes a little nip. He is starting to understand the word “no” and the word “ouch.” Hopefully, he gets those words down soon.

There have been so many positives. From his potty training to sleeping through the night -- he is learning other things at a rapid pace -- we think so anyway. This is our 1st puppy, so I really can’t say for sure.

Havanese are small dogs. Full-grown they average 12-15lbs. When they’re only a couple of months old, they’re super tiny (and super cute). He is about 4 lbs.

Stay tuned for future episodes of “The Adventures of Mr. Waffles.”

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