I used a baby playpen for this purpose which I got at a used baby stuff store for next-to-nothing. I took out the mattress and covered the floor with newspapers “just in case.” Once the puppy learned to climb, I had to put something over the top to keep her in there.
This is one of my favorite pictures of Polaris in the crib, taking a big sneeze.
Yep, definitely true - they are tough dogs . That’s part of the reason I like them. I am, shall we say, an alpha bitch, though. 
Seriously, I’m not worried about making it clear I’m the boss. As far as other people, I’m hoping that asking friends and family members to give the dog a command before scritching, treats, etc (once he’s learned the behavior, obviously) will help him learn that good things come from listening to other people, too.
I’m counting on the breeder to match me with one of the less dominant pups, too; I’ve told her I definitely don’t want the alpha puppy. The mom-dog seemed pretty easy-going (and a little on the goofy side) - her mom (the litter’s grandma) was a little more serious, but still seemed pretty mellow. I should be meeting the sire of the litter within a couple of weeks.
Lissa, that is an adorable pic.
I’m going to meet the puppies on Friday after work. They’ll be 11 days old, and should just be opening their eyes. I’ll post a link to pics later.
PUPPIES! SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
I visited the puppies today! Some of these are out of focus, but they are sticking their tongues out, so I’m including them, too.
Link to photo slideshow
That one with the tongue hanging out is sickeningly cute.
Aw.
PUPPIES. PUPPIES.
Giant puddle of awww.
Puppy breath! Squishy loose puppy-skin pajamas! Tired, tired, little baby dogs! AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
They actually did that in an episode of Clean Sweep!
Congrats on the new pup!
Awww, precious angels!!! I want to kiss them all between their cute widdle puppy eyes. Mwah!
So I’m thinking Zilla might be a good name if I get a female pup. As in Dogzilla.
UncleBeer and I will be going to visit the puppies again in a week. PUPPIES!
These durn doggies are too cute for their own good, Porcupine! Now Baron is going to get all mad at me because I’ll be wantin’ puppies too! 
Here they are at 3 weeks old and just shy of 4 weeks. The difference in 6 days is amazing. They went from being barely aware of anyone else’s presences (puppy-siblings or people) to play-fighting with each other, and coming up to me for attention. In another month, I will know which pup I am getting, and puppy will come home in 5 weeks. I can’t wait.
Next visit, I may bring my dog Gizmo to meet the puppies. He will definitely meet them at least once before I bring the new pup home.
Actually, if your veterinarian has emergency coverage it would be wise to look into how it is done before the need arises. In my practice, I use an answering service which pages me with the owner’s number. I then contact them on my cell. BUT I have caller ID blocked on my cell phone. The answering service tells people this, yet probably one call in 15 cannot go through. Some people do not realize that their phone is set up to not accept calls from phones that block caller ID.
Also, it might be a good idea to look into pet insurance, or to have the cash available for a major mishap.
Obedience training is very important. Ideally everyone in the household should take the dog through a short (eight week) course.
Dog training is time consuming and requires patience. Thank god my beagles have it. It took 2 yrs fior them to properly train us.
I found out this week that I’ll definitely be getting one of the girls, to be named Zilla (Godzilla, Bridezille…Dog Zilla). Though I initially wanted a male, I think this will actually work out better. My dog Gizmo is a male, and I’ve read that opposite sex dogs tend to get along better. I was going to spay/neuter regardless, so I don’t think I would have had a problem with a male, but the girls in this particular litter at least are all a little more easy-going an less bouncy than the boys. I also talked extensively with the woman who runs the obedience school I’ll be going to (Marge Gibbs, who is the behavior columnist for the AKC Gazette), and in her experience female Ridgies are easier to train and easier to live with. She has a really balanced approach IMO, and her class was wonderful when I went with Gizmo all those years ago.
Two and a half more weeks and my pup comes home!
And more pictures:
5 weeks old (many many pics)
6 weeks old (some blurry, but the wouldn’t sit still, and I didn’t do such a hot job of holding the camera still, either.
You are going to have SO MUCH FUN with your puppy! I’m jealous! Congratulations!
I’m already having fun - I’ve been to visit them once a week. Can’t go this weekend. 
I wanna see my puppy!
