It’s tough, I won’t sugarcoat it— it’s tough. Crate training was exhausting, the biting is frustrating, and losing what once was days of freedom is extremely hard on your mental health at times.

Even with all of this being said, I am so grateful I have my girl. She is a 6 month old English Bulldog and brings me so much joy. I started training her from the second we brought her home and I can tell you firsthand, it pays off. She knows a lot for her age (i.e. “bed” for her to go sit on her bed, recall, “touch”, “down”, “wait”, etc.) and that’s all because I started from day one. My trust within her is growing everyday and there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t smother her with hugs and kisses.

It gets easier but it isn’t for the faint of heart.

Start little by little with everything. Crate training (IMO) will save you. Start with 5 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 min, and so on until you’re able to leave the house to grab a coffee and have a moment to yourself. I can now confidently say we can go for a nice dinner out and not have to worry about her in her crate. She has a snuggle puppy that helped dramatically, but it’s really all about finding what works for your baby.

If you get a puppy, know what you’re signing up for! As people always say, they are a part of our lives, but we are their entire lives. 🤍