Whoo Hoo. So I took my son Snowmobiling this weekend, and we brought the pup along with us. This was the pup's first night away from home since we brought him home with us on Christmas Day. It was also his first FOUR HOUR Car Ride (continuous).

The pup was GREAT! No potty accidents inside the lodge, the room or his crate. He of course being the true golden retriever wanted to meet everyone around the lodge, and there seemed to be an abundance of dog lovers there that were missing their pets, who were only too happy to great our pup. And at those moments when business was business the pup listened to me, and the people understood not to be a temptation.

The pup did cry a bit when it was bed time, but I told him enough and he settled down and went to sleep. I let him out of his crate earlier than usual @ around 3 a.m. instead of 7 a.m., as he was going to be in it during the day while we were snowmobiling the trails.

He was marvelous. I don't give him that much freedom at home, but there wasn't much trouble to get into in our room, and all of our gear was in the closet out of puppy teeth reach. He did try to crawl into bed with me, but I told him off and he complied. Always testing.

(16) Weeks old now and behaving so well. He really has been awesome, even with our dietary/elimination issues. But when I reflect on the last (10) weeks, I cannot imagine having taken on this task if I had a full time job outside of the home.

Next on the hit list is Day Time Crating, so if I should become employed he can be at home. Of course, my contingency plan is to take him with me and go out to my vehicle every couple of hours. I know he can handle 2 hours easily, and this weekend he proved he could handle up to 3 hours.

Thanks for listening and answering my post on a variety of topics. This group is Great!

Louanne

Since returning home from our outing, I have been letting the pup off his leash and just contained to the kitchen using the gates. He has been very good, so today I have moved one gate to allow him access into my sitting room, as well as the kitchen.

He didn't even realize it. I just moved the gate and went in and sat down in my chair, while he was in his crate snoozing. After about 1/2 hour I called him to me. He came directly to me, and then spent at least a 1/2 hour sniffing every corner, edge, crack, crevice, et cetera.

After he settled down we did our daily game of fetch and other games, using both rooms instead of one. So far so good. Adding the 2nd room is good for me, as if I'm on the computer I tend to be at the kitchen table; however if I am knitting or reading, I like to be in the sitting room. And if he isn't snoozing in his crate, he is usually on my feet.

As always, thanks for all that have given input.