Reddit reviews IRIS USA 34'' Exercise 8-Panel Pet Playpen with Door, White CI-908

Looks like the Iris Pen. My gals have the larger version since they have a second level to their box home.

We got ours at Target online because it sometimes goes on sale for the weirder colors. The pen is super nice because you can get additional panels for a modular setup.

playpen

Maybe something like this in your living room so the pup can see you? Put puppy pad in the play pen area?

I'm in my 20's and also work from home with a puppy. I am a HUGE advocate of crate training for all the reasons /u/court67 said.

I keep his crate in my room. This is actually a good thing and it serves multiple purposes. That room smells most like you, so it helps to comfort the dog when he is left alone in there. That smell also helps him to build a bond with you. Also, if he has to go potty in the middle of the night, it is easier for you to hear him and get to him before he has an accident (they really don't want to go in their crates but puppies have tiny bladders).

We put the puppy in his crate at night (when we're asleep) and when we leave the house. This is because the crate is the place in the house (well, apartment for us) where he is safest. There is nothing he can eat or destroy in there, and nothing that can harm him in there (make sure to take off the dog's collar whenever crating).

When we are at home and cannot pay 100% of our attention to him (like when I'm working), we put in an exercise pen like this one. This gives him more room to move around and have fun, but still keeps him from getting into things that could hurt him or that he could destroy.

He has un-learned that it's nice to be clean. He needs to re-turn it, so you need to change your set up.

I always tell people to buy the tall Iris pet pen.Then get a mesh potty pad or fake grass pet potty - personal preference here, you just have to get something where they can't get to and shred the pad.

Put the crate in the back of the pen - start without bedding - and then put the potty thing right in front of it. Now we've created two clear zones - a comfy sleeping zone and a pee zone. By sleeping and peeing on both surfaces, their stupid little brain eventually is like "I can pee somewhere other than where I sleep. Huh. It's kind of nice not to sleep in my pee." They sometimes start to sleep on the potty thing, but don't worry about it, it's still part of the process. Eventually, when they seem to have the idea, try introducing a little bit of bedding back in and BE CRAZY ABOUT WASHING IT. If there is a drop of pee on the bed you can backslide. So wash wash wash so it stays clean and fresh (towels or sheets are a good/cheap way to start). Over time, you can introduce good bedding.

Remember, IGs have bladders the size of acorns, so they have to pee all the time, basically. A lot of people have success with the pen set up forever, and others can take them out enough to phase back into crates.

But right now, you need to give them the opportunity to re-learn how nice it is to be clean.

A side note, buying a dog from a good breeder who potty trains them - or at least you are 100% sure they're not raised to pee where they sleep - goes a long, long, long way in this.

My chin can both slip through the bars and climb over standard exercise pens. This pen poses more of a challenge for him.

I used this one and liked it a lot for what I was looking for:

https://www.amazon.com/IRIS-Exercise-8-Panel-Playpen-White/dp/B00D5P8450

Pros:

• plastic and has rubber nubs on the bottom so won't scratch floors.
  
  
• Each panel can be separated and you can buy additional panels in sets of 2 (or buy a whole second pen and connect them together).
  
  
• Has a door so you can let dog in/out easily without separating panels.
  
  Cons:
  
  
• Plastic, so if you have a chewer they might be able to get through it.
  
  
• Only 34" tall, so it'll depend on the height of your dog and if they like jumping.
  
  
• Not as thin as the wire ones, so takes up more space when storing.

Congrats!! If you've never had a puppy before, my #1 recommendation is to get a trainer who will come to your house and work with you. They are more for you than for the dog. We did that and while it was really expensive, it was a blessing!

One thing our trainer told us is to let the puppy have access to only a little bit of the house at a time. A crate helps with that, but we didn't want it to feel like punishment and we wanted to be able to let him play around just as a dog in a controlled area. So we bought this playpen and zip tied it to the crate. You can also get linoleum to put underneath the playpen area, but make sure it's all one sheet (otherwise he'll chew on the ends). That also helps clean up potty mistakes!

Speaking of potty, we got a little bell to put on the door. We made him nudge it with his nose or paw (basically picked him up) every time we went out. Then when we finally let him explore more, he knew how to let us know he had to go. Of course, he also used it just as an excuse to go outside, so there's that.

You mentioned you're good to go on crates--did you get one that is life stages and lets you adjust how much room is available? Not a huge deal if not, but if you did, make sure you use it. They don't need a whole lot of room in the crate because they'll just pee on one end and sleep on the other.

For grooming, you don't really need a lot for a puppy (at least in our experience, and our older dog grew up to be a HUGE fluffball). You're more likely to hurt him and turn him off. For our grown up guys, we use a pin brush, a rake brush, a de-matting comb, grooming scissors, and dremmel. We also do your normal ear cleaning solution (we get ours from the vet, so I don't remember the brand offhand, it's the same thing as online) and shampoo. This is what we used when they were puppies. Another essential is puppy wipes for pesky danglers and muddy paws.

For a puppy, though, I really wouldn't use all that stuff. We used a little kong brush to get him used to a brush on his fur, but we didn't even use that until his fur was a little longer (but still too short to use the other brushes). The big thing with grooming a puppy is getting him used to you touching him EVERYWHERE. Stick your fingers in his ears and mouth, rub all over his paws, make him lay down on his back in your lap, etc. Definitely start on nails asap--even if you don't actually trim them, just holding the dremmel up to their nails and getting them used to it helps A LOT. Also the ear cleaner is an essential for golden puppies. Our trainer and vet both told us to drop it in their ears, let them shake their heads, then use q-tips in all the nooks and crannies.

Other essential products are LOTS of toys. You'll figure out real quick what your guy likes. Our first dog was more of a casual chewer, so fabric toys worked, but our second dog LOVES to eat fabric so we had to go with hard toys only. I highly recommend toys by West Paw! As you know, golden puppies will chew on LITERALLY EVERYTHING so you need a backup distractor toy at all times to replace the flavor of the minute. Keep in mind that if you give up trying to stop them chewing on something (say, for example, your computer chair), they will think it's ok to chew on that for the rest of their life. :(

We also got a slow-feeder bowl because our guys gobble down their food like it will disappear if they don't. And if your guy is really annoying with the water bowl (i.e., repeatedly knocking it over), don't worry too much--he'll grow out of it. I recommend keeping a towel under it until he learns all he wants to know about water!

Have fun with your little guy!!!! I'll add anything else I can think of later but feel free to ask if there's anything else you're curious about!