Getting a new puppy is exciting, and can be incredibly rewarding! However, it can be challenging, too.
When you welcome your new arrival home, you might lose out on sleep or find yourself cleaning up a few little accidents. You might feel stressed about the added financial pressures, or worry about your pup’s health. And are you feeding them the best puppy food? All of these anxieties and frustrations can add up.
In fact, one new study has found that new dog parents often experience feelings similar to the “baby blues” new parents get, and the “puppy blues” can make it more difficult for dog parents to bond with their new pups. Fortunately, however, the negative feelings tend to fade with time.
Aada Ståhl, the author of the study and a doctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki and Folkhälsan Research Center (Group Lohi), said, “A few years ago, I noticed on dog-related social media forums that new puppy owners often reported anxiety, frustration, and a loss of attachment to their puppies, often comparing it to the ‘baby blues’ some parents experience.
“As a psychologist, I was intrigued but found no research on the topic at the time. Last year, two qualitative studies about this phenomenon were published: one analyzed online discussions, and the other interviewed 19 puppy owners. Seeing a gap in quantitative research, we decided to investigate the symptoms, prevalence, and duration of puppy blues.”
The researchers began by getting data from over 100 dog parents who reported emotional difficulties while caring for a new puppy. They analyzed findings, and noticed recurring themes of feelings like anxiety, frustration, exhaustion and regret. If this is something you can relate to, here are 11 reasons you have the puppy blues and what to do about it.
The team then came up with 15 specific items to be used in a new survey to measure the puppy blues. They asked dog parents about their fears around the health of their puppies, doubts over their own abilities to care for the puppies, and feelings of frustration and exhaustion – both physical and mental.
They found that almost half of the dog parents questioned reported experiencing significant negative emotions in the months after getting a new puppy, though only around 10% experienced them severely.
Where dog parents were anxious, it was generally rooted in concerns about their ability to care for their dogs and fears about their well-being and development. The frustration, meanwhile, came from the difficulties that puppies can bring, like accidents in the house and excessive chewing.
Exhaustion was rooted in sleep deprivation and the battle to balance caring for a new puppy with other responsibilities, like work and family.
“The arrival of a puppy is generally seen as a positive life change, yet for some people, it triggers significant negative emotions,” Ståhl said to PsyPost. “Similar to the ‘baby blues’ experienced by new parents, new dog owners might be struggling with puppy blues including feelings of anxiety, frustration, and weariness. These symptoms often occur together but may also manifest more prominently in one area.
“It’s important to remember that these feelings are a normal response to a significant life change and typically pass relatively quickly. The development of these experiences is a combination of several factors, rather than, e.g., a lack of preparation for puppyhood. The emotional turmoil caused by this life change can catch even experienced and thoroughly prepared new puppy owners off guard.”
Ståhl and the team are currently conducting a large-scale survey looking at dog behavior and parent well-being and personality, which incorporates the idea of puppy blues into it. Pet parents can participate here.
If you’ve got a puppy yourself and you’re after some advice, you might find this article useful: I'm a dog behaviorist and these are my six tips for socializing a puppy.
