As soon as you set eyes on your new puppy, you were smitten. And whilst it’s all sweetness and light now, you’ll need to train your puppy the right way from day 1 to avoid shoring up behavioural problems in the future.
It takes dedication to nurture your puppy to give it the tools to successfully interact with people and other animals throughout its life. Here’s how to get started:
Welcome Home
The first few days together are exciting, with everyone getting to know each other and having a good time. Interactions may feel like fun and games, but your puppy is busy learning what to do and what not to do, whether you realize you’re teaching him or not. If you’ve taken a very young puppy into your home, it will feel vulnerable; crave security, safety and a routine, as well as love.
Give Them Time
Puppies should not be weaned away from their mums and litter mates until they are eight weeks old. During these first few weeks your puppy needs food, love and affection from its mother. It will be busy learning to play and acquiring social skills from siblings. Litter mates teach each other not to bite or to roughhouse too strenuously, as well as frustration tolerance. This is also a time when your puppy will be getting used to different people and learning about pack dominance. These lessons will continue in your home.
Get a Crate
Your puppy’s crate is a place of security, comfort and quiet. The crate should never be used for time outs; rather it’s a place of solitude and safety. The crate will also help to keep your home safe from puppy-created mayhem. Puppies younger than six months old should not be crated for more than two or three hours, except at night.
Crates help with house training as even young puppies don’t like to soil their sleeping space. A key element to crating success is the crate’s size. If it’s too big, your puppy will learn to relieve themselves on one side of the crate and sleep on the other. To small and he may feel cramped.
Not only is the size of the crate important, but so is your puppy’s acclimation. Tossing treats into the crate to help your puppy associate it with rewards. Accompany this behavior with a command, such as “In!” or “Kennel Up!” Puppies can comprehend simple commands as early as five weeks old.
Potty Training
Realistic expectations and calmness are key elements to early house training. Your diligence is also key. The more time you spend with your puppy, the better able you will be to praise and reward it when it eliminates in the appropriate place.
Sound like a responsibility? It is. Your puppy wishes to please you, but don’t try to reason with them as if they are a furry, four-legged person. This is unfair because dogs don’t process information the way humans do. Scheduling regular feedings, as well as potty breaks, will help them learn this behavior more quickly. Never punish your puppy for accidents.
Teach Good Behaviour
The first 16 weeks of your dog’s life are a sensitive learning period, when socialization skills can be acquired in earnest. This is the time to get your puppy used to people of all shapes and sizes as well as other animals, such as cats and dogs.
Carry treats around with you to give to people who will then give them to your puppy. This helps to associate good things with all kinds of individuals and avoids your dog from becoming aggressive.
Tackle Territorialism
Puppies may become territorial about their food bowls, toys or favorite people. Working with your puppy to eliminate even mild resource guarding behaviours will protect everyone, puppy included. When your puppy is little, train it to associate you and other family members with good things when you approach the guarded object. This is typically accomplished by supplying them with treats as you approach. Always make sure children show caution when nearing your puppy’s food or favorite toy.
Encourage Bite Inhibition
Teaching puppies not to bite is one of the most important lessons. Behavioural problems such as biting are the No. 1 reason why animals are relinquished to shelters or put down.
Establishing your place as pack leader will help your puppy remember that he must earn your respect and obey you, which will help him to curb this behaviour. Remember that your dog craves your approval but also needs your guidance. If he bites, say ‘no!’ Then, hold his mouth closed for about a minute.
Plenty of Exercise
New experiences are important for puppy development. Help stimulate your puppy’s mind with puzzle toys and appropriate playthings, as well as giving your puppy plenty of outdoor exercise. Bored dogs are more likely to engage in aggressive or inappropriate behaviour. If you don’t always have the time consider hiring a dog walker.
It’s important that your dog learn his place is in your home, but this can only be accomplished with consistency and a firm, loving hand. Only then will your puppy grow and learn to be the very best dog possible.
