22/01/2021
Dear New Puppy Owner,
CONGRATULATIONS on your new furry family member!!
This is an exciting time for you, and equally, a very important time for your puppy’s development.
As a dog trainer, the most common behavioural issues in adult dogs we see are separation anxiety and reactivity. To a certain extent, these problems can be avoided by the way you raise your puppy to maturity.
Every experience your puppy has today, tomorrow and over the next few months, greatly impacts their personality and behaviour as an adult.
So... SEIZE THE DAY! Here’s some tips to set you on the path to success and help ensure your new bundle of joy grows up to be a stable, happy and content canine companion.. HAPPY NEW YEAR! 🎊
👉 COMMUNICATION is key to understanding your new puppy’s feelings. Dogs are highly emotional animals and are communicating to you through every tail wag, body position and butt wiggle. Read up on dog language to learn when they are scared, stressed or overwhelmed.
👉 SOCIALISATION doesn’t just refer to dog socialising 🐕. It’s about teaching your puppy the right way to behave and coexist with all living creatures; humans of all shapes and sizes, domestic pets 🐈 🐦, livestock 🐃 and wildlife 🦘. Social experiences should be kept short and enjoyable and stop before your puppy becomes over aroused or excited.
👉 BUILD CONFIDENCE in your puppy towards everything in the environment; things with wheels🛹🚲, different surfaces, unusual objects ☂️ 🏀 , water💦 , weather conditions ⛈ e.t.c. Once again keep these interactions short and pleasant and at a distant where they can comfortably absorb what’s going on. This will help prevent your puppy from developing anxiety, fears or phobias towards these things as an adult.
👉 TRAIN BEHAVIOURS like ‘sit’ and ‘drop’ until the cows come home! Sit for dinner, sit for your attention, sit to clip the lead on, sit when moving through doors and sit to meet people. If your puppy thinks sit is the magic behaviour for all fun, they are less likely to learn to jump, bark or practise other undesirable behaviours for attention.
👉 CRATE TRAIN your dog! It’s an important tool for teaching your puppy to relax and offers them a safe zone in a busy family household. It will pay off at some stage in their future... I promise!
👉 BUILD INDEPENDENCE in the early days. If you are not training your puppy, playing with them or supervising them, put them in a contained area (crate/puppy pen) close by. This way they can still be part of the action but are developing soft skills towards independence by not following you around.
👉 COME WHEN CALLED is a behaviour worth getting right as a puppy. It can save their life one day. Spend a couple of minutes every day training it properly. If the word ‘COME’ doesn’t result in mouth watering treats 🦴 🥩 and praise in the early days, your pup will likely choose to ignore you for something more exciting down the track.
👉 DOG PARKS are for exercising your dog with you or a close doggy friend. Not for running rogue with unknown dogs and learning to ignore you. Take your time exposing your puppy to these spaces and make sure they find you more fun than other dogs before letting them free at the park. 🐕 🐶 🐕 🐶 🐕 🐶
👉 GAMES such as fetch, tug and nose works are FANTASTIC ways to bond and exercise your dog. Our tip: Add in basic behaviours to exercise their brain as well and help with focus and impulse control. I.e. Teach your puppy to sit and stay while you throw the ball and only when you say ‘YES’ should they run and retrieve it. Then teach them to place it back into your hand 🖐.
👉 GENETICS play a BIG role 🧬 ! Research what ANKC group your puppy belongs too and what the breed was originally bred for. Think about particular training opportunities you may need to do with your puppy to help harness any genetic traits into something positive.
Best Wishes for a successful year of puppy raising and training! 🐾
Jess xx🐶💪🏻🐶
