01/17/2023
How to get the most out of your puppy’s early stages?
With the holiday season passing and many pups going to new homes, we thought it would be an appropriate time to hit on a few tips to help people navigate the early stages of their pups’ lives.
To start we must address the common misconception that young pups are “untrainable” until they are 6-7 months old. This belief could not be further from the truth! From the moment you bring your pup home every interaction they have with the world your pup is being trained in some way. This training could be in either positive way or a negative way. These interactions can impact the way your pup manages in the world; even into and following formal training.
This might leave you to ask: How can I have the most positive impact on my puppy at a young age? Answer: Be consistent in the little things.
When getting a new puppy, it is important to keep in mind behaviors that you find desirable as well as ones you would like to avoid. Keeping this in mind it is important to reinforce the positive behaviors and correct the undesirable ones. To do this it is all about being consistent.
Take the behavior jumping for an example. This behavior is often one that is not corrected until the puppy is older, and larger. When it is a small puppy jumping up on your leg it is easy to not think about correcting that behavior. In contrast when it is a fully grown 70-pound dog it’s obvious that something needs to be done. If you are consistent in correcting this behavior while the puppy is small, they will learn early on that it is not a behavior that they should continue.
Try to keep things as “black and white” as possible to avoid confusing your puppy. If you don’t want your puppy getting on the couch, then avoid letting them on the couch sometimes and correcting that behavior other times.
Along with this it is important to manage your own expectations with your puppy. A lot of people use training words when raising a pup such as “sit” and “here”. Using these terms are not a bad thing if they are reinforced properly. Saying training terms randomly, such as calling them with “here” repeatedly in the yard when they don’t understand the command; only confuses the term until it means nothing to them at all. If the term is reinforced properly such as using a leash each time the command is used and rewarding with a treat or praise when they show the desired behavior, it can keep them on the right track.
Another thing that is commonly overlooked is crate training and keeping a schedule. Putting a puppy in a crate is sometimes seen as “mean” or “unnecessary”. Crate training is a very important step to help ensure your pets physical and mental well-being. One reason is puppies are notorious for chewing and eating things they aren’t supposed to. Even the most well supervised puppies can very quickly get into something that could pose a serious risk to their health. A puppy that is crate trained has a safe and secure place to be while you are unable to give them 100% of your attention. In addition to this you never know when a dog will need to be crated whether it be at the vet, boarding, when company is over, at a trainer, or traveling. If your dog has not been exposed to a crate there is a good chance it will face stress and anxiety with being confined. Moreover crate training is essential to teaching your pup important life skills such as settling down when needed, being quiet, and potty training. When getting a pup it is important to begin crate training and establish a routine early working in potty breaks, eating/watering times, play time, and social time.
Lastly we want to stress the importance of socialization. What is socialization? Simply put socialization is your puppy learning how to behave in society. It is important for all dogs to learn how to behave around different people, and different places. You want your puppy to be comfortable experiencing new and different things.
Giving them positive experiences with many different people, dogs, and social situations/real world things can ease stress and desensitize them in many avenues of life leading to a more content dog who’s easy to manage throughout its life. One thing to remember is to make sure that your pup is fully vaccinated prior to taking it many places as their immune systems are still developing.
We understand that raising a puppy is not easy, but with patience and some work it is possible.
If you have a new puppy and you would like some advice or guidance for your specific needs don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Here at Core Sound, we would love to help you navigate through this process.
