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EARLY PUPPY TRAINING
By Linda
McGregor
This is a very wide subject,
so I will try and condense it and apologise in advance for any points I
have not gone into detail about or not covered.
An experienced “doggy friend”
once had a Bull Terrier puppy that she considered very naughty and
stubborn. She would often phone the breeder or me for advice, as the
puppy would just not pay attention to her. He went on to have a good
show career and at the age of 5 she wanted to use him at stud, so she
had him BAER hearing tested, only to find he was deaf in both ears and
had been since the day he was born. So Breeders DO get your puppies
BAER hearing tested, new owners could think they have a very
naughty/uncontrollable puppy when in fact he is completely deaf.
A responsible breeder will
make sure that a puppy has been well socialised within their family
environment before he leaves for his new home. In my opinion puppies
should not leave the breeder until they are eight weeks old. They also
need this time to learn through interacting with their mother and
siblings what to do and what not to do.
I always tell the new owners
that from the moment the puppy enters their home he will be looking for
his position in the family, which if you want to have control and a
happy life together, should be at the bottom of the pack.
Boundaries and routine should be put in place and even discussed before
getting the puppy; key elements to this are play, food and reward.
Play should be fun, not rough
or tug of war games and by just saying “Good boy” or giving a small
treat ie cheese, chicken for good behaviour will bring its own rewards.
Do not make confrontations with your puppy and always be consistent.
Make sure he knows the boundaries set by you from the start, what might
seem funny for a young puppy to do, would not be acceptable for an
adult, so set your boundaries and stick to them. A Dog that knows its
place is a happy one.
In the wild the pack leader
will eat first and freely, in your household make sure the puppy knows
you have control of the food. Ideally let the puppy see you eat before
he does, even if it’s just a small mouthful. Wait until your puppy looks
at you before placing his food in front of him, making him wait a minute
and making him sit while he is doing so will re-enforce your dominance.
If he leaves any of his food do not leave it on the floor for him to eat
when he fancies it, pick it up and do not feed him again until his next
set meal time.
Do not spoil your puppy by
patting him when he demands it, he must work for your attention, and get
it when you want to give it, not the other way round.
Get the
puppy to recognise his name and use it to get his attention and
reinforce commands ie sit, down, stay, walk etc. I like training dogs to
sit etc, it asserts your control as the leader. I know some show people
do not like teaching dogs to sit as they
think the puppy could get
used to doing this in the show ring, but I also get puppies used to the
command “stand” and this works for us.
My Vet does a once a week
puppy playgroup course for 5 weeks (free of charge – aren’t I lucky!)
after the puppy’s first vaccination. After this we enrol in Puppy
classes, which go on until the puppy is 6 months old. Socialisation is
so important and the times when we have noticed problems with anti
social behaviour towards other dogs is quite often when the puppy has
missed out on this vital part in his development for whatever reason.
After this age you can go on further and enrol in obedience or show
training classes it all helps with socialisation and control.
Biting and nipping can be a
problem with young puppies, when they first arrive in their new home.
Having been used to playing with his littermates, and the main form of
communication has been his mouth, he really needs to be taught that it
is not acceptable to bite humans and quickly! His siblings or mother
would have yelped out loud if bitten hard and this would have stopped
him - you must do the same, either by making a loud “ouch” noise or
using a sharpe “No”.
Your puppy needs to know he
doesn’t have to be with you all the time, this will help him cope when
left alone, and will avoid separation complex. A cage is a great
training aid when used correctly, think of it as his den, a place where
he can relax and be safe, but not a place to be left and forgotten
about. A cage also helps to “house train” him, as most puppies do not
like soiling their beds.
I have found Bull Terrier
puppies are normally very easy to “house train”. Put your puppy out in
the garden when he wakes, after each meal and often, you may have to
stay with him until he performs and praise him when he does.
On the other hand new owners
can have problems when taking a puppy out for a walk. If this is the
case then coax him along with a treat, step by step if need be, but
don’t pull him along, it may take a lot of patience but with praise it
works in the end. We always take our puppies out with an older dog and
this completely avoids the problem, obviously you may not have this
luxury, but perhaps you may have a friend with a dog who would be happy
to join you for your puppy’s first walks.
It is a cliché but there are
very few bad dogs, there are mostly bad owners, not by design but by
giving out mixed signals. Set your boundaries and stick to them, its up
to you to make your puppy the best he can be.
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