| In this, our second of three articles that focus on Puppy Kindergarten
(that is formal puppy obedience training for animals under six months of age)
and how to turn your puppy into a well behaved member of the family. It should
be noted that professional dog behaviorialists suggest entering your puppy into
a formal training session when it is between three to six months. However, the
following tips can be used whenever you deem fit. Introduce the puppy to
children early in his life, and don't over protect him; if you do he will be snappy
with children, once again taking your actions as gospel. Same thing goes when
meeting other dogs, don't pick him up or draw him to you, for in this action you
tell your pup "Here's trouble - be on guard" - and he will! Car
travel is a must these days. Some puppies are car sick, my sure has been - puppy
in car, window open, roll of paper toweling, puppy on old towel, then many very
short rides, and a nice walk at the end of the ride, or visit with another puppy
for a game. The dog should learn to sit in the back of the car, quietly. I won't
have a dog draped over me while driving, as it is distracting and dangerous. Make
sure the puppy goes in the car on other occasions than just to the vet for shots. While
the puppy is young, under five months if possible, get him into every situation
he may face as a adult. Livestock, chickens, stairs, strangers, children, towns,
traffic, noise. I am sure you can think of more situations that apply to your
way of life. Once he becomes an adult dog, he will takes new situations very hard,
and you will wrongly think you have a neurotic dog. A puppy should only
use his teeth to eat his dinner. Often the cute bundle of fluff, which will eventually
weigh 100 lbs, with fangs an inch long, is encouraged by laughter and praise to
"nip" and "hold" his human friends in rough play. Going back
to the wild puppy being brought up by his dam, he would play using his teeth with
his litter mates and dam, but two things are very different from his human contacts.
First, if he bites too hard, he is bitten back. Second, as a wild dog he has to
learn to fight and hunt, thus mock battles as a puppy are necessary. To avoid
a puppy using his teeth on you, plan ahead, again think for him. Have toys for
chewing (teething) and have nylon stocks plaited together as a dull toy for both
of you to play with. If he "bites" you, stop the play, sound annoyed
and ignore him. Soon he will realize biting stops the fun, again preventive rather
than punitive. Don't make the mistake the first day of giving him an old shoe
or sock as a chew toy, because, bless him, he doesn't know a new shoe or sock
is taboo. The conclusion in next week's obedience article... Important:
Super K9 Internet Directory Ltd. or its site shall not be held responsible for
any behavioral anomalies that may arise because of advice given in this article.
It is suggested that before beginning any training, a dog behavioralist is contacted
in order to provide a unique solution for your individual animal. Browse our dog
trainers directory to find one near you. -------------------------------------------------
// ------------------------------------------------ Gary Roe has been training
dogs in obedience and tracking since 1978. You may contact him through his web
site at http://www.gentlepaws.com/surreydogobedience/
for more information about his style of training. |
