Puppy Training Guide

Train Your Puppy Early
New puppies learn very quickly with correct instructions. Socialization and training are critically important during early puppy stages. This is by far the most critical time in your new dog’s development; before he/she is 3 months old, is the time that they are learning all about their environment and surroundings. How you treat, train, and socialize your pup will affect his/her behavior forever.
Your new puppy has been through a lot it has just been taken from his mother and litter mates; first thing they need most is a sense of security and routine. Read more on what they will need with our new puppy shopping check list. Not all these items need to be purchased at once, but it will be a helpful guideline for the items we recommend for the smoothest transition into a new home. Play with your puppy quietly and gently, for short periods at a time – don’t over due it with attention and activity. Now’s the time to begin his socialization and training, but young puppies need their sleep and they tire quickly-play hard sleep hard. It’s much better for you and your puppy to have frequent, very short play, socialization, and training periods. If your puppy looks sleepy during a visit, leave them alone and let them rest. Remember puppies play hard and then rest hard.
Training
It is never good to hit your puppy or give him harsh treatment; they truly don’t mean to misbehave they are just learning and has no idea what’s expected. They are only doing what comes naturally. Show clearly what kind of behavior you do want, and clearly what you don’t want. Dogs desire nothing more than to please you, so eventually they will choose the right behavior just as soon as he/she can figure out what is expected. If you yell or punish for bad behavior, they will progressively get more confused and frightened, making it impossible to figure out what the correct behavior is. Teach gently and clearly instead – it saves lots of time and plenty of heartache.
Puppies will naturally bite and chew that is what they do. Teach yours to only bite and chew on correctly given chew toys. Make sure to play with his/her toys interactively, making the experience fun and exciting. Make sure to praise and let them know how good they are being by chewing on the appropriate chew. When he/she chews on the incorrect items, firmly tell him, “No chew!” and immediately give one of their own toys, and encourage to play and chew it. Praise he/she when they do so. It’s important to only correct him when you catch them in the act – anything you try to teach later on will only confuse dog brains don’t work the same way ours do. The only way you can correct your puppy’s behavior (or your adult dog’s) is to be there while the bad behavior is happening. If your puppy has started peeing on the hardwood floor? You can’t be there 24/7 to catch him in the act, don’t let him have access to those places where they can get themselves into trouble. Read more information and learn with our helpful articles on house training and crate training.
The hardest part of having a new puppy is not spend all your time with them. Since they may be alone during the day or night on a regular basis it is time to get it used to a routine and they need to start getting used to it now. If you puppy wakes up from a nap and whines, or barks when you put him away for the night, resist the urge to comfort him. No matter how hard it is, you must resist the temptation. If you let an non trained puppy sleep in your bed it is guaranteed to wake up and pee. You must stick to the rules, and be firm toward him right away. Whatever you do, don’t let your puppy take advantage of you and get away with things just because he/she is adorable. Remember they are constantly learning everything that happens; what you’re teaching is that they can get away with things, so they will always try and test their boundaries. If you let your puppy get away with it now, it will only lead to confusion later when you’ve changed the rules.
Socialization
For your pup’s happiness and mental health, they need to get used to a variety of people, places, animals, noises and objects. The social skills you help him develop as a puppy will last throughout their lifetime.
Acquaint your puppy gradually and gently with his collar and leash; puppies always find them irritating at first. Introduce him slowly to unexpected sounds like a car starting, a hairdryer, a rustling plastic bag or a vacuum cleaner. If the sound is a loud one, let him hear it from far away at first; on the second or third time he hears it, he can be in the same room. Take each new introduction slowly and gently.
Start inviting friends and family over, one or two at a time, to meet your new pup. Include men, women and especially kids of every age. Then it is a good idea start to invite healthy, vaccinated pets of all kinds over to your house to meet and play with your new puppy. Once he’s had a few carefully supervised visits, take feel free to take him to other dogs homes for a short, careful play date or better yet met at the dog park so there is no dominance shown for familiar territory. If you know someone with a dog-friendly kitty cat, this would be an especially good to introduce them. There is nothing worse then a misbehaved dog especially when it comes to other animals, family and friends.
Take your little guy on short, frequent to dog parks, schoolyards, or to visit your friends at Sierra Fish & Pets where there are crowds of people and lots of unpredictable activity. Gradually start making little excursions with him so that he can experience the new and different activities and get used to socializing with people and pets.
It’s normal for your pup to show some signs of apprehension when confronting anything new and different. Remember never reward fearful behavior; when we attempt to sooth, encourage or calm the frightened puppy, we unintentionally reward their feelings of fear. It’s up to you to make sure in advance that each new situation he encounters will be safe, supervised and gentle at first. You must know, even if he doesn’t, that nothing bad will happen to in any new situation. Don’t force or rush into it; let your puppy explore at their own pace, and take steps to reassure and reward him with consistency and structure.