Puppy Basics 102
Focus is on YOU - one of the first things to teach your puppy!
How do you help teach your pup to focus on you?
Ideally, this is a habit you want to start teaching your pup at home where there is little distraction. The foundation of this behavior can be taught through basic games. As they begin to understand the concept of the game and checking in with you, this will be an invaluable tool as you are out and about in public! While your pup is learning about all of these novel objects, smells, and sounds… you can be working on teaching the value of focusing on YOU! As they get the hang of this game, we hope that they will make the choice to check in with you often – especially when there are distractions nearby.
How do you help teach your pup to focus on you?
Ideally, this is a habit you want to start teaching your pup at home where there is little distraction. The foundation of this behavior can be taught through basic games. As they begin to understand the concept of the game and checking in with you, this will be an invaluable tool as you are out and about in public! While your pup is learning about all of these novel objects, smells, and sounds… you can be working on teaching the value of focusing on YOU! As they get the hang of this game, we hope that they will make the choice to check in with you often – especially when there are distractions nearby.
HOW do you start teaching this?
Think of using games to teach your pup at home. Games are fun and keep you both engaged. This is what it will look like:
Grab some food and get your dog’s attention.
Toss a piece of food out in front of you. Your puppy will move away from you to go find the piece of food. After they find the food, any sort of motion back toward you = reward! This includes turning their head in your direction, moving their body toward you, or looking at you. As soon as you see any of those, praise them with their marker word “Yes” and offer them a piece of food from your hand.
Repeat this same game/exercise several times as you toss the next piece of food out. Soon they will be looking to you after every piece of food and moving toward you as well. The goal is that they can check in with you out of habit even if you do NOT say anything. Play this focus game in 5 minute sessions when they are young but can play it 1-3 times a day.
Think of using games to teach your pup at home. Games are fun and keep you both engaged. This is what it will look like:
Grab some food and get your dog’s attention.
Toss a piece of food out in front of you. Your puppy will move away from you to go find the piece of food. After they find the food, any sort of motion back toward you = reward! This includes turning their head in your direction, moving their body toward you, or looking at you. As soon as you see any of those, praise them with their marker word “Yes” and offer them a piece of food from your hand.
Repeat this same game/exercise several times as you toss the next piece of food out. Soon they will be looking to you after every piece of food and moving toward you as well. The goal is that they can check in with you out of habit even if you do NOT say anything. Play this focus game in 5 minute sessions when they are young but can play it 1-3 times a day.
Now that you have started the game at home, what does this look like in public?
As you are walking with your pup, be mindful of what they are doing. They will most likely be sniffing new things or looking around. As mentioned earlier, sniffing is a good way to build confidence and relieve stress. BUT while doing so… watch your pup. Whenever your pup chooses to LOOK at you, reward them!! We want to build value for them making the choice **on their own**, especially with distractions!
For example, your pup may be sniffing a new shelf and then look back to you. “Yes” & reward! They look at a person walking in the distance, then back at you. “Yes” & reward! They hear a new sound and look to you. “Yes” & reward! You are letting them explore novelty, but then rewarding them for disengaging from the item. This can be translated to focusing on you with higher distractions around.
I highly recommend training with food because they may make a lot of good decisions! That many treats could upset their tummy as opposed to using their rationed food that day. High value treats should be used for special occasions with higher distractions (such as other dogs). High value treats should also be used for a recall (learning to come to you when called).
As you are walking with your pup, be mindful of what they are doing. They will most likely be sniffing new things or looking around. As mentioned earlier, sniffing is a good way to build confidence and relieve stress. BUT while doing so… watch your pup. Whenever your pup chooses to LOOK at you, reward them!! We want to build value for them making the choice **on their own**, especially with distractions!
For example, your pup may be sniffing a new shelf and then look back to you. “Yes” & reward! They look at a person walking in the distance, then back at you. “Yes” & reward! They hear a new sound and look to you. “Yes” & reward! You are letting them explore novelty, but then rewarding them for disengaging from the item. This can be translated to focusing on you with higher distractions around.
I highly recommend training with food because they may make a lot of good decisions! That many treats could upset their tummy as opposed to using their rationed food that day. High value treats should be used for special occasions with higher distractions (such as other dogs). High value treats should also be used for a recall (learning to come to you when called).
When do you introduce your puppy to other dogs?
As a breeder, I recommend that you LIMIT your pup’s exposure to other dogs outside of your home while they are learning to focus on you or if they are in a fear period. There is not a magic age – it really depends on each dog’s training and confidence. Generally speaking, I would be cautious any age under 6 months old…. unless you are in a structured environment like a puppy/obedience class or if they are with me at a show (Partner Home pups). Instead, work on their focus and relationship with YOU around lower distractions before taking training to the next level.
If you have a PreciousGem puppy, you know that I require that you take your puppy to an in person obedience class. As mentioned, this class CAN be taken under 6 months old!! I feel that this experience is very helpful for you and your puppy to learn manners around other people and other dogs. Your class should be a controlled environment where puppies are NOT allowed to play freely with each other. It is super duper important for your puppy to learn that YOU are more important than other dogs and eventually pay less attention to them. It takes time, consistency, and rewarding good choices to teach them this.
As a breeder, I recommend that you LIMIT your pup’s exposure to other dogs outside of your home while they are learning to focus on you or if they are in a fear period. There is not a magic age – it really depends on each dog’s training and confidence. Generally speaking, I would be cautious any age under 6 months old…. unless you are in a structured environment like a puppy/obedience class or if they are with me at a show (Partner Home pups). Instead, work on their focus and relationship with YOU around lower distractions before taking training to the next level.
If you have a PreciousGem puppy, you know that I require that you take your puppy to an in person obedience class. As mentioned, this class CAN be taken under 6 months old!! I feel that this experience is very helpful for you and your puppy to learn manners around other people and other dogs. Your class should be a controlled environment where puppies are NOT allowed to play freely with each other. It is super duper important for your puppy to learn that YOU are more important than other dogs and eventually pay less attention to them. It takes time, consistency, and rewarding good choices to teach them this.
My current local trainer, Lisa Quibell with Quibells ‘n Bits, has often seen that if a puppy is allowed to play with every puppy they want to play with at a young age, this can cause inappropriate excitement as an adult when they are no longer allowed to play with other dogs. Excitement while on leash then can turn into frustration and frustration can turn into reactivity, where the dog is now barking and pulling to get to another dog. It is harder to get their attention back to you when this happens. Lisa does NOT allow pups in her classes to play together.
NOW, once your pup is around 6 months old and they have a concept of checking in with you as the handler, you can begin more outings where other dogs may be on leash and are NOT expected to greet your dog.
From one dog person to another dog person ...
NOW, once your pup is around 6 months old and they have a concept of checking in with you as the handler, you can begin more outings where other dogs may be on leash and are NOT expected to greet your dog.
From one dog person to another dog person ...
It’s important to understand that you should NOT expect your puppy to want to be friends with every dog. For example, some people are social but many are not and don’t feel the need to befriend everyone they come across. Dogs are the same. It’s also important to consider we don’t know how other dogs will react to our dog and could turn into a bad experience. It’s better to be safe and avoid a nose to nose interaction with an unknown dog that they will not be expected to spend time with.
Where are some recommended places to train around other dogs?
Some places where dogs are allowed on leash (and more likely you will see other dogs) includes but not limited to:
Walks around the neighborhood, Home Depot, Lowes, Cabela’s, Scheel’s, C-A-L Ranch, IFA, and other sporting stores.
**DO NOT go to high trafficked stores like PetSmart or PetCo until they are much older due to risk of parvo or other diseases.** I would wait until 1 year or older to take your dog to chain pet stores.
I would NOT recommend dog parks for several reasons:
1) This is not a very well controlled environment.
2) Not all dogs at dog parks are friendly.
3) Most owners have a hard time reading their dog’s body language which may lead to a quarrel.
4) All it takes is one attack for your pup to no longer get along with other dogs.
5) Diseases are more easily spread at dog parks such as kennel cough, giardia, parasites, parvo and more.
And just to reiterate… contrary to the belief of many, your dog does NOT need to be friends with every dog it meets, and most don’t want to.
Where are some recommended places to train around other dogs?
Some places where dogs are allowed on leash (and more likely you will see other dogs) includes but not limited to:
Walks around the neighborhood, Home Depot, Lowes, Cabela’s, Scheel’s, C-A-L Ranch, IFA, and other sporting stores.
**DO NOT go to high trafficked stores like PetSmart or PetCo until they are much older due to risk of parvo or other diseases.** I would wait until 1 year or older to take your dog to chain pet stores.
I would NOT recommend dog parks for several reasons:
1) This is not a very well controlled environment.
2) Not all dogs at dog parks are friendly.
3) Most owners have a hard time reading their dog’s body language which may lead to a quarrel.
4) All it takes is one attack for your pup to no longer get along with other dogs.
5) Diseases are more easily spread at dog parks such as kennel cough, giardia, parasites, parvo and more.
And just to reiterate… contrary to the belief of many, your dog does NOT need to be friends with every dog it meets, and most don’t want to.
For Partner Home dogs:
Dog shows can be a helpful environment to teach dog manners. At dog shows, it is common courtesy between all owners to NOT let our dogs sniff or greet other dogs closely. We keep leashes short enough that the dogs pass by each other constantly but are not interacting. We hope all dogs are friendly, but the truth is you never know if another dog is friendly or not. However, most show dogs behave well and are less likely to frighten a younger dog. If your pup is comfortable enough in a busy environment like a dog show, this can be a place to learn dog manners when you are both ready for another level of training. When I take pups to shows, I am also working on this aspect of training and socializing. It’s a good experience for them.
Dog shows can be a helpful environment to teach dog manners. At dog shows, it is common courtesy between all owners to NOT let our dogs sniff or greet other dogs closely. We keep leashes short enough that the dogs pass by each other constantly but are not interacting. We hope all dogs are friendly, but the truth is you never know if another dog is friendly or not. However, most show dogs behave well and are less likely to frighten a younger dog. If your pup is comfortable enough in a busy environment like a dog show, this can be a place to learn dog manners when you are both ready for another level of training. When I take pups to shows, I am also working on this aspect of training and socializing. It’s a good experience for them.
Next Sextion:
Puppy Basics 103
Crate Training
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801-834-4464 (text preferred)