When To Start Puppy Training

 

A question new puppy owners ask a lot is  "when to start puppy training". The answer is straight away!. Here are a couple of tips on the beginning stages of how to train and maintain a well-balanced and obedient dog from day one.

 

Be The Pack Leader

     Definition - The pack leader is confident, strong, consistent and always fair, and a puppy is biologically hardwired to follow the pack leader. many people are leaders in some way or another in their jobs but as soon as they go home at night turn into slush with their puppies then they get all confused, why the young dog wont listen or be obedient for them.

If your dog sence's a lack of confidence, they will perceive you as weak they will then attempt to take control. If you let this happen, negative behavior patterns like pulling on the leash, chewing, and excessive barking will develop and in some case's the dog may start to suffer from anxiety.

So it is vital you become your dogs pack leader. This position doesn't start when your puppy is six months old or when he/she does something bad; it needs to begin the day you bring your pup home, and needs to be maintained throughout the entire obedience training phase and then naturally continue through out your dog's life. For your puppy to develop into a well-adjusted, happy and healthy dog you have to show leadership qualities from the get go.

 

                                             

                                        House-training Your Puppy

Potty training dog's seems to be what stresses people out the most about getting a new dog but a few things to bear in mind are a dogs digestive tract is a fast operating system at this stage of a dogs life, infact young pup will normally relieve themselves between 5 and 40 minutes of eating. This is really useful to remember. All puppies are conditioned by their mother by the age of 3 or 4  weeks not to go toilet in their dens. The majority of dogs learn the concept of house-training easily as it,s part of their biological programming not to poop where they sleep.

 Make your puppies living area as small as is practicly possible many people do this by using a crate, I personaly have a small 4ft by 3ft alcove in my kitchen where i have made it escape proof by using a childs safety gate. The reason for this is because of a dogs inbuilt hatred for "laying in there own mess." Your pup will naturally try to wait till taken to your desired elimination area.

When you start to house-train your puppy you need to make sure your puppy has a place that he/she feels safe and secure to relieve it self; somewhere that looks and smells familiar,with minimal chance of creating any stress for him or you.  Every morning 1st thing bring your puppy outside to the same pre-designated elimination area. It is vital to stay consistent throughout this process to help your puppy learn this habit quickly.

You know your puppy will go potty within 40 minutes of eating this use this to your advantage once your young dog has eaten take him outside to where you want him to go toilet and a bit of fun time with him when he does go give him loads a praise and keep a special treat aside to reward him.   

Make toilet trips an hourly affair, young pups will eliminate within 40 minutes or so of eating but you will find that he needs toilet for peeing and or poops every hour or there abouts after his feeds,regular feeding times will assist you in getting your timing right for this.
  

When your pup is about the house and not in his "den" watch him as you would a toddler, even though you are keeping to the hourly schedule for taking him to the toilet accidents can happen. A sign your pup is making ready to go potty is sniffing the floor and possibly going round in a circle,when you spot this behavior pattern immediately take him outside to the desinated elimination area.

Following these  tips wont prevent accidents from happening infact in 20 years of dog training i,ve yet to find a method that will stop all mishaps, but it will cut down the amout of accidents ocurring. When your puppy does make a mess on your carpet never punish or shout at him this kind of reaction from you will only serve to confuse and stress your dog out and ultimatley slow down his progress. I hope you find this information of some use and if you have any questions please ask them in the comments below .