Helpful Hints for Puppies
Exercise: Your puppy should exercise vigorously for at least 20 minutes twice daily or more often, if possible. When you work on training commands, do it after exercise so that the puppy is easier to work with. Trying to teach a puppy to "sit" when he has a lot of excess energy built up is frustrating to owner and dog alike.
Socialization: Start exposing your pup to different animals and people at an early age (6-12 weeks). Your puppy should have had at least the initial vaccination of the "puppy series" prior to this. Although you should be selective about the dogs and cats you allow exposure to, do not wait until the full vaccine series is finished before starting. This is a critical developmental age and puppies which fail to receive proper exposure to people and animals during this time may become fearful or aggressive later on.
Pedicures: You should start playing with your puppy's feet as soon as he comes into your family. Start with gentle play and handling and progress to more firmly holding onto the foot as though you were going to trim the nails. Reward and praise the puppy for holding still and gradually increase the time period of restraint. We will demonstrate how to clip the nails so that you can begin doing it at home every 2-3 weeks or so. Do not forcefully hold the pup down or yell at him for struggling. This will only create more fear and make your task more difficult in the future.
Collars/leashes: You can start putting a collar on at a young age, but do not expect a puppy to properly leash walk right away. Start with a collar only, then add a leash which you allow the puppy to drag around behind. After the puppy is comfortable with this, start picking up the leash but do not pull on it. Just allow the puppy to walk freely. Do not yank on the leash if the puppy stops walking. Drop the leash or relax it and wait until the puppy starts moving, then pick it back up and re-grip. By the time the puppy is about 12 weeks old proper leash walking and training to heel should have been started. Remember that puppies grow rapidly so monitor the size of the collar frequently to be certain it isn't too tight. Never leave a collar on an unattended dog in the home as accidental strangulation could result.
Chewing: It is normal for your puppy to want to chew everything in sight. Provide proper toys for chewing and when the puppy is chewing on something it shouldn't, approach with the proper toy and dangle or shake it in front of the puppy so that it will distract the puppy into playing with the toy. Use positive reinforcement when the puppy pays attention to the toy. You can tell the puppy "no" when it chews inappropriately but do not slap on the nose or use other physical punishment. Be sure that you have proper toys that are indestructible for the puppy. If you are uncertain about a toy's safety, ask us about it. Do not assume that because a toy or chew bone is sold in the store that it is safe for all dogs.
Jumping Up: One of the greatest things about dogs is their sheer joy at seeing you come home when you've been gone. However, jumping up can become quite a nuisance to guests and to you when the dog is full grown. To discourage this behavior, completely ignore the dog when he jumps up. You can stand still with your arms crossed without making eye contact or walk away and ignore the dog until he settles down. Do not attempt to physically push the dog down or yell because this is still a form of attention that the dog craves and he will continue the behavior in order to achieve the interaction. Once the dog settles down, approach and give a "sit" command and give the dog love and attention when he obeys. Your dog will quickly learn that the best way to get attention is to remain calm and not jump up. Everyone in the family must follow the same rules in order for this to be effective, however. If mom follows the rules but dad allows the dog to jump up on him and encourages it, then the dog will become confused as to how he is supposed to act.
Feeding: Just as every person is different with regard to proper amounts of food, so are puppies. Feeding guidelines on dog food bags are rough estimates of how much your dog should be fed but in some cases that amount may be too much or too little for your dog. When feeding, feed to proper body condition. We will show you how to assess this. When first feeding your pup, hold the food bowl in your lap and put food into it as the puppy eats. Regularly pick up the food bowl or your pup's toys so that they will become used to this and not become overprotective. Everyone in the family, including children, should be able to take objects away from the puppy and move or touch the food bowl. If your puppy shows any signs of aggression near the food bowl or toys, let us know right away so that we can advise you as to how to handle the situation.
Obedience: We recommend obedience training for all dogs. This is a great way to socialize your dog while also training him. Obedience classes help teach dogs to become well-mannered pets and also educate owners as to proper training techniques.
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