Chapter 5: Early Training

Puppyhood is a wonderful, adorable, messy, frustrating, critical time in a dog’s life. You bring your little, cute puppy home, and you have all sorts of dreams about how he will grow up. He will be a good family companion. He will be your best friend. He will love and protect your children. He will do everything you ask of him without complaint or defiance. He will be an obedience, Rally, or agility star. He will be a therapy dog. He will never eat your shoes, poop on the carpet, or growl at you. He will be perfect!

How your dog achieves those goals depends on the dog that you brought home and, most importantly, on you and the people who interact with him.

You’ll start bonding with your puppy the minute you meet him. You should start training him as soon as you bring him home, which should be at about eight weeks of age at the youngest. Puppies need to stay with their mothers and littermates for approximately the first eight weeks to learn valuable social lessons that will help them grow up into stable, social adult dogs. Be wary of any breeder who tries to send a puppy home with you earlier.

Young puppies are sponges for training, but they have very short attention spans. This means that training sessions should be very short, only a couple of minutes at a time. While you’re training your puppy, you’ll be doing far more than just teaching behaviors. As your hand delivers treats, you’ll be teaching him that hands moving toward him are good. This will help you in overall handling, grooming, and even picking him up. You’ll also be teaching him that you are fun to be around because each training session will make your bond stronger. You’ll be building lots of positive associations with you and with training in general, which will build a solid foundation of trust between you and your puppy.

Your dog’s ID tag should list your dog’s name and your contact number.

Did You Know?

Don’t Be Tempted by that Puppy in the Window

Would you pay twice as much for a car that risks breaking down frequently and can leave you stranded? One that will cost you even more money to fix on a regular basis? Of course not. But turn that lemon into a cute, fluffy puppy, and the temptation is harder to resist.

Puppy mills are mass-production farms that breed female dogs at every heat cycle to produce puppies. They often have more than fifty—sometimes hundreds— of dogs, often of different breeds, for breeding purposes. The puppies are not raised in homes but in cages. They are taken from their mothers early so that they will still be very small when they reach stores across the country, and therefore more appealing to sell. The mother dogs often die young, as the toll of frequent breeding is too great on their bodies.

The puppies often have behavioral and developmental issues. Because they never leave their cages, they get used to living in their urine and feces, so they learn that it’s OK to stay in their messes. This makes them extremely challenging to house-train, which is often a top complaint among people who purchase these dogs.

People often have good intentions when they visit these mass-production farms. They see sad dogs and want to save them, so they buy one and bring him home. But this just perpetuates the issue, making room for more puppies to be produced.

Puppy mills supply pet stores, so even though the presentation is more attractive, it’s still an extension of horrific conditions endured by the dogs back at the farm. Pet stores will dress up the puppies as “designer dogs” or “rare purebreds,” charging a lot more money than you would have to pay if you just bought a quality puppy from reputable breeder or adopted a mix from your local shelter or rescue group.

Help put puppy mills out of business. If you are concerned that a pet store is selling puppy-mill puppies, check the ASPCA’s website tool to discover the source: http://nopetstorepuppies.com/buy-a-puppy. The site also is a great resource for educational information on puppy mills and why they mean bad news for our canine friends.

Equipment You’ll Need

There are many things that you can buy for your puppy, and you may be tempted as you go through the pet-supply store to buy half the store! But here are items that you will specifically need for training.

Leash

Get a 4-to-6-foot (1-m) leash made of nylon, cotton, or leather. Avoid the retractable leashes. Retractable leashes are fine for exercising your dog or to help train some advanced distance exercises, but in general they are not ideal for walking or training your puppy. Even in the locked position, they don’t offer you much flexibility or control. Plus, if you drop it and your puppy bolts, the plastic handle will “chase” him and could terrify him.

Be sure to get a size that’s appropriate for your puppy. For example, if you have a toy-breed dog, you’ll want a ¼-inch-thick (1.5-cm-thick) leash with a small clasp. Some leashes are thin but still have heavy clasps, which could weigh down your little pup. If you have a hefty puppy, then a ¾-inch-thick (2-cm-thick) or 1-inch-thick (2.5-cm-thick) leash is a better choice.

Collar

Get a collar that’s an appropriate size for your puppy. You should just be able to get two fingers in between your puppy’s neck and the collar, laying your fingers flat against his neck. Any larger, and your puppy could catch his jaw or a paw inside the collar, causing him to panic and hurt himself. Either quick-snap or buckle collars are fine choices. Avoid choke chain, prong, or electric collars.

You should also get an ID tag for your puppy’s collar. Choose one that won’t tarnish and leave marks on his coat. Get an appropriate size for your puppy so the tag doesn’t dangle down too far on his chest. Alternately, you can get a collar that’s engraved with your contact information if you prefer, instead of a tag. Just be sure that there is some sort of identification on the collar. It should feature your dog’s name and the best way to contact you, such as your cell phone number.

When your puppy leaves the house, he should always wear a collar with identification, even if you are using a harness to attach your leash. You hope that your puppy will never get away from you, but accidents happen! If your puppy ever gets loose or slips out of the fence, the best chance he has of finding his way home is through identification.

Harness

Some dogs do better with harnesses. If you have a brachycephalic (“smoosh-faced”) dog, such as a Pug, Japanese Chin, or Bulldog, then a harness is a better choice for your dog than a collar and leash for walking. These breeds have breathing challenges, especially in hot weather or with strenuous exercise, so you don’t want to restrict their airways when they pull against a collar. Even if you don’t have a brachycephalic dog, harnesses can be great for walking your dog.

There are many harnesses on the market, but they attach to a leash in basically two ways. Some have the leash clip on the back, near the shoulders of the dog. Others clip in the front, on the dog’s chest.

Harnesses with the leash clip in the back are humane tools to use with your puppy. Keep in mind, though, that these types of harnesses will not help keep your puppy from pulling while walking on leash. The leash attaches to the back of harness, which distributes the dog’s body weight effectively.

A harness with the leash clip in the front can help prevent your puppy from pulling while walking on leash by slowing down your puppy’s forward motion. This type of harness can be a great tool for a puppy who likes to pull, especially until you are able to teach him to walk nicely on leash.

It’s important to have a proper fit with these harnesses. An incorrect fit can cause chafing under the front legs or chest. If the harness sags in the puppy’s chest area, he can get his paw or jaw caught and panic, injuring himself. So if you choose a front-clip harness, make sure that you carefully follow the instructions that come with it or consult a professional who knows how to fit the harness properly.

When choosing a harness, try to find one that your puppy can’t easily step out of. Puppies can be wiggly! If a harness is very easy to slip onto your puppy, keep in mind that it will be just as easy for your puppy to wiggle out of and escape from.

Because of the shape of the breed’s face, Frenchies often do better with a harness.

Head Halter

If you have a really strong puppy, or if you are a petite person with a giant-breed puppy, then you may be interested in trying a head halter. This is also a good tool for a puppy who likes to jump on people. You can train a puppy not to jump, but a head halter can be a nice management tool in the meantime.

A head halter is much more humane than a choke chain or prong collar, which put pressure on the trachea and require yanking in order to “correct” a dog. A head halter simply controls the head of your puppy. If a horse trainer can control a large horse with a head halter, you can control a puppy!

There are different head halters on the market. Whichever type you choose, make sure that it is fitted properly. Your puppy should be able to breathe and take treats easily. The nose loop should not chafe his muzzle or push up against his eyes so he ends up squinting. Be sure to follow the instructions that come with the head halter or consult a professional with experience in fitting head halters properly.

Effective Management Tools

You may find that with a really rambunctious puppy, a head halter works best initially. As you begin training him, you may gradually switch to a front-clip harness, and then eventually you will be able to walk him with just a collar and leash. There is nothing wrong with using effective management tools while you train. Some owners choose to keep using the tools, which is also just fine. It’s up to you—all of these tools are humane choices.

Clicker

Clickers are available at most pet-supply stores and online. The most common kind of clicker is a little rectangular box. This type offers the loudest click, so if you will be working with your dog in a class or outside, the sound will travel nicely. There are also some versions that have a softer click, which are fine when you are training in a quiet location. These are also easier to click, which you may prefer if you have arthritis in your fingers or another condition that makes using your fingers difficult. It’s also helpful to purchase a wrist coil to attach your box clicker. This allows you to drop the clicker but still have it attached to you. Some clickers have a loop that slips over your finger for convenience.

Once you start clicker training, you’ll quickly discover that you and your dog enjoy it! So get several clickers to keep handy throughout the house.

Crate

Crates are important tools for puppy training. A crate will help you house-train your puppy and help keep him safe from chewing inappropriate items. For the purposes of house-training, a crate should be just big enough for a puppy to stand up, stretch out, and turn around in. The goal is to confine the puppy enough so he will learn to hold his bladder and bowels. Most puppies won’t soil their “dens.”

There are a variety of crates on the market. Get a sturdy one that will withstand puppy chewing. Save the cute canvas travel carriers for when your puppy is out of his chewing stage. In general, a plastic or wire crate is a good, sturdy choice.

A typical plastic crate consists of a top and a bottom that you put together with nuts and bolts. You don’t need any tools; you can hand-twist the bolts into place. Puppies make messes, so being able to take the top off of the crate to clean out the bottom is very handy. Some plastic crates are also approved for use on airlines. If you are interested in taking your puppy on an airplane, always check ahead of time with your individual airline, as they each have their own specific rules.

Wire crates come in a variety of styles. Choose epoxy-coated wire to help prevent rust. You can get a crate that folds down “suitcase-style” and comes with a handle for easy carrying and storage. A wire crate usually has a plastic tray in the bottom that you can remove for cleaning. If you choose a wire crate, be sure that the holes in the grate are not large enough that your puppy can get a paw through. It could get stuck, and he could get hurt.

If you have a large-breed puppy, consider getting a wire crate that includes a divider. The divider allows you to gradually increase the size of the puppy’s allocated space in the crate without having to purchase different crates as your puppy grows.

You can also find very nice designer crates. Some are made of rich woods and can also function as tables in the home. These are usually more expensive than plastic or wire crates. When it comes to training a puppy, choose function over form. Spending several hundred dollars on a designer crate that your puppy considers a chew toy is going to be a frustrating experience!

A crate used for house-training should be just big enough for a puppy to stand up in, stretch out, and turn around.

Toys

Toys are important to puppy development. Puppies love to chew, and the desire to chew grows even stronger when they are teething. Giving your puppy appropriate toys to chew on will give him a healthy, acceptable alternative to chewing on things you may not like him to chew, such as your furniture or your shoes.

There are so many toys to choose from that it can be a bit bewildering. What will make toy selection even more challenging is that different puppies prefer different toys. You won’t know what your puppy likes until you try a few different kinds. There are some puppies who don’t seem to like any toys, but you can teach your puppy to enjoy playing with toys instead of chewing on off-limits items.

Chew Toys

When selecting chew toys, choose durable ones that are larger than your puppy’s mouth. If your puppy gnaws a toy into pieces that are small enough to fit entirely in his mouth, you need to throw the toy away. He could easily swallow it and choke, or it could get lodged in his digestive tract and require surgery to remove.

The life span of a toy will depend on your puppy’s chewing style. Some puppies are gentle with their toys and keep them into adulthood. Others act as if they could chew through tires! Choose toys that are appropriate for your puppy’s chewing style. It’s always best to err on the side of caution and choose a more durable toy if you’re not sure. Some chew options include deer or elk antlers, beef marrow bones, plastic toys, and rubber toys.

Give your puppy appropriate toys to chew on.

Did You Know? Edible Chews

If you buy chew bones that are edible, make sure that they were made in a country with strict regulations (such as the United States). There have been canine deaths due to ingredients in treats and chews made in other countries.

Interactive Toys

Interactive toys are great for keeping puppies entertained and focused. Fill a durable interactive toy with your puppy’s regular kibble and some treats. As he works to empty the toy, the toy provides mental enrichment. Some toys are meant for long-lasting chew time, while others are more like puzzle games for dogs. The long-lasting ones are great for crate time or for occupying your puppy when you are unable to supervise him as closely as necessary.

Tug toys are also fun interactive toys. Tug is a perfectly safe game for most puppies, although you’ll find that, when your puppy is teething, he may lose some teeth in the tug toy.

Balls

Balls are another type of toy that may amuse your puppy. Be sure to use a ball that is not too small for your puppy’s mouth. If you use tennis balls, also be sure that your puppy doesn’t use it as a chew toy because its rough coating could damage his enamel.

Flirt Pole

If you have a very energetic puppy, or perhaps a herding breed or mix who likes to chase things, a flirt pole can be a fun toy that offers great exercise. A flirt pole is a long stick that has a long cord attached to it. At the end of the cord is usually a toy. It looks like a fishing pole, except you normally can’t retract the cord. By flicking the pole, you can get the toy to bounce in different directions for your puppy to chase. This is also a good toy for limited space. If you have a cleared space indoors where you can play with the flirt pole, it can offer great exercise for your puppy on a rainy day when you can’t take him outdoors to play.

Squeaky and Stuffed Toys

Other toys include those that make sounds and stuffed toys; sometimes they are a combination of both. Some puppies go nuts for squeaky toys. Just make sure that your pup doesn’t remove and eat the squeaker or the stuffing. Stuffed animals should be those made especially for dogs, not leftover children’s toys. And, remember, if you do have children in your life who have beloved stuffed animals, giving your puppy a stuffed animal to chew on is just going to confuse him. He will not know the difference between his stuffed animal and your child’s, and it won’t be fair to yell at him or punish him for chewing on the wrong stuffed animal.

Expert Tip

Rotate those Toys!

Even if you buy your puppy a hundred toys, he will still, on occasion, attempt to chew something that he shouldn’t. You can help prevent this by rotating his toys on a regular, frequent basis so that they seem new to him. If you leave the same toys out all the time, he’ll easily get bored with them and could go looking for something else to chew on … probably something you won’t approve of.

Puppy Games

By playing with your puppy with his toys, you teach him what you want him to chew on. You also teach him to share his toys with you rather than hoarding them to himself. Take turns playing with him with his toys and then letting him play with them by himself. You also want your puppy to learn how to amuse himself. It’s a healthy part of his development to not become overly dependent on you.

Getting your puppy to come to you should be easy at first, so make the most of it! Crouch down, clap your hands, and make kissy noises to your puppy. When he comes to you, praise him! Play with him, give him a treat—anything he finds rewarding. Coming to you should always be a positive experience for your puppy. If you ever call him to punish him or yell at him, you’ll teach him that he should stay away from you. That is not the goal!

You can also play hide-and-seek with your puppy. Make it easy at first. Hide around a corner and call your puppy to come find you. When he does, make a big deal about it! This will also build a positive association with coming to you in your puppy’s mind.

Make sure that your puppy can’t remove and eat the squeaker in a stuffed toy.

A Good Workout Makes for a Good Dog

Puppies are full of energy one minute and suddenly napping the next. As your puppy gets older, those naps will come fewer and farther between. You may wonder at times if there are batteries in your puppy because he never seems to slow down or rest!

Exercise will be an important part of your puppy’s health development, and it will also significantly help you during training. If your puppy is not getting enough exercise, it will show in your training sessions. You may find that your puppy can’t focus, is overly excited, or is completely ignoring you. While this sometimes is an indication that your training session is too long, more often it’s a sign that your puppy hasn’t had enough exercise. Exercising your puppy before training sessions can “take the edge” off and help him better focus on learning.

How much exercise your puppy will need will depend on his age and breed (or breed combination). Obviously, at eight weeks of age, puppies will need less exercise than at twenty-two weeks. A sporting breed such as a Weimaraner will need more exercise than the companion Maltese.

How much exercise your puppy will need will depend on his age and breed.

Think about what your dog was originally bred to do—was it an energetic activity? If so, that puppy is going to need exercise to the same level, even if you choose not to do that activity. Your puppy’s DNA is still programmed for his breed’s intended function. For example, Dalmatians were used to run in front of firehouse carriages, clearing the way for the horses to get through. This required an athletic, energetic dog. If you don’t want to run daily with your Dalmatian, you’ll need to find another way for him to expend that energy.

Walking with you may be enough exercise for a young puppy, but as he reaches adolescence, it won’t be enough. You just don’t walk fast enough or far enough to get his heart rate up consistently for a good workout. Plus, you normally want your puppy to walk nicely by your side, which slows him down. This is why it’s common to hear people complain that they walk their dogs “miles (km) a day” and he still has energy to burn.

This doesn’t mean that you should run marathons with your puppy. He’s too young for this. When you exercise your puppy, do so safely. Your puppy’s brain and heart may be telling him to run around like a wild thing, but his body may not be ready. He’s a puppy—not known for good judgment! You are responsible for ensuring that your puppy’s exercise doesn’t do more harm than good. Make sure that you are not putting too much strain on your young puppy’s body.

If you are a jogger, you didn’t run a marathon your first day out. You trained gradually. If you want to run with your puppy, you will need to train him gradually as well. He should not be your running partner until he reaches physical maturity.

Discourage strenuous jumping until your puppy is full grown because his growth plates aren’t yet closed and could sustain damage. For larger puppies, jumping on and off furniture is usually OK (if you want to allow it), but you shouldn’t allow them to practice jumping for agility competition until they are older. Small puppies can hurt themselves even jumping off the couch.

Exercise and the Weather

The weather will play a role in determining if your puppy can exercise or play outdoors. Some puppies will be picky and not want to go outside when it rains, but other pups love to splash in puddles. Some puppies love to play in the snow, while others are convinced that it will kill them. You will need to decide if the temperature outside is too extreme for your puppy and monitor him while he is outside to make sure he remains OK.

If you live in an area that is very hot, make sure that your puppy doesn’t overheat. Signs of heatstroke in dogs include:

•Excessive panting

•Drooling, with thick, sticky saliva

•A bright red tongue

•Vomiting

•Diarrhea

•Dizziness

If your dog has these symptoms, remove him from the heat immediately and call your veterinarian or emergency clinic.

Another heat-related danger is to your puppy’s paws. Puppies don’t wear shoes, so walking on hot asphalt can cause burns on your puppy’s pawpads. If your area has sidewalks or grass for him to walk on, it will help in the heat, but some neighborhoods don’t have sidewalks, so people have to walk their dogs in the street. The asphalt can get very hot. If your puppy starts “dancing” on the ground and acting distressed, check his paws. He may be getting heat blisters.

Check Those Pawpads!

Frequently check your puppy’s pawpads for signs of cuts, scrapes, or other injuries. This will help you keep track of any problems and also help your puppy learn to accept handling of his paws.

Conversely, if you live in an area that gets very cold, you also have to be careful with outdoor activities. Did you know that dogs can get hypothermia and even frostbite? Toy breeds, dogs with short coats, and puppies are especially susceptible to hypothermia, meaning that the body temperature drops too low. Here are the signs of hypothermia:

•Lethargy

•Violent shivering

•Weak pulse

•Coma

If you think that your puppy has hypothermia, wrap him in a blanket and bring him inside where it’s warm. Call your veterinarian or emergency clinic immediately.

Frostbite, in which part of the body freezes, usually accompanies hypothermia. Common targets are the tail, ear tips, and pawpads. If your puppy has frostbite, the skin in the affected areas will be pale white or blue. As circulation returns to the area, the skin will appear bright red and may start peeling. Days later, it will eventually turn black. The areas will be very painful. If you suspect that your dog has frostbite, apply warm—not hot—water to the affected areas and contact your veterinarian or emergency clinic.

If you live in an area that gets very cold, be careful with outdoor activities.

The Key to Successful Puppy Training: You

You play the most important role in your puppy’s training and future. It’s a lot of responsibility! Be patient—with both your puppy and yourself. Training is work, and you are bound to make a few mistakes along the way, especially if this type of canine training is new to you. But you can do it. Your puppy is going to try your patience from time to time, but remember that he is just a baby. You need to teach him what you want, in terms that he can understand.

Do not use harsh tones with your puppy when training. When you were in school, if your teacher yelled out all of her instructions to you, school would have been pretty stressful. You don’t need to yell at your puppy to train him to do what you want. Save your harsher tone of voice for when he’s doing something awful. (Better yet, teach him not to do those things.)

Use a friendly voice when communicating with and training your puppy. You especially don’t want to use his name or the Recall cue in a negative manner. Yelling “FIDO! COME HERE!” when you are angry with your puppy will just teach him to avoid you when you call his name or tell him to come to you. That’s not something you want him to learn!

Set boundaries for what you will allow and what you won’t, and be sure that your family sticks to the same rules. For example, if you don’t want a dog to sleep on your bed, don’t let your new puppy sleep on the bed just because he is a bit stressed during his first few days in a new home. It will be too confusing, and stressful, for your puppy to get accustomed to sleeping with you on the bed, only to be booted off when he gets bigger.

If you don’t want your grown dog jumping on you, don’t encourage jumping in your puppy. It’s very tempting to let your cute little puppy jump up to kiss your chin, but this is rewarding the jumping behavior. If you continue to reward this behavior, it will become a habit that will be harder to fix. It’s confusing to your puppy if you allow jumping for a while and then later don’t want him jumping on you.

It’s better to start with restrictions and lessen them as your puppy goes through training so that he learns control and to follow your cues. For example, if you don’t mind a dog that jumps on you, that’s fine. But you may have other people in your life, such as senior citizens or small children, who could be injured by a dog jumping on them. Teach your puppy not to jump up on people right from the start when you bring him home. As he gets older and you train him to respond to your cues, you can then teach him a cue for jumping up. You can teach him to jump up only when he gets the cue. This will better control who he does and doesn’t jump up on.

It’s the same with allowing a puppy on the furniture. Perhaps you don’t mind if your grown dog snuggles with you on the couch, but a puppy launching himself at you while you’re on the couch, eating a snack, could cause a mess or even hurt you. Teach your puppy not to get up on the furniture right from the start. As he gets older and you train him, you can teach him a cue to indicate that he’s allowed up on the furniture. This means that you get to decide when he gets up on the couch.

Set boundaries for what you will and won’t allow.