Puppy Archives - Page 10 of 21 - Smart Dog University

Teaching Caysun “Crate Love”

September 14, 2011

Caysun's learning to love the crate. It's important for any dog to accept crating, but especially important for a service pup in training. When Caysun returns to Service Dogs of Virginia, she'll need to be crated frequently while the other service dogs in training are rotated in to their training sessions. She'll also need to be crated after she's spayed or if she's injured and the vet orders crate rest.

Here's how I start the "Crate Love" process:

All meals are fed to Caysun in the crate. That means that at least three times a day, good things are associated with that area.
When it's time for a nap, I put Caysun and a Kong filled with a little peanut butter in the crate. As she's licking the peanut butter out (a pleasant experience), she usually falls asleep (another pleasant experience for her).
When I have a treat for her, I deliver it into the crate.
I move the crate from room to room, so there's no "right" spot for the crate to be. The crate is good no matter what room, what view, what surroundings. The crate is what makes it "right" to be there.

Just today, 4 days into the "Crate Love" program, she dragged a toy into her crate to play with it. Sweet success! I want Caysun to think of her crate as her space, a spot where she can relax, where good things always happen.

I haven't yet put crating on cue. I'll work on that after I've developed Crate Love a bit more. I can put the behavior on cue any time, but it's crucial that I have good feelings associated with crating first.

As I type, she's fast asleep in the crate, dreaming happy puppy dreams…

The Training Begins: Caysun

September 13, 2011

She's been here long enough to settle in and get to know her new housemates. While her training started the instant I met her, we're ready to begin formal training today.

What's the difference between day-to-day training and formal training? Not much, really, when you get right down to it.

Day-to-day training happens everytime Caysun and I are together. It happens when she's playing, when she's going to the bathroom, when she's wandering about the room. I call this kind of training "the rules of the road," because it's the way I teach the pup my expectations about how dogs behave.

It's as simple as moving my legs when she puts her paws on me. In just two days, Caysun's figured out that sitting elicits so much more attention than putting her paws on me. She's learning that leaning her front paws on the cabinets when I'm fixing her dinner isn't nearly as good as sitting. She's learning that there's a very specific path (and door) that leads to the outdoors where she goes to the bathroom.

Formal training will begin today. Formal training usually happens in a training session. I separate her from the other dogs, I have a specific goal and behavior in mind, and we work toward that goal, and mark our progress. Eye contact, for instance, is one of the behaviors I'll work on with her today. I will set out with the specific goal of clicking her each time her eyes meet mine.

Both types of training are equally important. You can't just do one of them and expect a well-behaved dog. Eventually, we'll work the formally trained behaviors into the day-to-day training, as Caysun becomes more fluent with the behaviors and is capable of doing the behaviors in an everyday environment (with the other dogs around, in the face of larger distractions, etc.).

Puppy Picking

August 11, 2011

We met 10 fat little Labrador puppies this week. One of those little buggers will be coming to live with us in a couple of weeks. The pups are almost six weeks old and walk like little drunkards. They don't quite understand that their fronts are connected to their backs, nor do they know what to do with their fat little bellies that touch the ground.

They have a nice little cycle going: play, run, jump! Wrestle. Pee. Poop. Run (ok, waddle) some more. Eat! Eat! Eat! Poop. Sleep.

After a 15 minute nap, the whole thing starts all over again. It's like clockwork.

Service Dogs of Virginia will take four of the ten pups to train as service dogs. There will be one fat yellow male, and the rest will be black, not sure of the sexes of the remaining three pups.

When looking for pups, we were looking for the laid-back ones, the ones who rolled with the flow. It was a little difficult to tell at this young age, but it was a first glance. There will be at least three other puppy visits to keep checking tabs on the pups as they grow and mature over the next couple of weeks.

I'll keep you posted on how the puppy picking progresses!

Making Puppy Socialization Safer

July 21, 2011

You hear it all the time: socialization is important for your puppy! Socialize, socialize, socialize!

It IS true: socialization before your pup is 16 weeks old is crazy-important if you want a well-adjusted, easy-going, can-handle-anything dog later in life.

But.

You gotta be smart about it. You can’t recklessly expose the pup to potential germs and disease.

I was outside teaching class last night in downtown Frederick, Maryland. I saw a tiny 11-week old puppy walking on Carroll Creek, a bustling and crowded metropolitan spot with eateries and beautiful scenery, and the pup was meandering through the grass where every other dog had done it’s business.

It’s a terrific location for the pup to be exposed to all kinds of things: joggers, noisy kids on bikes, barking dogs, ducks, the list goes on.

The trouble with that is that hundreds of other dogs have been through there, too. Leaving behind poop and pee — the carriers of disease. You don’t want your puppy needlessly exposed to all that. Who knows if those dogs:

have had their vaccinations
are healthy
are carrying diseases

It’s much safer for the pup to be carried through very public areas until he’s completed his puppy series of vaccinations. Walking a pup through your yard or even your neighborhood is probably safe, but you don’t want your pups paws hitting the ground in the dog park or anywhere where there are potentially unvaccinated dogs running through the same grass as your pup.

The Perfect Age to Start Puppy Training?

July 6, 2011

Puppies don’t come with instructions. There isn’t an Owner’s Manual. From the minute you bring your puppy home, he’s learning. Your pup will develop habits whether you teach him or not. It’s much easier to instill good habits from the beginning, than to try to undo bad habits later.

Confused about when to start your pup's education? Trainers and veterinarians agree: sooner is better!

If your pup is healthy, you can start puppy class as soon as your pup has begun (and as long as he's kept on) his puppy vaccination schedule. Dr. Brenda Griffin states in DVM360:

For puppies, the single most important part of a behavioral wellness program is proper socialization during their critical developmental period, which ends by 16 weeks. Owners must begin socialization the day they bring their new puppies home, and the clock is ticking.

Proper socialization combined with positive reinforcement-based training in the context of a group puppy class helps puppies grow into well-adjusted pets. Classes provide critical socialization time with a variety of people and other puppies.

Smart Dog University makes it easy for you to get your puppy socialization and dog-friendly positive reinforcement training with Puppy Charm School (PCS). Designed specifically for puppies (8-18 weeks old), PCS will help you build the dog of your dreams.

Focusing on five critical areas, PCS makes it easy for you to teach your pup what he needs to know, when he needs to know it. There are five areas of concentration in PCS: Confident Puppy, Social Puppy, Happy & Healthy Puppy, Good Puppy, and Parenting Your Puppy.

Confident Puppy teaches your pup to feel comfortable in any environment and to accept new experiences easily. Your pup will be an “easy keeper” because he’ll be just as comfortable at soccer practice as he is at the bus stop, and even at the veterinarian!

The more experiences your pup has before 16 weeks of age (4 months), the more laid back and easy going he’ll be as he grows up. A laid back pup grows into a well-adjusted dog.

Why It’s Important: Living in our world doesn’t come naturally to dogs. Their developing minds are wide open until 16 weeks of age. After that, they become less willing to accept new things, people, and experiences.

Social Puppy teaches your pup to play nicely with other dogs, to recognize and use appropriate dog signals around other dogs. PCS will have controlled off-leash puppy play during each class. We’ll narrate the activities of the pups, pointing out the important things for you to watch for when you’re at home. We’ll show you warning signals as well as good signs that mean your pup is having a blast!

Why It’s Important: A dog needs repeated exposure to friendly and appropriate dogs his entire life. Dogs who can’t get along with other dogs have a “shorter leash” on life and don’t get to experience as much, or have as much fun as a dog who is easy-going and nice to other dogs.

Happy + Healthy Puppy teaches your puppy to be comfortable with routine grooming tasks such as nail trims and vet exams.

Why It’s Important: The earlier your pup learns the veterinarian isn’t scary, the easier it will be for you (and your dog, and your vet) to keep your dog happy and healthy. Your dog will need routine grooming and vet care to keep him happy and healthy – it’s easier if he’s cooperative (instead of combative).

Good Puppy teaches your pup basic “good manners” behaviors like sit, give it up, come when called, loose leash walking, name recognition.

Why It’s Important: Teaching appropriate behaviors from the start is the easiest and fastest way to a well-behaved dog. Teaching the pup what to do is a sure way to avoid problem behaviors (like jumping, barking, stealing socks, etc.).

Parenting Your Puppy teaches you how to deal with the most common (and the most frustrating) puppy problems. You’ll learn how to conquer puppy nipping, house training, crate training, barking, and stealing.

Why It’s Important: Giving you tools for dealing with the most vexing of puppy problems will allow you to spend more time enjoying your pup (and less time cursing the day you brought him home). Having the knowledge to deal with these common puppy issues ensures that the pup will have a consistent and predictable environment – one of the most important pieces of a well-adjusted pup’s life.

Scheduling
Puppy Charm School opens August 1 and we expect it to be popular. Register early to ensure you and your pup get in — before your pup reaches 18 weeks of age! Classes have ongoing registration — Register today and you can usually start classes the very next week, no waiting!

Where?
Classes will be held in two locations each week. In Frederick, PCS will be held Mondays (6:30p – 7:15p) Yellow Springs Veterinary Clinic (25 Thomas Johnson Drive, Frederick), and Thursdays (7:30p – 8:15p) at Mount Airy Animal Hospital (1308 S. Main Street, Mt. Airy).

Cost
When you register, you'll receive five PCS sessions. You have seven weeks to fit in those five sessions, meaning if you can't make it one week (going on vacation, business travel, etc.), you won't lose out on that session. PCS is $159 and is available only to puppies 8 – 18 weeks of age. If your pup turns 19 weeks before you finish your PCS sessions, you can use your remaining sessions in Canine Building Blocks.

Questions?
We're here to help! Please email Smart Dog U (laurie@smartdoguniversity.com) or give us a call (240) 394-1112 if you have any questions about Puppy Charm School. We'll see you in class!

Dog Training: Puppy Primer

June 29, 2011

Do you know when your puppy’s no longer a puppy?

Socially, your pup turns into an adolescent between 16 and 20 weeks. Yup. Your 9-month old dog isn’t a puppy. Yowza! (They’ll still be growing for many more months, but we’re talking social development here, not physical.)

Lots of people like to chalk their dog’s mis-behavior up to “puppyhood.”

That doesn’t fly around here! Even 10 week old pups can learn the rules and how to follow ’em. So your “crazy 9-month old puppy” is more realistically an out-of-control adolescent dog!

What to do?

First, get that pup into training when she’s still a pup! If your pup is healthy and on a vaccination protocol (if she’s seen a vet and has had her first set of shots), get her in a good, positive reinforcement puppy class right away. We start training our service pups in-training at 8-weeks. A good breeder will start training the pups with a clicker when they are five or six weeks old!

Get her out (safely) often.

Not to a dog park. (ACK!) But to a lot of different locations every week. Think: shopping center, neighborhood (a different street each day), kids play-dates, soccer games, pool, beach, outdoor cafe, sidewalk, country road, the list goes on.

Be consistent.

Be fair. Teach her what she needs to know and be predictable! If you don’t want her on the furniture when she’s full grown, don’t let her on the furniture now!

I want to hear from you:
What do you wish you’d taught your pup when you first brought her (or him) home?
What are you thankful you DID teach your pup?

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Puppy

Lots of people like to chalk their dog’s mis-behavior up to “puppyhood.”

What to do?

Get her out (safely) often.

Be consistent.

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