Service Dog

Last Friday, Talos and I attended the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce's first Social Media Conference. I was excited for two reasons: first, this was going to be an educational event for me; and second, this was a great opportunity to socialize Talos, our service pup in training. He's just 11 weeks old, the perfect age for introducing him to new experiences.

I prepared for this event for two weeks. In my bag, I had food, water, bowls, interactive toys, his bed, and plenty of patience. There were over 100 people attending the conference. I paired scary applause with praise, treats, and playing. I made sure he was happy, not scared. I helped him through potentially scary situations (the lunch line, for example – he'd never been in such close quarters with so many people, had never been on a marble floor, and had never been in a room that noisy with that many people). I was also prepared to leave at any time if Talos became over-aroused, fearful, or uncomfortable. Yes, I paid a lot of money to attend, but for us this was really about Talos, not about social media. As you can see from the picture above, snapped by a fellow attendee, Talos settled right in and was so relaxed he fell asleep (and even snored!).

Dogs have several developmental stages, and the socialization window begins to close around 12 weeks and is effectively over by 16 weeks. In Maryland, it's illegal to remove a puppy from his mother before 8 weeks of age. New puppy owners have to act fast in order to get their pup exposed to as many things as possible in just four weeks.

Puppy socialization should be well thought out, planned, and systematic. You can't just put a puppy in any situation and consider him socialized. No, proper socialization takes time and effort. But proper socialization pays! You're less likely to have a fearful, aggressive, or "quirky" dog if you socialize him properly.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you develop your socialization plan for your pup:

• This is all for the puppy. You have to be ready to leave if the pup is overwhelmed. If you can't leave, don't go.
• Be ready to intervene if pup isn't having a good time. If he's overwhelmed by people, step between your pup and the people. Direct the people how to pet your pup, don't allow too many at once to interact with your pup. 
• Carry yummy treats to give to people who want to say hi to your puppy. Have them offer the treats and allow the pup to come to them.
• Show people how to pet your puppy — under the chin, not over the head. Teach them to kneel down, turn sideways, and talk in a happy, but calm voice.
• Give your puppy as much time as he needs to investigate new things.
• Don't drag your puppy toward or away from anything! (Except if the situation is dangerous. Then pick your puppy up and walk away calmly.)
• Never (ever) punish your puppy when he's experiencing something new. (We rarely punish anytime!)
• Keep your pup on the fringe of things until he's calm. Then venture forward at his pace.
• Be very careful letting your pup interact with other dogs. If the other dog is out of control — even if they are super friendly — keep walking. Even a friendly, but exuberant dog, can injure or scare your dog. It's not worth taking the chance.
• Variety is key. You want your puppy to see as many different variations on: people (age, size, sex, dress, skin color, etc.), places (indoor, outdoor, crowded, quiet, noisy, etc.), and surfaces(pavement, gravel, carpet, astro-turf, concrete, decking, shiny floors, slippery floors, etc.).

Socialization can't be done in just one day or even one week. Pups need to see new things every day. Which means you'll be busy thinking of new places to take your pup. And spending a considerable amount of time getting your pup out to see those new places, people, and experiences. It's not enough to let your pup see the same group of people or dogs over and over during that socialization period – you need new dogs, new people, and new experiences.

Socialization is very important and can be fun, too. Start making a list of all the places and things your pup needs to see and then get out there and just do it! Just be sure your pup is having fun!

Teaching a puppy to love it's crate is an important task. Regardless of whether you want to crate your dog at home, at some point your dog will probably be crated somewhere: the vet, groomer, or if you travel. So why not teach your pup to love the crate from Day 1.

I start by feeding all meals in the crate. The door is open, so the puppy is free to leave whenever he wants. Also, I throw a handful of his food in the crate every now and then. The puppy begins to think the crate is almost magical – that's where all the good stuff originates: his dinner, snacks, and unpredictable good rewards!

So far in Talos' training, I've not had to shut him in the crate and leave. However, tomorrow I'll have to do just that, so today I'll begin teaching Talos how to be alone in the crate for a few minutes at a time. To teach your pup (or older dog) this, start by gathering some of the most delicious food you've got. I recommend leftover chicken or steak. While your pup is watching, toss a treat into the crate (toward the back). When he's eating that goodie, quietly close the door. Toss him another goodie into the crate. And another, and another. You're teaching your pup that even better stuff comes when the crate door is closed. After about 45 seconds of this, open the door and allow the pup to leave. If he doesn't want to leave the crate, don't force him. Simply walk away. In about 30 seconds, repeat the entire process. As your pup improves and can stay in the crate longer (with you still there, tossing tasty treats), you're ready for the next step.

This time, after you've tossed the goodie into the crate to get your pup to go in, you're going to walk out of sight for just two seconds – no longer. Return and immediately drop a few treats in the crate for your pup. Repeat the process several times, ensuring the pup isn't in distress while you're out of sight for two seconds. If he's doing just fine, you can now increase the time you're out of sight. Keep this easy for the pup – increase your time in one- to two-second increments at a time. Don't jump from two seconds to ten seconds right away. You're teaching your puppy that good things happen when you're gone for a few seconds.

Gradually, you'll increase the time you're out of sight until you get up to five minutes or so. Once I reach that milestone, I usually begin giving the pup a peanut-butter filled food toy as I walk away. This gives the pup something else to focus on, and will keep him busy, too.

Spending time on this skill is well worth the effort. A dog who hasn't had good crate experiences isn't likely to enjoy the crate. He may begin to refuse to go into the crate or associate the crate with punishment. Make sure you start on this skill as soon as you bring your pup home.

Service Dogs of Virginia chooses a particular theme by which the pups in that particular class are named. This class of service pups has mythological names, so we chose Talos for our new pup.

In the Cretan tales incorporated into Greek mythology, Tálos was a giant man of bronze who protected Europa in Crete, circling the island's shores three times daily while guarding it. The new Dane pup is a harlequin (spotted) Dane, and his spots have a bronze tint. Hence, the name Talos.

Talos joined our family Friday night (May 22) at 9:30p after a very long car ride from Massachussets. He's exactly nine weeks old. His coloring, spotted all over, is called Harlequin. (For those that know the Great Dane breed standard, you'll notice right away he doesn't meet that standard because of his pink nose and his brownish spots. The breeder of these Danes breeds specifically for service work, not to meet breed standard color.)

He's getting accustomed to his new digs and his new canine siblings. We're beginning to teach him that his crate is a great place to be, as well as teaching him how to manipulate food-stuffed toys. Of course, he's learning a lot more than just that: we're also working on house training, sit to greet (you don't want a full size Dane jumping on you, believe me!), and socialization.

Stay tuned, there will be plenty more updates!