I have heard it said, “If your dog doesn’t ‘come’, you don’t have a dog.” Instead of debating that, let’s teach your puppy to ‘come’ whenever and wherever you ask. It’s all part of the manners game – ‘sit’ for leash on, ‘sit’ for leash off, ‘sit’ before going through a doorway, ‘sit’ for dinner. All these required ‘sits’ keep Bozo’s energy under control. If Bozo’s energy is controllable, he’s [...] Read more »
Training Your Puppy To Stand From A Sit and From A Down
Muddy, wet Bozo comes in the door and ‘sits’ like the well-trained puppy he is. If he knows how to ‘stand’ when asked, the drying off becomes much easier. It’s also a useful position for the vet and the groomer. Of course you have kibble in your pocket. There’s kibble in the pocket of everything you own! (At least for these first weeks.) So, standing about a foot or less [...] Read more »
Training Your Puppy To Lie Down On Command
Now that you’re well on your way to a reliable ‘sit’ across the room using only a hand signal, let’s talk about ‘down’. Once you, not Bozo, have the methods of teaching the ‘sit’, ‘down’ and ‘stand’, you can (and I think it’s a good idea) teach all three simultaneously. Then, especially for the super-energetic dog, you can ask for a ‘sit’, ‘down’, ‘stand’, ’down’, ‘sit’, ‘stand’ in sequence. First [...] Read more »
Training Your New Puppy To Sit
We’ve talked about ‘sit’ quite a bit already. In fact, I have suggested that you teach Bozo to ‘sit’ even if you teach him nothing else. It is so easy to teach a young puppy, though, it seems crazy to me not to teach them lots more. It’s not only easy but fun and the benefits… limitless. But I digress… SIT Get your bag of kibble. Put a couple of [...] Read more »
Puppy Socialization … Exploring The World
Whatever is in his immediate environment such as carpet, grass, flooring, pavement, cement and gravel will probably become familiar to Bozo within a few days of your getting him home. Surfaces like ice, beach rocks or sand you may want to introduce. Then again, maybe you won’t. The only reason I mention this is so YOU won’t be surprised if Bozo balks at walking on any strange surface. Again, it’s [...] Read more »
Watch Out For These Common Training Mistakes!
- It is important to have a plan i.e. what to do when Bozo jumps up and everyone including visitors follows it. Stay with it. - No puppy training. Regardless of the size of your puppy, he needs to be taught manners in order to be a well-behaved adult - Stopping training too soon. Training and reinforcement is a lifetime affair. It never stops. Read more »