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New Beginning: A New Puppy
Last month I mentioned how important is it is for the breeder to
stimulate the puppy’s senses prior to the time they are ready to go home. One
article worth reading and sharing with the breeder is, “Breeding Better
Dogs” from the B.E.I. publications. The link is:
http://www.breedingbetterdogs.com/achiever.html.
This site explains the use of early neurological stimulation with puppies
starting at day three through 16. It also has pictures to help show how this is
done. It is worth looking into and deciding if this is something that you and
the breeder feel comfortable doing. I believe that many breeders who focus on
raising performance puppies do some variation of early neurological stimulation,
whether it is “formal” as outlined by the article or informal.
When the pups are ready to go home, many times the breeder will have
someone temperament test the litter. This, combined with the careful ongoing
observation of the breeder will give some good indications of the puppy’s
future potential. Additional test may be done to check on birdiness if one is
planning to do field work as well as obedience. It is a good idea to talk to the
breeder and see how the pups will be raised and tested prior to committing to
the litter. Having a good relationship with your puppiy’s breeder can have
many benefits, including a lifetime friendship!
The next step is bringing the little fluff ball home and taking over the
responsibility for its care and development. Now the fun begins! In addition to
the typical household training that goes on, it is important to start you
obedience training early on also. Fun and games interwoven with skills that will
later be needed to compete is where the training begins. In my last article, I
mentioned that it is important to get you puppy out and expose them to all sorts
of experiences and environments. Walking in the woods is a great place to
provide lots of fun. Puppies stumble over small logs, listen to the sounds of
leaves or twigs snapping, maybe go through some wet spots or through a shallow
river or stream. What an adventure, while all the time the pup is learning
balance, not to be concerned about sounds, learning that water can be fun etc.
When the puppy comes home, it soon learns about baths too!
Once game I like to play with a young pup is a chase game with a ball or
a stuffed toy on a string. I drag it along or toss it and encourage the pup to
chase it. If the pup retrieves it, that is an added bonus!! Since it is on a
string, you can encourage the pup to bring it back for the game to start over
again. Whenever the puppy brings something back, I always play with the toy with
the puppy. I do not immediately take the object from the pup. This way they soon
learn that the fun comes from me! Some pups need more encouragement with this
game than others! When choosing a puppy, I always put a great deal of weight on
the chase drive and retrieving ability of the puppy. Now it is my job to
continue to build on this natural ability that the puppy showed. I start this
game pretty young and stop before the puppy tires.
Many puppies tend to stay pretty close the first several weeks so I like
to take advantage of this time. This time can be used to start the bonding
process that will help to cement a strong relationship that is very helpful when
competing in obedience. Introduction to the leash and collar takes place at this
time also and gives you a tool if the pup decides to wonder off, especially as
they get older and braver. As the handler, you want to become the most important
thing in your performance puppy’s life. This means that you have to control
some of its actions. Running away after a retrieve or taking off on their own to
explore, can be controlled by letting the leash or long line drag and when this
occurs, stepping on it and calling the puppy to you for a fun reunion! This is
the beginning of teaching, “come”. This also starts to develop respect from
the puppy, and begin your leadership training. Each of these components,
bonding/relationship, respect, leadership are all very important for your
success later on in the obedience ring. Start them young and be consistent.
The question often comes up in a multi-dog household about whether to
allow the puppy complete assess to the other canine members of the household or
not. This is something that you will have to consider, however, it is very
important that the puppy bonds with you and not the other dogs in the house.
You’ll need to make sure that there is plenty of special time that is just
between you and the puppy. You want to be the center of its world! I
also feel it is important not to allow your young puppy to run freely with your
older dogs. When going out together, I recommend one of them be on a leash until
the puppy’s bones are totally developed to avoid any injuries.
I begin teaching stand, down (fold back) and sit soon after my pup comes
home. First I teach each skill individually, using treats to bribe the pup in to
each position. For each position, I am on my knees and the puppy is in front of
me. Put a couple of small treats in your hand, help the puppy to stand (for just
a moment), treat. Repeat a couple of times. In another training session, teach
the down, take a small treat, move it down and towards the puppy and encourage
it to fold back into a down, you may need to use your hand on its shoulder to
help with this, then treat. For the sit, take the treat, move it slightly up and
forward to encourage the pup to come up into a sit, I’ll often put my hand
near the pup’s bottom and help it to scoot into the sit as it goes for the
treat. Be careful to keep the treat slightly up and forward so the puppy does
not learn to rock back to sit. This soon becomes a game, where the three skills
are combined into “puppy push ups”. The puppy is helped into a stand (if
help is still needed), treated, then into the down, treated, and then moved into
the sit and treated. What fun and the beginning of the signal exercise in
utility!
More puppy games to come. If you have some cute games that you play with
your performance puppy, please be sure to share. I can be reached at indy@centurytel.net.
Happy training! |
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