Dog obedience training starts when the little tyke first comes home; the moment he toddles through the door. Too often, bad behavior is considered to be cute when training puppy, and bothersome only after he, and his bad habits, grow.
The key to stopping digging and chewing behaviors before they start is to nip them in the bud: the puppy bud, that is. I know he’s cute. I know that he can melt your heart like a snowball in July. But, if you want the well behaved dog of your dreams, you must plant your dog training resolve on the first day of puppy ownership.
Excuses are bad ways to start puppy training. A top dog trainer might cringe if he or she heard you making the following excuses for bad puppy behavior:
Jumping up: Puppy jumps on kids, guests, and you.
Excuse: He barely comes to my knees. Puppy is just looking for attention, and if I give it to him, he’ll get down.
Truth: If you give your puppy attention when he jumps up, he’ll learn that it’s not only acceptable, but a quick way to get what he wants. By allowing it to happen, you’re establishing a bad habit. And by the way, it won’t be cute when your dog’s front paws are clawing at your neck.
Dog barking: Your puppy barks whenever he wants attention. He barks when he wants out of his crate. He barks when you’re paying bills and he’d rather play tug of war. So you let him out of the crate, or stop what you’re doing to throw a ball.
Excuse: He’s a playful puppy, and needs my attention. If I give it to him when he barks, he’ll stop.
Truth: By answering your puppy’s demands, you’re teaching him that dog barking is an acceptable way to get your attention. You’re setting yourself up for a decade or more of dog barking. Attention should only be given when your puppy is silent.
Puppy biting: When playing with puppy, he gets overly excited and tends to snap at fingers and hands.
Excuse: Puppy biting is cute, and doesn’t hurt too much. He’s not doing any harm.
Truth: Get back to me when he weighs eighty pounds and takes a chunk out of a forearm.
Puppy chewing: You will not tolerate the chewing of your precious King Louis XVI dining room set, but you don’t mind that puppy is gnawing on the old, ratty recliner.
Excuse: Even Goodwill wouldn’t take that recliner. It keeps pup occupied and away from the expensive furniture.
Truth: The puppy’s chewing attention needs to be diverted to proper chew toys. It’s only a matter of time before he moves on to performing a termite act on King Louis.
Dog walking: When you put the leash on puppy, he catapults himself into the air like a Mexican jumping bean. He tugs and chews on the leash. He tries to pull you, but he’s not strong enough.
Excuse: Where does he think he’s taking me? I’m too big; he can’t budge me. Anyway, he’s burning energy.
Truth: Whoa! At least that’s what you’ll be saying when he’s eighty pounds and bouncing you off of fire hydrants.
Like you, I’m an animal lover. I know how difficult it can be to look into those shiny brown eyes, framed by that fuzzy little face, and stick to your puppy training guns. But I also know that training your dog will be much simpler if he hasn’t picked up bad habits. Your puppy needs routine, and will benefit from predictable, positive reinforcement of good behavior.
Good puppy training will make puppy care seem simple. Use the easy dog training techniques that are employed by top dog trainers to learn the proper dog walking techniques, to stop digging and chewing behaviors, to curb puppy biting, and to stop other annoying behaviors like dog barking and jumping.
If you’re hoping for a quality, respectful, and loving dog human relationship, you won’t mind sticking to your guns from day one; because if you do, your dog will stick by you for the rest of his life.
