Training a Puppy
Training a puppy is as important as giving it a home. Puppies, like children, are not born knowing what to do. As their owner it is down to you to decide how you want them to behave and train them accordingly. You can train them yourself or hire some professional help. There are also plenty of local dog training classes available too.
There are different kinds of training ranging from basic obedience to behaviour, working or even agility and performance. Whichever level you want your dog to reach, all puppies need basic instruction on behaviour and obedience.
Behavioral training relates to correcting bad habits that the puppy may go on to develop if left unchecked. Some of these bad habits can include, jumping up, chasing cars, destroying furniture and biting, in fact any unwanted behaviour is a bad habit to you. Consistency is important during the training process. For example, only allow your puppy to sit on the couch if you are planning to allow it to sit on the couch in the future. Think long term in relation to what you want a big fully grown dog to be allowed to do. No matter how cute the puppy is now, you have to stick to your guns in terms of allowed behaviour. For effective communication with your dog, you need to understand natural puppy behavior and satisfy the natural instincts of your puppy – there are plenty of books and websites to help you in this regard.
Obedience training goes a step further by training your dog to obey simple commands. These could be commands such as stay, come, sit etc. You need to engage in training sessions but they must be kept short - otherwise, your dog will get bored. Training sessions that last ten to fifteen minutes, two times daily will be more than enough.
Whenever you give your dog a command, be sure to use its name. You need to address it by its name so it understands you are talking to it specifically.. After you have said its name, use one-word commands such as sit, stay or come. It is vital that you do not get impatient you will have to repeat the same command many times over for a successful outcome – it can take weeks or months depending on the command. Always be careful to use positive reinforcement such as kibble, praise or a favourite toy or game. If you punish your dog, they are less likely to listen to your commands in future. Always give your commands in a loud and clear voice.










