1) General.
From the moment the puppy enters your home it will be learning what it is allowed to do. It will save many problems in the future if you and your family decide how you would like the adult dog to behave; where will it sleep, is it allowed on furniture, fed at the table, allowed to chew your things, or bark or bite. Most of these things are amusing as a puppy but difficult to change as the dog grows up if they are allowed while it is young. For example, if the grown dog is not to be allowed on furniture, the family should all agree to sit on the floor when they want the puppy in their laps, not on the sofa.
2) Housebreaking.
The bitch keeps the puppies clean for the first 3 or 4 weeks of life but once they can leave the nest she insists that they move as far from the nest as possible to relieve themselves. When the puppy has to be left alone, he should be in a small area, at first completely covered deeply with newspaper with his bed, water and food together at one end. His instinct will be to relieve himself at the point furthest from his bed and when this is well established the newspaper nearest the bed can be removed leaving only a pile at his chosen spot. If a puppy is left alone with the run of the house this same instinct will urge him to go to a room away from the area where he is fed and relieve himself on the carpet there. As there is no one there to correct him, relieving himself in the house becomes a habit. If this has happened, do not punish the puppy when you come home by scolding, spanking or putting his nose in it or you will have a dog that will use more hidden places to make its mess and also fear to relieve itself in your presence. Instead, immediately set up an area as described before, which might be a bathroom, kitchen, front hall or any area with a tiled floor from which the puppy cannot escape.
Training a puppy to be clean is mainly a case of anticipating his needs. Whenever the puppy awakes from a nap or has had a meal, put a lead on his collar (don't carry him) and walk him outside onto grass, using the same place. Use a phrase that you can use repeatedly without embarrassment that he will learn to associate with relieving himself, maybe "Clean dog" or "Hurry up". While he is relieving himself do not disturb him but show your pleasure with praise and pats as he finishes. In the house be prepared to take the puppy out immediately if it starts to sniff the floor in circles. If at any time you are too busy to watch the puppy carefully, put it back in its enclosure with the paper. In the beginning the puppy has very poor capacity to retain urine and faecal matter so it should not be put in a position where it breaks training because it was not put outside or could not reach its paper.
This sounds onerous but a puppy sleeps many hours of the day and for the other hours when it is awake and you are busy, it will be in its pen. With ample praise when the puppy uses the grass, the paper indoors will be used less and less but should be left available for some time after it is no longer being used so if there is an accident it will be on the paper, not on the floor.
3) Training.
It is not too early to start training your 7 week old puppy to come when called, sit, lie down and stay. Make lessons short and cheerful so you and the puppy both enjoy them. Use treats to keep the dog's attention. First get the pup to come by calling its name followed by "Come". Crouch down and pat your knees. Then get the dog to sit by raising the food in front of its face. Teach 'Down' from the sit position by lowering the food. When the puppy is older, enrolling him in obedience course teaches him to obey you in the presence of other dogs and people . I recommend the obedience courses given by Bob Ottenbrite, (902)-866-2273.
You will notice how closely the puppy will follow you when young. Take advantage of this by teaching the puppy to watch you when on walks together so as an adult dog you can let it run free in woods and have it always stay where it can see you. This is done by stepping, without warning, behind bushes and calling the puppy. Make a big fuss of the puppy when it finds you. Continue this as the dog gets older but no longer call it and make yourself more and more difficult to find. Praise and reward the dog when he finds you. When you come to a fork in the path take one of them without slowing down or calling the dog. I have used this on numerous dogs and soon I would see them looking frequently over their shoulders to check I was still there. The puppy should be exposed repeatedly to new situations; people of all ages, other dogs, strange flapping and noisy objects and crowds. If the dog shows fear, reassure it in a matter of fact manner and walk up and down passing the frightening object first at a distance and then closer until the dog ignores it.
4) Preventing problems.
To stop biting, do not allow the puppy to bite even "in fun". If the puppy bites you, say "No biting", grab the puppy's muzzle and give it a little squeeze so that the top lips are pressed against the teeth. This will make the puppy open his mouth and is uncomfortable. Immediately the puppy lets go and backs up, offer the arm or hand he had bitten, saying "No biting". If he again bites, repeat with a harder squeeze of the muzzle, all the time repeating "No biting". You may get a little "yip" from the pup. If when you present your hand and the puppy backs away, immediately praise him. Also give lavish praise if the puppy comes up and licks you.
To stop chewing on your clothes and furniture, always have a rawhide strip available and play with the puppy to encourage him to chew it. If the dog as it gets older, eats the rawhide instead of just chewing it, replace it with a Nylabone, again encouraging the dog to chew it. Never give the dog old shoes or gloves to chew and scold it if it ever bites anything other than its own bone or ball, following the scolding by immediately offering and making the dog play with the bone. If the puppy bites a child or its clothing, you should grasp the muzzle and pinch with a "No biting" just as before, then present the child's clothing but catch the puppy's muzzle and give a harder squeeze if it attempts to bite again. The same technique can be used to train the puppy not to bite furniture such as table legs but now the puppy has to be brought back to the object. When the puppy has bitten clothing or furniture and has been punished it is a good idea to immediately present a rawhide chew and play with the puppy until it bites it. Praise the puppy at this time so you redirect its focus next time it has an overwhelming desire to chew, to a permitted object. Do not do this after bites at people in case it is seen as a reward.
To stop barking, discourage the dog from barking more than a few times when someone comes to the door. Severe barking can be stopped after the command "Be quiet" by directing a fine spray of 50:50 white vinegar and water into the dog’s mouth the moment he opens it to bark.
Many dogs, well trained in the beginning, in their "teen-age" period of 6 to 12 months become disobedient. This is normal but they must not be allowed to succeed. To correct it, never give a command you cannot enforce. For example, your dog may start to ignore you when you call it to come. Do not chase it, as dogs love to be chased and this rewards the disobedience. If it runs away, walk in the opposite direction or start to play with a ball. Curiosity will bring the dog to you but engage the dog in your game instead of grabbing it. Only when it has forgotten about the disobedience, clip the leash on the collar. To stop all disobedience, start a regular training session of 5 or 10 minutes a day in which you have the dog on a lead and go over all the commands, giving each only once in a firm voice and forcing the dog to obey -- but being generous with rewards and praise when it does. On walks put the dog on a 30 or 40 foot nylon cord (available by the foot from Canadian Tire). When the dog is not watching you, call, and if it does not immediately come, pull the dog to you hand over hand. Tell it to sit and praise and reward. Once it is coming immediately, you can let the dog trail the rope behind it. Before you call, pick up the end of the rope so you can correct if necessary. Always carry special treats so the dog comes to look forward to being called and responding.
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