Meakin
By Dr. Dan Meakin with All Creatures Trainer, Michael Snively

Puppies are extremely impressionable.  How you train and socialize your new pet will have dramatic and long lasting effects.  You can make your puppy a better pet and prevent behavior problems by following these guidelines:

Housebreaking

Establish a routine.  Keep the pup’s meals regularly scheduled to encourage more predictable elimination patterns.  Take your pup out every two hours during the day and as needed at night.  Select ONE toilet area.  Take your pup to the toilet area five minutes after feeding, awakening, riding in a car, greeting new people, or chewing on toys.  Recognize indicators such as circling or sniffing around.  When your pup relieves himself in the appropriate spot, immediately reward him with a food treat and verbal praise.  

If your puppy is sneaky about having accidents, try keeping his leash on and attach the other end to your belt. Having your puppy with you all the time will help you catch him in the act every time, which is crucial. Scolding or punishing after the fact does nothing to help the dog understand the right way to do things. Whenever you see an accident about to happen, immediately get your dog’s attention and rush him outside to communicate the proper routine.

Socialization

Introduce your pup to a variety of positive experiences to get him used to new people, animals, and environments. Visit three new places a week and introduce him to five new people at each place.  Take your pup in regular car rides–use a carrier to insure safer driving.

Socialize your puppy to certain activities as well. Brush your pup daily.  At the same time, handle your pups feet and ears and open his mouth for inspection and teeth-brushing, and massage him all over. If the pup fusses, be calm but firm and don’t give in to the protest, or he’ll learn that squirming, barking, or nipping gets him what he wants.

Gradually build the amount of time your dog can put up with this sort of handling, keeping it positive, where he receives a reward during or after the experience.   When he is quiet, talk to him in a soft, pleasant voice. Gradually acquaint him to very loud noises, like that of a vacuum cleaner–turn it on and off from a distance. With all socialization, taking a gradual approach will help ensure your puppy has a good experience.

Prevent Bad Habits

Make sure your puppy is getting enough exercise. Pent-up energy is one of the leading causes of obnoxious behavior.  A good rule of thumb is at least 5 minutes of vigorous exercise per month of age. So a 3 month old puppy should get at least 15 minutes, a 4 month old should get at least 20. Dogs over a year should get at least 30 minutes, but most could use a lot more than that! A tired dog is a happy dog, and it helps keep them healthy too!

Provide appropriate objects for chewing (NYLA-BONE products) and praise the puppy for chewing on these objects.  It is best to rotate toys to prevent boredom.  Gently punish appropriate chewing (clap hands, shout) while directing the puppy to appropriate objects.  Put your pup in a crate when you are unable to supervise.

Don’t allow aggressive or unruly behavior:  Mouthing hands, tug-of-war, jumping up, growling, guarding food, and nipping.  Competition between dog and owner should never be developed, even when it is playful.  Make it clear that playtime and attention ends abruptly when the puppy gets too rough.

Don’t allow jumping up.  Don’t allow other people to allow jumping up. Even if some people are ok with it, inconsistent training will confuse the dog. Never pet or talk sweetly to a dog that has only two feet on the ground.  Turn away and ignore him!  

Kneeing, hitting the dog under the chin, and squeezing the dog’s paws may actually lead to increased jumping.  If turning around and ignoring the dog only results in paw prints on your back, practice the sit command frequently, on-leash, in situations where the dog is most likely to jump – like at the front door as people come in. Once your dog is sitting, release the command and shower your dog with praise and attention – if this excitement prompts the dog to jump again, immediately say Off! as you pull your dog off, and then Sit! This exercise will condition your dog to sit politely for attention, and eventually, (if practiced consistently) you won’t even have to ask.

Make sure everyone who deals with the dog knows all the rules and enforces them the same way, or the dog will be confused.

Nothing is Free

Food rewards can help dogs learn new commands faster, but the “nothing is free” technique helps you establish leadership once those commands and behaviors are understood.  The concept is to teach your dog that “nothing in life is free.”  Your pup must obey a command before he or she gets anything he or she likes.  No food rewards are used.  The reward is what the dog wants in the particular situation, be it love, praise, pats, going out, etc.  Don’t allow your pup to be demanding in obnoxious ways.  The only way your dog should get what he or she wants is by behaving.

Additional Training

Additional training can begin as young as 8 weeks of age.  Your dog should be able to:
1. Walk calmly on a leash.
2. Focus on you to build attentiveness.
3. Sit, lay down, and stay until released.
4. Leave-it and ignore objects that are off-limits.
5. Take and drop objects when asked.
6. Come when called.

Training the right way helps foster the bond between us and our dogs, building a safe, respectful relationship and a healthy, stable pack.