Training

Training is not only an important thing to do to ensure you raise a good canine citizen, but also a great way to build a bond with your puppy. Training can start from the day you bring your puppy home. Your puppy will have been taught to sit before receiving any food or treats. We encourage you to continue this process with your puppy  

Training sessions should be kept short as your puppy’s little brain will struggle to stay focused for long periods of time. Three to four 5 minute training sessions a day is much more beneficial then one 15 minute session. Meal times are great times to train your pup. We encourage you to make your puppy work for his/her food at all times. You may use your dogs meal as training rewards during the session.  

We highly recommend clicker training as a means to improve your communication with your pup while training Here is a link to a video to help you get started 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPDOrEEsAJ8  

Remember to always make your training sessions fun! If you are feeling frustrated, your puppy will pick up on this. If your puppy is struggling with an exercise or getting bored, finish on a command your puppy knows well and reward heavily. Always end on a good note when finishing training sessions.  

Crate training 

We feel crate training your puppy is an important life skill for your puppy. We will have begun the process of crate training with your puppy. Your pup will likely need to visit the vet, groomer or travel somewhere in a crate sometime in the future. Having your puppy crate trained means one less stress for your puppy in these situations  The aim of crate training is to provide a safe haven/space for your pup to retreat to. It is important to communicate to the whole family that the puppy should not be disturbed when in his/her crate.   

Here is a link on the process of crate training https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hesi8WxLWVE  

I recommend feeding your puppy their meals or yummy chews in the crate to help them associate the crate as a great place where they receive good things  

Toilet training 

Puppies need to go out to the toilet frequently. Remember the key times to take your puppy out to the toilet is after Sleeping Eating Drinking Play  When taking your puppy out to the toilet, stand outside and do not encourage play or give your puppy too much attention. If you find your all your puppy wants to do is play, taking your puppy out on lead may be beneficial to prevent them getting distracted. Remember to praise your puppy after they have toiletted outside  If your puppy does not go after waiting for a long period of time, bring your puppy inside and place him/her into their pen or crate. This will help to reduce the likelihood of them toileting inside. Take them out again after 5 minutes or so to give them another opportunity to toilet