The things you shuld have done with your dog when it was a puppy

The Lounge General Discussion
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I just adopted my first puppy, a week ago, she’s lighting my life and it is very chalenging.

Her name is bully, mixed, gonna be a large dog and, hopefully a great partner to a long walk.

What are the things in your everyday life with your dog that you think you shuld have done better when it was a puppy?

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I’ve not really had puppies since I was a kid but I’ve rescued a fair few dogs over the years.
The one thing I never do and always regret when I get a new dog is to really hammer the recall training.
My dogs are wankers when they’re not on a lead, so they end up spending most of their walks on a lead to avoid them trying to eat other animals, eating/rolling in other animals’ shit, trying to drown themselves in rivers, scaring joggers (apparently Staffordshire Bull Terriers are scary) and otherwise acting the knob. Don’t get me wrong, my dogs will come back if I call them, but not until they’ve finished whatever knobbery they’re up to.
I can think of about 1000 occasions when better recall training would have made my dog walks less annoying.

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Thanks, yap, It is a must.

We did “click and treat” yesterday. I should get better, synced and focused in this aspect.

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Have it socialise with other dogs as much as possible, I didn’t have our Akita as a puppy and she can be unpredictable when out.

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She loves cats, dogs and children, she’s so happy to socialize and I’m socializing too, something I didnt trained myself very much to do in the last years :slight_smile:

Add: her foster had in the flat 3 cats and a 10 month dog, she’s been there month and half

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As ridiculous as the name is, I confess we have sent out young puppies to “Puppy Kindergarten” (the real name is America - or at least my part of America) - basically a few classes of basic training. Seems worth it to get some basics down.

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Someone told me his father paid 500$ for a week of training. The dog came back compleitly diffrent and better.

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Main things would be food possession, socialising, recall in that order IMHO.

Food possession because there may be times when you need to stop your dog from eating, or if kids get too close while your dog is eating. Very easy to do when they are young, same for toy possession.

Socialising because dogs that are fearful are the ones most likely to attack other dogs or people, confident dogs are rarely aggressive, most aggression in dogs is fear based.

Recall because you don’t want your dog running off into the road or after other people/dogs/cats etc.

Most of the dogs I get are rescues so some of these things can be difficult or impossible, but I won’t rehome a dog if it is food possessive or aggressive as those dogs unfortunately are not suitable for rehoming unless to very experienced and responsible people. Once you have seen a dog attack and almost kill a child in front of you, you have no wish ever to see it again.

If it is going to end up growing into a powerful dog then really these 3 things are essential, and especially food possession can be started ASAP, socialising as soon as the dog has been fully inoculated, and next recall in the garden or other closed off non public area first.

Then other things like taking food gently, sit, stay etc. getting them used to travelling in the car, can be taught after.

There is nothing like a well balanced dog, it is a real pleasure, a badly behaved unpredictable dog is a nightmare.

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Clicker training worked really well with my Boston terrier. I recommend it. She is still a spaz and doesn’t always come when called, but I think that’s just her making an informed decision, she certainly knows what the hell im talking about.

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Train and train and train and socialize times three. Dogs love to learn and they love to do stuff with you. Take your dog with you everywhere and train it to be comfortable and obedient in a variety of situations. Also start a hobby with your dog, be it nosework or agility or obedience training or whatever.

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Brush her teeth every day. With a toothbrush and optional toothpaste for dogs (it takes about 30sec/day and will save you soooo much potential hassle and money down the road). Don’t use “dental sticks” they have the opposite effect unfortunately. And get her used to being handled and looked thru, holding paws and so on.
If you can, us a harness and not a collar for the leash, a lot of dogs get neck problems later in life. Not so shocking when you think of it.
And most important of all, recognizing good behavior and rewarding that. This will build confidence and trust. And enjoy! :smiley:

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Lots of great tips here.
I haven’t had a puppy, just a rescue (Northern Inuit)
He’s the most chill dog I’ve ever met.
Pure luck that I don’t have to do anything.

He:
Likes the cat.
Doesn’t care about other dogs.
Listens when I tell him to come or stop doing something.
Gives me whatever is in his mouth he isn’t supposed to have.
Only barks at balls floating in swimming pools and absolutely nothing else.

I’ll remember these tips if I ever have a puppy.

So my tip:

Skydiving :parachute:

He doesn’t seem to want to jump out of a plane as an adult :confused:

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Learn as much as you can about separation anxiety and encouraging independence while she’s still young - could save you (and her) a world of hurt in the future.

As much as we loved her, also had terrible problems with my last dog with SA and she was only a wee thing - something that may have been avoided through better training as a puppy (she was an adult rescue).

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Thank you very much guys.

Your Information is very valueable for me.

We gonna have here training lockdown for the next two weeks :slightly_smiling_face:

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I haven‘t watched this…i was that child!
I hate dogs, and ppl. who don’t train their effing dogs.

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The post grew long, but might be important.
The better a dog is, the more freedom it can be granted.

  • Always call the puppy when it is already coming to you, not when it is playing and doesn’t listen anyway. Then reward every time.
  • Say “sit” when the puppy sits, not when you want it to sit down.
  • If you want/say something, the dog has to do it every time. If not, it learns that it is not always important what you say.
  • If the puppy did something bad, never punish with its name. Just say “no” or something else in a deep tone.
  • If you don’t allow something, it has to be forbidden every time, really every time, no exception.
  • For each month of age, play/walk only 5 min at once, not more. Especially if it is going to be a large dog.
  • Depending on race, you have to get your puppy to rest/sleep 20 h/day. Don’t let it play all the time, it will become hyperactive and/or hypersensitive because of overload.
  • Set the alarm every 2-3 h at night. Grab the puppy, carry it outside and let it do its toilet-business on the same spot each time. Reward.
  • During day it is: sleep, instantly go outside for toilet when it wakes, then play or food.
  • A dog just does what it is used to do, so prevent everything bad from happening before it happens first time. (hide shoes, before it bites them first time.)
  • Never give it human-food from the table or in the kitchen or when you eat.
  • In contact with other dogs: Always help your puppy with problems and solve every problem for it! It will learn to come to you and not solve problems on its own.
  • Feed good food and not too much!
  • Most dogs want to bite, hunt, search. Find plays to bite/hunt/search and it will be satisfied.
  • When the puppy is used to you, start to take it everywhere you also want to take it later. (Restaurant, bus, …)
  • Let the dog play with kids, so it will get used to them from the beginning.
  • Don’t feel silly to follow your agenda in front of other people, or your dog will learn it can do what it wants in front of others.
  • Make absolutely sure that every family-member and visitor follows these/your rules. This is usually the hardest part of all!

Most things depend on the race and personality.

What i do:

  • I always start training from day one. When i get a puppy with 8 weeks, i already start with “Futtertreiben” (don’t know an English word…) 2-3 times each day.
  • I practice NIFIL - nothing is free in life: the dog has to do something before every food or play. It will learn that its life is to follow your commands.
  • I never let my dogs shit in the garden, only outside.
  • I walk without leash outside (if possible) and just walk my way, so the puppy learns to follow the pack and keeps focus on you.
  • I feed raw meat and animal-parts.
  • I never make exceptions or forget to “punish” my dogs because they are young and sweet.

At the moment i have a 3 years old female Doberman from professional working line. She is the best and most intelligent dog i every had, but she is/was very time-consuming and demanding. With such a race one has to be careful what one thinks, because the can read your mind.

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Oh, man, I’m right there with you as a 10-week-old border collie-poodle cross (heavier on the poodle) has just joined my tribe.

Thanks for starting this thread - it’s a godsend!

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Sorry to hear it, I was a child when I saw it, and it did put me off dogs for a very long time, so no wonder that you feel that way.

I think that irresponsible dog breeding is to blame in many of these cases, where dogs are inbred over a few generations by assholes wanting to cash in, or by owners who encourage aggression in their dog.

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Reading this thread with a lot of interest as we are awaiting an 8 weeks old Golden Retriever :slight_smile:

Edit: I have been wanting a dog for years (decades) but always convinced (by facts) myself it was a little on the selfish side. Living by the sea in the south of Spain a laid-back way of life, I think the time is right. Still I understand the meaning of such a move. Can’t wait :slight_smile:

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Having dogs is a huge responsibility.
In the wrong environment, any dog can kill.
Of course, some dogs are more dangerous than others. I tend to rescue Staffordshire bull terriers and, though they tend to be the most loyal, human loving dogs around, I am always aware that, should one of them turn, their natural instinct is to go for the throat, whereas a Labrador might be more inclined to go for an arm or a leg.
Good socialisation and building trust early on is essential for reducing the risk of aggressive behaviour.

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