01 Oct5 Key Concepts for Puppies
Puppies begin learning about the world from day one. Part of helping them develop into well-adjusted adults involves 5 key concepts: socialization, self control, focus, play and leadership.
Socialization:
Exposing your puppy to the world around them in a safe and positive way doesn’t just mean throwing as many new situations at them as possible. It means introducing them to new things that could be potentially scary in a safe, low-intensity environment. First impressions are very important; think quality over quantity!
- The prime socialization window is from 8 to 12 weeks in puppies. During this time we recommend you take your young puppy outside in a bag if they aren’t fully vaccinated to expose them to stimuli in a safe manner.
- Be smart about where you socialize and avoid overwhelming your puppy: steer clear of places like dog parks (unless perhaps if you are holding them in your arms outside the park), bodies of standing water and other areas where there might be dog fecal matter.
Self-control:
Teaching your puppy to control their impulses — also known as patience — is one of the keys to raising a polite adult dog and one of the secrets to preventing future behavior issues and aggression.
- Over time, dogs begin to understand that by offering what we consider “polite” behaviors, they will be rewarded and will start offering those instead of pushy, annoying behaviors to get what they want. This makes them a more polite member of human society.
- Start right away by asking your puppy to wait for things they want and/or to offer eye contact. Avoid rewarding pushy behaviors like jumping and barking by ignoring or disengaging your attention until they are doing something polite.
Focus:
Focus on you should always be encouraged. Eye contact is one of the most fundamental skills to teach your puppy.
- If you start off teaching them that most good things happen when they pay attention to you, imagine how easy it will be to get their attention!
- Start by practicing inside, where there isn’t much going on; then you can work up to asking for their attention around distractions.
Play:
Play is a great way to teach your puppy how to use their mouth. By directing them onto a toy you are preventing them from mouthing or nipping at you and encouraging them to take their energy out in appropriate ways.
- Games like tug, fetch and chase are fun for both of you, and can help create a bond so your puppy is more likely to listen to you.
- Play also provides great opportunities for you to teach self-control (i.e., teaching your puppy to drop the tug toy on cue and to make the game begin again).
Leadership:
Good news — you don’t have to use force or intimidation to convince your puppy that you are in charge! Convincing them that you control access to all the things they want works wonders.
- For example: teaching your puppy to offer a simple behavior like eye contact before they get to eat or go to say hi to another dog teaches them that YOU are the gateway to these resources.
- On a daily basis, this is the best way to get polite behaviors and use the things your puppy really wants as rewards such as toys, food and other people.
Are you looking for a Puppy Playtime in NYC? You can enroll in Puppy Playtime up to 7 days in advance. Our playtimes are the smallest in the city. A four dog maximum means we can carefully pair dogs who are appropriate; our experiences trainers offer each puppy ample attention. Puppy Playtime is currently being offered on Mondays & Fridays at 2:45, 3:45 & 4:45PM. Space is limited! Wait lists are available.
