Written and shared with permission of Dana Bjornerud, owner of Motivation K9....
Here are my recommendations on how specifically survive puppyhood:
1) Immediately put in place, and reinforce, the rules you want for your dog. Yes, I said dog, not puppy. What you teach now will carry into adulthood. So if you think it’s adorable that your 15 pound Great Dane puppy crawls on your head while you’re sleeping, imagine how “cute” it’ll be when he’s 100+ pounds. It’s easier to teach from the go.
2) Every moment you are interacting, both you and your puppy are learning. Every moment, every touch, is reinforcement (making the preceding behavior more likely) or punishment (making the preceding behavior less likely). Actively holding a clicker and treats in training mode is definitely not the only moment the pup is learning. If he barks and you pet him – he learned. If he looked at the back door and you let him out to pee – he learned. Remember this, as you can look back and figure out where a behavior came from!
Here are my recommendations on how specifically survive puppyhood:
1) Immediately put in place, and reinforce, the rules you want for your dog. Yes, I said dog, not puppy. What you teach now will carry into adulthood. So if you think it’s adorable that your 15 pound Great Dane puppy crawls on your head while you’re sleeping, imagine how “cute” it’ll be when he’s 100+ pounds. It’s easier to teach from the go.
2) Every moment you are interacting, both you and your puppy are learning. Every moment, every touch, is reinforcement (making the preceding behavior more likely) or punishment (making the preceding behavior less likely). Actively holding a clicker and treats in training mode is definitely not the only moment the pup is learning. If he barks and you pet him – he learned. If he looked at the back door and you let him out to pee – he learned. Remember this, as you can look back and figure out where a behavior came from!
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