Most Important Tips for Raising Your New Puppy

Raising and training a puppy is a huge responsibility. After all, your dog's obedience level depends entirely on you and the skills you teach it. In addition, if you deprive your puppy of certain elements, such as socialization, it can grow up to be shy, timid and even aggressive. While there are many important aspects of a raising a puppy, there are a few that top the list.

  1. Establish Your Dominance

    • A puppy who thinks it is in charge typically becomes disobedient and will not respond well to training. When your puppy comes into your home, it will immediately search for a leader and if it doesn't find one, it will assume the position itself. Therefore, it is up to you to show your puppy that you are the leader. According to TopPuppyTraining.com, leadership can be established by insisting your puppy receive permission from you before it eats. In addition, show your puppy that humans come first---literally. Walk through doors ahead of your pooch. While simple, this action shows the puppy that you are dominant.

    Crate Train Your Puppy

    • Crate training your puppy not only helps with potty-training but keeps your puppy safe as well. Dogs and puppies do not like to eliminate where they sleep or lie, so yours will likely avoid doing so in the crate. The crate will also keep your puppy safe from chewing electrical cords and other dangerous objects when left on its own. Help your puppy to become comfortable with the crate by placing toys and treats inside that encourage the pup to enter, suggests TopPuppyTraining.com. Initially, leave the puppy in the crate for short periods of time, then increase the length. Typically, a dog can hold its bladder for the same amount of hours it is old in months. For instance, a 3-month-old can probably go three hours without eliminating.

    Keep Things Positive

    • Reward your dog with positive reinforcement. When the puppy behaves the way you want it to, give it a treat as a reward. However, just like humans, puppies aren't perfect; therefore, expect mistakes to be made. Never punish your puppy when it has an accident or behaves in an undesirable way. Rather, encourage it to act otherwise with treats and praise. In addition, expose your puppy to new people and animals to help it become socialized. The more socialization the puppy receives, the more comfortable and familiar it will be around humans and animals, and its chances of becoming shy and timid decrease.