Puppies are fun, cute and exciting to be around. Just like babies, puppies require lots of attention and love being taken care of. Part of this care should include training. A puppy that is unsocialized and not trained properly can turn into an adult dog who is fearful and constantly misbehaves. Training typically works best on puppies who are very young, as there is some truth to the saying, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." In all actuality you can, but it's easier to teach them to a younger dog.
-
Puppy Development
-
Believe it or not, puppies start their training when they are in the whelping box with their mothers. While this doesn't consist of obedience training, it does include basic essentials, such as where to eliminate. Before three weeks of age, puppies are basically unaware of anything excepting sleeping, eating and their moms. Elimination is even done by a natural reflex that they do not control. Between 21 and 28 days of life however, puppies start to have an understanding of their environment and start to move to the corner of the box to potty. According to NetPets.com, modified crate and basic obedience training can begin at this age.
Beginning Crate Training
-
If your whelping box is big enough, place a crate inside the box so that the puppies can easily maneuver from one space to the next. If possible, you can also take the top of the crate off to make the puppies feel more comfortable inside. Line the bottom of the crate with blankets, but place paper along the outside of the crate. Eventually, your puppies will likely choose to sleep on the blankets and eliminate on the paper, which is the cornerstone of crate training.
If you do not obtain your puppy until she is a bit older, as most puppies aren't able to leave their mothers until eight weeks of age, begin crate training as soon as you obtain the puppy. According to the American Dog Trainer's Network, in general, puppies under nine weeks of age have to urinate about eight to 12 times a day. While this may not be advantageous to crate training, you can at least begin to familiarize the puppy with the crate by placing toys and treats inside to encourage it to go in and explore. Puppies under four months of age have very little control of their bodily functions, therefore, they sometimes don't know they have to potty until they are actually relieving themselves. Puppies should only be expected to hold their bladders for about the same length of time they are old in months. For example, a two-month-old puppy should not have to try to hold it for more than two hours. Of course, this time can vary per dog.
Basic Obedience Training
-
A puppy can begin to understand very basic commands around four weeks of age. Unless you are a breeder or have a dog who had puppies, you will have to rely on the breeder to teach these commands at this age, as most dogs cannot be taken away from their moms until they are eight weeks old. To begin teaching the command "stay," place one puppy on the floor, gently hold her into position and softly say "stay," then praise her with affection. When your puppies are together in a group, practice the "come" command. Do this by encouraging them to come to you by clapping and talking in a happy voice and saying the word "come." Once they have obeyed, reward them with affection.
If you get your puppy when it is an older age, begin training as soon as possible. Typically, puppies under five months of age are able to learn commands such as "sit," "come," "don't touch," and are able to walk on leashes. In addition, most obedience schools offer puppy classes for dogs who are 10 weeks of age. This is a good time to start these classes, if desired. Between five and eight months, "lay down," "beg," "roll over" and "stay" are typically learned and if desired, this is a good age to begin formal obedience classes.
Teach your dog all that you can. If your four-month-old is able to learn tricks that typically only older dogs learn, that's great. The younger your dog is when trained, the better. The puppy will obey you more when it is younger and will most likely not already have undesirable behaviors that need to be overcome.
-