What to Expect with a New Puppy
NEW PUPPY!!!
That’s so exciting!! I bet they’re so cute and fluffy! You have some work ahead of you, but it’s worth it! And if we do it, right, you can set your dog up for a lifetime of confidence and success.
Play!
There’s nothing better to do with a puppy than play. Teach them that you are the most interesting thing in the world and that they will always have a place to be who they are so they won’t look for that fulfillment elsewhere. Border collies that don’t learn how to chase balls often end up chasing cars and bicycles. German Shepherds and Pitbull that don’t learn how to play (and win) at tug, often end up looking for aggressive outlets elsewhere. Play with your puppy. Play a lot. Learn more about play here:
https://www.thetrustedcompanion.com/thetrustedcompanionblog/play-why-its-important-and-how-to-do-it
Goals: what do you want to do with your puppy
I’d figure out about what your goals are for him or her. There are loads of fun things you can do with your dog as they get older and many roles they can play in their relationship with you and your family! Possibilities include:
Household companion
Tracking
Nosework
Bitework
Agility
Dock Diving
Flyball
Herding
Frisbee Competitions
And many more!
The list of drive sports your puppy could grow into is endless, and where your dog can pick those up at any age, doing the right things now could set them on a path of higher-level success. Most dogs are also content to just hang out with you and play tug or fetch. Regardless, we can direct your training towards any goals you’re excited about now to help your pup excel at them later (though you’ll care far more about their success than they will).
Potty training and crate training
The second thing I’d consider with a new puppy is crate and potty training.
These two trainings go hand in hand, and if you properly condition a crate to your pup early, no matter where you travel with them, they’ll always have a constant place to provide comfort and a sense of home. There are many crate options. Cheaper wire crates are fine, though they do increase risk of your pup getting out or hurting themselves trying to get out. If you start crate training early enough, you can minimize these risks. Harder plastic or aluminum crates usually provide more security and less likelihood your dog will hurt themselves while in them, but they also provide more protection in travel whether by plane or car. Some crates are even crash tested to provide your dog optimum safety while riding down the road with you!
For more advice on crate training your puppy, check out my blog on crate training here.
Dog’s aren’t typically comfortable using the bathroom where they sleep. So if your crate is properly sized, we can help them want to hold it until they go outside. It’s not a good idea to punish your puppy for using the bathroom inside, so instead we’ll have more success restricting their ability to use the bathroom to only when they’re outside, and then heavily rewarding them when they do! Using a crate is the fastest and most stress free way to help your dog learn to use the bathroom outside.
New puppy tips and creating structure!
Yes, your puppy is cute. And I really hope I get the chance to meet them! Sometimes, though, things that are cute set us up for bad habits as they grow. Jumping looks cute at first, so you pet their noggins or pick them up, but as they grow, jumping gets less cute and it will be hard for them to understand why no longer can do something that you liked before. So it’s a good idea to set boundaries early. There’s not going to be an easier time to teach your puppy what gets positive feedback and what doesn’t, as well as where they can go and where they can’t, than right now. Such training doesn’t require any correction or punishment for a puppy, it just requires you being aware that you only give them what they want when they do things that you want, and to not give them things they want when they do things you don’t want.
Recommended Packages
Have questions about a new dog? Want to get some training questions answered without investing fully in a package? This is the option for you! We can practice and talk about everything from:
Potty Training
Develop Play and Use Play to Build Your Relationship
Marker Training/Clicker Training
Ways to Help Your Dog’s Anxiety at Home
Walking Better on Leash
How to Create Food and/or Toy Drive
How to Teach Tricks with Treats
Any Other Question You Have!
For dogs any age
This package is designed for dogs with anxiety in certain situations, reactivity towards people or dogs, some mild to moderate aggression, and adult dogs who need more time developing confidence and practicing good habits around a diversity of distractions. The additional weeks will be used to further guide the genetic and emotional drives to appropriate and fulfilling places as well as develop a stronger and more profound relationship with your pup. Emotions and genetics matter a lot especially in anxiety and aggression. 5 weeks gives us more time to focus on those components of your problem issues. It is possible to teach your dog through stress and coercion, but if we can help build trust and motivation through play, they will be much more excited to learn and maintain what they learn. Motivation is far more important to learning than repetition.
Play is the highest form of social interaction with your pup and the highest form of reinforcement when the dog understands how to play. We will attempt to develop it as the primary positive reinforcer, but also as the means to communicate boundaries and develop a trusting relationship to help guide your pup through their issues. It is impossible to fully suppress behaviors reinforced by your dog’s individual genetics. If they are genetically inclined to bite or chase, we cannot keep them from biting or chasing forever. It will always eventually pop up in the places we don’t want, because it’s who they are, and suppressing who they are creates anxiety. However, if we use our time to develop outlets for those behaviors by biting tugs or chasing balls through play, then we have a significant chance to be successful at telling them they can’t bite people or chase cars, etc for the long term. We will also use our time to create more embedded patterns and habits of the more acceptable behaviors and states of mind so that they translate to your home more readily.
Your dog lives with a trainer at their house for 5 weeks!
Can include electronic collar from E-Collar Technologies and Herm-Sprenger prong collar for off leash and on leash reliability
Can include commands of “out”, “come”, “sit”, “place”, “heel”," “down”, leash manners and door manners
Will develop the fundamentals and rules of fetch and tug within the time allowance
Can proof commands for high distraction, long distances, and long duration holding commands until released
Commands will be proofed off leash where applicable
Can spend additional time proofing for higher distractions
Can spend additional time working around sources of anxiety with a focus on increasing confidence
Can spend additional time working on specific issues like resource guarding
Can spend additional time getting multiple dogs accustomed to working with each other
Slower and easier introduction to the commands
Can cater training to any specific issues with your dog
Updates every single day
2-4 hour in-home turnover (within 2 hours of Massanutten) to make sure you know how to maintain the training and develop your new relationship with your dog!
Lifetime refresher lessons at the park in Massanutten should you need any help transitioning the dog home or even if you let things slip a little
50% discount on a consultation for help getting started before Board and Train start date.
For dogs at least 4 months old
Rushed scheduling is available for a 30% surcharge.
*Military, First Responder, and Multiple Dog discounts can be applied!!
*All Board and Train purchases must be paid and full and have returned signed contracts before scheduling.
BASIC $575:
Having a blast playing hide and seek with your dog while getting a great cardio workout following your dog through woods and shrubs to find the hidden person!
5 lessons in Elkton teaching your dog to find out what tracking is about and have some fun seeing your dog learn how to harness their olfactory organs! We will begin creating drive and with short tracks through the woods.
Can train for human, pet, or game recovery (client may need to provide sources of odor for training).
For dogs any age
Handlers must be able to keep up with their dogs as they move rapidly through a diversity of terrain to find the target
ADVANCED $950:
10 tracking lessons in Elkton with a focus on longer and more difficult tracks in more difficult settings.
*Military, First Responder, and Multiple Dog discounts can be applied!!
BASIC (in your home) $975:
Having a blast watching your dog impress you with how well they find hidden odors!
5 lessons at your home for you and your pup to be introduced to the fun and exciting world of detection where your furry friend can become confident in how to use their primary sensor, their nose
For dogs any age
ADVANCED (in your home) $1650:
10 lessons for you and your pup to become increasingly proficient in finding singular scents in more complex environments.