DEEP DIVES INTO PUPPY TRAINING
This is where I try to explain ALL things puppy!
If you have never had a puppy before, then please read on - even if you don't hire me as a trainer, you owe it to your new pup to learn all there is know about being successful with your puppy during its first few months with you, which by the way, are the most critical.
If you have raised a puppy before - but it's been a while, then please know that there have been some significant changes in the past decade with our puppies, dogs and our environment and what we are being told by 'professionals'. There is an archaic opinion by some (not all) veterinarians to NOT take your puppy anywhere for fear of contracting parvo virus (a disease that can result in death is an extremely valid fear and not to be taken lightly, but there are easy and safe ways around this). Because of this - people are generally scared to take their puppies out and about. What is the devastating result of this non-exposure? Reactive dogs. It's no surprise that our communities have more and more reactive dogs on our streets. This is proven by not only witnessing dogs barking, lunging, growling and pulling on the streets, but by the amount of dog trainers specializing in behavior modification whose clients are nearly all reactivity cases.
I have had clients tell me that their veterinarian has told them not to leave the house with their puppy until they are fully vaccinated. This is in direct conflict with a very critical growth and development period with your puppy that is essential to address. Another client told me she was told not to let her puppy go outside of their home until it was a year old! And lastly, my favorite, not to put the puppy on the grass in their own fenced back yard where they have lived for over a decade! All of these things can have devastating effects on a puppy when they reach adulthood. While I understand that veterinarians see the worst with parvo puppies, they are also doing such a huge disservice to the growth of all puppies by suggesting we keep them locked up. Just to note that the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior and Purdue University, both have a position statement that encourages early exposure to puppies under the age of three months, which is in direct conflict with what a lot of veterinarians are telling their clients. You can read the position statements here: https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Puppy-Socialization-Position-Statement-FINAL.pdf
Another reason behind dog reactivity cases is that more people have dogs now instead of children. A huge portion of those pet owners actually treat their dog more like a child than a dog. This is so detrimental to the dog and can cause any number of behavioral issues.
On this page I will break down the steps needed to raise a puppy - whether you get one from a reputable breeder, a back yard breeder or a rescue puppy. Once you have all the information and fully understand your obligation to help your puppy navigate its early months of development you can make an informed decision with regard to the future training of your puppy. A happy, confident dog that you will have for at least a decade if not longer will result in the choices you make when they are 8 weeks old.
1. Critical periods in puppy development.
If you only take one piece of information from me then let it be this whole section of information. Your puppy goes through extremely critical periods in growth and development before reaching the approximate age of 4 months (slightly different in different breeds and size of dog). These 'critical periods' are stages where you need to show your puppy the world and what they will experience as an adult - to prepare them for a happy, confident and non-reactive future.
How many times have you heard someone say about their rescue pup that the puppy is scared of men with beards (or, insert description of human or thing here)? So therefore the puppy MUST have been abused by a man with a beard. The reality of that is, usually the puppy had never seen a man with a beard during its critical period of development. It's really that simple. Puppies have to see all kinds of different 'things' before the age of around 4 months in order for them to generalize and exist in a world without fear or anxiety. So it's vitally important they get safely exposed to as much as possible before that window closes. Because once that window closes, thats it! There is an incredibly high chance that you could be dealing with a lifetime of reactivity issues with your dog. Are there exceptions to that rule - of course. A well bred dog with stable and solid parents and grandparents will pass along a more confident dog with its puppies. A mix breed tied to a tree in someones backyard for its entire life and then rescued at the age of 4 can go on and lead a wonderful life in a new home with no reactivity regardless of the fact he was never exposed to anything during its critical period. The truth is, we just don't know how a puppy will turn out. So it's not something you want to take a chance with. Then there are certain breeds like German shepherds that are pre disposed to becoming reactive around the 6-10 month mark. So extra consideration should be given to that breed during its critical period.
Lets say you have a new puppy and you are out in the world and the puppy sees something its unsure about and stops what its doing, fixates on that thing, and maybe starts a low grumble and then bark. Do you know what to do? Did you know that a dog can have a bad experience just ONE time and then it sticks with them for life? It's called a single learning event. A one time event that can ensure your puppy will always bark at a bus or a trashcan or a certain look of a person if you don't have the knowledge to change your puppies mind in a split second. What YOU do in THAT moment is critical to help your puppy navigate the good and bad and come out safely on the other end. This is a LIST of things you should try and safely expose your dog to before the age of 4 months. I want to be very clear that if you decide to train and expose your puppy without a trainer - great caution should be applied when 'exposing' your puppy to the items on the list (highlighted above). Its not a simple as it sounds - exposure should be minimal at first and you should be able to read your puppies body language to let you know if they are stressed (are they yawning, are ears pinned back...) or if they just don't care about this new sound, place or person. I could literally write a book on what NOT to do lol. So don't just take that list and 'run with it'. Be cautious.
Below you will find a breakdown of the critical periods found in puppies and young adult dogs. Every source you find will vary ever so slightly between these ages - so this is just a rough reference guide. Every dog is different, every breed is different, male and female will be different and each and every single individual dog will be different. The fact remains these exist within this rough timeframe.
CRITICAL PERIODS
0 to 8 Weeks
Neonatal, Transition, Awareness, and Canine Socialization. Puppy is with mother and litter-mates up to seven weeks . During this period, your puppy learns about social interaction, play, and inhibiting aggression from its mother and litter mates. Puppies must stay with their mother and litter-mates through this critical period. As the puppies learn the most important lesson in their lives, they learn to accept discipline. It is at this time that they also learn not to toilet in the nest.
1 to 16 Weeks
Human Socialization Period. The best time to take a puppy home is 7 weeks then you have nine whole weeks to work with the dog over this incredibly important period. The puppy now has the brain waves of an adult dog, but his attention span is short. This period is when the most rapid learning occurs. Learning at this age is permanent so this is a perfect time to start training, but make it fun. This is also the time to introduce the puppy to things that will play an important part in his life. Different people, places, animals, hoovers, washing machines and unusual sounds, in a positive, non-threatening way.
8 to 10 / 12 Weeks
Fear Imprint Period. Whilst the Pup is going through human socialization is will also go through an important fear/hazard avoidance period. Avoid frightening the puppy during this period. Any traumatic, frightening or painful experience will have a more lasting effect on the puppy than if it occurred at any other time in its life. This is the period that if you do not handle it correctly will give your dog a lasting fear of traffic and other frightening noises. Never ever praise or sympathize with your pup when it is showing fear. This only serves to confirm the fear.
13 to 16 Weeks
Seniority Classification Period. Puppy starts to cut teeth and apron strings! Puppy begins testing its position in the family unit. You must discourage all biting; the dog should have started to learn and understand bite inhibition by this time! It is important that you are a strong and consistent leader. The period between 0 and 16 weeks of age is the most important period in your dog’s life. He will learn more during that short space of time than at any other time in his life. Other windows of opportunity for learning will open during your dog’s life. However, what you see at 16 weeks without extensive training and behavioural modification is about what you are going to get as an adult. Therefore, work hard on giving your pet the best start in life.
4 to 8 Months
Play Instinct Period. Flight Instinct Period. Puppy may wander and ignore you. It is very important that you keep the puppy on a leash at this time! The way that you handle your pup at this time determines if he will come to you when called. At about 4-1/2 months, your puppy loses his milk teeth and gets his adult teeth. That’s when he begins serious chewing! A dog’s teeth don’t set in his jaw until between 6 /10 months. During this time, the puppy has a physical need to exercise his mouth by chewing. Training must continue through this period or all your good work may revert back to stage one. Occasionally the puppy will start to urinate in the house again if this happens, just go back to basic toilet training.
6 to 14 Months
Second Fear Imprint Period or Fear of New Situations Period. Dog again shows fear of new situations and even familiar situations. Dog may be reluctant to approach someone or something new. It is important that you are patient and act very matter of fact in these situations. Never force the dog to face the situation. DO NOT pet the frightened puppy or talk in soothing tones. The puppy will interpret such responses as praise for being frightened. Training will help improve the dog’s confidence. This fear period is normally more marked in male dogs.
1 to 4 Years
Maturity Period. You may encounter some increased aggression in certain breeds like German shepherds and renewed testing for position and authority however if you have spent lots of time with your dog and trained consistently and regularly, then this should not present itself as a problem – in fact you may hardly notice this change, it is just something to keep in mind. Continue to train your dog during this period. It is possible that your dog may have another fear period between 12 – 16 months of age.
Michael is an internationally renowned dog trainer and teacher with nearly forty years of experience in competitive dog sports and companion dog training.
Here he is talking about critical periods in puppies.
2. HOUSE BREAKING
The following information is my personal housebreaking format based on 30 years of having puppies in my home and housebreaking and crate training them. Trainers that do not do board and train (training in their own homes) and have only had a few personal dogs of their own, base most of their information on theory and write ups on housebreaking, not personal experience.
House breaking your dog or puppy actually falls into a few different categories with slightly different applications of training. There is the large breed puppy - which is the easiest to housebreak; the small breed puppy, the large breed adult dog, the small breed adult dog. The adult dog categories can also be broken down even further - with the question being asked if you are adopting an adult dog - is he from a kennel or has he lived outside, with a small breed adult - was it "paper trained" or trained on wee wee pads? All key factors.
With all those things to take into consideration, just remember that consistency is key - as in all training, but with housebreaking, do it right the first time and put the time in and you will have a housebroken dog forever. When I ask people - "is your dog housebroken" and they reply "yes, he's like 85% housebroken..." then the real answer is actually NO - my dog is not housebroken. Lets get started with what I consider the easiest dogs to housebreak - the medium to large breed puppy..
Medium to large breed puppy
I would assume that most people get a puppy between the ages of 8 and 10 weeks. There are a few things you need in order to housebreak a dog, and this applies to all the different dog/puppy scenarios. You need a crate, either a plastic travel crate like Vari-Kennel or a wire crate, you can purchase them at any pet store. You also need a bottle of Nature's Miracle - this is a urine neutralizer in case your pup should have an accident - use this to clean up the urine and it removes the scent, therefore preventing the dog from peeing in the same spot time and time again.
This training is also going to incorporate crate training - which I feel every dog should learn. Think of your puppy as a new born baby - you would never leave a 4 month old baby alone on the living room floor while you took a shower, so why on earth would you do the same with an 8 week old puppy? When you are physically incapable of watching that puppy (your are on the phone, in the shower, making dinner, eating dinner etc.,) then the puppy goes in the crate, much the same as you would put the baby in the crib or at an older age in the play pen.
There are two guaranteed times that a puppy will need to go outside to relieve himself and that is - immediately after waking up, and after eating. Some dogs you need to get outside quick, do not dally! They wake up - you run them outside! At this early stage I start to incorporate a word or phrase for the dog to learn as a cue for him to go to the bathroom...I say "take a break" or "hurry up"...as they get older, they know what it means and when you are in a new environment or traveling it comes in handy to speed the process along.
Another time to take your puppy outside is if they start to sniff around...they could be in the middle of playing and they drop their toy and start sniffing the edge of the couch or the perimeter of the living room...take them outside. When you take them outside, just stand there with them - silently, except the occasional "hurry up" or whatever your verbal cue is going to be. As soon as they have done their business - "good boy..." and return inside.
You also have to consider the option of having a doggy door versus no doggy door. At this early age I would not train them to go through a doggy door - all you are trying to instill in them is that when they need to go outside to do their thing - THIS is the door they should pass through to get there. Train the doggy door when they are older and after you are a 100% sure they are housebroken.
So make sure you recognize ANY signs from your dog that he is trying to tell you he needs to go out. You will be surprised how quickly some 8, 9 ,10 week old puppies pick this up and will go to the door, and look at you to let them out...Huge praise for this of course - open the door and go out with them. You can imagine how easy it is to miss that request to go out - it might be fleeting - they are not quite sure, I think this door has something to do with me going out, so I'll walk over there and look at it, hmmm nothings happening, maybe I was wrong, maybe I'll just pee over there...
Realize that it is a lot of work. But then also take into consideration that you may have your dog for 10 or 12 years or longer...do you really want a dog that isn't a 100% housebroken for that length of time?
Putting your dog in a crate is a good thing. And even though you might have a huge desire to have your new puppy sleep on your bed with you at night - don't! You can invite him on the bed or whatever once he is trained. But please instill some ground rules into your dog before you start creating bad habits that will be hell to break at a later date. Trust me on this. When you buy a dog crate for a medium to large breed puppy, buy the size that will eventually hold your adult dog. You can put in a dog bed if you like - only if you're confident that your puppy will not eat the dog bed and all the stuffing! Otherwise a towel or blanket. You can also put a couple of special toys in there - something that he only gets when he goes in his crate. Do not open that crate door to let out your puppy if he is whining, crying, howling or making any other sound that is trying to get your attention...in fact not only should you not open the door, you should not speak to or acknowledge your puppy at all...even saying "shhhh" is a positive reward for the pup as he has now elicited some response from you. I have had pups that get this process pretty quickly and then pups that sound like their tail is shut in the car door and they are being dragged down the highway...don't fall for it, be strong and it will be over sooner than you think. My French Bulldog would "take herself to bed" at around 12 weeks of age - her crate was on the landing outside my bedroom, and she would drag her tired little body upstairs and put herself in her crate and fall asleep...Your dog will very quickly love his crate if you use it consistently...just remember when you open that door to let them out the pup must be quiet prior to doing so - if your dog is having a hissy fit and you find it hard to do - just try and wait for a quick 10 second period when he stops howling and open the door quickly. Do not make a fuss of your puppy or new dog when he exits a crate. Open the door and take them outside for a potty break. If you must make a fuss, wait 5 minutes (after he has relieved himself) then have a party with your dog.
So...your dog is fine in his crate - he has his toys to chew on - you put him in there whenever you can't watch him and you take him outside for a potty break upon releasing him from the crate.
The other important factor with housebreaking is putting your dog on a feeding and watering schedule. If you have a bowl of food and water down for him 24/7 then you will have a dog that is constantly needing to go to the bathroom - this is an especially important factor at night. I am assuming you are feeding your
puppy twice or maybe even three times a day. In the morning you release your puppy from his crate, walk him outside and give him the chance to eliminate. You come back inside, and feed your pup breakfast, also placing down alongside a fresh bowl of water. After they have eaten, you take them back outside and give them yet another opportunity to potty. One thing to remember, if you go to work all day, you need to rethink the whole puppy thing - you cannot leave a puppy in a crate all day and you also cannot leave a puppy outside in your back garden all day. They need supervision at all times - so figure out how and what you are going to do before you get the puppy.
As you approach the afternoon, ideally you should feed your pup his dinner no later than 4pm. This will give him plenty of time to digest the food and go outside several times before he sleeps. His water should be removed no later than 6pm - some of you will balk at this and say it's not fair for him to have no water for that long. Remember, you are housebreaking your puppy, this will not be forever, when you potty train your children you don't let them drink a big glass of water before bedtime do you? (I hope not!)...You are training your puppy to "hold it" through the night...and that's just not fair if he has a full bladder. What you can do if you feel strongly that your pup needs some refreshment after 6pm, say because he has been playing hard and is panting...give him an ice cube...That way you prevent the gulping down of a huge bowl of water that will inevitably want to come out at around 1:00 am.
The medium to large breed puppy will housebreak pretty quickly if you stick to these guidelines - they are more mature than an 8 to 10 week old Maltese and have a better sense of what is expected of them.
The last thing to mention here is correcting your pup when he has had an accident. You cannot correct your pup for peeing on the carpet UNLESS you physically catch him IN the act!! Please remember this....God knows, you will convince your self that upon entering a room and seeing that he has had an accident, he knows he has been bad because he looks like he has done something naughty....Let me just say for the record that this is bullshit. Even if your pup just walked away from peeing on the rug, he has no idea why you are now yelling at him...in fact what you are seeing is him reacting to your body language and your tone of voice - thereby making him look "guilty"...ears back, body low to the ground etc. So...if you catch him actually peeing, what you want to do is make him stop, and making him stop will mean surprising him (yelling at him may just cause him to pee more) so pick up that magazine, or car keys and gently toss them on the ground close to where your pup is eliminating - he will react to the noise and stop - the noise did not come from you, all he will think is "something bad happened the last time I tried this peeing lark on the Persian rug..." Once he stops, take him outside to finish what he started. And please...rubbing his nose in it is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of - so please don't.
Small breed puppy
Housebreaking your small breed puppy requires a little more patience and a little more vigilance. I hear more people say of their small dogs that they are "housebroken except when...fill in the blank". You need to get this right the first time - because trying to housebreak a young or adult small breed dog is very , very hard. However, I am here to say, it can be done.
You need to apply all of the training from above - with the large breed puppy...The crate training, watering and feeding schedule, correcting...everything. But you have to give your small breed puppy more opportunities to go outside to eliminate - creating good habits is so much better than trying to break bad ones. You may think its overkill to walk your pup outside every 30 minutes so they can pee...but what you are doing is trying to instill in their tiny little brains that the ONLY place they should pee/poop is outside.
Dogs are supposed to have that little chip inside their brain that says "I don't poop where I sleep"...A large breed puppy has a better sense of inside/outside. A small breed puppy will look at your house and see this huge vast expanse of real estate and in their mind they think "well...I sleep over in that corner, so peeing in the hallway is far enough away...". Your job is try and never let that option kick in...so taking them outside every 30 minutes will help them understand the process.
I had a 3lb toy poodle. I lived in a two story, 1600 square foot home and not only that but going out the back door to the garden, initially leads to a deck which leads to 12 steps that go down a path to where the grass is...This is a large trek for such a small puppy. I made a game out of it, at first she was so tiny she couldn't negotiate the steps, so I would carry her to the grass. Once she got big enough to make the steps, I would run down with her, she would pee and then we would run back up together, I would give her a small treat upon returning...This came in extremely handy in bad weather, even in rain and snow, she knew her goal was to get down those stairs, do her thing and get back up as soon as possible. In her head there was no other option for going potty, because I never gave her the opportunity to have an accident in the house.
When crate training make sure the crate is small - but big enough for them to stand ,turn around and lay down comfortably. For the first 2-3 weeks you may have to break your pup during the night as they are just too small to hold it for that long. You will learn the difference between an unruly pup begging to be let out of his crate because they want to play and a cry in the middle of the night because they have to go potty. Be careful with this though. You are essentially creating a habit, and that is the puppy cries at 2:00 am - you wake up (wait for the crying to stop momentarily) and take the puppy out for a potty break. At some point you are going to have to ignore that 2:00 am cry and let him make it through the night for the first time.
Adult large breed dog
You CAN teach an old dog new tricks. The more info you have about your dog and his background the better. However, lets assume that you got your dog from the shelter, he has been there for 3 weeks and in that time he has come to learn that if he needs to pee or poop, all he has to do is take three steps to his left and go! Same rules apply as above...crate training is without a doubt imperative. Water and feeding schedule...plenty of supervision. Your new dog probably comes with a slew of bad habits (not housebroken, escape artist, chewer, barks, steals food, digs holes). Assuming he has them all is the best way to start your new relationship.
Treat your adult dog like an 8 week old puppy. Crate him when you cannot supervise and give him plenty of supervised potty breaks. Putting him outside for an hour, is not really teaching him anything about housebreaking. Regularly escorting him outside for the opportunity to eliminate and then re-entering the home is teaching him where you want him to potty.
I just recently got a two year old English Bulldog. I got him from a breeder - usually breeders use crates, so I did not have to deal with that battle. However, anytime I couldn't pay full attention to him he went in the crate. He slept in the crate at night. The first time I let him sleep outside of his crate was three months after I got him. From constant supervision I knew he was not a chewer, I knew that he was housebroken - having witnessed hundreds of visits outside via the doggy door...So on a day when I knew that he was exceptionally tired (and less likely to get up to no
good) I went to bed, made no fuss and let him sleep wherever. The first couple of nights I did wake up a couple of times and creep out to the living room to make sure he was okay...
Adult small breed dog
Getting an adult small breed dog more times than not means they are not housebroken. In most cases that might just be the reason they were dropped off at the pound.
Again...all the above applies, crate, feed and watering schedule, supervision. You may have the added disadvantage of your small breed dog being "paper trained"...At first, you might think "cool, that may come in handy...", but realistically it's a nightmare. A lot of times they mistake a rug or a dog bed or a doormat as that place that they should pee, because visually it is an object separate from the floor, just like the newspaper or the wee wee pads. So in lieu of the newspaper they find the next best thing...usually the bathroom rug!
As you can imagine, this is one of the hardest dogs to housebreak and all I can say is...if you thought that the above housebreaking techniques involved hard work and consistency, then you haven't seen anything yet. The not so beautiful thing is, you may also find your self owning a small dog that will go the bathroom in their crate - which defies all logic I know. Also remember that the cute teacup chihuahua that weighs 2lbs that you fell in love with, also comes with a reduced amount of intelligence! From bad breeding and inbreeding to get these dogs this size, you have to compromise somewhere and its usually the brain...That chip that tells a dog to not go potty where they sleep is missing.
Huge, huge praise when they do go potty outside and maybe a treat...Always SUPERVISE and crate! If you work and leave your house for hours a day – DO NOT leave your new puppy or dog in a crate, but at the same time do not leave it loose in the house or in the backyard. These are all things that you should consider BEFORE you get a dog. Its like having a baby, a certain amount of time needs to be dedicated to raising it – plan before you buy!
NOTE: If you must leave your puppy unsupervised for long periods of time - too long to be in a crate. I recommend a puppy pen. You can buy these at most pet stores and setting them up correctly requires some help. Sure you can just put it up, throw in some toys, food and water and hope for the best. But if you have done this like I have a gazillion times - below is a video of what I consider to be the best set up of a puppy pen. I explain WHY I am doing things as I go along The most important part about this video is, I am using newspaper as a base and then shredded paper on top as an area they can eliminate on. The reason being this looks nothing like a wee wee pad and therefore will not transfer over to bath mats, door mats and rugs. Also, the shredded newspaper will move around and roll over any poop so it makes it harder for your puppy to get all dirty or step in poop as it kinda gets wrapped in newspaper. I make sure the food and water go toward the back of the pen, so that when they run to the front of the pen to inevitably greet you they don't step in it and spill it everywhere.
All of these techniques have worked for me - other trainers may implement different training, which is fine...I can only speak from my experiences. Good luck. Email me with any questions.
3. Goals for you and your puppy into adulthood
Paint a picture in your head of what you want your adult dog to look like in the future.
Most people want a dog that can walk nicely on leash, not jump on guests, come when called, get along with other dogs and people and generally exist in our world without any problems! Not a lot to ask for!
This can be achieved with most dogs. Yes, there are dogs that WILL grow up with behavioral issues. This can be from any number of things - bad breeding, genetics, certain breeds are predisposed to many different issues. And sometimes, you can literally do everything right and you still end up with a dog that is reactive or aggressive.
One thing you can do to help achieve your goals of having that awesome adult dog - is to train and expose your puppy at an early age. It's always a question that I get "can a puppy so young be trained?" A lot of people wait on training assuming they have to wait until their puppy gets to a certain age. This is not true. In fact the younger you start training the better. Your puppy is always learning. Literally every SINGLE step they take is a teachable moment, so if you are doing nothing to guide your puppy and help show them what is right and what is wrong, you will have a whole bunch of bad stuff to undo.
My picture of an ideal dog walking down the street is to pretty much ignore everything that is going on and just proceed through the madness of our world with no reaction to anyone or anything. And that is pretty much what my dogs do. I can walk past dogs throwing themselves at fences and gates, barking and jumping because we are walking by. Small children can rush by, people on bikes, skateboards...They just don't care. They don't care because they have no expectation that a person will rush up to them excitedly and want to pet them (allowing everyone to pet them when they are young creates an excited dog out on a walk, constantly on the lookout for people and pulling to get to everyone because they expect that attention from strangers and received that from an early age). During puppyhood I never let anyone pet my dog when we were out, so therefore people mean nothing to them - in a good way. They are friendly and if I 'release' them they would go over to someone and enjoy a good scratch, but they certainly are not looking for it out on a walk. The dreaded socialization word really does not mean 'socialize' your puppy with everyone and every dog - it really means expose your puppy to these things, let them observe dogs and people as you walk by, but they have no value attached to them. YOU are more valuable. From a puppy I create engagement with my dogs when we are out. I am more exciting than the environment. Sometimes I have to act like a clown to be more exciting lol, but thats what I am prepared to do to have my dogs focus on me and no one else. Over time, they see more and more, they get rewarded more and more for not paying any attention to the environment. Eventually rewards can fade out and your dog can just exist peacefully in your world.