So, by now, pupster has spent time settling in, having the last vaccs and now it's time for....PUPPY SCHOOL!
Hopefully you have put the work in carrying puppy about meeting people, seeing sights smelling smells and getting used to the car, collar and lead that sort of thing. Now it's time to meet the big wide world for real.
Your breeder has probably recommended a course of puppy training which is great for socialising and learning the basics, but in my experience novice owners tend to think once the course is done that's it, training is complete. Wrong!
Training really starts the minute puppy comes home and the toilet training begins, and most people know to ask puppy to SIT for meals. Easy, you have puppy's full attention and if the head goes up the rear normally goes down. Victoria Stillwell's got nothing on you and isn't this easy! But there are so many things to teach, be it for safety, fun or just having a sociable dog who doesn't mug everyone it meets or jumps on granny when she comes round and it doesn't happen overnight.
I'd recommend clicker training, I used to train the old fashioned way ie the dog should do as it's told because you say so and that's it. Well times move on and so has training and if you are old enough to remember Barbara Woodhouse you will know exactly what I am talking about.
There's something called the clicker and it's not a remote control sadly but it does mark GOOD behaviour. It's an instant marker because by the time pup has sat/down/shaken a paw whatever and you have started to say 'goooo...' puppy has upped sticks and wondered off and you are now praising the wondering off instead!
There are lots of vids of clicker training online and let's get you off to a start before training with a small exercise. You have your clicker, a treat bag to clip on your belt loop, a willing puppy and some spare time. So, get a handful of treats and give pup a whiff of them without encouraging her to jump up. I'm going to say her because I have all girls. Take a treat and roll it along the floor, puppy will at this point be mugging you as the nose is working overtime and gundogs hunt by smell and not sight. Sight hounds do that so don't think puppy is silly if she doesn't see it go. Rome wasn't built in a day!
So puppy has caught on and followed the treat, yay! As soon as her nose hits that treat click your clicker. Now she comes back to you to see if that can be repeated. Yes it can! Lots of times!
Now for the first few months you are going to feel like a food dispenser, but fear not it's not forever. The way I was taught is that look at it this way, humans work for money, dogs work for food, it's one of their biggest resources and luckily we are blessed with food orientated breeds! This makes life far easier! The way dogs think is...'what's in it for me?' If they perform an act and it was worth it for them they are far more likely to offer the behaviour again! Once she associates the clicker with something nice happening then you are off and running.
So off i go to begin training Demelza that life is nice with a clicker and a bag of gold, sorry treats, I get a well behaved dog and she gets fed. Happy days, I'll let you know how it goes with a vid!
Can I just say I am not affiliated to any training school and these tips are my own experience with my own dogs and what I have learned over 30 years. No responsibility can be taken for your pups training I'm just here to tell you what works for me!
The Waldecke shoot team 2001
Jason, Steffi, Halle ,Tallulah, Max, Daisy (mk1) and Debs.
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