Best Friend Dogs: Frequently Asked Questions

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When should I start to train my dog?

Train them what?. I remember talking to a lady who had asked this question of a pet professional and he told her to wait until the dog was 6 months old. She waited to start house training (not to soil in the house) until the dog was 6 months old! Whoops! Big mistake in communication. So you see this is really not a simple question or a simple answer.

House training, jumping, mouthing, destruction, social abilities and other behaviors should start as soon as the puppy comes home. After all the mother dog is training her pups at 4 weeks old that the restaurant is closed and that it's preferable to go potty away from the sleeping area. Obedience commands like sit, stay, wait, down, leave it should not start until the pup is 3 months old or older, and this training should only be done in a quiet place where the pup can focus and have fun learning.

Group obedience classes should wait until the dog is at least 6 months old.

A good book to understand the developmental stages of dogs is "How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With" by Rutherford and Neil.

Do you use dog treats in your training?

Sometimes, but only in the early stages of training. Once the dog understands what I am asking of it or understands the behaviors that I find preferable, I wean them off of treats.

What is your training style?

I believe the best way to train is to not let bad habits develop, to reward good habits, and to set limits. Okay, so what does that mean?

Well, if I were starting with a little puppy, say 8 weeks old, I would treat it very much like a baby that is just beginning to crawl. It would always be with me or it would be in some kind of confinement (play pen) so it didn't hurt itself and didn't learn bad habits like chewing the furniture. If the puppy was able to chew on the furniture, it could think furniture is 'oh so tasty, I think I'll do it again'. When the puppy is with me, I would reward, reward, reward the behaviors that I like. As an example, if it were lying down or sitting next to me (rather than jumping on me), I would might it a little, tiny treat or verbally praise. Puppies up to 3 months old are learning a lot through trial and error. If their behavior experiment rewards them, they are likely to do it again.

If their experiment isn't rewarding, they are not as likely to do it again. However, once a pup/dog has gotten some bad habits (bad habits develop through repeatedly rewarded inappropriate behaviors - see furniture example), I believe that limits need to come into the picture. This means that before I can start to reward good behavior, I have to inform the dog that the inappropriate behavior is not going to work for him anymore. This often requires the use of corrections for a short time, until the dog determines the new behavior is much more rewarding than the old behavior.

I understand that if I want a really good dog and one that bonds to me, I need to get a puppy. What do you think?

I completely disagree. For one, I have an Irish Setter, Red, who I adopted from the Humane Society of Sonoma County when he was somewhere between one and two years old. He had been a stray for who knows how long and then he lived at the shelter for 6 weeks until I fell in love and took him home. He was a wreck - physically, mentally, and behaviorally. Using my head with a sprinkle of my heart, rather than the other way around, Red and I have a wonderful relationship. I am complemented daily on what a wonderful dog he is and people tell me all the time, that by just looking at him, they can tell how much he loves me.

When you get a puppy, you are not getting a clean slate. This pup is coming with baggage. He/she has a unique personality, which you can mold to some degree. Puppies are a lot of work. You have to be supervising or preventing all of the time. They must mature before they are really going to be reliable with their training.

However, with an adolescent or adult dog, you can see more what it will look like as an adult (size, hair length, temperament, etc.) Also you can see more of what its adult temperament is or will be. And they have the maturity to start to learn now

As with any age dog, when you go looking, be smart. Pick the dog that looks like it will fit into your life style. Pick a dog that looks like it has a stable temperament. Unless you have a lot of experience in training dogs, don't pick the dog that backs away or huddles in the corner, or the dog that just leaps onto you or stands and barks at you.

By the way, many trainers will help you choose the right dog for you. And a good book to read is "The Right Dog for You" by Daniel Tortora, vet.

Is it a good idea to get two puppies at the same time?

Most people make this decision thinking that it will be less work on their part because the puppies will entertain themselves. I¹m here to tell you "Not!". What you will have is two puppies that need training (jumping, mouthing, barking, digging, etc). And you¹ll have the pack dynamic going on in which they will bond a lot closer to each other than you. Which means if one of them has a good idea, like eating up the irrigation system, the other puppy will follow along. There are many problems with having two puppies at the same time. Don¹t do it, no matter how cute they are!

My puppy is biting at our hands, feet, clothes all the time. What should we do?

First, think about this. Puppies do not get petted in their natural environment. The adults lick them but this is done to clean the puppy so the pup learns to hold still. Also, when an adult dog (A) puts its paw onto another dog (B), dog A is claiming dog B¹s space. It¹s a dominance display. So puppies don¹t automatically think that petting is terrific. When they were with their litter, the puppies played with each other determining who can be dominant and their mother trained them to accept licking since they were born. A book that gets into this adult/ puppy relationship is "Mother Know Best" by Carol Lea Benjamin.

So - Don¹t ever reward the puppy for "mouthy" behavior by rough housing with it. Anytime the puppy (up to 3 months) starts to get mouthy, remove it from you and give it chew toys. If the puppy is grabbing your clothes, my first thought is it has too much freedom. Also practice a lot of handling exercises, teaching him to hold still while you touch him. After the puppy reaches 3 months, if the mouthing isn¹t decreasing substantially, corrections might be necessary, so call a trainer.

How should I go about making sure my dog is friendly to other dogs?

First, if your dog is aggressive to other dogs, hire a trainer. Do not take it to a dog park and group classes are not appropriate either.

If you have a puppy (up to 6 months old), don¹t take it to a dog park. We need to be very careful that our dogs when learning to be with other dogs are safe and don¹t get bold over by big, blustery dogs. Hopefully, you have some friends that have well-behaved dogs that you can visit with. If not, locate a puppy class. Again be careful with puppy classes. If the trainer doesn¹t control the puppies, allowing inappropriate behavior, it¹s not a safe place for your pup. (Always observe a group class before you take your dog.)

If you have an adolescent or adult dog, dog parks may work for you. I¹m always concerned that someone is going to show up with an aggressive dog, so we don¹t go to dog parks. I understand from people who do go to dog parks, the best way to do it would be to go at the same time of day because usually a social group establishes itself and you get to know all of the dogs.

Day care is another option. Again, make sure that the supervisor never leaves the dogs alone and that he/she knows how to control dogs.

I socialize my dogs with other dogs by doing things with friends who have dogs. They are invited to my house and we¹re invited to their house.

E-Mail:mailto:julee@greatfamilydogs.com

Best Friends Dog Training
Julee Fullenwider
Santa Rosa, CA 95401