puppies...

[3kills]

okay there seems to be a lot of knowledgeable people on here about dogs...its been a long time since i have had a dog lil lone a puppy but now we got a puppy and i would like to know does anyone have any advice and tips and stuff on trainin her....or what kinda food is good? or how much and how often to feed her?

[416]

What breed of puppy? We got a new addition a few months ago and found the internet had a ton of info of food, care etc. Training would depend on what your expectations are for it. Good luck and enjoy....

[3kills]

its a lab cross...i believe the mom was a lab rotty and then dad was a lab great dane...as for training i just want a good dog really lol...but what i really mean is for house trainin her....

[Blacktail]

sounds like it wont be a hunter and may be a handful when grown!!

[ellellbee]

We are in our 50's and got our very first dog. An SPCA sp[ecial, lab cross, mostly black lab but maybe a bit of pit in him. We got him at about 1 year old but you could tell he had no training at all. I don't think he had even been in a vehicle before as it was hard to get him into a car or the truck at first. Within a month or two he knew sit, stay, come, lay-down... maybe not as consistent as we'd like but that is coming with maturity. The BC SPCA site recommended reading had this book listed. We found it the best of what we bought.

ASPCA Complete Dog Training Manual

by Dr. Bruce Fogle


A very visual guide to dog training using only positive reinforcement.

available at bookstores or online through chapters.indigo.ca

Highly recommended as it was simple and worked. Don't write him off as a hunting dog. If you can teach him to fetch and he has a lot of lab in him, he may be a natural at fetching grouse or ducks. Give him a try but start slow. From what I hear it takes 2 or 3 years before you get where you want to be with training. The book will help.

[3kills]

thanx ellellbee...i m not tryin to raise her as a hunting dog she is going to be the family dog...i can tell already she is a smart dog she picks up on things fast..i think she should be pretty easy to train...

[ellellbee]

Good luck with her, ours is a family dog first, the fact that he fetches the grouse for us is just a bonus. (He has also learned to "Bow to the Master") We kept saying that everytime he stretched in the morning, you know front legs stretched out and butt up in the air, and now he does it on command.

[Beverly]

its a lab cross...i believe the mom was a lab rotty and then dad was a lab great dane...as for training i just want a good dog really lol...but what i really mean is for house trainin her....

The key to house training puppies:

Eat- Gotta go out
Snooze- Gotta go out
Play- Gotta go out

LOL! They gotta go out like every 20 min or so but almost always after eat/ snooze / play too. Praise her (like stupidly) when she does her business in the right place. If you learn to say "Go pee" or whatever word you would like to use during the time she is doing her business and praise heavily.... going in the right place becomes a game and they want to please you.

Never ever scold your puppy for going in the house UNLESS...you catch them in the act (like while they are going). They do not see beyong the milisecond so scolding even 1 minute after the fact simply makes them wonder why you are mad (yes I know they look sad/or that they understand but in reality they are reacting to you/your tone not what they did)

One thing I have done training adult dogs and pups is to have them leashed to my belt at all times during house training this way they are with me every second and if needed I can correct quickly. Once I have established a bit of a routine and they are loose in the house I watch them closely, if I can catch them doing business in the house I will fire a plastic pop bottle (with coins in it ) in the dogs direction to correct them the timing of that is very important just as a verbal correction would be, it MUST be when they are going or they do not relate that loud noise to their behaviour. (the noise will generally stop them immediately but I would not recommend this method for any dog that may be slightly skiddish/submissive because it could create other issues)


If you find that it may not want to go outside and wanders around aimlessly.....when they do go in the house save the paper towel or other items you used to clean up then put that in the area of the yard that you want it to use. Generally the scent will get them to go (just keep leaving the items there for a while until they get the hint).If you can avoid paper training I would just skip it....my first Malamute that was the method for pups and I had this huge pup that I TRAINED to pee inside on paper. We do not want them to do this long term but it is hard to change that around later. I would take him out but he would come right back in to go on the papers. I eventually had to take the stupid news papers outside in the yard and he would go there... (well I did teach him that was the place to go so it was my fault!)


If you have a kennel crate for your pup and it goes in the ctare then it is too big...fill the crate up with something while the pup grows ( milk crate / pillow just something to take up the extra space not needed at the moment ) if they have the room to go they will but they do not as a rule like to soil the space they need to be in.

You can also hang a bell on the exit door and each time you go to take the pup out, physically pick up the paw and swat the bell before you open the door....in no time your pup should be ringing the bell to let you know they need out (in the meantime tho watch like a hawk to avoid accidents during training)

Oh long winded sorry! Anyway,....lots of praise and lots of trips outside!

[BCLongshot]

Thanks for tips Beverly ! Especially the crate 1's. I'll send pics of the dynamic duo or double trouble.

Dale

[3kills]

beverly thanx for the tips thats all what i did and she was really easy to train...she is a pretty smart dog and picks up things fast i have taught her from when we first got her that when we feed her she has to sit untill it is okay to eat and she will sit there till i leave the room and then she will eat....