One day the time will come for new member of your family to move into your home.
Everyone will be enthusiastic about the sweet little bundle of fur that clumsily sets about exploring its new home. At his point, most owners are not thinking a great deal about the issue of training. Moreover, many people still believe in the completely antiquated notion that a dog does not need any kind of training at all during the first 12 months.
On the contrary, the truth is that you have to start training the puppy – like housebreaking and basic rules of behavior – from the first day on. Every puppy, however tiny and sweet, is a real dog, and at this very moment it is in a phrase of development that will mold its subsequent behavior patterns.
Its rounded appearance, described by behavioral psychologists as the little child look, triggers the parental instinct, which leads the owners to cuddle and pamper the adorable little dog baby from morning till night. Within a matter of months, however, depending on the breed, the bundle of fur will turn into a stately animal. Behavior that once evoked amused smiles from family members no longer goes over very well now. In fact certain antics can turn out to be very annoying and unpleasant in older dogs.
What the Puppy has to Learn
The goal of all training programs is to make your dog into a pleasant, obedient companion. For the dog this also means freedom, since you can take a well-trained dog almost everywhere you go, without difficulty.
First objective: First and foremost, you have to housebreak your puppy and teach it to answer to its name.
Second objective: The puppy has to learn how it is supposed to behave in its new pack, in this case its human family. That includes knowing what it is allowed to play with and what is taboo. In playing with the pack members, it has to understand that it is not allowed to bite clothing or body parts. It should not beg at the table or help itself to food anywhere except its own dish.
Jumping up on people is another thing the dog has to unlearn early on.
The dog’s paws are not always clean, and we are not always wearing our oldest clothes. Later on, when it is fully frown, the fog – depending on the breed – sometimes can knock an adult to the ground, and it will easily knock down a child. Many dogs also jump up on cars, which often results in substantial scratches on the finish and can be dangerous, as well.
Third objective: While still a puppy, your pet has to learn to accept that it is not allowed to defend its toys or its food bowl, even when full, from humans. It has to allow everything, even the tastiest veal bone, to be taken away from it at any time. If it does not learn this, the dog will see itself as the higher-ranking member of the pack. Allowing things to be taken away has practical value as well. If the dog ever has something dangerous in its mouth – poisoned bait, or a chicken bone, for example – you can take the item away from it without difficulty.
EDUCATING YOUR DOG WITH LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING, KATHARINA SCHLEGL-KOFLER
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