The first day of bringing home a new puppy or new dog is one of the most important days for your new puppy. (New puppy will stand for new dog too from here down so I don't have to continually repeat it). The first week of bringing home a new puppy is also very important. The fist day will probably be very overwhelming for your new puppy, though you need to start with the rules of the house right away.
Teaching your puppy the rules of the house needs to start on day one. If you let your puppy get away with things on day one that you don't want him doing at all after day one, you will make things very unclear for your new puppy. So how do you go about teaching this new puppy who doesn't speak our language the rules of your house?
First thing's first, be sure he's on a leash! I can not say this enough! Do NOT under any circumstance let your puppy off the leash inside of your house. This is just asking for the puppy to chew things up and pee on the floor. Letting your puppy off the leash in your home on day one or even the first week for that matter, is setting both of you up to fail. I know it can be a hassle, but please, keep your puppy on leash and you will be very thankful you did.
What is the benefit of the leash? Having a leash on your new puppy, helps you keep track of your puppy. I recommend at least a 6 foot leash and if you need to, tie the end of it to your belt. Have your puppy with you guarantees your puppy can not go hide behind the sofa and pee, or find something to chew up while your not looking. It reminds you to keep an eye on your new puppy. It helps you learn your puppy's signals when they need to go outside.
What happens if you are too busy and it would be impossible to have your puppy on a leash tied to you? Your puppy needs to be in a crate or pen where he can not get into any trouble or have any accidents in the house! This is a MUST not an option. Remember puppies have very small bladders, some needing to go out every 10 or 15 minutes. Set a timer so you remember to take your puppy out. For more on house training, you can read more on our house training blog entry on the link to your right. For more on Crate training, you will also find that link to your right.
By doing these two things, your puppy will be well on his way to success in learning the rules in your home and developing wonderful habits! Keep a Clicker
and some treats on hand so you can reward your puppy any time they do something good. What kind of good things can your puppy do good? Well lets see... Any time your puppy sits, lays down, chews on his own toys, potties outside, is quiet in the crate, is keeping the leash loose, or is walking by your side. All of these are reward-able and your puppy will offer on his own all of these. Using the Clicker
you can capture each of these and get a head start on training your new puppy. You didn't even have to do anything! Your puppy offered them all! By following this simple plan, your new dog or puppy will be well on their way to being a well behaved dog in your home. Be sure to get your copies of Click for Joy!
and Clicking With Your Dog
. If you'd like something to really get you started with your new puppy, check out Karen Pryor, Getting Started: Clicker Training for Dogs Kit
that should cover everything you need to get started! Getting these books beforehand is also a great idea and will give you a lot of ideas on what you can do on your first day. If your one of those people who would rather watch a DVD than read a book and get started right away, check out Karen Pryor, Clicker Puppy DVD
it will give you a lot of great tips to get you started! Good luck with bringing home a new puppy! Before you leave, here's a nice video I found on the perfect puppy setup.
A Great set up I have to agree, but not all houses are set up that nicely. You can also train your puppy barrier control easy enough with out the use of baby gates. Check out Don Sullivan's Secrets to Training the Perfect Dog [DVD]
. Though Don doesn't use treats in training, I'm sure you could find a way to use the clicker to train the barriers. Don doesn't just do barriers in the house, but also outside to keep your dog in the yard. His DVD is high priced at Amazon, you can get it a lot cheaper at Thane.com You might also check out our latest Squidoo page on Puppy Teething
Happy Training!
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