Training your puppy is one of the main building blocks for helping your puppy develop into a well adjusted dog, and one that is pleasant for everyone to be around. A dog that misbehaves or has bad manners, is not only annoying, they can be dangerous.
When you bring a puppy into your home, you need to be prepared to provide them daily training for basic obedience and manners. This will require time, and a lot of patience. For those who have raised a puppy before, you may choose to do your training on your own. For those who have not raised a puppy before, we highly encourage you to sign up to attend a minimum of three levels of puppy classes, or hire a private trainer to help you, read the recommended training books shown at the bottom of this page, and watch training videos. There is also the option of sending your puppy to a private trainer for live in training for at least a month, or longer. The length of time will depend on how much you want your puppy to learn before he joins your home.
At Spring Creek, we give our puppies the best start possible and utilize early neurological stimulation in their raising with us. By the time they are ready to head to their new families around 8 weeks of age, they are ready to dive in to formal training. If you want us to start your puppy with training for you, we have a couple of options with one of our trainers, subject to their availability. Training would start at 8 weeks of age. Puppies will be worked with in our home and on our property, and at the trainer’s home. They will only take on one or two puppies at a time, so book early! If one of our trainers isn’t available, we do have others we highly recommend.
Here are the options for training with one of Spring Creek’s trainers:
Puppy Primer: Intro to Basics (8 – 10 weeks old, Two Weeks with one of our trainers)
*Two weeks training will only allow for basic introduction of these cues/skills.
- Name recognition
- Initial Crate Training and Housetraining
- Treats and following cues/commands, understanding the relationship with praise, release, and reward
- Basic commands (verbal & hand-signals) sit, down, off, leave it, wait
- Eye contact/attention
- Place work (learning to stay and relax in a designated place – dog bed, mat)
- Collar/leash and walking on the leash
- Socialization: people, animals, buildings, cars….as many positive experiences as possible in a day.
- Greeting people nicely with sit & off
- Basic grooming: bathing, brushing, ear cleaning, nails trimmed
Puppy Camp: Skill Development (One month minimum, two recommended.)
*Introduction of basic cues/skills and ongoing reinforcement of those, plus introduction of other cues as puppy is ready.
- Puppy Primer program plus…..
- Increase crate time to eliminate nighttime potty breaks
- Command times lengthened
- Recall work
- Leash walking with about turns, fast, slow (teaching puppy to remain on a loose lead and pay attention)
- Introduction to “Give It”
- Introduction to “Find It” games
- Introduction to Distracted Commands (completing commands while facing distractions)
The Practical Puppy Bootcamp by Jordan Wade
This is an invaluable book for everyone raising a puppy! Written instructions, photos, and QR codes all in one! Simple and easy to fall. One of the best training resources available!
Aly’s Paws-itive Start Puppy Club
For all of our puppy families, we highly recommend another wonderful training resource: Alyson Rodges of Aly’s Puppy Boot Camp . We have teamed up with her to provide some amazing knowledge so that you can go live life with your dog in a safe, sane and civilized way.
For basic puppy training info for FREE, join Aly’s Paws-itive Start Puppy Club! The Club includes:- Aly’s Potty Training Video
- Her Schedule for Success
- AND her How to Walk on a Leash Video
