Natural Dog Training: Puppy Development, 8 - 12 Weeks
The most important thing to consider when getting a new puppy is to not, under any circumstances, let the breeder or anyone else convince you to bring your puppy home before she's at least 8 weeks old. The time the puppy spends in the litter is crucial for her social and emotional development. I can't tell you how many people I know who've regretted bringing their new pup home to soon. In fact, it’s actually best to wait until the pup is 12 weeks, not 8! That's because the more time puppies spend together in the litter, the more able they are to learn bite inhibition naturally, through their playful—and sometimes not so playful—interactions with one another. So if you want a puppy who has a “soft mouth” you’ll want to follow this mportant rule.
To a large extent, young puppies are incapable of impulse control. Their young hearts and minds are designed to explore their new environment through their teeth and jaws, as well as through their need to eliminate whenever and where ever it feels good. For this reason puppies need to either be closely supervised at all times [1] or confined behind a gate in kitchen, bathroom, or hallway, or in a puppy pen, with a water bowl, chew toys, a comfortable bed [2] inside an open crate [3], with wee-wee pads covering the floor. [4]
1) Notice the words “closely supervised.” This means you’re paying close attention to the pup at all times. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO MULTI-TASK! Your puppy’s health, safety, and proper emotional development come first, meaning no yelling at the pup because you weren’t paying attention and she got into something she shouldn’t have when you're the one who's at fault for not keeping an eye an her.
That said, no one is perfect. So don't kick yourself too much. Just try to be more mindful the next time. There'll be a definite learning curve for both you and your pup.
2) I like to use light blue towels to both cover the wire crate and as blankies. Light blue is a relaxing, calming color. And puppy beds are destined to be soiled, chewed, or ripped up. Towels are an inexpensive alternative.
3) Always keep the crate door secure so it doesn’t bang shut or hit the wall, etc. For now, going inside the crate should be the pup’s choice, so make it as stress-free as possible. You should also consider putting her dinner bowl inside at breakfast, lunch and suppertime.
4) Put newspaper or wee-wee pads on the entire gated area except for the bed and water bowl. After a few days you’ll see that puppy generally chooses to go on one particular area or corner of her domain. Over time you can slowly take up all the other wee-wee pads until only one is left.
Puppies take great delight in exploring everything in their path through their teeth and jaws. [5] They will also stop to pee or poop whenever the urge strikes them. [6] They will bark and cry when left alone. [7] They will get tired very quickly, and quite often they won’t realize how tired they are. [8]
5) To ensure proper emotional development, puppies should not only be allowed to explore the world with their teeth, they should be encouraged to do so. They should especially be encouraged to mouth your hands, but only at times when they’re feeling relaxed and quiet. However, there are some things puppies shouldn’t be chewing on, like electrical wires. The best solution is to puppy-proof your home. Bitter-Apple Spray (or other brands) can be applied to things your puppy shouldn’t chew on. Electrical wires should be tucked out of reach, and if you have expensive rugs or carpets, take them up for now and put them in storage. They are very likely to get peed on, pooped on, and have their edges chewed when you’re not watching. (See footnote 4, and the “Distract, Praise, Focus,” formula for redirecting your puppy’s teeth away from danger.)
It's very important to realize that a puppy's interest in what to chew changes from moment to moment. Sometimes a pup will feel like chewing soft things like wee-wee pads, your socks, etc. Other times she'll seem driven to destroy anything made of wood or metal. That's why it's very important to have chew toys that range from very soft to very hard. If your pup is intent on chewing a table leg, give her a hard toy. If she's interested in the carpet, give her something with a softer mouth feel.
Your puppy will also be very interested in chewing on your clothing, especially while you're putting on your socks, or when you're running around in the morning with your robe or pajamas on. The pup will feel driven to grab hold of those items and not let go. There are two ways to deal with this: 1) keep the puppy confined during this period or 2) spray Bitter Apple or Bitter Spray on your socks and pajama bottoms, etc. Since these sprays only last a short time, the more realistic option is to keep the puppy confined instead of playing what will end up being an impromptu game of tug-of-war between your pup's razor-sharp teeth and your clothing.
6) Do not ever stop your puppy from relieving herself. Once she’s already in the act, you have to resist the urge to run over, grab her and pull her away. Doing so won't teach her anything except to avoid you when she has the urge to "make." So train yourself to take a deep breath, count to ten, then quietly clean it up. (If you can't train yourself, how can you train your pup?) Interrupting a puppy while she’s in the grips of a strong (and at this age, uncontrollable) urge, will do little to teach her how to go in the right spot, and will weaken her ability to trust you.
7) As a general rule, when new puppies come into the home they’ll cry when you put them behind the gate, especially at night. You have to ignore the crying. It may take 45 minutes the first night, 30 minutes the second, and 20 the third night, but eventually the puppy will stop crying out of loneliness. If you give in and try to assuage her loneliness, you’ll only be guaranteeing that she’ll bark and bark and bark whenever she feels needy. You have to tough it out those first few nights.
In case you haven’t figured it out, this means you cannot and should not let a new puppy sleep in bed with you. Make sure you give her plenty of play time about an hour or so before bed, with a 20 minute cool-down period. If you want to cuddle with her on the floor, or hold her in your lap while she falls asleep, that’s fine. But once she’s making ZZZs, gently pick her up and put her behind her gate, turn out the light, and pray she sleeps soundly.
8) Overtired puppies are very similar to overtired kids. They need an enforced nap.
9) On an unconscious, knee-jerk level, dogs react to a big head coming toward them as potential danger. It’s okay to teach a puppy to give you kisses, but the pup should also come toward you to do that. It’s better not to move your head toward the pup. Few puppies are going to actually bite you over this, but it does create unconscious feelings of nervous tension toward you. So try to remember not to kiss your puppy; let your puppy lick your face (if she feels like it).
Some puppies may be lethargic for the first few days. This is usually temporary and due to the shock of adjusting to a brand new environment, but you should consult with your vet to make sure there isn't an underlying medical problem.
The most important thing to realize is that puppies need to play more than they need structured learning. In fact, the more structured learning you impose on a puppy, the more you open the possibility of creating learning deficits, limit the pup’s social and emotional development, decrease impulse control, and guarantee that your pup will be unable to learn as many things as quickly compared to puppies who are given every possible opportunity to engage in unstructured play. The puppy's brain knows naturally what it needs in order to grow and develop.
Most dog trainers are not as smart as Mother Nature in this regard, and there's not a dog trainer alive who has more experience than She does. So DO NOT take your puppy to an obedience class, especially if they use clickers. Clicker training requires much more attention and focus than most dog trainers are capable of, especially when they have to focus on more than dog at a time. As a result, clicker training can be harmful, it can create learning disabilities, cause food-related behavioral problems, and can sometimes ruin a puppy almost as much as spanking, scolding or punishing your pup would.
You’ll need to spend a lot of time down on the floor, playfully interacting with your pup, but the kind of games you play shouldn’t be forced on the puppy. Within reason, the puppy should choose which games and activities feel most important to him at any given moment, and you should follow the puppy’s lead. By the way, doing this will make the puppy feel more open to doing what you want him to do. It will not make him “dominant” over you.
Try as much as possible not to pick up the puppy, especially if you’re doing it to satisfy your urge to kiss the pup, [9] or to stop the puppy from doing something he “shouldn’t” do or getting into something he “shouldn’t” get into by zooming toward him with your outstretched arms looming down at him, and then physically restraining him. And under no circumstances should you ever scold, reprimand, or correct a puppy for anything. You will pay for it dearly when he grows up.
So always remember:
Don’t Correct — Re-Direct!
If you can’t watch the puppy closely, he should always be in his quiet area.
Cuddle time is important, but don’t overdo it. There are two questions to ask yourself when it comes to cuddle time: “Am I doing this to satisfy my emotional needs?” and “Am I reinforcing too much neediness in my pup by cuddling when he ‘demands’ it?” You have to strike a careful balance. Puppies need affection and physical comfort, but don't give too much unless you want to spoil your pup.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at (212) 615-6659 or at KelleyMethod@aol.com.
LCK
“Life Is an Adventure—Where Will Your Dog Take You?”
