Odin, Our New Puppy!

Welcome to the family Odin!

Odin is a 3 and a half month old male Double Doodle (25% lab, 25% golden, 50% poodle) mix.  He weighs in a 20lbs and is absolutely adorable!  He will be a star in some up coming training videos on clicker training, house training, and how to handle common puppy problems.  We have a very informal blog to keep track of Odin's progress and day to day activities.  Check it out below

Odin Puppy Diaries

Intro to Clicker Training

So we have touched on some methods of training, reviewed training equipment, talked about socializing our dogs, and keeping them exercised and healthy.  It's time to tackle some actual dog training.  I like to start all dogs off with clicker/marker training first.  This provides a positive foundation for training encouraging the dog to want to work and building your relationship.

Please check out this video on our intro to clicker training your dog!
K9 180 Intro to Clicker Training

Here's a list of the items used in this training video

1. Treat Pouch - you can use a clean tool pouch as well!
2. Training Treats - we want high value treats, here are some great ideas
1. Bil-Jac
2. Pet Fresh or Deli Fresh rolled dog food cut into small bite sized pieces
3. Hot Dog pieces - try to limit hot dogs as they aren't as healthy for your dog
4. Bits of Cook Unseasoned Chicken or Beef - again cut to a good size
3. Clicker - you can get these off the internet or at your local pet store

Treat Size - depending on the size of your dog we are looking for a treat size of a pea or cheerio

You want a treat that is not hard or crunchy.  We want our dog to be able to consume it quickly and easily.

So how do I feed my dog while clicker training?

I recommend feeding your dog twice a day.  If you dog is free fed right now start out by putting dog food out twice a day for 15 minutes and then pick it back up.  I promise your dog will eat when they are hungry.  Make sure you're using a high quality food and that your veterinarian doesn't have any special feeding guidelines.  Young puppies (dogs under 12 months) should be fed 3 times a day when possible.

You're clicker training session should come before a regular feeding time.  Ex: my dogs eat at 7am and 6pm about every day.  So our clicker training sessions should be at 6:30am and/or 5:30pm so that my dogs are at their hungriest point and ready for their meal.

For young puppies and smaller dogs their clicker training session can very easily replace a meal so make sure that you remove food from your dogs regular feeding based on the amount of healthy treats they get during training.

Puppy Training Understanding the Foundation

It's very important to start a new puppy off right. Laying the foundation for training is critical and will build a lasting relationship between you and your new puppy. This is going to start out with a specific style of positive reinforcement training known as clicker training or marker training. The only difference between clicker training and marker training is that with clicker training you use a clicker to mark a behavior and then follow with a food reward, while in marker training you use a word such as "yes" to mark the behavior and follow with the reward. Personally I have used and am comfortable with both methods of training.

Clicker training

• Pros - You get the exact same sound every time you click the clicker which is great for consistency.  There are more books and information available on clicker training, and you can buy clickers at almost every pet store.
• Cons - You have to have the clicker on you almost all the time. It can be difficult to handle holding a clicker, working with the food rewards, and your puppy all at once.

Marker Training

• Pros - You don't need anything but your voice and a reward. It can be a little easier to balance marker training than handling a clicker.
• Cons - It is harder to keep your marker word such as "yes" consistent every time.  There is not quite as much literature on marker training but it is the same principle as clicker training your just replacing the clicker with a marker word "yes".

Why do we want to use this training with our puppies?

This style of training is going to be positive for your puppy, build a solid foundation for future training, and it's easy to recover from any mistakes.  It is best for one person in a family to be responsible for the puppy's early training.  However there are several times when a second hand in training exercises is very useful.

Basis for this training also lies in your ability to control your new puppy's environment. I highly recommend crate and x-pen training. This is just like having a crib and playpen for a young toddler.  The crate and x-pen allows you to reinforce good potty training behaviors and keeps your puppy from getting into any trouble in the first place. You wouldn't leave a 2 year old child loose for an hour in the house unsupervised so why do we expect our puppies to stay out of trouble? 

This comes down to a 1, 2, 3 foundation with a pup.

1. The puppy is confined in a crate or x-pen
2. The puppy is in a secure and safe outside area under indirect supervision
3. The puppy is under your direct supervision.

Let's review direct supervision, this means the all of your focus and attention is on the puppy, not cooking, laundry, chores, or paperwork.  If your puppy only spends 1-2 quality hours outside of a crate per day that is better than a puppy left loose unsupervised in a house of yard where they risk injury, escape, and will pick up bad sometimes dangerous behaviors.  With that being said of course a young puppy needs a structured house training schedule.  

A rough concept is the dog should be able to hold it's bladder for as many hours as it is months old (Ex: 4 month old puppy 4 hours).  This doesn't include that a puppy will also need to use the restroom after eating, after drinking lots of water, after play time or training sessions, and any time the pup gets excited and shows signs of getting ready to use the restroom.  Of course if the puppy is out of it's crate it will be under your supervision so as soon as the puppy squats it's picked up, rushed outside, and then praised enthusiastically for going outside to use the bathroom.

The purpose of this training has a few layers.  The big picture is that we want the puppy to look to us for everything.  We want a dog who sees us as their source of food, fun, play, meals, potty breaks, safety, protection...a dog who sees us as their best friend and leader.

Utilizing and controlling a puppy or dog's food is extremely powerful and relationship building.  A young puppy eats such small meals that the first several weeks there is no reason for the pup to be fed from a food bowl.  Just 5-10 minutes every morning and evening teaching the beginning stages of marker training using a healthy and high quality puppy food will be their entire daily calorie intake.  Especially because you will be striving to work with your puppy 3 times a day utilizing the food that would normally go into a bowl.

Note that the dogs are all focused on me, not the food bowls

All great things must come from you.  This builds focus, motivation, and creates a relationship where the dog actively tries to please you to get what it wants. In adult dogs we sometimes refer to this training as a "nothing in life is free" method.  It's got a lot of great philosophies that are included in my training programs.

View this link to an older video I have taken utilizing marker training before I moved my business from Krystal's K-9 to K-9 180.

Socializing

Socializing your dog or puppy is very important!  It helps your puppy become comfortable with new, exciting, or potentially scary things, people, places, or noises.  An adult dog also benefits from socializing by gaining confidence and becoming more comfortable around different situations.

While it's best to start by properly socializing a dog during it's puppy stages, all ages, breeds, and sizes benefit.  The key to socializing it for the puppy or dog to enjoy these new experiences.
Let's visualize for a minute...

1. Image going to a new theme park, everyone's friendly, the lines are short, you get free soft drinks, and have a great time with family/friends.  
2. Now image going to a new theme park, there's trash everywhere, the lines are long and crowded, none of the staff are helpful, and your the group you went with is in a grumpy mood.  

I bet everyone had a better time at park #1!  The same is true with your dog, puppies are particularly sensitive due to their socialization (almost the first year but critically 8-16 weeks) and fear periods (8-12/16 weeks and some again around 6 months).  

Image all you ever see is your family, house, and backyard for the first 4 months of life.  Then one day you go into a box on wheels (the car) and all of a sudden nothing smells, looks, or sounds familiar.  Loud kids every where, noisy skate boards rushing past, your family is ignoring you and dozens of strange people with weird haircuts, perfumes, and hats are sticking their hands all over your face.  You're scared and have no idea how to feel!  This can be how your puppy or dog experiences their first outing.  Or the only time they go in the car is to the vet for shots and bloodwork.  Would you want to go to the park?  Or even get in the car?  

Proper socialization includes ensuring that your dog is comfortable and has an enjoyable time out learning to handle new situations.  Having your new puppy or dog of several years sit while kids and new people give them a special treat.  Encourage your puppy/dog to investigate and explore while staying safe.  Socializing with proper rewards, encouragement, and good manners is key for a well balanced dog.

Here's a challenge for you on socializing your puppy or dog.  This list will provide you with fresh ideas on things, people, places, and situations to introduce and experience.  Some are a little challenging.

Dog/Puppy Socialization Contest

Comment any additional ideas you have or challenges that you & your dog have experienced together!
Have fun and be safe!