Puppies go through developmental stages just like human babies do. English dog trainer Stan Rawlinson outlines them nicely here. Read it over and find exactly at what stage your puppy is at right now.
Notice he says, "the most rapid learning occurs between 7 and 16 weeks." If you are not teaching your puppy anything you are totally missing out on this window of opportunity! What he learns now he'll remember for the rest of his life. The question is: will your puppy remember learning good or bad behaviors?
Many puppy owners think it's cute when their puppy jumps up on them. So they encourage the behavior by giving him lots of pets and praise when he does it. Then the puppy gets bigger and it's not so cute anymore. Now the owner will have a much harder time teaching the dog not to jump on people because he's already learned that it results in him getting attention.
The last paragraph also sums up the training philisophy that I TRULY believe in with all my heart. This is what I've seen work with my dogs. I've personally seen people work against this training method, and they are still having problems with their dogs.
"Being the leader does not mean you have to be big and aggressive. Nor does it mean that there has to be a battle of strength or wills, after which you emerge the victor. Anyone can be the leader. It is an attitude, an air of authority. It is the basis for mutual respect, and provides the building blocks of communication between you and your dog. It never means punishment or overt aggression."
Thank you Stan!
You can read the article here.
What developmental stage is your puppy in? Leave your comments below.
Saturday, January 6, 2007
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