You can’t leave it up to the pup to know what to do and when to do it. A puppy only knows how to be a puppy and what it learned from its canine mom, littermates, possibly other household dogs, and the breeder or pet parent it lived with before you brought him or her home. Some of what your puppy has learned may already be of value, and some may be habits that developed from a lack of proper training, incorrect methods, or methods that will not work in your home.
So, when should training begin? I was shocked when pet parents told me other dog trainers they had spoken with would not start training until the puppy was six (6) months old. At that age, if your puppy is a large breed dog, it is big and strong and probably pulling on a leash or has no idea how to walk.
Your cute puppy now has numerous behavioral issues, such as jumping, nipping, biting, picking up items from inside and outside the home, chewing on furniture and walls, and stealing food or items from counters. If you have a small breed puppy, problems seem to include peeing everywhere, barking uncontrollably, running out the door, pulling on the leash, nipping, and walking in a serpentine pattern or not walking at all.
Training should start immediately! That doesn’t mean strict obedience. Training is housetraining, obedience, behavior, and social skills. The first thing to address is always housetraining and teaching the puppy where its “accommodations” are. By that, I mean a confined area, a crate, the path to the outdoors, and where food and water are kept. If paper training is your plan, the puppy should learn “where” the paper is, how to get to it, and what it is for.
Housetraining is taught in conjunction with puppy training. That means learning to handle your pup correctly and conditioning the puppy to allow touching of paw, ears, face, teeth, and tail. Puppy training also includes proper play activities, such as controlling nipping, excessive barking, and walking on a leash.
A small window starts when your puppy comes home, and “puppy training/housetraining” will make a huge difference by putting the pup on the right track before unacceptable behaviors become the norm.
Having a well-trained adult dog will also help to train the new puppy.
