My Advise and Training Tips

I'm making this page because I am often asked to do so. These are not tips from a trainer they are simply the methods I have used to train our dogs. Some techniques I hope will help you with the first few months of raising one of our pups. End results will vary depending on how serious you are about having a well mannered dog. If you are a person who is worried about raising your voice or your pup hating you for correcting them then you will end up stressed and with a troubled dog.

I work hard to make all our pups leave here with the knowledge that humans are the pack leader. IF you allow your pup to do what it wants without correcting them then you will reverse what I have taught them since birth. Even a pup knows that there is suppose to be a pack leader and if you are a push over and do not take raising your pup serious then they will make themselves the pack leader.

No dog or pup wants to be the alpha. This breed is not wired to be boss but every dog knows there are rules and a leader to keep the pack safe and protected. Your dog will not simply sit back and live in a carefree home with no rules. In order to have a well behaved dog you must set boundries and your pup/dog will be the better for it. If you are having issues with aggression then this is a sign that ranks have slipped. No pup is born aggressive or dominate. An aggressive/dominate dog learns to be this way through fear or having no pack leader to follow. Every pup needs early human contact and a human alpha right from birth and thoughout their life.
Dogs/Pups do not need to be hit to behave correctly however taking them and putting them in a kennel after they have done something wrong isn't the way either. Time and attention is what a pup needs to become a loving well behaved family companion. Families with children also have to teach them the rules to become pack leaders too. If you allow your child to rough play with your new pup then your pup will see your child as a litter mate. This often has the pup nipping at your child just like it would do with a litter mate in play. It is not a sign of aggression if you pup is running and grabbing onto your child with a wagging tail. If you are not there and your child laughs at this play as children often do then the pup will continue doing this unless you step in.
If you are looking for a first time dog and are raising children under 3 then I stress to you to think about whether you want the hassle a pup can sometimes cause. I suggest sitting a family of friends dog first. Taking a training course or reading what it takes to be an alpha pack leader. Never think you can learn as you go. Your family may be better suited to an older dog that is already trained. Think about a rescue where you can return the dog if it doesn't work out or switch to another dog.
Please do not take me wrong, I would love every child to grow up with their first dog right by their sides. It's a wonderful method to teach a child compassion and responsibility in caring and raising the family pet. However we are a World with hundreds of well meaning families handing their family pets into rescues or pounds because they brought their pup into their home without realizing how much work their pet took.
The thought of one of our pups/dogs sitting in a shelter does not sit well with us at all. So please do not jump into getting one of our pups just because you can and want one.

Love alone will not make your pup the perfect family dog.

First Day Home and Sleeping Area.

First day can be exciting and it is best to set up a routine right away. Your routine is what will be best for your pup not what has happened at our home. Your pup needs to learn when your family settles in to sleep or wakes up and when and where to eat. The routine I have set with our pups is simply our routine but now that you are pack leader your pup will be looking to you to guide them.
First night your pup may cry so to help them with the transition into your family here is what you can do. Place a chair by your bed and place your pup into their training kennel. Place the kennel with your pup in it on the chair. This allows your pup to see you and smell that you are there. Do this for the first 3 days. On the fourth day place the kennel on the floor and remove the chair. Allow the pup to sleep in the kennel by your bed for another 2 days. Then place the pup in the kennel by your door, another few nights then place them in the hallway with your door open. Baby steps to where you want your pup to finally sleep. Some of ours sleep on our bed, some prefer their kennels while others are with our girls in their rooms. As long as you give your pup or dog permission onto you bed and your children do the same then your dog/pup will respect that this is not their quiet place and is owned by the human sleeping in it.
When kennel training a pup I give water and food up to 5pm then I take away everything so their system is close to empty before bed. Unless you go for a late night walk then of course give a drink of water or when ever needed. 

House Training and Kennel Training

Training your pup is best done with the use of a kennel. The kennel is not a punishment and you can reward your pup with a piece of its kibble for going into their kennel or a favorite chew toy. The kennel is a place your pup can call its own and it will see it as a safe place. Later you can remove the door to the kennel and your pup/dog will often go in it for a nap. The kennel here is seen as a safe place for the pup to go while it can not be watched every second. We suggest you buy a kennel in 3 stages.

1. First stage is when you bring your pup home. The kennel should be big enough for your pup to stretch out but not be so big that they can mess in one end and curl up and sleep in the other. The place the pup sleeps is a place they will keep clean so do not go with a kennel you plan to use all the dogs life at first. In this first kennel you can use a small hand towel, or baby blanket. Your pup is a fluff ball and does not need a huge thick blanket to fall asleep. If you want your pup to house train faster then use a small thin blanket, towel or nothing at all. The reason for this is you want your pup to know it has made an accident. Use a think blanket that absorbs the mess and your pup will simply sleep through the night while not feeling what it did wrong. Yes this means that the odd time you will have a mess to clean up but your pup will learn much faster to not mess in its kennel if it can feel what it did wrong. We often are told that our pups do not mess their kennels at all and this is because while here we teach them to sleep in a kennel before they go home. First and sometimes second accidents are done in our care making it easier on our buyers of our pups. If you decide to give your pup a small playpen with paper to mess on during the night then they are still learning to mess in the house and you are not teaching the pup to hold themselves. First week we do suggect setting the alarm clock for 3am for a quick bathroom break outside sometimes even 2 weeks is better. This is only 1 week for what should be 12+ yrs of your dogs life so it is not a lot to ask. The reason your pup needs this early morning break is because your pup is only 2-3 lbs at this stage and being a smaller breed makes their systems grow slower and their bladders are not full size yet and they can not hold as much now as they can when they grow a bit more. Some families decide not to wake up and do fine but if your pup isn't able to hold themselves then a quick break in the wee hours will help your pup to be a success in staying clean.

2. Second stage is when your pup has stayed clean for 3 weeks or is in need of a bigger kennel due to out growing the old one. This is where you can decide to get a fancy kennel big enough for your pup to bring in all their favorite toys to sleep with or a kennel a little bigger then the first to ensure training if going well. Solid sides with a wire door, all wire or homemade is something you need to decide on and what works with your taste or is safe for your dog. I like the all wire ones so our dogs when they need to be kenneled can at least watch our every move. If they want to sleep then a blanket over the kennel gives them a dark quiet place to rest. If your pup needs a bigger kennel but still makes the odd mistake at night then go with a kennel that is big enough to turn around and stretch out but again not big enough to mess on one side and sleep in the other end. 

3. Third is the last and the kennel of your dreams or your dogs. Something bought used or one that cost $500 as long as your dog sees it as their safe quiet place in your home that is theirs and theirs alone.

Kennel training does not mean your pup is house trained. I use the kennel when our dogs are young and I need to do house cleaning or yard work. I simply can not watch our pup every second and it only takes a pup a few seconds to decide they need to relieve themselves. You can leave the room for 10 minutes and come back to a mess. Getting upset and picking your pup up to scold and smack will send the pup the wrong message. You may find your pup not wanting to come to you when called...really can't blame them. 

Think of your pup as a child wanting to learn baseball...you wouldn't teach your child how to play baseball while doing dishes or folding the clothes. So why would you teach your pup to not mess while doing dishes or laundry. Simply put if you are training your pup to be clean in the house then you have to set aside time to watch it every second when not in the kennel or with a family member. If no one has time then the pup is in their kennel where you know they wont mess. The kennel can not be your pups babysitter. When buying a pup you have to take the good with the bad and while house training taking it outside sometimes 10 times a day while out of their kennel is something that needs to happen. All family members old enough should help with house training the pup. Our pups are 90% house trained a few weeks after you get them. They may still mess the odd time if forgotten about or left too long alone at home.

Dog Toys.
I will provide your puppy with an age appropriate toy. I would advise you that this be your pups only toy till he/she has been with you for a month. I say this because your pup needs to learn what is theirs to chew on and giving more then one can confuse your pup in knowing what is theirs and what is yours.

Signs on When Your Pup Needs to Go.

Some pups sniff an area for a good 30 seconds before going, some walk in tight small circle. Pups will need to go outside as soon as you wake them up. So leaving your pup in the kennel in the morning while you use the restroom and make a coffee will often result in the pup messing. Make you pup the first one to go relieve themselves while they are under 4 months old. While your pup is small you will find that right after they eat often within minutes they are needing to go outside. Watch your pup...some take 4-10 minutes while others are really right after their face is out of the bowl.

When Can I Take My Dog to the Dog Park?

I do not take my pups out in public areas until 12 weeks old and after the second vaccine. Even when going for the pups first vaccine I do not get their with time to spare because I feel the best place for a pup/dog to get sick is at the vets...just like with humans and hospitals. 
The pup is born with the mothers immune system antibodies past done from her protect the pups *a little*. First vaccine the mothers antibodies are disappearing and being replaced by the first vaccine. The first vaccine sets the pups system up to not rely on mothers antibodies but theiur own now. First vaccine is seen as building the pups system up for the second vaccine. After the second vaccine your pup is now safe to go to your favorite dog park. Please be sure have your vet continue with heartworm protection as we have started here. I use heartworm prevention medication on all our dogs and pups from May-November. Please read your pups vet folder to see which meds we have used to care for your pup. All vaccinces are done by our licenced vet and never by myself. Ask you vet about west nile...the decission of what your pup/dog should be on is your responsibility along with rabies vaccine which is typically given once the pup is 12-14 weeks old.

Remember allowing friends or family members to introduce their family dogs to yours is something I would hold off on. You are not saying that you do not trust that the friends dog isn't safe or vaccinated but that you can not trust everyone elses dog that their dog has been in contact with. Kennel cough is airbourne and can be carried to your pup on the fur of your friends dog who is full vaccinated. So to be on the safe side wait for introductions until your pups second vaccine. If this pup is your second dog then keep your first dog up to date on vaccines. Keep your first dog away from other dogs and pups a week prior to introducing your second pup. A week will give your dog time for any airbourne hitchhikers to die away before your second pup comes home. 

Introducing Your Second Pup to Your Other Dogs at Home.

Our pups while here have play time with their parents and sometimes our other family dogs. So your pup is use to older dogs. The first time you introduce your older dog to your new pup should NOT be done in your home. Have someone take your older dog to a park and introduce the newest family member to your older dog there. If you simply surprise your older dog with the new member in your home you may get a reaction you are not ready for. Dogs see the house they live in as their cave...its their packs home. If you bring in a pup some dogs may defind their homes against this new intruder. Introducing a pup to your older dog at a park will not longer make that pup coming into the olders dogs home a stranger. When the pup comes into the home you will want to pay more attention to your older dog so it shows them they are not being replaced. Sometimes you need to do nothing but there is the odd dog that reacts different. I would rather you do these steps and take the extra measure. The older dog also gets food in their bowls first since the pup is the lowest rank in your home. Sometimes it takes minutes for an older dog to warm up to the new pup while others take a few months.

Staying Pack Leader

What I control in our home.
Our dogs are not allowed to jump onto our laps for some snuggling.  We tap our legs and allow them to get on our laps. I do not leave food out for a day of grazing. Our dogs are given food and are not allowed to jump into the bowls until I am done filling them. Doing this shows the dogs I am the one finding and providing the food making me stay pack leader. Our dogs do not run outside the second I open a door instead I step out then they go or I say go outside and allow them to go once they settle. Dogs are not allowed on our funiture unless it is their dog couch which they have free access. All other furniture they have to stay off until some asks them to come up. Our dogs will stay in our family room and wait at the door entrance until I say come then they come into the rest of the home. Toys are provided for play but any family member can take one of the toys from our dogs and none will growl or put up a fuss. When grooming our dogs stand still for me and allow me to trim nails or clean ears without a fuss. I can open any of our dogs mouths to clean teeth and your pup has this started while here. Our dogs will not hold a stare at me...dogs who do this typically are challenging their owners. Hence why when you come here your pup doesn't stare into your eyes like some pups will because I have taught them from birth to be passive. There are many more actions you can do to remain the pack leader but it is something that needs to be a routine.

Treats or Rewards.

While pups are young and small you will want to use their kibble as a reward or a bit of play with their favorite toy. Introducing a treat other then their food can upset their small stomachs causing loose stools. Wait till the pups are 4 months old then pick one treat for rewards.

Discipline or Correcting.

Use harsh treatment and you will lose the trust of your pup. Losing trust can take months even years to fully get back. Your pup may even refuse to see you are their leader making training them very hard.
Watch a TV show of  wolves in a family pack. The pack leader or alpha wolf never bites another family member and draws blood. What an alpha wolf will do to correct a young wolf is to nip at its neck and sometimes even pin them and growl.  Our Mother dogs will nip at their pups when they get too rambunctious to correct them. What I do here is a simple flick at the neck with my pointer finger and thumb. Sometimes even a sharp loud "hey" at the same time. This is typically enough to get the pup to stop and change what they are doing. When buying from us I will show you the proper method we have used. Showing is better then writing so please ask while you are here.
It is okay for your first dog to snarl and snap at your new pup. Your first dog will teach your new pup manners. Your older dog will not want to play all the time like your new pup will and your new pup needs to learn this from your older dog to set boundries. 

Everyone is different in teaching and what works for you is not always found in a book. I may not be right in my teaching and training however learning for me has been a process over many years of owning our family dogs. I haven't always trained our dogs right and have changed my ways from our first dog. I have improved and it is shown in our older dogs compared to our younger ones. The tips I have given above is what I use now to train our dogs and is what I have found works best.

 Enjoy learning with your new pup and remember that your pup is only going to be as good as the time you put into them.