One of the points I always try to drive home to people getting a new puppy is how important it is to keep self control and not lose your temper to the point that you hit your dog. We have all seen the dogs that are scared of everything, some to the point of submissive urinatation. That result could have come from one short fused owner that got upset over a chewed up valuable or an accident on the new carpet. One moment that you allowed yourself to hit your dog may cause a lifetime of cowering fear and submissive urination.

I understand that we are human. We have tempers and most of the time if we could have taken a second and not just reacted we would have handled the situation much better. It is the same with kids. The difference is that when we make a mistake with our kids, they are intelligent enough to know that we do make mistakes but still love them. Dogs arent so easy to forget that blow up and every time your hand goes up quickly they are going to remember getting wacked and cower or run away.

None of us want to make mistakes. None of us want to ruin our dogs. My advise is to try to plan ahead for every problem that you might run into and plan on how you will react. “If Fido has an accident on the carpet I will firmly correct with a loud NO and take him out to where he should go to relieve himself. If he finishes in the right area I will praise like crazy.” Try to think up anything that might happen and then plan your reaction. Its always easier to make the right choice when a situation arises if you have already decided how you will react.

It wont be easy but I promise you that it will be worth it. You and your dog will obviously have a much better relationship and be much happier.

Its hard not to want to give your cute puppy whatever he wants and do whatever he wants to do but it is so critical that we use this time wisely. Puppies grow up so fast and what they learn as puppies (good or bad) will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Consistency and diligence is the key. Dont let the dog get away with anything. Every time you let let your guard down you will have to start all over again. Don’t wait to teach them manners. Start right away with the basic commands, “sit”, “stay”, “come”, “down”, “out”, “leave it” and of course “potty”! Your puppy is smart enough to learn these commands as early as 8 weeks of age.

Your puppy needs to be socialized as much as possible. Once he has had his puppy shots make sure to take him with you whenever you can. Home Depot and Petsmart are great places to go. Let people touch your puppy and if there are other dogs go make an introduction. The more socialized your puppy is the more confidence he will have which makes for a happier, smarter, easier to train dog.

Make sure you are feeding your puppy a good dog food. Do your research, some breeds seem to respond better to one dog food over another. If you purchased from a reputable breeder they will probably have some good advice as to what to feed them.

Coming back to consistency, make sure you feed your puppy at the same time every day. Try to keep a routine that you follow as close as you can. This will help with many behavioral probems and will be very helpful with potty training.

Don’t forget to have fun!

My brother has been looking for a puppy for a long time. He asked me for my help which of course I was glad to give. We did a lot of research and eventually decided on a Golden Retriever. I had some good breeder contacts for Goldens and we looked at multiple litters. On Saturday we found the perfect puppy. Or should I say she found us.

The breeder knew what we were looking for and thought she had the perfect candidate. We did find the perfect puppy but it wasnt the one she had in mind. It was unbelievable how this puppy seemed to connect with us right away. Her eyes wouldnt leave ours as if she was trying to will us with everthing she had to take her home. If my brother didnt take her I dont think I could have resisted.

My brother has 8 kids and this is their first dog. As you can imagine, his wife wasnt sure she was ready to add the extra work of a puppy. They just got a bigger property and have animal lovers that just needed a dog. Puppies can definitely be a lot of work and I wanted to make sure they were prepared for what they should expect. I think they were prepared as you can be and my sister in law still gave the green light. Her kids are lucky to have a mom that loves them so much to take on the extra work. I know she will not regret it. The puppy really is perfect.

It has been so fun for me helping pick out the right puppy, giving puppy and dog training tips, helping them have all the tools necessary to make this a positive experience for the puppy and my brothers family. Of course we have already covered potty training and crate training. I am meeting with all the family tonight to go over basic obedience and how to stay consistent with commands, praise and discipline. I really am enjoying this and am as excited to see that puppy tonight as I am my nieces and nephews.