Do you have new puppy training tips?

@Cruiser what breed of dog?

Take it outside to the area you want her to do her business, right away every morning and right after each meal, and before bed. And probaby at 2–3 hour intervals in between.

When she gets ready to do her business, give the command you want to use for her bathroom breaks. Eventually you will train her to the point where you can give the command and she will go to the spot and do her business.

New a lady who always had well trained dogs. Her method works if you have a lot of time. She would crate the puppy and never let it set foot any where in the house till it was potty trained. When it wasn’t in the crate she would carry it and only let its feet touch the inside of the crate and the outside lawn. She swore in 2 weeks time it would learn to only go outside. She would take the dog outside every few hours and let it stay out in the yard for about half an hour. They don’t like to soil where they sleep.

They can only hold their bladder for about 1 hour per month old.
Get them used to going out one door. Put some papers or pad near it. If you see them going, rush them out the door or to the pad. Its all about conditioning. It will take a few months. Never scold them for it. They will find a spot and usually go to it outside once it is well marked.
Crate train as soon as you can. Short periods of time related to bladder control timing. They usually won’t mess in there, but accident happen. Don’t punish them to the crate. I get a kong and put peanut butter (sugar free as they cant digest sugars well) in it and put it in the crate.
Clicker training with little treats will help mark the action you are looking for. Timing of the treat and click is critical. Don’t treat if they don’t do the action.
Look for a puppy training or first level obedience class to help.
I split the food into morning and late afternoon. learn the timing of how soon they need to go out and do their business after feeding.
Enjoy! Post Pics!!

@blueiiznh Not sure of the breed….neither is the shelter. Her she is…
http://www.adoptapet.com/pet5342710.html

Oh my god, she is so cute I could just die.

I definitely recommend crate training. I crated both of my dogs as puppies, and now they both actually see their crates as refuge. They “go to bed” when they are scared or tired, without being told.
Definitely take the pup straight from the crate to the area you want her to potty outside, and get really excited when she does it. No rubbing her nose in it or getting angry when she messes up, just lots of positive reinforcement.

So freakin’ cute. Good luck.

@Cruiser very cute. Mine (Hendrix) from the shelter was also unknow and is 5 months old now

@Cruiser: So adorable that I might reconsider having only a cat in my life.

@Cruiser I’m so glad you asked this question! I’m going to be getting a puppy in a couple of weeks and it’s the first time I’ve ever had a dog so I am going to follow this question very closely because I know nothing about having a dog. Your little girl is so cute!! Here’s a picture of Lizzie, my soon to be new best friend

@lillycoyote I think I’ve seen her on a commercial! Beautiful!

@chyna Maybe one like her. You really think she’s star material? :-) LOL.

Anyway, enough with the dog flattery. :-) @Cruiser and I need help, ideas, information so we can be each good dog parents.

LOL, I meant, I knew a lady. NOT New lady. Sorry I am a bit distracted tonight.

@Pandora I’m so going to be busted for off-topic quipping but: NOT New lady? So it was an old lady you knew?

Sit is the easiest command to teach and I“m not great at it. Use a piece of food that puppy thinks is yummy and hold it above their head and move it backwards over their head while saying “sit”. They will try to get the snack and in doing so, will just sit as they lean back. I can’t believe how quick that was. Of course you need to do it repeatedly till it catches on, but it’s a good feeling after it does.
it depends on the dog how fast they learn. My pup would start to pee in the house and I firmly say no, no, no and carried her outside to finish. Then have a snack to give after a “GOOD JOB”. You almost have to exaggerate the goodness of their good jobs right after they do right. I think they really want to make us happy.

@Cruiser Oh wow – she’s a cutie!
She looks like she might have Beagle in the mix to me..so I’d be prepared for chewing. It might be good to look into buying some chew toys – to enforce positive “you can chew THIS, but not THIS” behaviors.
I’ll share the tip I got from a dog trainer: you should never give a dog a stuffed toy dog toy, or one that looks like a shoe unless you want her to eat stuffed animals and shoes you/your family may have laying around.

I love all of @blueiiznh‘s advice. The Kong is great. You can also put other treats in there (bits of hot dog or even a doggie biscuit) for her to work out of the kong and enjoy.

I crate trained with hot dog bits (I had a crate-resistant shelter rescue) – and after she was well trained and allowed to roam free in the house we took the door off the crate and she could go “hide out” in her crate (as if it was her cave) when she wanted.

Our puppy training class used the Gentle Leader—but that only worked well for one of our dogs. Just a thought..if you end up struggling with leash training.

Good luck and here’s hoping crate/potty training goes quickly. :)

@Cruiser I was just looking at my comment:

Anyway, enough with the dog flattery. :-) @Cruiser and I need help, ideas, information so we can be each good dog parents.

and was thinking… well… that was pretty damn cheeky of me, wasn’t it?! I have absolutely no right to say, or even suggest, what can and cannot be said or posted on your thread and I apologize!

Crate training – tons of info on the net but it is pretty simple, keep the pup in it when you can’t be watching. Dogs (if raised in clean environs) are fastidious and won’t foul their own hearth. So theoretically won’t mess in their crate, but don’t tempt fate, it is a baby so must be taken out very frequently. I believe in positive reinforcement, praise outrageously when she gets it right, but I also believe they have to be told when they do something wrong so I do scold unacceptable behaviors. Harsh words when they mess in the house. They are not dumb they will soon learn.

For more advanced training go to a puppy kindergarten first then on to obedience classes. Now here is the thing, if you want to spend years training your dog, then go to a class that works solely on positive reinforcement and doesn’t allow choke chains. If you want to just have a family dog that comes when you call it and doesn’t drag you down the street and sits and lies down when you tell it to, find a class that allows you to scold and punish bad behavior.

That advice will incite screams of no no no but I have trained literally thousands of dogs and have never broken any spirits, failed to bond, or destroyed a dogs’ psyche by training thusly!

I’m with @rooeytoo on this. I have raised and trained happy dogs all my life that way. There’s no abuse involved with scolding, they will learn faster, and because you’ll be happier, so will the puppy. Some kind of obedience school is essential for socializing, and teaching the puppy to focus on you not on other puppies, people or other distracting cool stuff. That could save the dog’s life later. I’ve always crate-trained with great results. A teeny-tiny treat every time they go into the crate is helpful.
Have a great time! Damn, now I want another puppy! Don’t plan to get a full night of sleep for awhile… :-)

OK today is going to be go meet the pup and most likely take it home. Can anyone here guide me on what to look for “structurally” in the dog? What red flags there are to look for?

Also I have read a lot of the training tips and using small treats for desired results seems to be a fairly universal strategy. But how long do you use this type of reinforcement? Every time they do it? Or do you wean them off the treats after so long and simply use verbal praise after…how long?

@Cruiser: “Oh, what a beautiful morning.” Remember this day in your universal calendar so you can celebrate it yearly.

The staff will answer all your questions, particularly since they will know <insert name here>‘s indiosyncrasies.

It is also very important that you are groomed, friendly, stress-free and on your best behavior, yet able to radiate an air of authority and alpha-dogness. <Insert name here> will judge you forever on what he sees, feels, sniffs and senses today.

Do send pix.

Awesome. I hope it goes well.
As far as the treats, you do the training with them and the clicker to mark the action till they get it. A week or so spending 15 minutes a day should work. Most dogs are damned smart.
The hand signal is more important at the beginning that the word. Be consistent on the word when used also. Fade the treat after they know the action. Slowly work them off it. Certainly use them again now and then. They will always need and like the reinforcement. Forgotten to be mentioned is the treat and marker, hand signal and word are important but one key thing to always remember is tone of voice. When they do it right, make them know how happy you are and that they are the bestest most awesome dog in all the world.
Also don’t forget to give them an all out treat day once a month or two. They will be your unconditional best friend and deserve it.
The first day I got my puppy was also the first day of puppy training class. The class is for you as much as for puppy.

That is the one disadvantage to adoption from a rescue, you have no idea what you are getting. If you buy a pure bred dog from a reputable breeder they will have done numerous health checks to insure their pups do not fall victim to the genetic health problems endemic to their breed.

So before you get attached to the pup, I would immediately take it to the vet. The pup looks to me like terrier x, ask the vet what health problems are common to terriers and to check for that, heart, eyes, good hips and shoulders are the major and obvious things.

Having a new pup is so exciting, I envy you!!!

Just keep a pocket full of treats handy, little one’s that aren’t a meal so you can do it often. The pup is looking for a “paycheck” when he does right. That will be his motivation at first and later they will not need them….as much.