Puppy Training: Us Versus Maple

There are lots of cliche traps that people are falling into during lockdown and I’m not ashamed to say we’ve fallen into a very fluffy one. We have recently acquired a new addition to the family; a gorgeous red labrador named Maple! While getting a new puppy is super exciting it can also be a little daunting – there is a lot to think about! Here are a few tips on puppy training that we have been using…

Consistency is key

It is important that everyone in your family treats your new puppy the same way, and with a family of six we really have to keep an eye on this! To keep things consistent in our house we make sure that everyone speaks to the puppy in the same tone, takes her to the same spot in the garden every-time to do her business and uses the same noise to tell her off (just a simple noise – not words).

Feeding time

When it comes to feeding time make sure they sit and wait before giving them food – this stops there from being a mad rush to get food and it teaches respect. Extra important with labrador training as they are renowned for being greedy little things. I also wouldn’t recommend leaving food down all the time for them to help themselves to; regular meal times gives your puppy something to look forward to and is also helpful for you to be able to spot if they are eating less than usual which could indicate a health problem.

Housetraining

As I mentioned above we have one spot in the garden where we take Maple to do her business so that she will learn that is the place to go; not in the house or anywhere else that we don’t want her to go. Eventually this will help us avoid having guests embarrassingly stepping in poop wondering around the garden but it also makes it much easier to clean up after her.

It’s also important to take your pup out more times than they need to go to prevent accidents, they are more likely to need to go after a meal and a long playtime so be sure to take them out then too. When they go in your desired spot make sure to give them lots of praise!

Socialising

Socialising for a puppy is a really important step to take to get them used to the world around them. They should be introduced to lots of different people and dogs so that they become friendly with everyone, take them on short car journeys and to the shops with you, go for walks around your area to get them used to the neighbours and the town. The more you involve them with the more adaptable they are going to be. I know this is hard to do at the moment but for a puppy just seeing lots of people is the akin to ‘meeting’ them.

Crate Time

We used a crate with Inca and it was fantastic so we’re using one again for little Maple. Using a crate can be a great way of limiting a puppy’s access to the rest of your home; we find that if she isn’t playing and interacting with us while out of the crate she will go and find her own entertainment which usually involves chewing on something she shouldn’t!

It’s important to never use the crate as a punishment though because your pup may come to fear going in there when you want the crate to be somewhere comfortable for you puppy to go when they need a bit of peace and quiet.

The crate shouldn’t be used for long periods of time and should only really be used until you can trust your puppy to be in the house unsupervised.

Play Time

Play time is surely the best part about getting a puppy right? It’s an excellent way to bond with your new best friend and to establish boundaries. It’s a good idea to invite your puppy to play when they are calm instead of when they are pestering you as this praises calm behaviour over demanding behaviour. If they get over excited get them to sit down for a bit to calm down then resume playing.

Don’t forget, just like children, they grow up fast! You only get a soft squidgy puppy for a few months so make sure to make the most of it and enjoy all of the love, cuddles and puppy kisses! It’s been so lovely having the kids at home while Maple has been small, they’ve learnt so much about caring for a puppy as well as had a great distraction to break up the home schooling boredom!