I am in training. My mentor, and the expert, is
Sarah Hodgson, professional dog trainer and author of, Puppies Raising & Training Diary for Dummies. Her expertise has
made a tremendous difference in training our new Brittany puppy, Cooper (Coop).
Puppies do not perceive the world as we do. Things
natural to us encourage unsociable behavior in our pups. It’s been hard for my
husband and I to retrain ourselves in order to train Coop. The first, and biggest,
error for me was talking to him too much. My voice has a tendency to be higher
than my husband’s, which excites Coop. An excited puppy equals a hyperactive
puppy, which equals disaster. The ideal is to encourage enthusiasm, not hyper-excited
behavior. I have labeled the latter, Psycho Puppy. It ain’t pretty, let me tell
you that.
The other behavior hard to break was using our
hands too much in order to redirect his attention. To a puppy, hands are
mouths. He equates this with rough and tumble play, which is not acceptable
behavior. A puppy’s mouth should never be on human skin. Kisses z(licking) are
encouraged, but no mouthing or nipping.
Sarah suggests using a head collar, which Coop is
proudly (if reluctantly at times) modeling for you from his safe place, the
closest set of human legs. This collar gives the same correction as his mother,
a gentle pressure on the nose and it is safe to use on pups as young as eight
weeks. It is designed similar to a halter for a horse. Puppies can still eat,
drink, and chew.
It is amazing how well it curtails bad behavior such
as nipping, mouthing, jumping, and general running amok. It requires only a
little pull on his lead. No more buying Bitter Apple by the gallon to keep him
from chewing on things like the couch, the carpet, or me. Puppies thrive in a
home with rules, just like children. And Coop is much happier when not in the
Psycho Puppy mode.
Following Sarah’s advice, I’ve shucked my usually
reserved, lady-like demeanor for something a little less dignified. In order to
introduce Coop to new things, we need to pretend we are his mom (Oddly, my
husband has happily left this part of Coop’s training to me. Shrug.)
I have crawled on my hands and knees over to the
scary new toy, sniffed, and pawed at it. Coop ran over and did the same, albeit
from his safe place between my knees. But it worked. Now the toy is a favorite.
Next was the little wading pool. I took off my
shoes, rolled up my jeans, and got in. I splashed, giggled, and swirled the
water with my hands. Coop followed suit and now we have a water puppy, who
loves his pool and is unafraid of water. Unhappily, he views mud puddles with
the same enthusiasm. Oh well, he’s wash n wear.
Another big hurdle was the dreaded water monsters,
the automatic sprinklers. I ran through them, laughing, whooping, and giggling.
Coop followed me in, ran circles, and nipped at the spray. We were both soaked,
but with the ninety-degree temperature, neither of us suffered — and we had a
lot of fun.
I have to admit. I love playing with him and exploring
new things, even if it means crawling on the floor and acting like a silly kid.