Puppy training and play
Why should you train your puppy?
A well-mannered dog doesn't just happen by accident; it requires consistent and creative teaching. Puppies' brains are receptive to learning manners, house training, and safety skills. Therefore, incorporating consistent play and training methods will help.
Puppy training offers numerous benefits. For example:
- Physical activity- helps burn off their excess energy.
- Cognitive skills- play that involves reasoning enhances their problem-solving and memory skills.
Also, during play, it allows you to teach your puppy how to act and play. Behaviors like biting, nipping, herding, and jumping can be dangerous around young children and adults. Puppies learn acceptable behavior through socialization and playtime. These sessions help set the tone for how you want them to behave as they get older.
Commands such as "sit," "lie down," and "wait" contribute to a friendly personality. Also, reliable recall skills to get your puppy’s attention can even save your puppy's life in the future.
Puppy training tips
Starting them at a young age
Starting to train your puppy at around three to 14 weeks old is beneficial as they are in a socialization window therefore, they will be most receptive to learning new skills. Skills you should consider teaching at this stage are basics like ‘sit’ or coming to you when you call their name.
Frequency and repetition
There are different ways that you can approach teaching your puppy to accommodate and try to get the best results possible:
- Reward good behavior- praise, affection, and treats.
- Short and frequent training sessions as puppies have short attention spans.
- Be consistent and start early.
Also, if you are struggling with training your puppy, try training classes as these will allow your puppy to socialize and learn new skills under the supervision and guidance of a professional.
What makes a good training session
- Reward good behavior—with praise, affection and treats
- Keep training sessions short and frequent. Puppies have short attention spans
- Start early and be consistent. Repetition works
Puppy training classes allow your puppy to learn to socialize and gain new skills under the supervision of a professional. Never hesitate to ask for help if you have questions or need expert advice.
Your puppy will not immediately remember everything they've learned; it takes patience. Be sure to use positive reinforcement by rewarding their good behavior—it works best.
Training treats can be low-calorie tasty meat treats, given one at a time—remember to adjust their meal portion to avoid excess calories—praise and affection, or a couple minutes of play with their favorite toy.
Discover the right food for your puppy
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Teaching your puppy the basics
You can start right away with this skill and practice it daily:
●Sit facing your puppy with a treat in hand
●Hold the treat in front of their nose, giving the puppy a good whiff
●Raise the treat over the puppy's head. Your puppy will sit naturally as it looks up at the treat.
●When your puppy sits, give praise and a reward
●Repeat several times a day.
Best practices when it comes to treats
Treats are a great way to incentivize your puppy when training. They should always be taken out of your dog’s daily food ration—if you take a small handful of treats on a walk, weigh them and subtract that from your puppy’s next meal. Always use healthy treats, and slowly replace them with rewards (cuddles, etc) and verbal praise which will be even more satisfying in the long run.
Nutritional recommendations from our Puppy Growth Program
Our products are designed to support your puppy’s growth, providing them with significant benefits thanks to specifically chosen nutrients for each stage of life.
Tips when playing with your puppy
Playtime is an opportunity for your puppy to learn new skills and commands. Puppies need regular daily play sessions. Combining them with your puppy’s training sessions maximizes their learning.
Toys encourage curiosity, movement, new textures and perhaps tastes. Good toys for puppy play sessions are:
Rubber toys or chews
Interactive treat dispensing toys
Puzzle feeders
Ropes and stuffed animals
Toys should be the right size and safe for your puppy. A Golden Retriever puppy may accidentally swallow a toy made for a tiny Yorkie, and the Yorkie may not pick up or carry a toy meant for a large puppy.
A puppy that bites, jumps and nips needs to be discouraged. When this happens, stop playing for a few minutes and resume once they have calmed down.
How much exercise and play your puppy needs depends on their age and breed. A Bichon Frisé or Basset Hound doesn't need as much exercise as a Border Collie or Retriever. Watch your puppy for signs of fatigue and adjust playtime accordingly.
Games to play with your puppy that also teach skills
Remember that mental exercise is as exhausting as physical exercise. Puppies need a good amount of both to be balanced and socialized dogs. Bored puppies might pick up unwanted behaviors or develop anxiety or phobias.
Play Hide and Seek
- Put your puppy into the sit/wait position
- Let your puppy watch you hide the treats or toys
- Return to your puppy and release them with the 'find it’ command
- Reward and praise them when the treats have been found
- As your puppy gets better, make the hiding places harder with more items to find
- For variety, have your puppy find you by hiding and calling their name until they find you
The cup game
- Put a treat under a cup on a flat surface
- Let your pup sniff it out
- Praise them when they succeed
- Change the game by moving more than one cup around, so the puppy must use their nose to sniff out the treat
- Praise them when they succeed
Tug of war
Many believe this game teaches aggressive behavior or dominance. That is not the case. It teaches your puppy self-control, the ‘leave it’ or ‘drop it’ command and emotional control.
- Use a tug rope or item your dog likes to pull
- Hold one end and let your dog pull the other end
- The rule is no teeth can touch your skin. If it happens, stop the game until the dog calms down
- Repeat. Praise them when they succeed
Pass the puppy
This game teaches your puppy social skills, retrieving and to come when you call their name.
Play Pass the Puppy with two or more people. Have everyone sit on the ground with enough space in between you for the dog to travel a short distance.
- One person calls the dog by name using the come command. Reward them when they come. Cuddles work too!
- The second person calls the puppy the same way, rewarding and praising them when they come
- The game continues with everyone calling the puppy and rewarding them when they come
Play Hide and Seek
- Put your puppy into the sit/wait position
- Let your puppy watch you hide the treats or toys
- Return to your puppy and release them with the 'find it’ command
- Reward and praise them when the treats have been found
- As your puppy gets better, make the hiding places harder with more items to find
- For variety, have your puppy find you by hiding and calling their name until they find you
The cup game
- Put a treat under a cup on a flat surface
- Let your pup sniff it out
- Praise them when they succeed
- Change the game by moving more than one cup around, so the puppy must use their nose to sniff out the treat
- Praise them when they succeed
Tug of war
Many believe this game teaches aggressive behavior or dominance. That is not the case. It teaches your puppy self-control, the ‘leave it’ or ‘drop it’ command and emotional control.
- Use a tug rope or item your dog likes to pull
- Hold one end and let your dog pull the other end
- The rule is no teeth can touch your skin. If it happens, stop the game until the dog calms down
- Repeat. Praise them when they succeed
Pass the puppy
This game teaches your puppy social skills, retrieving and to come when you call their name.
Play Pass the Puppy with two or more people. Have everyone sit on the ground with enough space in between you for the dog to travel a short distance.
- One person calls the dog by name using the come command. Reward them when they come. Cuddles work too!
- The second person calls the puppy the same way, rewarding and praising them when they come
- The game continues with everyone calling the puppy and rewarding them when they come
Games that encourage independent play
Not all training games need to involve you, though it’s important to maintain pet owner-puppy interaction as well. Puppies should be able to entertain themselves when alone.
Training and play are vital to socializing and raising a well-rounded, happy adult dog. Combining training and play teaches your puppy valuable skills while having fun.
