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Training Feeding Your Puppy Article
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Training Your Puppy: Part 1
from: The Complete DogRegardless of your puppy's pedigree and your long term goals for him, a puppy is an emotionally immature creature. However, no two pups are exactly the same and what works for one may be a totally bad idea for another. Being aware of your pup's personality will help you understand how you can best get him to pay attention to you. Despite this, there are some general rules of training required for all puppies. You can adapt these basic principles as the basis of working with your puppy in particular.
Never Get Tough: Emotionally and psychologically, a puppy is no different than any young creature and is likely to be extremely sensitive. This usually means learning happens quickly, but can also create fears that might inhibit his ability to learn. Pups simply can't deal with too much pressure or harsh treatment. Repetition is the key to puppy training, so don't punish him if he doesn't get it right the first few times when he's trying to do what you want him to do. This simly defeat the purpose of training and he could begin to dispise the whole procedure. Bad behavior during training is usually a good indication of the pup's lack of confidence or understanding of what you want him to do. This means it's going to take many repetitions before success.
Keep it Simple: Puppys are no different than people in that he learns how to do things in a step-by-step manner. For example, when teaching him to STAY, don't expect him to stay put for several minutes at a time while you're away from him. He needs to learn STAY while you stand toe-to-toe in front of him, then to STAY when you're standing a few feet in front of him, then to STAY while you walk around him, amnd finally to STAY while you're standing several feet away and not holding on to the leash.
Most pups take a few weeks to progress through all of these steps, but they're a must if you expect him to learn STAY properly. Don't tell him to do something before you've properly trained him to do it and then scold him for not doing it because you're asking for trouble. He could lose his confidence and will instead learn not to try.
Be Brief: Puppies have a notoriously short attention span. He will only learn whe he's paying attention, so it's pointless to keep training if he's mentally tired even though physically he's still quite lively. Five minutes at a time should be long enough. When puppy training, two minutes should do it to start and then gradually move up to five minutes.
Build Confidence: Puppies need to build confidence and discipline, so pay attention to his body language and you'll learn which one he needs most during any particular training time. Stary relaxed when you're together by smiling and speaking in a pleasant voice and don't forget to play running games with him.
With puppy training, building confidence means knowing what you expect from your pup.
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