When you first get a puppy it can be overwhelming. They are cute, but they have so much energy! To help you out, I have decided to compile a list of my top five behaviors that puppies should know! These five behaviors are things that you should teach your puppy as soon as you start training them. Enjoy!
Touch
The first behavior you should teach your puppy is "touch". This behavior consists of your puppy learning to touch the palm of your hand with it's nose. This behavior might seem like just a fun, simple trick, but it is actually a very important foundation behavior. When your puppy learns to touch your hand with it's nose it is learning the skill of targeting! Targeting is a skill that you can use to teach other behaviors, including but not limited to "come", "go to bed", loose leash skills and "heel", and even give! Note that all these behaviors are included in the list of my top five behaviors you should teach your puppy! That's right! This is why "touch" is called a foundation behavior! Because it can be used to teach other behaviors! To learn how to teach your puppy "Touch" purchase the training program below!
Come
"Come" is not just the cue that you can use to get your puppy to come to you. It is a safety behavior. A well trained "come" might just save your dog's life one day!
If you have taught your puppy "touch" you can use that skill to teach "come"! For step-by-step instructions on how to train "Come" purchase the training instructions below!
Loose Leash Skills or "Heel"
Up next is another safety topic! Leash skills! Loose leash walking and heel are actually two different behaviors, but both can come in handy. Loose leash walking is when your dog walks just inside the leashes reach (resulting in a loose leash). Heel is actually the behavior of your dog walking within six inches of it's handler's left knee and maintaining the same speed and direction as the hander. For puppies I recommend focusing on training simple loose leash walking skills. However, if you would like to train "heel" you can do so from a young age.
To find out how to train loose leash skills, purchase the training instructions below!
Go To "Bed" or "Mat"
Going to bed is a skill that people learn at a young age. I think puppies should learn it as well! This behavior consists of your puppy going to and laying down on it's bed or on a mat when cued to do so. This skill is good for all kinds of situations including, but not limited to, a less stressful crate loading experience and later on in your puppies life in situation where you need your it to remain in one place for a long time such as at an outdoor restaurant.
This go to "bed" or "mat" behavior is usually just given a one word cue ("bed" or "mat") and can be taught using targeting skills! In this behavior, your puppy will need to learn how to target with its paws.
Give
Once again, this is something we teach our children and puppies need to know it as well. With children we teach them the concept of sharing along with giving. I like to use a similar process with puppies. First you want to teach your puppy to be comfortable with people taking things from it. However, this is not done just by taking things from your puppy. Taking things from your puppy over and over again can trigger possessiveness in your puppy and lead to aggressive behaviors. To teach your puppy to be comfortable with people taking things, you actually want to give more than you take! You want your puppy to learn that it is okay to let people and other dogs take things because the puppy will get something of equal or more value in return. Once your puppy understands that it is okay to give things up or allow them to be taken, you can teach your puppy to "give" or release an object on cue!
Closing Thoughts
There are tons of behaviors that you can train your puppy, but these behaviors are important for safety, getting along with household members, and regular exercise. To find instructions for how to train these behaviors and more, get The Ultimate New Puppy Course! This course not only has the instructions for how to train these behaviors, but it also has instructional videos and more that will help you get started with your new puppy!
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