Planned
Puppyhood ®
Individualized Behaviour Training
Jeanie Martin
905-643- 5070
Grassie, Ontario
Serving
Hamilton and Surrounding Areas
Obedience versus Behaviour
Delaying obedience training until a pup is five to six months old
virtually guarantes that you will be asserting your dominance over a
dog who has become accustomed to ignoring your commands. The pup
as come to view himself as "leader of the pack" whos only desire is to
please himself. Unfortunatly, the owner has been advised by
friends, neighbours, and eve some very ill informed breeders, not to
begin training until this later age. This poor "advise" is 15 to
20 years out of date.
puppies learn every minute of the day from three to four weeks on, and
will continue to do so sith or
without supervision by the owner. Without owner guidance,
by 16 weeks of age most problem behaviours are already in place; thes
behaviours rapidly become entrenched by repetition (i.e. become habits
which will prove daunting to resolve). Basic behaviour and obedience training should begin simultaneously at 11 to 12 weeks
of age when the young puppy is most amenable to learning.
Wildespread public confusion exists as to the difference between
obedience and behaviour: Obedience means how well a dog responds
to your commands (SIT, STAY,
DOWN,COME), while behaviour means how your dog acts when he is not on a
command, or when you are not there. For example, your dog may do
a great five-minute SIT/STAY, but
without behaviour trainin,
when you leave the house, he trashes the place.
"Training" encompasses three separate areas:
HOUSE
TRAINING
|
BEHAVIOUR TRAINING
|
OBEDIENCE TRAINING
|
|
CRATE TRAINING:
Pup
eliminates outside
or
Apartment dwellers may
have to choose
paper training
|
Chewing
Chasing
Digging
Shyness
Nipping
Barking
Stealing
Jumping
Mouthing
|
Mounting
Submissive Wetting
Leash Pulling
Dahes Out the Door
Going into the Garbage
Eating Stools
Talking Back
Fearfulness
and more
|
Basic Commands
NO
OKAY
SIT/STAY
DOWN/STAY
COME
HEEL
|
While basic obedience
training will give the owner som measure of control over his dog's
actions while the dog is on command,
no cog can be expected to do an 8-hour
DOWN/STAY while his owners are at work. Nor can he be expected to
read his owner's mind. at PLANNED PUPPYHOOD each owner is taught, on an individual
basis, how to teach the pup acceptable household behaviour and how to
resolve any problems they may be experiencing. Now the owner has
the information needed to practice in his own home, which is where most
undesirable behaviours occur.
Almost every behaviour problem listed in the above table can be
prevented or resolved if behaviour
training begins before the young puppy has formed the habit of indulging in these
undesirable activities. However, by four months of age, it is too
late for PREVENTION; by that
time bad habits ave been established and must be CORRECTED. (Unfortunately,
tempermant problems resulting from poor genetics may be insoluble, especially if compounded by poor
early conditioning.)
Surveys indicate that 60% of all dogs with a behaviour problem
have been taken to an obedience school at six months, but they still
rip the house apart when their owners are absent, urinate all ove the
house, jump on everyone they greet, or pull vigorously on the
leash. These dogs and their owners could have benefited from individualized BEHAVIOUR TRAINING, which is
neither possible nor available in an obedience school program.
The proof is in the "pudding" - Malone- Afghan
Hound
 
|