Junior Puppy Home Training PT III

Part III - Full Program Guide

A key training tip as you go through the stages, start with an easy “cue”/ “action” that you know the pup understands to set the positive tone for the session and finish the same way, so that even though there have been some hiccups during the session, the pup finishes on an upbeat success with lots of praise. Also note that other dog trainers may suggest different cues or sequence of training – that’s fine – you can do no harm as long as you stick with the positive reinforcement approach. Remember that this a puppy and it will find concentrating a challenge at times, so keep the sessions short (really; just 2 – 5 minutes at a time) and always upbeat and happy, building the pup’s confidence.

First Stage - Starting Exercises.

Introduce the concept of “Doggie Zen” – calm handling to settle pup and build trust. Use a start and finish cue to bracket this exercise, using the dog’s name in this calm time. Use cues such as “OK, settle” (or similar) to start and then “OK – let’s go” (or similar) to go play, exercise or start training. This is “calm touching, stroking and handling”, not a game with a chew or fetch toy (that belongs at another time of “sharing fun” exercise). Refer to the article on this website “Zen and the Art of Dog Training”.

•        Name recognition/response – call the pup to you - Bridge and Reward. Use the pup’s name frequently – especially immediately before delivering a cue (such as “Fido – Sit”; “Fido – Come”). The aim is name recognition and ensuring pups attention to the cue you are about to deliver – it is not fair to call the pup, or tell it to sit, when it is looking away and not paying attention to you. At each meal delivery time, call the pup’s name and then deliver the food as an easy name recognition reinforcement.

•        Then - start the session with “Charging the Marker” or go straight into the “Look at me”/ “Watch” exercise – remembering the importance of the cue-response-bridge-reward sequence and timing.

•        Next - the “Touch” cue - lure puppy to guardian’s hand – alternate hands and vary hand position (left, right, up, down, as pup catches on to this training game). This starts the “come close” and “follow my hand” exercises.

•        Collar touch – as pup touches hand and receives the reward, progress by adding a collar touch and then graduate to attaching/removing the lead (the subtle aim is that calling the pup and putting on/taking off collar/lead is not the end of fun but just part of it).

•        “Go to mat”/ “On your Mat” (using luring – so initially really “come to mat” with progression to “go to mat”). This can be using the “Mat” or “Bed” cue – whatever suits the guardian best.

This full session, as described, performing just 1, 2 or at most 3 repetitions, might take just 2 – 5 minutes for a puppy, depending on its age, focus and willingness. Always try to stop the session when the pup is having fun and responding well – you can do a couple of these short sessions a day, but in any case, aim for a session every day – or at least 5 days a week – whatever is practical for you.

Remember that pups have “off days” just like people, so always start with the Doggie Zen settle for every subsequent session (and repeat at any time during your day, such as sitting on the floor watching TV) and remain patient; persevere; be consistent (make sure other family/household members understand the cues and Bridge & Reward concept to keep it simple for your pup).

Second Stage - Exercises.

Once your pup seems to be grasping the first set of exercises – this might be as short as a couple of days of these short training sessions or it might be a week or two – move on by quickly rehearsing what is already known and working quite well (don’t expect 100% perfection – we are learning and practicing, it’s not a competition nor a test) then adding some new cues and actions.

·        Crate Training: The reasons to introduce your puppy to being calm in a crate are so that (a) the pup has somewhere safe to spend time – sleeping or with a chew toy for entertainment and relaxation, (b) for travelling – so that you have a good place to contain the pup at someone else’s house and (c) should your pup need to spend an overnight stay at the vets for whatever reason, it will do that in a crate and not be panicked by the confinement.

o   Never use crate confinement as a punishment – that would totally defeat the purpose of the “safe haven” of the crate. You may read advice about giving the pup a “time out” in the crate as a “penalty box” or “naughty corner” – just don’t do that. If the household is getting a bit crazy with visitors, kids having fun, etc., then sure, use the crate as a safe place for the pup to relax and calm down (with a puzzle feeder/chew toy) – but not a punishment.

o   Introducing the crate is done calmly and simply. Start with the crate in an area the pup can walk past it and if it goes inside the crate it can see you. First lesson – leave the crate doors open, throw in a treat or two (maybe a favourite toy) and show the pup how it can go inside to play. Don’t shut the doors. Repeat this exercise periodically for, say, a week, then, next lesson, one time the pup goes in, shut the doors, stay there, when the pup finishes its treat and looks at you, pause a second or two, then open the doors – if the pup chooses to stay in (hoping the game includes more treats – throw one in) – if it comes straight out, fine. Next, repeat this for the next week, gradually increasing the duration of the “locked in” phase – keeping the maximum stay to, say, less than 15 - 20 minutes or so, with you staying in sight or just leaving for a minute and coming back.

o   Finally, just sensibly increase the duration of the pup’s stay in the crate and manage the time you spend out of sight – be sure you avoid conflicting with the pup’s “Toilet Time”.

o   If the pup barks or cries to be let out, just stand and pause until the barking stops, speak to the pup and open the door. You are attempting to avoid the pup deciding that whimpering or howling gets it out of the crate (or earns extra treats).

•        So, back to the “manners training”: “Charge the Marker” or use the repeat of the “Name recognition” and/or “Watch”/ “Look at me” to achieve this (Bridging and Rewarding) and then perhaps “Touch”.

Remember that mealtime opportunity for name recognition and recall training.

•        Now, extend the “Touch” exercise to “Follow my hand” simply by moving the hand slowly around you as the pup almost touches it. Remember you are not trying to trick the pup – you want it to succeed, so move slowly so the pup doesn’t lose the sight and scent – it’s OK if pup’s nose is actually touching the hand – but only Bridge and release the Reward when you stop moving the hand – probably when the pup is beside your ankle.

•        Introduce the “Sit” exercise using “Luring”. This is quite simple and most pups learn it immediately (sitting is such a natural move anyway). As the pup follows your hand with the treat, stop moving the hand and slowly raise it above the pup’s head – and maybe a little back over the head – as the head goes up the backside goes down into a sit. Bridge (“Yes/Click”) and release the treat Reward. As the pup gets the idea that your hand with a treat going up and just over its head leads to a sit and reward, gradually do this same action with an open hand, palm upwards (go slowly so the pup sees the gesture, don’t whip the hand upwards) then when the sit is achieved, Bridge (Yes) and Reward (get a treat out and deliver).

•        As you change from the simple luring to position the pup with a treat in hand, and graduate to just the hand gesture, as soon as the pup does what is cued then within one second (i.e., immediately) Bridge (“Yes/Click”) then you have about 3 seconds to get out the treat from your pouch or pocket and Reward - present it to the pup. That timing is critical – and at this stage don’t have the treat ready in either hand, as that is a step backwards in the sequence and may even be confusing for the pup, thinking it should follow that treat hand.

Note – what you have been doing with the above simple exercises is laying the foundation for all exercises by teaching “body language” cues – which dogs understand better than verbal cues. We add the verbal cues a little later, so that eventually the pup understands either the hand raise or the word “Sit” as the sit cue, given together or separately. If you have been raising the lure hand and saying “Sit” at the same time, it is OK – puppies are quick to figure it all out.

• “Come” / “Recall” – using food lure - short distance only. This is most easily started with a family member/friend holding the pup (quietly) a short distance away (only a meter or two to start) – then gradually increase the distance – along a hallway is good because there is only one place for the pup to go.

•        As the pup arrives – Bridge and Reward – and take this opportunity to do the collar touch – don’t restrain the pup, just get it used to having the collar (or neck even without a collar) touched – and nothing bad happens.

•        As a segway into the “Stay”- as you step away from your friend holding the pup you can add a hand gesture cue – flat open palm like a “Stop sign” directed towards the pup’s nose. When we get to the Stay exercise, we will do this a little differently, but the gesture (and the word “Stay”) is the same, if you wish to introduce this now.

Review

• “Go to mat” and add a “Sit” on the mat.

• Then do the “Follow me” with a small walk away from/return to mat (the beginnings of lead walking) using a treat lure and only deliver the treat on a “Sit” back on the mat (Remember the Yes/Click then pause 2-3 seconds and deliver treat reward.

As pup is doing well (you judge) start to mix up the order of cues and actions – for example:

• Name (“Fido”) then “Sit”

• “Sit” then “Watch”

• “Follow my hand” to go-to-mat

• “Go-to-mat” to sit (start just beside the mat and very gradually increase the distance away for the starting spot).

• “Follow me” (my hand) away from mat and return – maybe sit away from the mat (Bridge and Reward = B&R) then return to mat – “Sit” (B&R).

When the session is done – “Good Puppy – Great job – let’s go (walk/have dinner/ have a cuddle/ whatever).

Always be patient; persevere; be consistent (make sure other family/household members understand the cues and B&R concept to keep it simple for your pup – and understand that it takes time and is ongoing, not just a couple of weeks of training and it’s done and dusted).

 Third Stage - Exercises.

If others in your household are interested or participating in the training, do a “de-brief” – explain what the pup seems to do well and what you are having a bit of trouble with – share your thoughts, so others can work on the same things, or at least give support. Don’t allow anyone to discourage you (“Gee – you’ve been training for three weeks now and the pup still doesn’t behave”) – dog training is really simple, BUT it isn’t easy and it takes time. You will see the benefits of training as the pup matures. {We don’t send our kids to school for a few weeks and then give up on them because they can’t do algebra or quote Shakespeare}.

Review & Practice

• Condition Marker/Bridge

• Name recognition then Sit and Watch

• Come/recall (using lure) up to length of lead (use a lead for this if you don’t have a helper)

• Come to/Go to mat (add sit on mat) with little circular excursions away from mat and return – throw in a Sit here and there.

• Revise “Follow me” - the (continued) beginnings of loose lead walking (remember to say pup’s name and cue “Let’s Go”).

Progression/New exercise (depending on individual progress)

•  Introduce the “Down/Drop” (pick the word cue you prefer – but start with the hand gesture) – introduce this from Sit (not from Standing – which is a bit harder) to “Down/Drop” by taking a treat lure, placing it at the pup’s nose and slowly move hand vertically down then slowly away along the ground (an L-shape movement). Some dogs (especially smaller build dogs) are challenging to get this right, it seems because they can reach the treat by just leaning down – they don’t need to lie down to grab it. This has a few possible solutions:

o   Hold the treat at floor level just in front of (almost between) the pup’s front feet without releasing it – as pup’s nose goes down to hand, just move the hand away (along the foot of the “L”) very slowly – only release if the pup lies down.

o   Sit on the floor so that your knees are bent up into a “steeple/A-shape” and have the pup sit beside the legs – then do the treat action (down and along L-shape) under your legs – so the pup has to sort of get down into a mini crawl to get the treat. On success B&R.

o   Using “Capture” – any time the pup lies down, quickly deliver the cue (hand gesture downwards and the word Down/Drop). This requires that you always have treats ready to hand so you can B&R on the instant.

o   For some pups, gently moving their front legs forward as you deliver the lure and cues can work – not a rapid movement, not violent, just gentle. However, this is a (very small) step on the aversive handling spectrum and some pups don’t like this action and will stand up to avoid it – so make your own judgement. Pushing the pup down with your hand on their back is a no-no (even though frustration at not succeeding makes this very tempting) as this worries the pup and they automatically resist the push down by standing.

o   Also, try doing the Sit to Down on a table or platform just near the edge (especially if this is a small pup) as this can prevent the pup standing and walking forward to capture the treat. Making (or buying) a special little platform for this and future exercises (such as “Stay”) is also a great idea (see YouTube https://youtu.be/TvU0yhyVObc ).

Persistence and patience will be required – and only do 2 or 3 trials at a time in one training session – move on to stuff the pup does well and try again next session.

·        Now start to think about “Physical enrichment through varied movement” in your training sessions. This is intellectual stimulation/enrichment – enhanced focus on handler by varying cues and actions required, through to new use of moving in a figure-8 pattern off-the-mat exercise (maybe around furniture or cones you have set up, in close, loose-lead walk, then vary with a Sit and Down/Drop at cones or beside furniture). This works towards retaining the pup’s attention as “This is fun, I wonder what I do next to get that treat?”.

·        These exercises build handler-dog coordination, confidence and trust – keep upbeat and fun – vary the pace of movement – sometimes normal, sometimes slow, sometimes upbeat and faster.

·        During these early puppy exercises, encouraging the pup with upbeat verbal rewards (Good Dog/ Great Work/ What a Clever Girl/ etc.) and “Let’s Go” and using the pup’s name is fine – not constant, insane, confusing babble, but letting the pup know you are focussed on it and it should focus on you (which it will do by listening to your encouragement).

Fourth Stage - Exercises.

Review

• “Go to mat” to “Sit” to “Watch” (2 different sequential exercises – but only B&R after the “Watch”). Maybe a short Zen phase if you have time – then an “OK – let’s have fun training”.

·        Vary the sequence to “Go to mat” to “Sit” to “Down/Drop”.

New exercises

• “Leave it” - object or environmental distraction – (not food as a distraction at first – do that separately. Shoving a treat in a puppy’s face and telling it to leave it seems somewhere between silly and unkind – too much to ask). Choose the object – maybe a toy or a stick – show the pup but gently constrain it – by holding or having your hand blocking the object – cue “Leave it” – then B&R – “Yes, Good Dog” and deliver a treat (not the object being left alone). This is similar but different to asking a dog to “Wait/Not Yet” when you put their food bowl down and ask them to pause before gobbling the food (when you cue “OK – Take it”), so choose a different word than “Leave it” for that food bowl pause, as the meaning is different – they do end up having the food in the bowl.

• “Stay” - introducing short duration - use mat – initially no movement away from pup. With the pup sitting on the mat, stand beside the pup and deliver the “Stay” cue – the flat palm directed slowly towards the pup’s nose (no contact – just as if you were pushing air towards the pup’s face – but slowly – and can add the verbal “Stay” after a few trials) – stand erect and stationary, count to 3, then B&R. As the exercise progresses, increase from a count of 3 to, say, 6, before B&R. Once that is working well – now, same gestures, but take one step forward. Step off with the leg away from the pup, so if it’s on your left side, step away with your right foot, then bring the left foot up to place feet together (this is so that the pup doesn’t automatically follow your body language and stick with your left ankle) – count to 3 then step back – B&R. Gradually increase the distance you step away and the duration, at the right stage turning to face the pup before stepping back. Avoid eye contact when you face the pup, as they often interpret this as a body language signal that you want them to come to you.

• “Stand” - Start with the pup sitting beside you (probably on your left side) – there are two basic ways to do this:

o   With a treat lure in hand, move the lure from the pup’s nose directly forward and away – without moving your feet (if possible, without falling on your face) – as the pup moves to get the treat you can start to verbalise the “Stand” cue. This is a truncated version of the “Touch” and “Follow-my-hand” cues the pup has learned – so chances of success are high.

o   Alternatively, if the pup just isn’t comprehending, with pup sitting on your left, with treat in your right hand execute two slow and smooth actions – move the treat out in front of the pup’s nose with your right hand (as above) and simultaneously with your left hand move that hand across in front of the pup and down along its side so you can gently touch the pup’s flank and lift it slightly (not a prod or poke). Now – what’s wrong with this is that you will be giving two simultaneous hand signals (not ideal) and also that you are using a physical contact to action the Stand – so the suggestion is that you only do this a couple of times to help the pup get the idea. Remember, the pup doesn’t understand words and doesn’t know what “Stand” means – so you are simply demonstrating the requested action then stopping that physical “help” signal.

o   This can be a good exercise to introduce use of a target, such as a ball on the end of a stick – if you feel that this will be helpful in other future training – but this is optional and probably not a place to start – try the other methods first. However, to do this (if you decide it’s a good idea) simply have the pup positioned as described, place the end of the target stick in front of the pup and move it forward. Only likely to work if you have already played with this target stick idea and the pup understands that following the target is a great thing to do. Just be careful you don’t encourage the pup to actually walk forward because you moved the target too far – you just want a “Stand”.

o   Finally, when the pup has learned the “Stand”- you can run your hand gently over the pup to teach it to remain standing and stationary. Pups will commonly wriggle when you start this, as they figure it is a patting reward because they were so clever – just quietly repeat the “Stand” cue and practice again next session. Eventually, this will build to having someone else touch the pup gently while you stand beside/in front of it - this is the “vet exam” (“stand for examination”) practice.

·        “Shaping by Approximations” to go to a “Place”. This is a variation of the “Go to the Mat”, but varies because we just want the pup to place two feet on the designated object (but it’s OK at this stage if it sits on it) and we can use this foundation as part of advanced training in the future (“rear end awareness” and manoeuvrability, precision heeling, send-away, etc.). Practice with a small (say 300mm or about a foot square) carpet square or an upturned basin (with carpet glued on, so it’s not slippery) for pups to place feet on. The method of “shaping” for this is - have the pup watching you place the mat or basin on the floor nearby – as it looks at the mat, Bridge and Reward immediately. If the pup looks back at the mat (Hey – what was that about?) B&R again. If it doesn’t, approach the mat, maybe point to it – as the pup looks at it, B&R. Just keep repeating this so the pup comes to understand that the mat has special powers to deliver rewards. The aim is to have the pup put two feet on the mat, so if it approaches the mat rather than just looking at it, add the verbal “Place” and B&R and make some excited sounds – then if the pup puts a foot (or both feet) on the mat, it’s party time – B&R and add “Oh YES! What a clever dog – Wow!” all upbeat and happy. End of session – do it again tomorrow.

Once the pup is going to the mat (or basin) when you cue “Place” and placing two feet on it, then progressively start the exercise from a step away (instead of right beside the mat, where you have been up until now). Over time, slowly (don’t rush into failure) extend the distance until you are sending the pup a couple of meters to its “Place”. In advanced training this is a cornerstone of the “send away” exercise.

Progression/Extension to deliver “varietal enrichment” (mix and match according to pup’s progress):

•        Sit to Watch

•        Place

•        Follow my hand to go-to-mat to sit/drop to watch

•        Follow me - around cone/chair - extend distance

•        Sit to short Stay

•        Sit to Stand (if “Stand” already introduced)

•        Come to me/Recall when called (front sit)

Fifth Stage – Revise all Exercises.

Review each of these exercises in turn – just one repetition of each as a warm up is sufficient.

·        “Touch”

·        Follow my hand (around chair/cone)

·        “Go to/come to” mat

·        Sit

·        “Stay” in position for a very short period (can add step in front and return if doing well)

·        “Watch”/ “Look at me”

·        “Down/Drop”

·        “Stand” (review if already introduced – or add as new exercise – depends on progress)

·        “Leave it” (a distraction/toy)

·        “Place”

What’s next?

Games or tricks

Often folks (especially kids) like to teach a puppy simple tricks and this is great – it’s all brain exercise, focus and fun reward opportunities for the pup. Typical simple tricks are:

•        Shake hands

•        High five

•        Roll over (from a down position – use a treat lure to teach)

•        Spin (in a circle in front of or beside the trainer – use a treat lure to teach)

•        Basically, any simple stunt that you teach the pup is fun and rewarding – just always emphasise fun and success – happy pups.

More Training Please?

·        Find a qualified Instructor (Delta [URL https://www.deltainstitute.edu.au/] or similar– in Australia the Technical Schools – TAFE; Austr. Govt Training [URL https://training.gov.au/training/details/ACM40322/qualdetails] and the APDT – Association of Pet Dog Trainers [URL https://www.apdt.org.au/

and the international APDT [URL https://apdt.com/] offer appropriate positive reinforcement training for dog trainers) or look for a Club which uses positive training methods (and may offer introductions to the dog sports for you as the pup matures and your training advances).

·        Aim to train on 4 to 6 days per week – keep it short and fun – just before a meal or walk is a good time – really – emphasise the few minutes per day.

·        If you don’t practice any particular cue for roughly three months, the response tends to decline as the dog forgets/becomes uncertain about what is being asked – but this varies enormously with the individual dog and the efficacy of your teaching. Just rehearse all the lessons as you walk the dog in the park – no big deal – just a part of normal fun and bonding.

There are lots more things for your pup to learn if you are interested, such as:

o   Retrieve a dumbbell

o   Send away and sit when the pup gets to that position

o   Return over jumps

o   Go away around objects and return to handler

o   “Finish” around the handler after the front sit on recall

o   More formal “heeling” rather than only loose leash walking

o   Spin beside the handler in motion during heeling

o   Stop and Sit, Stand or Down as handler keeps walking then remain there until handler returns or go back to handler at heel position when cued

o   Distance control change of position – handler some meters in front of dog and cueing “Sit, Stand, Down” (with either voice or hand gesture).

o   Special actions and fun learnings according to your dog’s breed and your own interests – such as RATG (Retrieving Ability Test for Gun Dogs: URL https://dogsaustralia.org.au/training-dog-sports/retrieving-for-gundogs/); Water Rescue (e.g., YouTube https://youtu.be/rggKtg8Oub4?si=yD6beHd9BIZR50Qh); Agility; Dock Diving; Hoops; Rally-O; Obedience Trials; and many more.   

All a matter of your level of interest and perseverance – but suggest you find a qualified instructor (privately or at a club) to help you and, of course, YouTube is a good source of information – provided you filter it and stick with the positive training methods.

Remember, whatever anybody tells you, whatever you see on YouTube or TV, it is your companion and you are responsible, it is your dog and you who build a relationship, bond and trust, so don’t practice any training technique you are uncomfortable with, just because someone else does it or tells you to. You are your pup's best friend - always keep that in mind.

Acknowledgements and Further Reading

This suggested puppy training program (Parts I, II and III) is closely aligned with that devised by the Delta Institute. However, as changes, additions, omissions and emphasis have been incorporated in the above, those and any contentious methods or errors arising are the sole responsibility of this author.

For those interested in continuing their dog training enterprise, you are referred to a couple of particularly worthwhile and easily digested reference books, readily available in Australia:

Dunbar, I (2023) Barking Up the Right Tree: The Science and Practice of Positive Dog Training; New World Library, Cal., USA: 363pp.

Hodel, B. (2020) How to Love and Survive Your Teenage Dog: The Complete Guide to your Teenage Dog; Green Hill (Australia): 189pp.

Part I provided an Overview and summary skeleton of the exrecises at each stage and Part II provides Beginner Basics.