Training Help - Articles, Videos, Favorites

Most pet owners want a dog with manners: one that doesn't jump up on people, doesn't soil the house, doesn't play "keep away" when it has something inappropriate in its mouth, doesn't ignore a recall command, doesn't chew up furniture or other belongings, doesn't go wild and crazy when someone comes to the door, and doesn't bite.  Lot's and lot's of "doesn't do's'.  Many of these problematic behaviors can be corrected by switching the philosophy from "don't do that" to "do this instead."  That means training your puppy to do alternate behaviors that prevent the undesired behaviors from ever occurring.  

Start with the downloadable flowchart on behavioral problems and their alternate behaviors below.  Then proceed to the variety of articles in the specific categories of Housebreaking / Crate Training, General Manners, and Engagement / Play.  NOTE:  These articles are not meant to replace a structured, multi-week training class; they are meant to bridge the gap between you taking home your puppy and finding a training facility and class that fits into your schedule and getting signed up for the next open session of that class.  In this time of the COVID-19 virus, where we are all practicing social distancing and many facilities have limited class sizes, these articles and online classes or resources are a MUST so that you can properly train your puppy and make it a good citizen.   They can also reinforce what you are learning in a structured class that you might be taking in person or online.

NOTE:  All owners of Topsail PWDs are invited to join our closed Facebook group where we post training videos that are useful for pet owners and general manners training and where you'll receive announcements of helpful training opportunities, can ask questions of us at anytime, and can connect with other owners of Topsail pups.  Many of our owners also post photos, videos, and brags to this Facebook group.

Housebreaking / Crate Training

Many people think that using crates with puppies and even adult dogs is cruel.  We disagree.  First, canids are dening creatures, so the crate can mimic a den and your dog will grow to love its crate it you properly reward being in the crate.  Second, when you cannot supervise your puppy directly, the crate is the SAFEST place for that animal to be -- you are assured that your puppy is not breaking into cabinets and getting into poisonous fluids or consuming inedible and potentially dangerous items and, if heaven forbid, some disaster happens to your house, rescuers can find the animal quickly.  Third, by being confined, your puppy will learn to control its bladder and sphincters much more quickly than it would if given freedom to romp around your house.  Your puppy should be in its crate at night -- not on your bed!  If you want your dog to eventually sleep on your bed, that is a privilege that must be earned!
Puppies do not have a lot of ability to control their bodies when young.  Hence, you must be prepared to take the puppy outside immediately after:  feeding it a meal; playing with it; when you and the puppy wake up in the morning; shortly after the puppy drinks some water; after the puppy wakes up from any nap during the day; when you are ready to go to bed yourself.  When you are not interacting with your puppy for play or training, the pup should either be in its crate or be attached to you via a tether of some sort (so you can monitor the puppy).  Do not, under any circumstances, give your puppy free rein of the house -- you will be asking for both accidents and a host of other disasters and will make housebreaking take longer than it should.  Below are some guidelines for housebreaking and training your puppy to love its crate.
  1. Crate Training - based on Susan Garrett's Crate Games
  2. Crate Training - Dr. Sophie Yin​​
  3. Blog by Susan Garrett on how she housebreaks puppies

General Manners
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Manners in dogs is really all about impulse control and rewarding the good choices your dog makes.  You can also stop impulsive behaviors by teaching and rewarding other incompatible behaviors.  For example, sitting is a behavior that is incompatible with jumping up.  If you teach your puppy to sit when meeting another person and highly reward the sit, your puppy cannot sit and jump up at the same time.  Likewise, if your puppy is being mouthy, it cannot simultaneously chew on your hand and chew on something more appropriate like a bully stick or some other kind of chew or a stuffed Kong or a frozen carrot or a broccoli stem.    The following articles will help you start training some of the most common behaviors that lead to good manners.
  1. Terminology - What's the difference between "rewards", "lures", and "bribes"?
  2. ​ItsYerChoice - Susan Garrett's game
  3. Sit and Down
  4. Say "Please"
  5. Go to Mat / Bed/ Place (aka "Boundary Games" from Absolute Dogs)
  6. Wait at Doors (a form of It's Your Choice)
  7. Keep Calm when Doorbell Rings
  8. Wait for Food Bowl (another form of It's Your Choice)
  9. Foundation of Loose Leash Walking - Reinforcement Zones around your body
  10. Loose Leash Walking 2 - Grisha Stewart
  11. Loose Leash Walking 3 - Whole Dog Journal
  12. Biting - see graphic below.

Engagement / Play
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If you want your puppy to respond to your commands even when extremely distracting things appear in the dog's environment, you have got to be more interesting and fun than the distractors. Jane Killion argues that "attention is the mother of all behaviors."  So how do you get that attention directed towards you and not towards other objects?  Well, Susan Garrett of "Say Yes" says, you need to "be the cookie!" 

How do you become your dog's "cookie"?  You need to learn how to engage with your dog in a way that is lots of fun and very rewarding to your dog.  That means you need to know what IS REWARDING to your dog!  Food, toys, and even touch can all be rewarding and can be part of your toolkit when setting up a training session for your dog.  Don't ignore toys and touch -- there are many times in life when you will be out with your dog and food will not be option (because you don't have any with you).  In those cases, a toy or touch can substitute if you have built value for those with your dog.  Start by reading Denise Fenzi's blog posts (3 total, each with a demo video) on the stages of engagement by clicking HERE and then following her links to each post.  Then read any or all of the articles listed below.  The more you engage with your dog, the more your dog will want to be with you and will listen to you!
  1. Teaching your dog to make Eye Contact
  2. The Name Game - turn your dog's face away from you with a treat and then pull the treat up and to your nose while saying your dog's name.  This gets a "head snap" and eye contact.  Must do this for several weeks after getting your puppy for it to be very successful.  Add distractions later on and continue the game!
  3. ​3-minute games to build optimism and confidence from Absolute Dogs
  4. More games from Absolute Dogs​
  5. Fenzi Academy e-book on training your puppy. 
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​"I can train any dog in 5 minutes. It's training the owner that takes longer."
- Barbara Woodhouse