Hey there Furfriends, today I’d like to give you an update on Her Majesty The Duchess Clementine, and how she’s adapting to our home and bonding with her new best friend. It’s important to know that your new pet is not going bond to you as quickly, or as strongly, if you’re not putting in the effort. This is because you’ve taken your puppy from its mom and litter, home, and everything it has ever known. You’re giving them commands they’ve never heard, and placing them in situations they don’t understand. This can either be the best time for bonding, or the most confusing time for your puppy, depending on how you handle it. I have a few tips, but first, an update!
Clementine and Kayliegh are inseparable, if not for crate training the two would never be apart. Even with crate training, I let the two cuddle up every night and fall asleep together before eventually moving the puppy to her crate.
Somehow Clementine has understood that Kayliegh is smaller, and is always more gentle with her than the adults. I’m not sure if this is natural for animals, so always be careful when letting your little ones play with pets. Kayliegh is helping with training, so Clementine has begun listening really well to her tiny hooman friend. Our new puppy is very comfortable in her new home, and has picked her favorite places and people. That equates to where ever Kayliegh is. When Kayliegh, who is homeschooled, is doing school work Clementine can be found sleeping at her feet. Their favorite game is chase, seconded only by snuggle time.
Now, on to some tips. I sure hope these are helpful to you all, as these first few weeks are so influential on your relationship with your new pet. This is when your puppy learns to trust you, protect you, rely on you, and learns boundaries as well. Here are a few tips to encourage bonding with your new furfriend.
Tip #1: Less Is More
You’re new puppy is not going to understand your commands right away, in fact they don’t understand anything you’re saying. In this case, less is more. We often like to talk to our pets, it can be therapeutic for humans, but is confusing for our new puppies. It can actually stress your little one out, they want to obey you and do what you’re asking them to do. Words mean action to your pup in training, so when you use words they don’t know they can become frustrated with their inability to act on what you’ve said. Keep your sentences short and simple when speaking directly to them. This builds your bond with them, and their confidence in themselves to be obedient.
Tip #2: Repetition
Your new puppy has the eventual ability to learn up to 250 words, but this is going to require patients and repetition on your part. Decide beforehand what words you’re going to use for each action, and be sure to stick with them. For example, Clementine has learned that when she hears the words potty, and then does her business, she gets a treat. Unfortunately this also means anytime someone says this word she jumps into action. Now the whole family knows to be careful when and where we use the phrase ‘go potty’. It’s important for everyone in your family to be aware of what words you’re using when training your new furry family member, that will aid in the repetition.
Tip #3: Avoid Negative Behavior
This is a training tip for you, not your puppy. Avoid reacting in a negative way with your puppy as often as you can. You’ve probably heard that rubbing your dog’s nose in their potty if they’ve had an accident will teach them not to go in the house. You also probably want to holler NOOOOOOOO as soon as you see them squat. This is the most important thing to understand about your puppy, if they mess up it’s not their fault, it’s yours. If they have an accident in the house, you need to take them out more frequently. Rubbing their nose in it, or yelling at them, will make them think you don’t like it when they go potty. That’s the opposite of what you want, you want them going potty, just not inside. We take Clementine out every hour, and we make sure her water bowl is only accessible at certain times during the day. When she has accidents in the house it’s always because we missed our hourly deadline. If this happens, don’t yell or react at all, just move her to another room and clean up the mess. Make sure you clean with something that will remove the smell, that way your new puppy isn’t triggered to potty there again. Respond positively when they go potty where you want them to, and be sure to always have a treat handy. Let them know that you’re happy when they do what you want, this will grow your bond and your puppies obedience.
Tip #4: Patience
It simply can not be stressed enough that you need to be patient with your new pup. Everything is new to them, not just since you brought them home, but in general. They’ve only been on this planet for a couple of months so there’s a learning curb which should be expected. When you’re patient, and calm, you’re puppy will know they can be comfortable around you. Impatience, and panic, can cause your puppy to feel less safe with you, which creates a lot of strain on the bond between you two. If you’re simply not a patient person, don’t despair, find a good obedience school near you and let someone else train your furry friend. Make sure you check reviews, there’s very little restrictions on who can open obedience schools, many rely on shock and choke collars which will not help with bonding. You’re new pet is going to get bored without training, so try to make it a priority, along with having a patient attitude when approaching the training sessions.
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