I am regularly asked questions regarding leash training a puppy.  The number one question seems to be ”How old should my puppy be before I start leash training?”
I recommend introducing your puppy to the leash within a day or two of bringing your puppy home. Young puppies want to be near you and the tendency is to follow you [...]

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 A good point to remember when training a puppy.
Maintaining a routine for your puppy or dog is very important.  A puppy develops confidence and will learn faster when they have a reasonably consistent pattern to each of their days.  A fairly regular time set aside for play, sleep, feeding all helps, especially with the potty training.
Note that I say a fairly [...]

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Reading about the breed bans in the news and on the egroups so much these days it is now even more important then ever to raise a puppy to become a well adjusted, socialized and stable member of our Society. 
Any puppy can be naturally aggressive, possessive or try to be dominant.  They are a canine.  They have to learn how [...]

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I was yakking with a new puppy owner and the usual question regarding leash training came up.  They wanted to know the best way to get started.
My advice was to Introduce leash training to the puppy by simply attaching a small, light leash to the puppy’s slip collar, drop the leash on the floor and allow the puppy to drag the [...]

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Puppy potty training seems to be at the top of most puppy owners list of “how to” questions and it appears to be a major stumbling block.  Yet I know the steps to achieve success are very straight forward and basic.
Over this weekend I was again asked by frustrated puppy owners for advice and direction.
The [...]

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So often I hear people say they do not want a submissive dog.  If I force them to do what I want they will have no personality left.
NO WAY!  Training (which equals leadership) done right will have the opposite effect.
Training is the development of a language by which you will communicate with your puppy.  Through puppy training you not only end [...]

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I had a message waiting for me on the phone this past week.  The call was about hiring me for a few weeks of puppy training.  The following could be ANY BREED of puppy or dog.
These callers have a 4 1/2 month old Golden Retriever who is out of control with excitement and energy when they get home.  She won’t [...]

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I was recently watching an obedience class being put through their paces by an instructor.  Next was a competition called Rally Obedience.  Great fun for owners and dogs!
What had really caught MY attention was the lack of focus by so many of the puppies and dogs. 
The last thing they seemed to look at was their [...]

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We were having a good laugh today watching the antics of a very busy dog taking their owner for a walk.  And at high speed!   I don’t think there was a single tree, bush, dog or stranger that didn’t get checked out. 
Obvious who was in charge here!   I’m sure the walk would be far more relaxing if this dog [...]

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Here is a quick and simple tip for housebreaking a puppy or potty training a puppy. 
Do not free feed your puppy!
In other words, do not leave puppy chow in their food dish so they can eat whenever the urge strikes them.  This is not only a common mistake but a BIG one! 
Go ahead and free feed once they are an adult and [...]

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