Coaching Call | Nov 23, 2021

Catch up on the November 23, 2021 Puppy College Coaching Call to find out what you missed!

To do so, you can either watch the video or listen to and/or download the audio file.

Topics include:

00:15 Lots of collars, leashes and equipment!  What to use when;

• inside let pup drag the Tagline (in conjunction with flat buckle collars only!)
• outside, for potty breaks or play, remove Tagline and use traditional 6’ leash

04:45 Eleven week old pup already attempting countertop and windowsill patrol;

• distract and interrupt (with Tagline or other methods, I.e. happily clap hands, say their name)
• don’t give a treat AFTER pup removes paws from countertop, coffee table or window sills (inadvertent reinforcement of what you just interrupted!)

12:15 Puppy will be allowed on furniture but can’t get there on his own yet (scrambling, scratching on furniture)

• a simple step stool until mature (safer for the getting “off” as well)
• practice “off” command (4 paws on the ground)
• “off” is more pertinent for furniture dogs vs. them learning to ask for permission to be “on”

14:45 Demand barking for special games and toys (& the price some plants are paying)

• store special interactive toys out of site so the invitation to start that game is up to you, not pup
• inexpensive, temporary fencing is best bet for pup to learn boundaries of where they can and cannot play (re garden & landscape plants)

22:00 Transmission of Kennel Cough after treatment and symptoms are absent

23:30 Three month old is learning house training at home and at the family “store”

• if you can supervise and easily offer potty breaks when you are in doubt about a potty need, get rid of the potty pan!
• why we don’t suggest “piddle pads” vs potty pans
• why we don’t suggest dogs ringing bells for potty needs

32:30 Potty pans with recycled paper pellets vs “fresh patch”

38:00 Will potty pans confuse puppy?

• potty pans for durations you cannot supervise or provide outside potty breaks

40:00 Do chewing or playing with soft fabric toys decrease a dog having a “soft mouth” re bit inhibition?

46:00 Teaching puppy to “ask” for potty breaks vs the human only offering them regularly

48:00 Exuberant dog to dog greetings 

• step in & “body block”
• “stop the world”

59:00 How to find good local group puppy classes;

• what turns up from a Google search is general NOT where you want to go
• what’s on the class syllabus?
• what’s the instructor to puppy ratio? (Especially for classes with off leash puppy play)
• are treats and toys allowed and encouraged?
• observe a class
• ask on a neighborhood FB page