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Before
Puppy Arrives
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Buy
and Read a Good Puppy Book
Join
Start Puppy
Training -- a helpful, supportive group of pet dog owners and pet
dog trainers who discuss positive solutions to common puppy training
situations like crate/house training, puppy biting, leash training,
household manners and other puppy related questions.
Select a Vet: Get recommendations from friends and family. Interview
vets until you find one you are comfortable with.
Set aside an outside area for use as a "bathroom" patch. It
should be an area of about 10' x 10' away from well-used family and
entertainment areas.
Dogs don't need the whole yard for themselves. In many ways, dogs are
like children and need the same type of protection. If you have a
swimming pool it should have a safety fence to protect kids and dogs. A
well-behaved adult dog can have the run of your fenced yard but a puppy
will benefit from a smaller area. Perhaps you can fence off an area in a
shady spot. You can invest in a portable kennel enclosure or install a
permanent facility.
Puppy Proof Your Home
Buy
the Supplies your Puppy will Need
 | Adjustable
Collar (your breeder may provide this)
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| Leash
- either one of adjustable length or two of different lengths, long
and short.
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| Food
and water bowls - plastic works, but stainless steel or ceramic is
better (bacteria can hide in scratches in a plastic surface)
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| Grooming
supplies - including brush, nail clippers, shampoo
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| Cleaning
supplies - your puppy will have some accidents at first
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| Dog
bed or blanket
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| Crate.
You can get an adult sized crate (Varikennel 500) and use a
cardboard box to block off a space for puppy. There should be enough
room for puppy to fully stretch out in all directions. Providing too
much space encourages your puppy to eliminate in one end and sleep
in the other. Crates are wonderful tools. If you want to see an
example of why a crate should be used until your puppy can handle
responsibility, take a look at this photo
submitted by Morgan Kelley, owner of Airedales Gussie, Stella,
Phoebe & Oliver. Morgan captions it "why
you just really might not want that ever-so-cute Airedale
puppy" Many people think that crates are cruel; however, we
"crate" our children by using cribs and playpens because
we love them and want to keep THEM safe from harm and out of
trouble. It's the smart thing to consider when you have young,
untrained dogs in the household. Crates can also be abused. Read
this article about the Do's
and Don'ts of Crate Training
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| A
supply of the puppy food recommended by your breeder.
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| Chew
toys
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| Dog
tags
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| Gates
- to block off certain rooms or staircases indoors
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| Anti-chew
spray
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| In
the last few days before arrival, give your house a good cleaning,
remove breakable items from areas where your puppy will be, move all
magazines and books to above puppy level, raise all garbage cans
above puppy level.
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| Spend
some time preparing yourself or your family. Small children need to
know how to act around a small puppy. Read the articles on the Kids
and Dogs page.
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From
Birth to 10 weeks
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The
Breeder's Role As the first humans that puppies encounter, the
breeders' role in socialization is important. Interactions, especially
those during the first three periods of a puppy's life, can have a
lasting impact on behavioral growth and development.
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8-10
Weeks
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| Puppies
are much more well balanced if you don't separate the puppy from his
mom and littermates before 8 weeks.
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| Scientists
have identified the period from 8-10 weeks as the "fear
period" for puppies. Traumatic, scary or painful experiences
are likely to make a lasting impression and may affect his reaction
to similar stimuli later.
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| Avoid
transporting the puppy long distances during this period, especially
by airplane or train.
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| Here's
a good article on Puppy's
First Week .
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| Housetraining.
There are many good articles on the Puppy
Page . The basics to keep in mind:
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 | The
dog is NEVER wrong or at fault when it comes to housetraining.
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| You
must stay out with the puppy until he goes, doing both pee and
poop. If it is cold, put on a coat. If it is raining, carry an
umbrella. You must stay with the puppy.
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| Put
the collar and leash on the puppy to take him outside, even if you
have a fenced yard. The leash is not for corrections, but only to
keep puppy close.
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| If
you have children, only allow one child at a time to go out with
you and puppy. Puppies are very easily distracted and you want to
allow him to concentrate on the job at hand. No play time until
the puppy has done his business.
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| Allow
him to wander around and sniff at the ground in the designated
bathroom spot. Pace back and forth (movement promotes movement)
and chant your chosen phrase ("get busy, get busy ...").
Choose something you won't be embarrased to say in public.
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| If
he eliminates, when he has finished, praise enthusiastically and
play.
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| You
don't need to wait forever. If you have stayed out 3-5 minutes,
keep him on leash, bring the puppy back in and keep him on leash
with you or confined in a crate. Try again in an hour. Eventually,
your puppy will eliminate appropriately and you can give huge
praise and play.
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| If
at any time during the day you notice puppy sniffing the floor and
circling or getting ready to squat, immediately interrupt him and
take him outside.
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| After
each success, allow 15 minutes of freedom in the house, before
placing dog back on lead or back into crate.
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| If
you catch him in the act of going in the house, SHOUT! What
doesn't matter, but it needs to be loud enough to stop him in
mid-flow, but not so loud that he runs to hide. This is not an
angry shout. Anger is counter-productive.
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| As
soon as you have shouted, run to the door, calling him happily and
enthusiastically and go to the designated spot. It will take him a
while to relax enough to go, so be patient.
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| Then,
put him in his crate or exercise pen or safe room while you clean
up the mess. Use an odor eliminator made specifically for this
purpose. Ordinary household disinfectants mask the odor from us,
but not from your puppy.
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| If
accidents happen, consider it your fault and take your puppy out
more frequently.
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| The
more frequently you take him out at the appropriate time and the
fewer times he goes indoors, the quicker he will learn.
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| Adult
dogs have better bladder and bowel control and can "hold
it" for a longer time than puppies. The rule of thumb for a
puppy is: his age in months, add one, and that's the number of
hours the puppy can "hold it" during the day. If the
puppy is active, he needs to go out more frequently. Even if it
has been less than 15 minutes since the last time you took your
puppy out, take him out
shortly after each feeding
after playing
after exercise
after any excitement (e.g., visitors arriving)
immediately upon waking
last thing at night
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| SLOWLY
extend the time between eliminations to half an hour and then 45
minutes and then 1 hour, etc. After 3 consecutive days of success,
increase freedom by 15 minutes. Watch your puppy. If accidents
happen, you either allowed him too much unsupervised freedom or
you have pushed faster than his bladder has developed. If there is
an accident, decrease freedom by 15 minutes for 3 days.
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| Puppies
have only a limited control over their bodies. You cannot expect
them to last through a 6- to 8-hour night until they are at least
12 weeks old and even then, some puppies won't have developed the
physical control necessary.
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| Anger
or punishment for unwanted behavior is counterproductive. You can
control your anger if you accept the fact that there will be
accidents. Remember that a human baby may be 2 years old before it
is housetrained. You don't get angry at a baby for going in its
diaper, right?
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| Praise
for correct behavior and ignoring accidents gets the fastest
results.
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| Consistency
in goals and training methods is crucial.
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| Patience
is the key.
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| Teach
your puppy what is acceptable and what isn't. When your puppy is out
of his crate or exercise pen, have lots of chew toys available and
watch him at all times. As soon as he goes to an electrical cord, or
a chair leg, distract him and offer him a chew toy. You will need to
do this many, many times. Have patience and when you don't have time
to supervise, put puppy back in his crate or pen.
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| Make
necessary veterinary visits fun adventures by taking your puppy's
favorite toys and encourage the veterinarian and staff to give the
puppy food treats and lots of praise.
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| Your
vet's office is NOT the place to let your puppy socialize with other
dogs. Dogs with infectious diseases may have been in the waiting
room.
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| Whenever
you call your puppy to you, give him a reward ... a treat and a
scratch and a wrestle. You should NEVER call your puppy and then
punish him. You should NEVER call your puppy and then do something
that the puppy will perceive as punishment ... such as putting puppy
in the crate, or bringing him inside when he wants to stay outside.
A reliable "COME" could save your puppy's life and you
must not do anything to weaken his desire to come to you.
If you are ready to go in, but puppy isn't, go to him and pick him
up and talk to him sweetly as you take him inside.
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10-12
Weeks
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| This
is the prime socialization period for a puppy to learn doggie
etiquette and interaction with people. Get your puppy used to having
his belly rubbed, ears and paws touched and mouth examined. Expose
your puppy to many different people, different settings (car rides,
a friend's home) and different stimuli (vacuum cleaner noise,
kitchen cooking smells and friendly older dogs).
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| Your
puppy may not like to be brushed. Keep sessions short. Be gentle.
Use treats. Everything that you do to make it enjoyable for your
puppy will pay rewards for the dog's entire life.
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| Enroll
your puppy in an organized socialization class to hone his social
development and learning.
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| You
should know, however, that there is some risk of disease involved
when young puppies are exposed to the world at large before they've
been fully vaccinated. Most pups do not get their last set of puppy
vaccinations until about 16 weeks of age, but the critical period of
socialization is from about 3 weeks to about 12 to 14 weeks of age.
If you wait until your pup is fully vaccinated, you risk inadequeate
socialization; but if you take your pup out and about you risk
disease! It's a compromise either way, and a decision you have to
make for yourself. Keep in mind, though, the indications are that
many more dogs die from behavioral problems than from disease! Talk
to your vet about ways to cut the risks, while still taking
advantage of this sensitive, critical period of socialization. From
Puppy
Primer, by Brenda K. Scidmore & Patricia B. McConnell, Ph.D.
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| Here
are some good Do's
& Dont's for Puppy socialization.
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| Start
teaching your puppy to "settle"
to potty on cue (As the dog begins to potty outside, give him a
verbal cue such as "Go potty." When he is done, say
"Yes" and feed him a treat) to come
when called and "leave
it" Some of these articles refer to a clicker, but you can
use a word ... "GOOD!" or "YES!" ... to mark the
behavior you are looking for. If you are interested in learning more
about clicker training, check out the training
page.
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| Never
leave puppy unsupervised. Never leave food on your counters. It is
much better to prevent the puppy from countersurfing, chewing
furniture, etc., than to punish him for doing so.
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| Do
lots of object exhanges i.e., give your puppy something BETTER in
exchange for whaever he has in his mouth. He will get into the habit
of bringing you things that he finds rather than running away and
trying to swallow them.
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| Get
your puppy used to the leash by taking him for very short walks. Let
the puppy set the pace and keep the sessions very short. You want
the puppy to be having fun and not get tired. Long walks put too
much pressure on their immature bones, cartilage and tendons. At
first, just let them take you where they will, keeping a loose
leash. This is not the time for leash corrections ... you are just
letting them get used to being on a loose leash. If the puppy starts
sitting down, you have gone too far. Turn around and if he doesn't
eagerly start toward home, pick him up and carry him. You will
SLOWLY increase the time, watching your puppy to make sure he isn't
getting tired.
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| Puppy
Socialization (8 - 21 weeks)
This articles has excellent suggestions on helping your puppy learn
to cope with new situations by getting him out one day a week to a
new situation he has never seen before. This takes time and effort,
but will be well worth it when you reap the reward of a calm, stable
adult.
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3-6
months
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| You
will think you have an alligator, not a dog. Read the articles on
the Puppy
Page for hints on how to teach your puppy bite inhibition. To
get a taste of what you will be dealing with, read Terriers
are Just Different!
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| Permanent
teeth begin coming in between 5 and 6 months, creating a need to
chew to relieve gum discomfort.
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| If
you haven't done so already, now is an important time to join an Internet
Airedale List. It is very comforting to find out how many others
have survived puppyhood.
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| Don't
over-exercise your puppy (no long boring walks, no jumping on and
off furniture or steps on concrete, etc). When your puppy flops and
goes to sleep: let him. He needs to do that to grow strong and
healthy. And please, don't overfeed your puppy. Studies have shown
that puppies should be kept very, very lean throughout their first
year so that they do not grow too fast in some respects compared to
other respects (e.g, ratio of cartilage, tendons and muscle to
bone). Joyce Miller, Jubilee
Aires
The growth plates of an Airedale don't close until about 18 months.
You can do permanent damage if you allow him to jump repeatedly
above elbow height or jog him for too far.
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| Your
puppy should experience many different environments. Socialization
should continue and be developed as the puppy learns to cope with
new situations.
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| Notice
and reward quiet behavior; if the pup is sitting or lying down,
quietly chewing on a toy, or just being companionable, reward him
--- tell him he's a good boy; give him a treat and then let him go
back to what he was doing.
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| Have
a variety of toys and chews that you rotate so your dog doesn't get
bored with them.
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| Continue
practicing object exchanges.
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| Do
a lot of 1 minute training sessions.
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| Use
meals to practice some obedience skill -- usually sit or down stays.
No free treats.
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Will
you survive? Will your hooligan ever become civilized? Read about Bella,
16 week old Airedale.
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6-9
months
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| The
puppy enters a second intensive chewing stage.
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| Females
come into heat unless spayed first and males experience dramatic
fluctuations in male hormone levels.
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| If
you spay or neuter your puppy before 6 months, you will avoid many
behavior problems. Veterinarians can safely sterilize puppies after
8 weeks of age, providing the pups weigh at least 2 pounds.
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| Channel
your puppy's energies into interactive, learning games and
activities.
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| Enroll
in a formal obedience training class. Avoid classes that use harsh
methods. If the trainers aren't using reward-based methods, don't
join.
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| Stay
in touch with your breeder. If you chose the right breeder, he or
she wants to hear how things are going and is your best source for
help with problems.
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9-12
months
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The
Terrible Twos :
A puppy often behaves like an unruly child.
| Re-read
your puppy book to remind yourself this is just a phase he is going
through.
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| The
outside world is becoming more interesting and he will seem to have
forgotten everything you have taught him.
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| Don't
get angry. Patiently insist that he do what you require. Punishment
will only put more distance between you and make the outside world
seem more attractive.
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| A
common problem is that your dog does not come back when called, no
matter what rewards you offer. Until he gets through adolescence, it
may be better to attach a long line to prevent him from learning to
run off.
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| Luckily,
adolescence doesn't last as long in dogs as in children. It lasts
longer in Airedales than in many breeds, but if you continue to
train with extra patience, you will be rewarded with a great adult.
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