Congratulations! You’ve purchased a new puppy, or perhaps you’re thinking about purchasing a new puppy. You’ve probably scoured the classifieds like AmericanListed to find the right one for you, maybe it was a childhood dream to get your own puppy, and have a little ‘dog family’ who knows. Either way, you’re probably considering puppy kindergarten for training. But did you know puppy training classes offer more than just that? Here are a few things you can expect your new pooch to learn from these classes.
Housebreaking. One of the biggest concerns for new dog owners, housebreaking can be a difficult process for your puppy to master. Ask the trainer for tips and pointers on how to housetrain your dog. Many trainers will support a type of positive reinforcement approach and urge owners to reward puppies who do a good job. If you’re having some difficulty when you initially bring your puppy back home, there are products that exist to make everything a little easier, such as these washable puppy pads. These are good for the first few days, but after that, the aim is to make sure your puppy knows that they cannot go to the toilet inside the house, only outside. This is made much easier if you have a lawn or yard area as you only need to make sure they make it outside your door, rather than to the local park. However, if you do have an outdoor space, you may want to look for a dog poop cleaning service such as can be found at https://poocrew.com/. This company ensures that you get to spend as much time as possible with the latest addition to your family by eliminating the need for you to complete the mundane task of picking up your puppy’s waste. They even take over half of the dog waste picked up to a facility that composts it! However, during the training stage of, you may want to visit https://www.lawncare.net/service-areas/illinois/ and organise a regular lawn care programme to make sure that your garden remains healthy, as dog waste can kill your grass and cause it to turn yellow.
Socialization. Another major concern for you might be whether or not your puppy will get along well with other dogs or other types of pets. One of the benefits of taking a group dog training class is that your puppy will be exposed to other dogs, people, places, and situations. The more they are exposed to new stimuli, the more calm and accepting they will be when experiencing those stimuli again.
Good Behavior. Puppy training classes will cover many of the basic behavior problems most dog owners go through. Expect to learn how to handle your puppy when they bite, jump, whine, or scratch. Again, positive reinforcement is a common best practice in these situations. A trainer will urge you to stay firm and consistent with your training methods.
Obedience. Behavior training is different from obedience training. Obedience training will be covered during puppy kindergarten in order to instill commands early in the dog’s life. Every dog should know a few basic commands, such as to sit, lie down, wait, or follow.
The Takeaway
Many classes will usually be 6 to 8 weeks long and you should expect all of these categories to be covered at some point during that time. A great puppy trainer will never focus the entire session on just one element of training. If this happens, it may be best to look elsewhere.
Have an older dog that hasn’t been trained yet or is having issues learning good behavior? Try opting instead for private dog training lessons!
