Using Food to Train Your Puppy – The Basics

Food is the most effective motivator for canines. If used right, it can help you train your dog into obedience.

You give your dog a command and expect it to comply; it may seem simple to you, but for your dog, the process is quite complicated. In order to communicate with your dog properly, and make it act to your command, you need to harness the power of food — it is primal to the canines’ existence and will make them learn the task at hand easily.

Follow these tips for an effective approach to food-oriented training:

Little Treats Go a Long Way

You don’t want your dog putting on too much weight with too many treats. To keep that in check, resort to small sized treats, or break down bigger ones into smaller pieces. 

Reward Each Step

To make sure your dog learns, it is important to reward their progress. The small steps your dog takes towards the ultimate goal need appreciation.

When you reward your dog for lowering down to an almost sitting position, they realize what the treat is associated with. Next time, wait around till they settle down into a sitting position before you reward them.

Remember to “Fade the Lure”

You don’t want the treat becoming a bribe. Using this technique, you lure your dog into doing your desired action for the first few times, like beckoning it to you, and then repeat the same gesture without any treats. However, you do need to be mindful about:
·        Giving verbal encouragements when your pet performs its task properly.

     ·   Gradually decreasing the use of treats to a complete stop when your dog learns the command.
·        Reinforce the behavior by giving them treats in the exact position you want them in.

Get Rid of the Distractions

When training, it is important to have all their attention focused on you and the tasty treat in your hand. You need to train them in an isolated space where playing children, whirling cars, and scurrying squirrels don’t distract them from the lesson.

Keep Experimenting

When you’re using food to train your dogs, you need to make sure the treats you use are delicious enough to motivate them.

It all depends on your dog’s taste. It is a trial and error process which will require you to test different brands of healthy dog treats before you find the one that grabs your dog’s attention.

Of course you do need to consider that some dog species are more inclined towards food as an incentive than others. If your dogs are not food-oriented, some love and affection, or toys would work better in helping you train them.

The Goldendoodles, Labradoodles, and poodles at April’s Poodles and Doodles love everything; a tasty treat, healthy affection from the owner, and some toys. They are all standard poodle puppies for adoption, if you’re looking for one.

How to Puppy Proof Your Homes

You’ve decided to get a puppy for you and your family — but before you bring one home, there’s some serious preparation you need to undertake.

You need to provide your puppy with a safe environment to grow in. Thus, you need to prepare your yard and home for this new member of the family just like you do for a curious toddler. Your focus should be on eliminating any and all dangers that can harm your family or your little pup.

Puppy proofing the house should be taken seriously. So take a walk around your home and scan each room for possible risks. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

The Kitchen

The kitchen is an explorer’s (your puppy) haven. There are interesting cords, cabinets, drawers, and the tantalizing tastes and aroma. You need to:

·        Secure drawers using childproof latches (find them at a hardware store near you)

·        Tuck out all the cords, and cables out of your puppy’s reach. The safest option is to enclose them in chew-proof PVC tubes to keep your puppy uninterested.

The Bathroom

Bathrooms carry too many things that can prove dangerous for your puppy. They could swallow pills, choke on soap, or drown in the toilet bowl. To make your bathrooms puppy proof, remember to:

·        Keep soaps, shampoos, razors and other accessories in a drawer or cabinet, well out of your pup’s reach.

·        Keep the toilet lid down all the time.

·        Close your bathroom doors when you leave it.

·        Use dustbin that have lock lids.

·        The cords and drawers are to be treated the same ways as the ones in the kitchen.

·        Exercise caution as a family not to leave anything behind to the puppy after using the bathroom.  

The Bedroom

Dogs follow the scent. They will be attracted to anything that gives off your scent. Clothes, slippers, shoes, etc. everything will gravitate them towards itself. So:

·        Don’t leave clothes lying around.

·        Put laundry in a tall, lidded basket.

·        Store your shoes in a secure, high out-of-their-reach place.

·        Keep all your jewelry, coins, hair ties and any other things your puppy can choke on well hidden.

·        Install temporary blockades to keep them from squeezing behind furniture.

The Living Room

These family rooms are the coziest, and often have the greatest congregation of shoes, throw pillows, electronic gadgets, and magazines that are highly tempting for a little puppy. What you can do is:

·        Put all the clutter away every time you get up dogs for adoption.

·        Keep the place clear off pillows, rushes, blankets, and décor.

·        Wires and cords need to be concealed.

Deciding to get a puppy is the first step. It is followed by the chain of different decisions and considerations that you need to sort out before bringing the puppy home. The foremost of these decisions is to find the perfect puppy for you and your family.

Visit April’s Poodles and Doodles for an exciting range of sociable labradoodles, goldendoodles, and standard, miniature, and toy poodles to find the puppy you are looking for.