If you've recently got a new puppy in your household, take a read of our top three tips below for all new puppy owners.
1. Start Training Early
There is no such thing as ‘too young.’ Young pups brains are developing at a rapid pace - the more stimulation and ‘things to think about’ you can give your pup, the more neuron pathways are formed which means the more capable at learning they will be! Think short bursts of fun and interactive training as opposed to long sessions.
This can include learning how to play fetch, how to use treat puzzles etc - it doesn’t just have to be about ‘Sit’ and ‘Down!’
Mentally tired pups are less destructive than bored puppies! Another fun idea is to practise recall and your pups name by two people sitting on the floor, and calling the pup between them.
Getting your pup tired out physically is great, but be careful not too over do it.
2. Health & Nutrition
Puppies grow and mature very quickly. Arguably one of the biggest concerns with pups is to ensure that their soft bones develop as they should. Be careful not to let your pup play boisterously with bigger, rougher dogs and try to monitor how often he or she goes up and down the stairs each day.
Running up stairs and jumping from high places can cause damage to developing ligaments, growth plates, muscles and bones so restrict your pup with jumping around!
Aid their growing even more by ensuring they are fed a specific puppy food, that contains the right ratio of phosphorous to calcium.
Supplementing your pups diet with the superfood that is tripe (check out our cold pressed tripe bones or our dried lamb or beef tripe) or our pure protein sticks is a great way of getting additional nutrition in to them at this crucial stage of development. We have specific Chewboxes for puppies too, when selecting a Chewbox be sure to choose the puppy option.
3. Socialisation
From 6 weeks old to 4 months, your pups brain will grow to 10x its size!
Socialisation means exposure and experiences (ideally positive) with people and other pups. It’s so important during this time to help ensure that your pup will grow up to be a well rounded individual who is used to different environments and sights and sounds and has the social skills to interact appropriately with other dogs.
Puppy Socialisation sessions are a great idea and outside, neutral spaces are always the best places to do these type of sessions.
Remember:
- Body Language is key (I’ll talk more about that in my next post!) so look out for signs of stress in your pup - typically flat ears, tails tucked under and lots of yawning suggest your pup is stressed.
- Be ready to reassure and praise your pup and if you feel that situation or interaction is too much for him, remove him from the scenario.
- Pups do go through another fear period between 5- 12 months old, but this is entirely normal and just offer lots of praise, encouragement and reassurance and you and your pup will be just fine.
- Sarah