Dogmann

Just because your dog has a high prey, drive doesn’t mean that they can’t have impulse control! I didn’t know that my mum had got some chickens in her back garden or that she had let them out so just let my dogs out the back as I normally would. If I solely relied on a good recall to control my dogs chasing instinct then these chickens would be dead because I let my dogs out and then came back to them 5 minutes later, teaching your dogs that they are not allowed to chase stuff until you give them permission means you are not relying on a recall and can trust your dogs more because you know they simply won’t chase livestock unless told to do so. My dogs are also fed whole prey, mainly birds so finishing off these chickens would be nothing new to them.

Sitting down and just observing anything that scared them is a great way to show any dog that the scary thing is not that scary. If you leave straight after the pup panics then they don’t learn anything. It’s also ok to panic. So long as the pup learns how to overcome that fear.

Exposing life to your puppies and getting them to overcome their fears will produce a more robust and confident dog that will be able to deal with everything that life throws at them.

Here Teddy and Rolo come with me to my mates garage. They’re staying with me till mid August but I’ll still be getting them out and about as if they were my own dogs. Spending time and even more time if necessary to help them gain confidence and the more confident they are the less likely their new owners will face problems that mean they want to return them or give them back up at a later date.

As a breeder you should want to give people not only a dog with good genetics but also a sound mind and the resilience to live their life to the full.

Caramel and Teddy giving it some large 😂

Letting the pups listen and see children playing is a great way to get them used to how they act. If you don’t have kids then hang out around children’s play areas. If you’re a bloke on your own, find a lady friend or borrow a mates kid to go hang out by the swings rather than going on your own 😎

Keeping kids sat down helps avoid any accidents as children don’t have the spatial awareness that adults do. Even I check where I’m placing my feet as these pups are so small 😂❤️ you want pups to like children so making their first experiences good ones really really helps.

They’ve been quiet for 30 minutes and then Robert (aka Biscuit) started whimpering. You could just leave them and let them cry it out but for many dogs that doesn’t work and creates issues. I like to try and avoid issues as much as possible. When he cries I just place my hand by his crate and wait. I don’t talk or get him out or even look at him. After a few minutes he self calms and so has been a positive learning experience rather than just going his cries and getting angry at the noise.

First night in the crates and the pups did well. Only a few moans through the night. I slept on the settee and placed my hand at the front of the crate of the pup that was crying and then they settled. Today they were good again. A little crying but then sleeping even with the noise the kids were making 😂❤️ let them out again tonight and let them start to fall asleep in their play pen. I then lifted them into their individual crates and not a peep ❤️❤️❤️

This is 10 minutes later. Nice and calm. Is it always like this? Haha I wish and if they had carried on creating I would have sat next to the crates and just held my hand near the crate entrance until they had settled. Helping pups to deal with stress is important as that’s how you build resilience. Pampering your dog might make you feel better but actual is detrimental for your dog.