got a new puppy and going to do this right

[Emily_loveschickens]

Hi everyone,
yesterday I got a portguese water dog puppy. I was wondering what I should teach him first. Thanks!

 

[Emily_loveschickens]

sorry about the quality is got bad when i sent the pictures over

 

[black_cat]

Ok because when i leave he cry's like a maniac

If he cries, and you go back in, you're sending the message that crying=you coming back. Leave, wait for him to be quiet, then come back and let him out once he quiets down for 5-10 consecutive seconds.

 

[gimmie birdies]

When ever you take the puppy outside to potty, tell him/her " Outside, Go pee-pee." the as they are peeing say what they are doing, "Peepee!" As they are doing it, then when they are done, "Good boy, peepee, outside." And hug and cuddle the dog as a reward. Take the dog out often when young. And remember, if the dog has an accident in the house, it is not the dogs fault. Don't punish.

 

[EverythingDucks]

How exciting, congrats! Portuguese water dogs are awesome.

I would first start by teaching him what "yes" means. If you're familiar with clicker training, you'll know that when you use the clicker, the dog gets a treat and knows that the click means they did good. With clicker training, the click is what you call a marker.
I much prefer to use the word "yes" as a marker since you won't have to carry around a clicker all the time. "Yes" should not be mixed up with any other words, like "Good" or "Good boy". Consistency is key. And people meeting your dog will often say "good boy" which could be rewarding your dog for jumping or barkubg from the excitement.

So, start by getting your pups attention, say "yes!" and quickly follow with a reward. Small and soft treats work well for training. Do this a few times until he associates "yes" as a positive thing he gets treats from. Once he gets the idea, you can also switch it up by giving him lots of positive attention with petting him.

Work with him for about 15 mins a day. If he can handle more without getting super tired out, than you can increase the amount of times you work with him. Remember to keep it short and sweet. Puppies can get tired out very fast, not only from psychical exercise but from mental stimulation as well.

When my Yorkie, Rosie, was a puppy I would work with her by first giving her some playtime to ture her out a bit (remember not to overdo it though) and then do some training. I'd do this with her until she was completely tired out so I could then put her in a playpen for her nap. This means that not only is she getting good training, proper exercise, and sleep, but while she's outside of her playpen my attention is on her so she can't get into trouble by having an accident or chewing something.
Then, as soon as she woke up I'd take her straight outside, say "go potty" and reward her.
With potty training, it helped for me to write down what time she "went" everyday and how long it took after each meal. That way I was able to set timers and take her outside before she even knew she needed to go. This was especially important because her baldded was about the size of a penny (at least it seemed), so staying ahead of that to prevent her from having accidents always helped.
I never taught her to use puppy pads because for one, those are indoors, and two, it's more difficult to transition dogs to go outside. Puppies can also mistake rugs or carpet for puppy pads, so it's best to avoid training them to use it. However, the do work great for easy clean up. I always lined her playpen with them, so when she did gave an accident it didn't ruin the floors or her fabric pen.

Be sure to use his name a lot. Using an excited "baby voice" gets puppies excited and interested.

Remember to only use the commands once until he does what he is told. Don't say "sit, sitttt sit!". He needs to learn to do what he is told the first time, which is important because it might save his life some day.
If he's totally disinterested, get him to do something else then start over.

A few things to start out with would be sit, come, leave it, and lay down.
Most of these are pretty easy, but a lot of people use "leave it" for the wrong things.
"Leave it" should never be used for anything you want your dog to touch. Some people use this while placing the dogs food down, when when they're trying trying get the dog to drop its toy, or with other things they'd let the dog touch again.
"Leave it" should be used when your dog is trying to eat something harmful, or is lunging at your chickens.

You can teach this by placing some food kn the ground. Obviously this shouldn't be something that could harm your dog, but something you don't want him to eat. Keep your foot right next to it, so when your dog tries to eat it you can put your foot over it. Say "leave it" in a firm voice (as though it were something bad) and when your dog stops reward him. What you want is for him to look at you and stop what he's doing. Do this a few times until he gets the hang of it. Try it with a few other things, just do not let him get to it.

This will be especially important when you introduce him to your chickens. He should be kept on a leash at all times when near them, and I would keep the chickens in their run ti be extra safe. Naturally, he's going to be curious about them. But if he barks, growls, or attempt to chase them, say "leave it". If he does, reward heavily. If not, start over and try again from a farther distance. Some dogs have a higher prey drive and will be more likely to chase them.
Be sure to take him for a walk and play with him until he's tired out before trying this so he won't even want to chase them.

Sorry for such a long post, but hopefully this will help. These are just a few things I find are important with training a new puppy. If you have any questions I'll be happy to help as best I can.

 

[Weeg]

I have taught him sit and laydown. what should he learn next?

Dont get ahead of youself. Does he sit and laydown for treats, or because you are asking him? Will he sit and lay down wihtout treats and using praise for the reward? Will he sit and lay down on a walk, with distractions like other dogs around him?
If not, you need to master all of these things before moving on. Sit and lay down aren't tricks, they're vital commands. If he wont respond to them under chaotic, exciting, or distracting circumstances without treats, then those commands are unless.
If he takes off after a squirrel running across the road, you need to be able to yell, "stop! Sit" and have him listen, or he could get hit by a car.

 

[black_cat]

https://thecaninechasm.com/
Read the puppy posts here! I love them!


Focus on adding structure to your dog's life- things like waiting to go through a door, waiting to go up the stairs, etc. Make rules for greetings and be consistent enforcing them.
Some important commands are:
-come- I cannot stress this enough. Practice every day using high value treats. Could save a life.
-sit
-down
-stay
-leave it
-drop it
-place

Also work on crate and separation training.

 

[HKG]

he is 10 1/2 weeks

Okay, then you should start with potty training. He definitely old enough to understand not to potty in the house. If he does tell him no and take him outside.

 

[Weeg]

Congrats on your pup! Its so exciting to have a new wiggle bottom in the house. I bet your just in love.

I'd first like to advocate a type of training that I love, and has always worked for me. The check chain. When you train with treats, the dog is always in the position to choose, cookie or freedom? Say your dog takes off chasing a rabbit, which runs into a busy highway. You yell at your dog, "stop! Sit". In that very moment your dog is thinking, "cookie, or rabbit, cookie or rabbit?" Rabbit will always win, and into the busy highway he runs.
With the check chain, you're able to show your dog what you don't want them to do using a correction, and use praise to tell them when they are doing what you want them to do. Dogs are very motivated, and aim to please, they figure it out really quickly. This way, when they're done with training, you've taught them that you are the leader, and they need to listen to the leader. Thats what I'm supposed to do, and I'm a good dog for doing it. Dogs like that structure. If you dont put yourself in the positon of pack leader, the dog tries to take that position. Dogs prefer to be the submissive. It takes a lot of stress out of their roll in the household, and makes it much easier on the both of you when the giving commands.

I highly recomend you look into an obedince school that uses the check chain in your area. It will make it a lot easier to understand the commands, and they can give you tips and tricks to improve the way you teach the dog, and can help you if you have any questions.
If you can't fine one in your area, doing research on the training, looking for good YouTube sources is always helpful. We often make mistakes that we can't see while we're training, having a friend video you so you can watch yourself can be helpful to notice mistakes as well. Sorry for the long post, but I hope you found it helpful. Good luck with your pup, they're always so fun. Congrats!

 

[Krugerrand]

Congrats on your pup! Its so exciting to have a new wiggle bottom in the house. I bet your just in love.

I'd first like to advocate a type of training that I love, and has always worked for me. The check chain. When you train with treats, the dog is always in the position to choose, cookie or freedom? Say your dog takes off chasing a rabbit, which runs into a busy highway. You yell at your dog, "stop! Sit". In that very moment your dog is thinking, "cookie, or rabbit, cookie or rabbit?" Rabbit will always win, and into the busy highway he runs.
With the check chain, you're able to show your dog what you don't want them to do using a correction, and use praise to tell them when they are doing what you want them to do. Dogs are very motivated, and aim to please, they figure it out really quickly. This way, when they're done with training, you've taught them that you are the leader, and they need to listen to the leader. Thats what I'm supposed to do, and I'm a good dog for doing it. Dogs like that structure. If you dont put yourself in the positon of pack leader, the dog tries to take that position. Dogs prefer to be the submissive. It takes a lot of stress out of their roll in the household, and makes it much easier on the both of you when the giving commands.

I highly recomend you look into an obedince school that uses the check chain in your area. It will make it a lot easier to understand the commands, and they can give you tips and tricks to improve the way you teach the dog, and can help you if you have any questions.
If you can't fine one in your area, doing research on the training, looking for good YouTube sources is always helpful. We often make mistakes that we can't see while we're training, having a friend video you so you can watch yourself can be helpful to notice mistakes as well. Sorry for the long post, but I hope you found it helpful. Good luck with your pup, they're always so fun. Congrats!

your post reminded me of training my sheltie to 'give paw' with praise and petting as the reward. ... well, whenever she wanted attention, she'd start slapping me with her paw. ooops.