Pooch and Mutt's expert trainer, Jon, is here to explore the perfect training schedule for your brand new, 8-12 week old puppy.
When your puppy comes home with you, they'll be anywhere between 8-12 weeks old. Amidst all the excitement of a new furry addition to your home, you may not realise that there is some crucial puppy training you can begin from the get-go. Being so young, your puppy's mind will be ready to soak up whatever you're teaching them, so you can begin laying the foundation for their overall development.
Puppy training at 8-12 weeks
- At 8-12 weeks of age, puppy training should mainly focus on two areas: social skills within the home, and setting the precedent for obedience training. The latter includes toilet training.
- Toilet training is one of the first things you can work on with your puppy. The main things to focus on are building a solid toilet routine and lots of patience.
- A feeding routine is another area you can begin training as bad eating/feeding habits usually begin in the first few weeks.
- Be disciplined and stick to the food and feeding routine the puppy had with the breeder. Don’t be alarmed if your puppy is picky or doesn’t eat in the first few days. This is entirely normal, given the upheaval and change.
- Adding high-value food or changing it will cause long-term lifestyle and training problems. If you're looking to change your puppy's food, do so gradually, mixing the new and the old little bits at a time.
- Socialising is another form of training you can begin at this time. Getting to know your puppy through cuddles and play is the best! Especially in the first few weeks. Enjoy this time but be mindful that this should be a routine that also involves downtime and alone time for your puppy.
- Puppies are popular with friends, family and children and it’s important your pup develops relationships with them all. Make sure that this is done in small groups and for short periods. This will stop the puppy from getting overtired/stimulated.
- Establishing a night-time routine is another form of training you can do. Keep it as simple as possible in the first few weeks. Then your puppy knows what to expect and will settle quickly. Dogs take comfort in routine.
- Whilst your pup is too young for obedience training at this age, you can begin laying the foundations for it.
Build your pup's relationship with food as a reward and explore approaches to training like introducing a clicker.
- You can also begin focus training, which will involve teaching things like 'leave' or 'wait', where the food is in sight but your puppy waits for your command before they go to it.
- Whilst they're too young to go outside on a walk, introducing them to the lead, their harness and their collar can start now. Walk around your living room and eventually your garden to prepare them for further walking training.
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