In this article...
1) Key Issues and Awareness;
2) How to Create a Healthy, Mutually Respectful Relationship
When working with clients, their children and their puppy this is a topic that I always make sure I address thoroughly.
When a family engages me - within in the first few weeks of acquiring a puppy, I can make sure that the relationship between puppy and child starts out the right way – thus ensuring that problem situations and behaviours do not develop.
In other cases, I get called in after the puppy has been in the family for months, the puppy and child not having been taught at the outset how to respect each other are now in crisis mode. The puppy has taken over, is jumping, biting, hyper and out-of-control. What happened?
Well…the dogs people did not fully realize their important role as coach and mentor to the puppy and they also did not understand how to effectively communicate with the puppy.
So What Are Some of the Key Issues To Be Aware Of?
Well…the dogs people did not fully realize their important role as coach and mentor to the puppy and they also did not understand how to effectively communicate with the puppy.
So What Are Some of the Key Issues To Be Aware Of?
1.0 It Is Important To Understand Your Puppys Natural Disposition
Most puppies – given the opportunity, will self-regulate to one degree or another. It is the puppys person who must actively take on the role of encouraging and enabling normal, healthy natural behaviours - just as you would do with a child.
It is also important to understand that just each human is an individual with their own unique combination of inherited dispositions - consisting of desirable and undesirable tendencies - so it is for the individual puppy.
Some puppies are, by natural disposition:
It is also important to understand that just each human is an individual with their own unique combination of inherited dispositions - consisting of desirable and undesirable tendencies - so it is for the individual puppy.
Some puppies are, by natural disposition:
- Calmer, more complacent, less vocal, less pushy;
- While others, for example are more:
- Curious,
- Persistent,
- Willful,
- Determined, etc.
- Each of these traits - when enabled the right way, can contribute to the formation of a well-adjusted dog, or when enabled the wrong way will led to big behaviour problems.
- More confident and naturally well balanced;
- While others may have a tendency towards insecurity - which can, if enabled develop into anxiety, obsessive or aggressive reactive behaviour
- Being touched from head to tail, including;
- Having its fur and nails groomed, its teeth and ears examined and cleaned;
- Being picked-up;
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