Puppy Kindergarten
For : Puppies 12 weeks to 20 weeks of age as of the start of class
Cost : $500.00 for 5 classes (limited to 5 puppies per class)
Requirements : Puppies must be healthy and up-to-date on vaccinations.
Why : The main purpose of this course is socialization ! One of the most important things you can do for your puppy is to let him or her socialize early with other dogs to avoid problems later on. Young puppies are very impressionable and easy to train because they don't know much of anything and haven't learned any "bad" behaviors yet. Now is the perfect time to take advantage of easy training, to encourage desired behaviors through positive reinforcement . The habits your puppy now learns he or she will also know as an adult. Make sure it's what you want him or her to know!
This course is designed to prevent behavior problems (dog-to-dog aggression, space and toy possessiveness, shyness, bullyness etc.), by teaching the puppy appropriate behaviours in a controlled environment.
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Puppies will be introduced to basic exercises like :
- Sit
- Down
- Stay
- Come
- Walk on leash
- Off
- Approach and greeting by stranger
- Stand for exam by stranger
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Other topics that will be discussed
are :
- Crate training and housebreaking
- Chewing and nipping
- Do's and Don'ts with puppies and children
- "Doggie Language"
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Puppy Kindergarten is designed to help owners get through the early months of raising a puppy by teaching and encouraging the behaviors and habits that you WANT from your puppy. This saves you a lot of headache later when you would have to try and “undo” bad habits. It’s much easier to start your puppy off right! The classes themselves are a combination of discussion of common questions/problems, supervised off-leash puppy play/socialization, confidence building exercises and introduction of basic obedience skills - walking on a leash, coming when called, sit, greeting people without jumping, etc. All exercises are taught with positive reinforcement, using food treats, toys and attention to reinforce the behavior we want.
Many well-intentioned dog owners do not realize that they waited too long on getting started with socialization. The critical window of socialization ends approximately when the puppy is 16 weeks old. In fact many veterinarians, trainers, behavior consultants and behaviorists emphasize the importance of the period before the pup is just 3 months old! Adequate socialization can help prevent many behavior problems such as shyness, aggression, fears and phobias as well as behavior problems caused by anxiety. Your puppy needs to meet people of all different shapes, sizes, ages and ethnic backgrounds. All these experiences need to be fun! That's easy to do, simply have many different people give your puppy a delicious and healthy treat. Use small nutritious treats the size of a pea or even your puppy's own food as a reward.
Socialization includes not only the opportunity to meet many people, but also many dogs of different breeds, shapes and sizes, and experience different environments. Just because your puppy lives with another dog does not mean your puppy is sufficiently socialized to dogs. Please do not take your young puppy to a dog park! Dogs at dog parks
can have great temperaments or terrible ones and a bad experience now will have lasting ramifications. If you schedule private lessons with our trainer, we may be able to provide opportunities for socialization of your young puppy with our own gentle, well-socialized dogs and we can provide recommendations for additional socialization opportunities.
Your puppy also needs to have opportunities to explore urban settings and suburban and rural settings. This is especially important for people living in Singapore because there are many different kinds of environments relatively close together. If you dream of a dog that you can take hiking, for leisurely walks, and will lie politely by your side while you enjoy lunch outdoors, you need to prepare your puppy for these very different environments now.
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If your veterinarian tells you to wait and not allow your puppy to meet other dogs until he or she has all of his vaccinations, please show your veterinarian the following letters:
The importance of preventing behavior problems by appropriate socialization and reward based training cannot be overstated.
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