Summary

Wrap.

Thank you for COMMITing to your puppy!

Below is a summary of the COMMIT To Your Puppy training guide covering the first 6 weeks after you bring your puppy home. If you have any questions about the guide or puppy training in general, I would love to hear from you! Enjoy these early days with your puppy and I wish for you an AMAZING life with an AMAZING dog!

Confidence

  • Frequently take your puppy with you on outings / errands during the first 6 weeks.

  • Play the Meet and Greet, Cuddles and Gotcha games as often as possible, whenever you remember, for the first 6 weeks after you bring your puppy home.

  • Organise some play dates with familiar dogs.

  • Enrol your puppy in obedience training classes. Choose a school that incorporates off-leash socialisation time during sessions.

Obedience

  • Teach your puppy the Super Recall, Super Sit and Super Loose Leash Walk.

  • Prioritise these 3 skills ahead of other obedience commands.

  • Put in practise the Tips On Treating and make some Super Treats for help with recall training.

Manners

  • Condition your puppy to love its crate on the very first day.

  • Toilet train your puppy in under a week with the crate / playpen method.

  • Once your puppy is fully toilet trained, they can have free access to the house.

  • Decide on the house rules for your puppy. It’s better to put in place more boundaries early, and then increase freedoms later on.

  • Enforce the rules with rigour! The key is consistency meaning everybody in the house needs to be onboard, kids included.

Mouthing

  • Play the Say “Ow!" Like You Mean It game, “Off” game and Barter game very regularly in the first 6 weeks after you bring your puppy home. Playing each game at least once a day is ideal.

  • Your puppy needs to learn to use its mouth safely and NOT BITE by the time they are 4 months old.

Independence

  • During the first week, combine Toilet Training with Independence Training using food chew toys. Feeding your puppy exclusively using food chew toys in the early weeks brings the fastest results.

  • Continue to give your puppy well-stuffed food chew toys each time you leave the house, even after your puppy is toilet trained.

  • Exercise your dog daily and give them plenty of opportunities to play and socialise with other dogs. If you are skimp on time, seek help from a local dog walker.

Trust

  • Attend a puppy training school or work with a dog trainer that promotes positive methods.

  • Use positive training techniques for fast, lasting results.