YOUR PUPPY AND YOU - OFF TO A GREAT START

So now you have gotten a new pup what is the best way to get them going? 

Let me back up and give you some back ground. I own and operate Sporting Life Kennels in Oxford, Ms.  We train over 100 dogs a year as well as we raise and train puppies through started dogs as well as having quality litters throughout the year. Being a trainer I am always looking for the best methods to reach a pupil no matter what their age is. Having tried many methods through the years I am constantly trying to improve our program. Over the years I have distilled down what I believe are the best ways to develop young pups into confident, happy, yet disciplined gun dogs. 

What I can tell you is that there is no greater way to train a young pup or any dog for that matter then to begin using positive reinforcement. What is positive reinforcement? The easiest way to describe is using food or possibly a toy to help shape the pup into a focused driven pupil. The methods we teach are covered in Retriever University. 

Also of equal importance is using socialization to help develop their behavior into one of confidence in various environments as well as being adjusted at home. Where socialization helps with training is that the pup is constantly learning in a home environment. He is being developed mentally to perceive and understand what you’re all about. The little things that you do, from eye contact to reading the energy you put out. I encourage my customers to take their pup to work with them if they can and defiantly believe they should live indoors at least at night and be part of the family. 

Puppies are really no different than children in the fact the need both physical touch and emotional support as well as building up their confidence and they also need boundaries. Correction is a good thing so long as it is a lite correction and you are consistent with it, just as you should use positive reinforcement, correction should be practiced hand in hand with building the pup up. 

Training a puppy is just as much about teaching them to live a balanced life as it is to teach them to be a working retriever. Remember “SLOW IS FAST”, just enjoy their puppy-hood as it goes by quickly.

Look up Marty at : sportinglifekennels.com,  also he has a program called Retriever University, which is a program of over 100 training films on developing pups into incredible gun dogs.Retrieveruniversity.com