Training your puppy is not something most of us really think about when we purchase that bundle of joy. But, the need for it becomes clear pretty quickly once your furbaby is home and destroying everything they can get their teeth on! The Dog Coach is the answer you are looking for in training your puppy.
About The Dog Coach
Who Am I? I’ve run puppy classes, had many puppies to stay for board and training, and worked one-to-one with hundreds of dogs and their owners. Before that, I too lived through the ups and downs so familiar to many dog owners: clearing up mess or apologising profusely as a stranger’s picnic found itself en route to my dog’s stomach.
Finally, with the arrival eleven years ago of Cory, my Labradoodle, and a break from my previous career in publishing and technology, I decided to do something about it! I took courses with some of the best teachers of modern, reward-based dog training methods. And, for the past ten years, I’ve been coaching owners to help them train their dogs.
Online Courses from The Dog Coach
Before You Get Your Puppy
This online mini-course shows you exactly how to prepare for your puppy’s arrival so you both start off on the right paw. Your puppy’s first hours, days and weeks in your home are the most important of their life. If you miss the training opportunities during this window, you will be playing catch-up for months, if not years, to come.
Puppy Home School
Puppies are super cute and full of energy. They are also puppies and haven’t be taught acceptable behavior. From the new owner side, the family is ready for the puppy to be a member of the family. From the puppy side, they are probably wondering where they are, and where are all their litter mates? Getting a new puppy is said to be like having a new baby. If you have this mindset, understanding the areas of training will begin to make sense.
This course will take you through training your new puppy in 27 lessons in four modules. Each of the modules introduces a new task or area to concentrate on in training.
The Puppy Home School Course includes lessons on the follow topics:
Starting off of course with Puppy Preschool. This module teaches you to care for your puppy.
Pre-School Prep
- House Training
- Your Puppy’s First Night
- Socialization
- Puppies Bite (What to do about it)
- Crate Training
- Home Alone
Training 101
- Lure & Reward for Quick Results
- Training Magic
- Get Rid of the Food Bowl
Play School – Week One
During this training section, you will learn how to teach the basic commands. These commands are the foundation to a happy home life for both you and puppy.
- The Name Game
- Teaching Your Pup’s First Word
- Puppy Handling & Introducing a Collar
- The Toy Box & Playing Tug (with rules)
- Coming When Called
- Find It
- Stand
- Down
Play School – Week Two
During this section, additional command training is introduced. These involve both safety and social skills.
- Walking One: Baby Steps
- Leave It
- Problem & Solutions: Jumping Up
- Problem & Solutions: Barking
- Walking Two: On Lead
- Fetch (bringing things to you)
- Teaching Your Puppy to ‘Stay’
- Hand Targeting
My Thoughts
We have had several dogs over the years and have struggled with training most of them. Not sure if it was them or us; but the frustration of not being able to control them was a lot! Currently, we have a Goldendoodle named Ham. He just turned one but still acts like a puppy most of the time. Ham also panics when we leave the house and don’t take him with us. This is what we came home to the other day!
We are working on helping Ham feel comfortable alone. I guess I should be thankful he doesn’t get in the trash, but he has a fascination with tearing up my books and eating any mail he can find. I sure hope this is just a phase and that he will grow out of it quickly.
Training Your Puppy
Because Ham is not a new puppy, we were able to move quickly through the first portion of the Puppy Home School Course. We did go through the steps and have noticed that he is responding faster to commands. We are working on the stand and down commands. He sits and wants to shake but not go to the down position.
Ham is sitting nicely waiting for his lead to be attached for walks. And he is good at sitting by the door waiting to outside to go potty. His towel is his spot where he waits. He used to drag his towel all over the house, now he leaves it alone. When we go to someone else’s house, we place the towel where we want him to let us know he needs to go potty.
As far as the course material, it is easy to follow along. Each section has downloadable files that are informative and helpful. And being able to watch the videos over and over helps with reinforcing our teaching skills.
Our newest little one will benefit from our training with Ham. Little Miss Harley is mastering the house training quite well. She does not like sleeping in her kennel alone and would rather be in the bedroom over the kitchen. It is getting better and she is settling down sooner each night.
It is nice to not be jumped on in the mornings! Ham now comes into our room and licks my hand when he wakes up and thinks it is time to go down stairs to eat or go outside. He is blocked on the landing at night since he still gets upset if we kennel him.
Getting off on the right paw
Whether you have an eight week puppy like Harley or one that is just turning one year, you and the dogs will benefit from the training in these online courses. They not only will help you get off on the right paw with a new baby, but will show you how to stop or retrain your pet for bad behaviors. I can’t wait until we get to the barking section. I am sure there will be a solution that we haven’t thought of yet.
The Puppy Home School course would also be a great gift for someone getting a new puppy. I do like that they are clear enough for even the children to follow. Our seven year old is able to get the dogs to respond just as fast as the adults. If you are looking at training for your dog, make sure to give this program a look. The self paced lessons are perfect for the busy family or the most challenging of dogs.
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