When your puppy jumped onto the couch for the first time, was that the cutest thing
ever?
What about when she managed to get up that first step with those stubby little puppy
legs.
So adorable, right?
Wellll, not really.
I mean, yes that’s super cute, BUT remember: what we allow as puppies we have to consider
what it will look and feel like as an adult dog.
Are you going to be as enamored when that same dog bounds onto the couch when you’re
tucked in with your popcorn and hot chocolate?
What about when your pup steals a sock and races up the stairs?
Yeah, not so fun anymore.
Today’s topic is all about managing the space when you have a new puppy, or even an
adult dog.
Hi, Michele here with How To Train A Dream Dog…
Before we dive in, be sure to hit that thumbs up and subscribe button so you get an alert
when the next training lesson gets released
Alright, so you’ve got a new puppy and if you’ve listened to any of my other videos,
you probably remember me saying that managing the space in the home is really important.
It’s one of the main aspects of potty training - keeping the space small so the puppy doesn’t
have too much room to roam.
Let’s dig into that point.
What happens when a puppy has a lot of room to move around.
1.
Their systems are more active.
Sniffing, walking, circling, and in general MOVEMENT means their system is more revved
up.
This means… more potty accidents!
Another thing that happens is that they don’t settle.
They stay active
This means that if you’re gone for a while and you give your puppy some room “so they
can stretch their legs”, you are likely to come home to a puppy who is NOT well-rested.
And who likely had an accident in your absence
An overtired puppy means LOTS of unwanted behavior.
No thank you!
What else happens when pups have a lot of room… they get curious!
Curious puppies usually lead to trouble.
They get into things they should not have or they find a way to get to those things
even if there might have been a barrier.
When you give pups time and space, they will work hard to get what they want.
My first dog Bear was given way too much space too soon and he destroyed 2 couches, tore
the curtains off the window, and ate a hole in the carpet.
And because of Bear, I became a trainer, thanks Bear!
When we are teaching the students enrolled in our online course, we often say “reinforcement
builds behavior”
and in this case, the puppy is getting reinforced for their curiosity - they got into something
new and different.
That is exciting and that increases the chances they’ll try it again.
This can work in the opposite direction; when they do the right thing and we reinforce it,
they are more likely to continue doing it!
That sounds like a much better scenario.
Ok so perhaps now I’ve convinced you that limiting a puppy’s space is a GOOD thing.
It’s for their own safety and the safety of your home.
But what are good ways to do this?
And is there anything else we can do to help our pups stay out of trouble?
Stick with me, those topics are coming right up.
Let me just take a moment here to say that yes, limiting space and managing the puppy’s
space is super important.
BUT, it’s important that their needs are met before you expect them to go into a small
area and be by themselves for a period of time.
This means you need to watch the schedule to make sure they’ve had enough exercise,
did they get food at the appropriate time,
have they had a potty break and have they had some socialization with a human or two
or experienced something new to help build up their confidence.
These are all so important to factor into their overall day, especially when it includes
time in a small space like we are talking about here.
For more info on building a schedule that is appropriate for their age, check out this
video here, it’s one of my most popular ones!
Alright, back to our topic of managing space.
Here are some tools that I recommend for managing the environment.
If you have hung out in our Facebook group at all or maybe you’ve already downloaded
the New puppy starter kit, and if you haven’t the link is below this video
Ok so if you have watched any of the free training videos in it you probably know what
I'm going to say first: THE CRATE.
The crate is really the very first, fundamental tool in managing the environment for our puppies.
It’s like their bedroom.
Dogs naturally seek out small, dark, cozy spaces to rest and we are simply letting them
know that this crate is the place we’ve selected for them.
The crate is a lifetime arrangement, it’s important for your puppy to like his crate
for his whole life.
It could be a medical reason, grooming, travel, going to a friend’s house, recovery from
surgery or any other reason.
Even if you invite your puppy to sleep with you in bed (sidenote: wait until after a year
for best outcomes on this one!),
the crate is always a tool we want to have available and have your puppy content in there.
The crate also helps with potty training, by encouraging a puppy to hold his bladder
until he’s in a different environment.
A stronger bladder means longer duration in between potty breaks and eventually a pup
who sleeps through the night!
The crate is really the best spot for your puppy when he needs a nap.
Biting puppies often need a rest and if you simply leave them out and beg them to take
a nap, do you think that happens?
That’s a no.
Just like we put babies down for a nap in their crib - for their safety and proper rest
we want the same for our puppies, who have the same mentality as newborn babies when
they first come home.
OK on to my next tool you can use for managing the environment: the PEN.
The puppy pen is an area to keep your puppy safe while they can play without giving them
too much space in the home which can lead to accidents or chewing on things they shouldn’t.
A puppy learning to potty train can stay in a smaller space or puppy pen so they don’t
have accidents all over the home.
We want to limit the space a puppy has until they are trustworthy and have learned to hold
their bladder or have graduated out of the chewing or destructive phase.
Using a puppy pen is a great way to help your puppy stay safe while you are busy with household
chores and you can't keep your eyes on them 100% of the time,
or for situations like you are working from home.
Puppies need to learn to start spending time away from you while keeping themselves busy
(in a safe way).
A puppy pen is not for sleeping and napping.
We keep our puppies in a crate for all naps and at bedtime.
The space is more cozy and this helps them sleep instead of stay in play mode.
Think of a puppy pen like a pack n play or playpen for babies.
You can learn more about a good setup for puppy pens in crates in this video.
Or you can take the tips on pens from that video and keep your crate and pen in different
places.
That’s up to you and your puppy.
When creating a penned area, I like to use this pen here.
It has vertical bars that are a lot harder for curious puppies to climb.
Sometimes we have bigger pups who are great jumpers who can still escape.
For those guys, we need a taller pen or even some DIY where you put a cover on top.
But the best thing to do is to teach your puppy not to jump.
That’s easier said than done but with my online course, you’ll learn all the best
tips on how to teach your puppy proper manners in the pen, in your home, and even when guests
arrive.
You can learn more about that course in the description below.
The pen can work very well even in an open space household, either up against a wall,
in a kitchen that usually has an entrance area, or a corner.
Even with no walls, you can still make it pen in a circle area where the puppy can stay
safe.
Want to know what we DON’T recommend you use for a pen?
This thing here [PICTURE OF FABRIC PEN].
This is a great big NOPE in my book.
This fabric pen may look handy but your puppy will probably learn to escape from it in a
hot second.
He also might enjoy chewing on it AND even the most diligent puppy owner still might
find a potty accident or two.
Those accidents are impossible to clean up in a fabric pen like this.
Do yourself a favor and get the right tools the first time.
Baby gates can also work really well for puppy pen gates, including those that attach to
the wall and have a door or even a cat door.
We really don’t want to be lifting our puppy in and out of the pen, it’s important that
they learn to go in when you ask them to and they learn to follow your direction when they
come out.
So be sure to get a pen that has an opening for human AND canine.
The next tool you can use while managing space is the same concept as a pen but this one
is for outside.
It’s a potty pen!
A potty pen is a smaller, gated area that you can set up outside that is the designated
potty spot.
If you’ve ever taken a puppy outside, you might notice that even if the schedule indicates
it’s time for a potty break, all of a sudden that little pupper just won’t go!
He wants to chew the sticks and the grass and chase leaves and investigate that far
corner of the lawn you haven’t really cleaned up from last fall.
This is a recipe for disaster!
Even though your dog is on a leash, I recommend having a designated potty spot that will help
him focus.
recommend a gate like this, which isn’t really designed to keep him in, but it’s
enough of a barrier that it creates a space within a larger space.
It works well when you have the puppy on a leash and maybe you walk around the outside
of the pen while the pup is on the inside.
Some pups need that movement to get their little systems ready for poo.
So we’ve got a crate, a pen inside, a pen outside, what else?
Training.
Yep, training.
Let’s talk for a moment about impulse control.
That puppy I mentioned at the beginning who is excitedly joining you on the couch?
Yeah, he needs to learn some impulse control.
That means he learns to think before just acting on every impulse.
It’s normal for puppies to have no impulse control at first, but it’s still something
you can start working on right away.
Impulse control can be taught through a variety of fun training games.
This can also lead to the "leave it" skill that will be very important on walks and around
the house.
“Leave it” and “off” are two very important commands that we want your puppy
to understand.
This is for his own safety AND for good manners in your home.
As with any skill, we have to break the teaching down into baby steps, where we teach the dog
what we expect of him and then slowly turn up the dial of distractions
so when we really really need him to comply, he has practiced it so much he does it right
away.
But it’s not enough to just teach this important skill.
We also have to manage the environment outside of training sessions so that the right choice
is the easiest choice.
That means restricting your puppy’s access so he can’t constantly get at the couch,
or the stairs, and his poor behavior gets reinforced accidentally.
Our pups can chain behaviors together (jump on couch, get off for a treat and repeat.)
We want to put more focus on what they should be doing instead and break the cycle.
We go over all of those skills in our online puppy training course, but the tips in this
video will give you everything you need to know about managing the environment while
you are training.
You can find the link to the course below this video in the description
There are a lot of other creative ways you can manage the space in your home to keep
it safe for a puppy.
This includes lids for garbage cans, closets with doors that contain shoes and yummy smelling
socks, curtains that are raised up just a little bit, and gates around things like enticing
plants or a Christmas tree.
When you start to give your puppy more freedom into a new room you’ll soon notice what
puppy proofing you HAVEN’T done.
One more point I want to make about managing space.
Some people ask me “Michele, if all I do is block off areas he can’t go, how will
my puppy ever learn to leave those things alone?”.
This is a great question.
When we have zoom calls for our students enrolled in the pro level of the course, we often talk
about the concept of setting our puppies up for success, not failure.
Until you’ve taught him what you expect of him, and practiced it like crazy so he
can perform it under any distracting environment, it’s not fair to set our puppies up for
failure.
We want to control the environment, not the animal.
I think you’ve got a lot of options here for how to set up your home for the best chance
of success for your puppy.
Remember that tools can’t substitute for training, but you need both in order to fully
teach your puppy how to exist in a human world.
In the comments below, tell me what tools you use in your home for managing the space
with your puppy.