It has been proven beyond any doubt that the first few months of your dog's life are the most important in its behavioural development. It is during these precious weeks up to about 16 weeks that your pup learns how to interact with the world around it, especially how to act appropriately with its own species (other dogs) and alien species (humans, other animals). Once these weeks are past you do not get a second chance, no matter how hard you work at it. It is therefore absolutely essential that you put in a lot of work to your puppy during these formative weeks.

Puppy training is an indispensable foundation for the rest of your dog's life. At our sessions puppies learn how to act around humans, be handled by strangers, interact with adult dogs, and start to learn the basic commands like 'sit', 'stay' and walking on the lead without pulling. We also play CDs of various noises such as thunderstorms, guns and fireworks so that the pups grow up not worrying when they first hear them.

All training is gentle and fun and first time owners in particular will learn everything they need to cope with their rapidly growing bundle of fur and needle-like teeth. Handouts and booklets on topics such as bite inhibition and house-training are available and there is also homework to be worked on before the next session. All the family is welcome to attend, especially controllable children. It is very important that puppies and children learn how to behave around each other.

Pups that attend properly run training sessions are far less likely to develop behaviour problems later on in their life. Before attending any class make sure that it is run using effective reward based methods. Other than personal recommendation, the best way to ensure this is to check that the trainer is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers www.apdt.co.uk

Be prepared
If you have never had a puppy before it can be quite a shock when that cute bundle turns into a weeing and pooing velociraptor.  We offer a puppy preparation session that will ensure you have all the bits and pieces you need to make both your lives easier as well as prepare you for those first few weeks when you otherwise might feel quite at sea.  These sessions are best held at your home so that we can advise you how to adapt what you have to make your puppy’s introduction as smooth as possible.