Skipping School

Bill Gates never got his degree, and neither did Steven Spielberg. So if you are unable to send your puppy to "puppy kindergarten" classes, take heart. As long as you take the time to train and socialize your puppy, the pet will not be doomed to a life of failure—even if he never gets to wear the cute little cap and gown.

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If you are going to deprive your puppy of a formal education, educate yourself about how to best teach your pooch.

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Now don´t get us wrong. Puppy kindergarten can be a wonderful thing—a terrific opportunity to have a trained expert socialize a puppy and teach it the basic obedience commands.

"You have brought a non-human species into a human environment," explained Marty Guerra of Good Dog Behavior and Training in Boise, Idaho. "[Puppy kindergarten] teaches you how you manage a dog proactively in that environment."

But that doesn´t mean that you or your dog won´t survive without it. "I believe that the three most important things to teach a young puppy are housetraining, bite inhibition, and socialization," said Stacy Braslau-Schneck a certified dog trainer and owner of Stacy´s Wag´N´Train, San Jose, Calif. "And these are three things that are actually very difficult to teach in a class setting—though the instructor should certainly explain the methods."

So going the do-it-yourself route isn´t necessarily a bad idea… but if you are going to deprive your puppy of a formal education, at the very least, trainers said, educate yourself about how to best teach your pooch.

Here are some tips from the experts:

Canine exposure

Half of the battle is exposing puppies to all sorts of different people, animals, and environments—so they´ll behave appropriately in all different sorts of situations.

SF/SPCA certified canine behavior counselor/trainer Pia McGovern, a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and owner of K-9 Insight Obedience & Behavior Consulting, Redwood City, Calif., said that familiarizing a puppy with a diverse group of people is key. "Research has proven that a puppy needs the most socialization between the ages of zero and five months—and that´s everyone. Children, people, people wearing hats and colorful sunglasses—everyone."

Other trainers agreed. "Don´t skip those men with hats and beards, and football players, bikers, and others who wear helmets," Ms. Braslau-Schneck said. Also make a point of exposing your puppy to the many "props" that humans are often accompanied by, she added, such as canes, walkers, wheelchairs, strollers, shopping carts, and skateboards. You don´t want your dog to bark at handicapped people just because he never encountered any disabled individuals as a puppy.

To that end, Mr. Guerra suggests throwing "puppy parties." Invite friends to come over to your house to meet the puppy. The people should be of all different ages, sizes, and shapes—but the one thing your friends need to have in common is that they all agree to some ground rules. "They have to know that they can´t all charge at [the puppy] at once," Mr. Guerra said. "They have to remain calm and collected." As the puppy greets each guest, give it a treat for behaving appropriately.

Don´t stop with people—expose your pup to as wide an array of other (healthy, vaccinated) dogs as possible. At Ms. McGovern´s puppy kindergarten classes, canine students are introduced to numerous other dogs. "We want a dog to meet 100 different dogs in the first year of life," she said. Your home-schooled pet should have multiple encounters with its own species as well.

That doesn´t mean your next destination with the puppy should be a dog park. Ms. McGovern strongly advises against that. For one thing, there are health considerations: your pet may not have had all of its booster shots yet, and could be vulnerable to numerous contagious diseases. For another, "chances are that in a dog park you´ll find other dogs that have been undersocialized, that [the people who own them] may not be paying attention to. This could be a disaster for a little dog."

One alternative Mr. Guerra suggests is to arrange well-supervised play dates with older, trustworthy, stable dogs. "Start proactively teaching the puppy appropriate behavior for interacting with dogs," he said.

Puppies should get accustomed to being around cats, too—and if you live in a rural area, as many of Mr. Guerra´s clients do, introduce them to livestock. He also recommends driving around in the car with your puppy to get him used to automobile travel, and taking him on trips to places, such as the veterinarian´s hospital, to expose the pet to life outside your house or apartment.

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"Research has proven that a puppy needs the most socialization between the ages of zero and five months—and that´s everyone. Children, people, people wearing hats and colorful sunglasses—everyone."

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Why is it so important to expose your puppy to so many different types of people, animals, and places? "[Socialization] is the number one method of preventing aggression later in life," Ms. Braslau-Schneck said. "Dogs that that are comfortable are less likely to be aggressive. Dogs that are well-socialized are also less likely to be stressed by …construction noises, dogs passing by, new people, new babies, etc. They live a more comfortable life."

Book knowledge

So we´ve got the "socialization" part of puppy kindergarten covered. What about the obedience lessons that these classes are reputed to teach?

You´re going to have to do some reading up on the subject, trainers said. The good news is that there is an abundance of material on dog training available.

Ms. Braslau-Schneck recommends Power of Positive Dog Training by Pat Miller. Ms. McGovern´s manual of choice is Ian Dunbar´s How to Teach a New Dog Old Tricks. If you learn better by seeing rather than by reading, Mr. Guerra recommends checking your bookstore or library for how-to videos.

Of course, your veterinarian is a great source of information about your pet´s behavioral as well as his healthcare needs. Your breeder or local humane society may also be an excellent resource.

However you choose to brush up on obedience commands, do it while your puppy is still a baby.

"Start teaching it from the day you bring it home," Mr. Guerra said. "They´re just like little sponges—so interested, so inquisitive. You can get those neurons firing in the right places from the very start."

Copyright VetCentic.com Reprinted with permission.