Ken from Tempe and his roommate called us to talk about training for their puppy even before they took him home. Ken said he wanted training for his Labradoodle right away. He was a bit frustrated as well because the breeder was requiring him to take Astro home at only 6 weeks of age and Ken wasn’t sure what might happen with Astro when he left his littermates and mother too early. We scheduled an initial visit before Astro came home to talk about all of the possibilities Ken and his roommate might face with any early whelped pup.
When Astro came home we started command training right away and getting him used to wearing a leash around the home. We began with commands “place” and “down” to help Astro start understanding boundaries inside the home. This also helped to teach impulse control right away. We all wanted Astro to have the best foundation training to prevent any issues that would otherwise be a concern in the future. We also worked on making sure potty and crate training were set up early as well.
Once Astro was fully vaccinated and old enough he came to stay for our Puppy Boarding School program to really help make sure Astro had the best possible life he could. We worked on loose leash walking and getting him out and about to expose him to all the things that he would see when his owners took him around. He learned more commands, including “come” “let’s go” and “sit”. We went to coffee shops, restaurants, parks and farmers markets to practice around lots of distractions. After his stay, we worked with Ken to make sure he felt confident to work with Astro in many of the same type of places.
After all of the initial training occurred and with Ken and his roommate filled with all the knowledge they needed they updated me that Astro was doing great. He was spending time with elderly family members and being a polite and safe dog. He was also enjoying socializing with other family dogs and going out to enjoy this state’s great parks and forests.