Training our pooch

He we go.

Recall

As I had been waiting to prove myself to my parents for so long that I could look after a dog I wanted to do a really good job in training Zeek. Before I got i made sure that I would be at home with him all of time for the first few days. We started recall training as soon as he set foot in the door rewarding him with a treat every time he came to one of us. I was shocked at how quick they catch on when food is involved. If you want your dog to come to you when you are out and about it is vital they do when you're at home first. We did this practically constant for the week before he was able to go out for walks. By then he followed us everywhere we went anyway so went we eventually took him out all of the hard work really did pay off. We took him to a small quiet field that had gates that could be shut should he decide he wants to go exploring. He loved exploring and sniffing all of the new smells but came to us as soon as we called his name. Brilliant! Recall - Mastered.

Socialising 

Having a friendly & social dog was a massive thing for me and my boyfriend. After all, a dog that can be trusted off of the lead will burn off much more energy and socialising is great for the brain. In the park that we took him to as a pup there would be a group of dogs and their owners that went thee at 6 everyday for a run around. This was perfect for us. They were all very friendly and gave Zeek the space that he needed to feel comfortable enough to pounce on them and tug at their ears. He loved going to play with his canine friends and as the years have gone on their have been more and more dogs join the group. Not only was it great for Zeek it was brilliant for us as first time dog owners to get advice on things like health and training. 

House training

This was the one that I was most worried about as this was the main reason my mum didn't want another dog. We got Zeek at 10 weeks old so it was a bit easier than trying to train a pup at 7 weeks. We started this straight away too taking him to the garden and giving him a load or praise and a treat when he did a wee outside. Zeek had a habit of walking down the hallway when he wee'd and leaving a long trail leading to the guilty pup! That only took about a week to stop though. The harder one to break was his habit of pooping in the bathroom (kinda clever i thought) and in my younger brothers room at the side of his bed! He has always done it in certain spots so this was handy as we could go and check them to make sure he hadn't made a mess. We stopped this purely by giving him treats and cuddles when he did it outside an giving him the cold shoulder when he did it indoors. Labs do not like to be ignored! 

Tricks!

Tricks are fun for us as well as keeping your pups mind active and distracted from chewing the house apart. We started with the important ones that we would including sit, stay, wait, take it (letting him know he could take the treat), lay down. Then we moved onto the fun ones he knows how to high five which is great when you're introducing him to children, especially if they are not so sure about dog's, it's a great way to get them to interact. He also knows how to bark on command and how to twirl and play dead. Some of these are not necessary but they are great to keep the mind active. He still, no matte how hard it try, will no roll over. After four years i have given up on that one. It totally freaks him out! We also do a bit of sniffer training with him consisting of hiding an objects, getting him to wait so I can hide it and locating the object when I say "find it". He then stands by it or brings it to me, we are working on getting him to sit when he has found it. He loves it and the interaction. Something to keep that moving without having to throw something and getting them to go and get it, fetch being something he has never really been interested in. 

It's your turn! Please leave your thoughts and experiences on this topic in the comments section below.

Thanks for reading. Bye for now. 

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