What is the age range for puppies to join my puppy pre-schools?
Your puppy should be between the ages of 8-16 weeks old for the first class and must have had at least one vaccination.

How Old Should Your Puppy Be for Puppy School?

This is something that confuses a lot of people and as a puppy school trainer, I find this to be a very important thing to get right. Breeders and vets often advice against socialisation before the puppy is fully vaccinated at 16 weeks of age. Unfortunately, this is not good advice to follow. If you follow this advice you will end up with behavioural issues such as fearfulness, timidness, anti-social behaviours and aggression. And notice, I’m not saying you might end up with these issues, I’m saying you will!

Why? Because studies have taught us that if a puppy isn’t socialised before 16 weeks of age they will never be completely comfortable in unfamiliar situations. No amount of training will change this if a puppy lacked all positive socialisation experiences within the first 4 months. This is a survival instinct inherited from wolves. Things that puppies meet positively before 16 weeks of age becomes normal and acceptable. The more the better! However, after 16 weeks they change and aren’t adaptable to new situations any more. This is very common with rescue dogs that come from bad situations where they got no socialisation what so ever within the first 4 months. But, unfortunately, it’s also very common with puppies that are protected from experiences by their loving owners until the last vaccination. I’ve met hundreds of dogs like this, with severe anxiety and fearfulness -and in worst cases aggression!

8-12 Weeks Is the Best Time for Puppy Training and Socialisation

A puppy’s key developmental period ends around 12 weeks of age. This is why the first 12 weeks are the most important time for all kind of positive socialization. During this time a puppy is very receptive and adaptable to learning new things and they will get over new, first a bit scary situations a lot quicker than they would later on. So this is by far the easiest time for socialisation! If you want to raise a balanced, confident, social and friendly dog, this is the ideal time for puppy classes too. But don’t worry if your pup is older than 12 weeks of age, the 16 weeks of age limit still applies for socialisation experiences!

Eazy Dog Training Puppy Schools in Sydney

Eazy Dog Training runs puppy school in Leichhardt, Newtown, Camperdown and Marrickville. So there’s plenty to choose from!

My Puppy Pre-Schools are fun and educational 4-week puppy training and socialisation classes.

Every puppy attending my Puppy School in Leichhardt receives an Eazy Dog training gift incl. a training pouch and clicker! Pawsum dog grooming and daycare also offers amazing discount vouchers for their daycare and grooming services!

Suitable for puppies age 8-16 weeks

In this Inner West Sydney Puppy School in Leichhardt your puppy will learn:

You will learn:

How to better train and control your puppy through understanding how they experience the world around them.
How to read your puppy’s body language and prevent issues in social situations.
Calming handling techniques.
A puppy’s view of the big wide world.
Advice on common ‘unwanted’ puppy behaviours such as puppy biting, jumping up on people, hyperactivity, separation anxiety, toilet training etc.

This Puppy School Sydney Inner West includes

1st Class: Basic Obedience & Dog Training Basics

This first class teaches you how to train dogs in general and how to train your puppy. Puppy training should be fun, short and sweet! We will practise the 3 steps needed for all training, now and in the future. You’ll learn the importance of a dog’s point of view when training.

2nd Class: Socialisation

The second class is all about learning to read dogs’ body language. That way we can prevent behavioural issues in social situations. You will learn the importance of proper, positive, socialisation and how to do it right with other dogs, people, sounds, situations, environments, other animals and objects. We’ll also do sound training to desensitise and build a positive association with different sounds.

3rd Class: Polite Manners

The third class is all about everyday manners and boundaries. You wil learn how to prevent and stop any unwanted behaviours and how to set up boundaries – in a positive way! Your dog will learn ‘leave it’ command and calm handling techniques.

4th Class: Mental Stimulation

Did you know that most unwanted behaviours are caused by boredom? Learn the importance of mental stimulation in order to prevent behavioural issues such as separation anxiety. We’ll practise tricks and learn new fun games to play together. And I can show you the lazy owner’s tools for mental stimulation – interactive toys!

The Key Is a Good Learning Foundation

All puppies need a good learning foundation to become confident and balanced adult dogs. That’s why training a puppy is more than just teaching basic commands such as sit and stay. The most important aspect of the learning process is to introduce puppies to the environments and situations they are likely to experience during their lives. Socialisation with different objects, people, dogs, other animals, surroundings, noises etc. is very important for the future of a puppy.

Your Puppy’s brain is like a sponge and every experience is stored away in their memory affecting their personality. While a puppy might be born with a certain temperament, it is the way they are raised and the experiences they have that will truly determine their personality. The more positive and enriching experiences, the more confident your dog will be as an adult.

The Key Is a Good Learning Foundation

Your behaviour and the way the puppy is handled will influence their development. Since punitive handling and harsh corrections will damage your pup as they mature, stay away from punitive trainers and any equipment that can be harmful, including shock, choke or prong collars.

Puppies need gentle guidance into making good decisions in their daily life. They need to be allowed to investigate and given positive reinforcement for good behaviour. They also need to be redirected from any unwanted behaviour. All puppies need boundaries, but these must be given in a humane way. A puppy that experiences fear or rough handling as growing up is more likely to become reactive and show aggressive behaviour later in life.

The time and effort spent giving your puppy a good learning foundation will pay off throughout their life. Puppies are certainly cute, but raising one can be very challenging. Seeing a pup develop into a confident adult, however, is worth all the hard work.

Puppy School in Leichhardt

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