I am about to adopt a 10-week-old lab retriever. Can you share your training schedules, tips and tricks, and things for a while at work? Thanks in advance. This is a very good question. Having a 10-week cold, puppy at home can come with a lot of challenges, a lot of difficulties, and a lot of learning, for both you and your pup.
A lot of experiencing new things, overcoming challenges, enjoying just simply having a p. But these are all questions, that will be very relevant to anyone that has a brand. New puppy at home. So let's start with what schedule should I have with my dog? And, really the best way I can answer that is what schedule works for you? And I don't mean, what schedule works for you and your pup. I mean, what schedule works for you. And, this doesn't even need to be related to having a puppy, but rather, what schedule works in your lifestyle.
I know that for me, a typical nine-to-five schedule does not work. And so instead of trying to force myself into that schedule, I make the schedule that I do have for myself, work for me. And so if your schedule is a nine to five, then that's the schedule you wanna work with. I will say, that if you have a 10-week cold, a brand new puppy at home, and you are expecting to go to work, tier nine to five, or whatever that schedule might be.
That you have someone there, to give your puppy breaks, to give your puppy instances where they get to be with someone. That way they're not either in a crate or alone for far too long. That is a lot to ask for over a young pup. That's something that needs to be developed through time. But, having someone that can come to your home or already be at home and spend some time with your puppy while also letting them have some time alone. That way they don't get used to always having someone home. That can very much be an advantage so that your puppy never feels too overwhelmed, or too stressed from just being alone and, and away from you for too long. But as far as an actual schedule goes, really make it so that it works around you.
And really the best practical tip I can give in this scenario about schedules would be to have your dog do things with you before you need them to do things without. And what that means is if at 9:00 AM you're heading out for work and maybe the next person isn't going to interact with your p for one or two or three hours, then I would recommend doing activities with your puppy beforehand.
Physical enrichment, mental enrichment, even potentially socialization. And, a 10-week cold puppy is likely not going to classes yet, or much as far as a walk goes. But you can still do a lot of, socialization, play some new sounds. Bring out the vacuum cleaner without turning it on just yet.
New things that have your pup thinking. Have your pup learn. Oh, this is not so bad. This is still social. Very much socialization for your dog to learn. These things are okay to be around and they. Feel good. And so doing those things before you have to leave, before we have to head out, or before, let's say if you work from home before, you want your pup to give space, time, and quiet.
, make sure that you give them what they need. So that's how I, I would build my schedule, around that. I would make sure that before 10:00 AM whether 10:00 AM means work, whether 10:00 AM means cooking, whether 10:00 AM means. Yoga, whatever. Make sure that before then your puppy is getting what he needs.
That way, what you want, the time alone that you have corresponds with your puppy wanting to rest, wanting to be on his own, wanting to actually, be just in a place or room or in their crate where they're just happy to rest cuz they already got what they needed from you. What about tricks? As far as tricks go, I would play that into, the mental enrichment that I just mentioned.
You can very much start with the basics for a 10-week-old pup, you don't have to go very far where you can take tricks a little bit further as if your puppy already has the basics at this young age. I wouldn't focus too much on adding more newer tricks. I would focus on the basic sit, stay down, and do those with distractions.
So just like I mentioned, the vacuum cleaner is a great distraction. Their football can be another distraction. Perhaps the door open with your puppy on a harness and leash, that can be another distraction, but they're still being asked to do the same tricks. It's just that by doing the tricks that they already know, but you adding some, new layers, some new levels to those activities.
You're not just having them learn. Oh yeah, my dog can do that, sit with the door open. You're also having your puppy learn impulse control while socializing in a way as well with the door being open with maybe sound, the vacuum cleaner as well. So you're mixing a few things, at once, but nothing that is, too difficult for your puppy, comparing one trick versus the other.
So, Sit versus rollover. Those are two very different exercises as opposed to sitting with the door open. It's still the same exercise and trick but you're having them take it to the next level and you're gaining a lot of impulse control, practice, and training as a result. So I would very much get creative, think of ways where you can use your dog's, tricks that they already know, to have them really hone behaviors that you.
Will want to have them have, for their lifetime, like, impulse control is a good one. Socialization, of course. A socialized dog will likely have better behaviors to give to you. one that has a lot of impulse control. Same. And so that's where I would go as far as tricks.
So, while you are at work, and I'm assuming at work means you are at home, as I mentioned, I would recommend having someone come over so that your puppy is resting in their crate or where you've left them, but not for too long to a point where they get overwhelmed and for each puppy that may be different.
There are some puppies that really cannot handle being left alone, potentially just based on their demeanor. Or, just from, their experience. And so I would try to have someone come over, based on what your puppy can handle. If your puppy can handle only 10 minutes, make sure that they're not alone for more than nine, and someone is showing up right before the 10th minute.
It sounds very difficult and challenging because it is, but that way you can really make it so it's never, too difficult for a young puppy, like a 10-week-old, pup. But as far as having your dog do things while you're at work, as they get a little bit older, I would definitely recommend more than anything, kongs, chew toys, and I would usually wrap it up at that.
I know a lot of people will ask and want to use puzzles, snuffle mats, slow feeders, balls, and other kinds of, playful toys. And those are great. However, with a young puppy, with a young adolescent dog, if we're maybe worried about some chewing, destructive behavior, I wouldn't leave them with those toys,, a whole lot other than Kongs or the toys that are very resistant to chewing.
I would leave them primarily with those types of toys because, I know that it's safer for them to chew, but also if I am leaving a dog, especially a young puppy, I'm making sure that any kind of enrichment as far as things for them to do that is a little bit more on the enrichment side, have already been done before I leave the house before I leave for work.
And this is a lot of work, but this is how I can. Set my puppy up for success by making sure that my time away, my busy time, where I can't give them attention to them represents rest. And that's why I want to be able to give them what they need before I ask for what I want.