Bringing a puppy to a new home is the equivalent of bringing home an infant from the hospital. Try to keep commotion to a minimum. Do not take your puppy to show off to neighbors or friends. Friends and family may come to visit but keep the atmosphere calm and quiet. Puppies need to sleep about 16 hours per day. So please make sure your puppy gets enough rest for normal healthy growth.

FEEDING SCHEDULE

Your Poodle has been eating Eukanuba kibble 3 times per day at 7:30am, 1:00pm & 6:00 pm. The amount of food depends on the puppy’s age and size. This can be judged by: If your puppy is frantically looking for more food when he/she finishes her meal, if ribs are sticking out without a nice layer of meat over them, they need more food per meal. Increase the amount gradually. If puppies are leaving food in their bowl you are overfeeding or they are not feeling well. If a puppy skips a meal all together it is a Red Flag and action should be taken. Nuvet vitamins are recommended for the life of your poodle. Simply call 1-800-474-7044. Order Code 87988.

Please keep your puppy’s feeding schedule as close to this as possible.

Check your puppy weekly to make sure he/she is getting enough to eat by running your hands along the side of the rib cage. There should be a nice layer of body mass but not too much tomake a fat puppy. Increase or decrease food intake if needed.

SLEEPING SCHEDULE

Your Poodle has been waking up at 6:00-6:30am PDT and going to bed at 10:00pm. Please keep your puppy’s sleep schedule as close to this as possible.

Any changes you make in your puppy’s routine should be done gradually over a 7 to 10 day period to avoid extra stress.

LEASH AND CRATE TRAINING

If, due to age or other, your puppy is not leash or crate trained before going home:
Place your Admiration slip- through leash under one of your puppy’s front legs and around the neck. Never pull your puppy along but let the puppy lead you around. I find it best to carry the puppy away from the house a little ways instead of trying to convince the puppy to walk away from the familiar area. One can even start this in the house by carrying the puppy into a room he/she is not familiar with and showing very small amounts of something yummy, chicken or other, along with encouraging words, coaxing the puppy in the direction of the more familiar territory he/she spends time in. Let the puppy initiate moving, do not force it. When the puppy is more familiar with his/her surroundings you can start to gently coax the puppy to follow you. This process, done correctly, will be quick and your puppy will be walking on a leash in no time.

We start crate familiarization training at 5 weeks. We introduce your puppy to his/her crate over time. We recommend you follow up with this practice as puppies need their own safe feeling space to rest while they grow. Have the crate in the puppy’s area with the door open so that the puppy can go into the crate for solace when he/she chooses. I put toys in a crate on a daily basis so that the puppy has to enter the crate to find his/her toys. Place the puppy’s food dish at the front of the crate and let the puppy eat with his/her head in the crate. Sit with your puppy and play around the crate. Throw toys in the crate so that your puppy has to go in and out of the crate. Puppies can even eat in their crate so as to not be distracted. Gradually increase the time your puppy spends each day in the crate. Afternoon naps in the crate are good conditioning. Your puppy should sleep in a crate at night. Put the puppy’s crate by your bed. Do not leave a new puppy in a room alone at night. This would be traumatic to a young puppy in a new environment. If there’s any crying, tap the top of the crate and tell the puppy to be quiet and settle down. If your puppy continues and shows panic then remove the puppy from the crate and go outside for a potty break. If puppy goes then big “good boys/girls” are in order. Then right back to the crate. If the puppy does not go then he/she fooled you and you should be more aware of the true cry of a puppy who seriously needs to get out of the crate to potty and one that just wants to stay up partying.

Puppies should not be in crates at night more than 7 hours.

Do not give your puppy food or water after 4:30pm unless the weather is too hot and it would be dangerous for the puppy to go without water.

POTTY TRAINING

There are three times a puppy needs to go to the restroom: after sleeping, after playing and after eating. After any of these activities you should take your puppy to his/her designated potty spot. It’s very important that you take your puppy to a designated potty spot on a leash and give the command “go potty” or whatever verbiage you prefer to use. Poodles that are trained in such a way are much easier to live with should you need to travel with your poodle or if your poodle needs to stay outside the home when you are away. Taking your poodle to a designated potty spot will form a lifelong habit and the poodle will always know where the proper spot to “go” in the yard is. Never rub your puppy’s nose in urine or feces, this is cruel and not acceptable. Remember if your puppy makes a mistake that’s what it is a mistake. If you do your job to keep your puppy on a proper schedule and are disciplined in taking your puppy out at the proper times you should not be cleaning up any messes.

When leaving your home for more than 3 hours, a young puppy should be placed in a crate. However, I don’t recommend leaving a young puppy for longer than 3 hours at a time.

NOTE: I don’t like collars on puppies. They can get caught on something and cause
strangulation.

YOUR PUPPY IS STILL A BABY

Your Poodle’s bones will not be fully formed until 18 months of age so keep walks to less than 2 miles and no jogging before this time. Then only to the end of the block and back, if that. He/She is an infant in spite of the fact that he/she can walk and run.

You don’t want him/her overwhelmed. I tell people a good rule of thumb to decide whether or not your puppy should take on a task is to figure whatever age the puppy is 7x it and that would be what he/she would be as a human child. So if he/she is 4 months, then if he/she were a human child he/she would be 28 months of age. Figure what a child of 2 years and 4 months would be capable of doing. Your vet will probably have his own “opinion” on this. But this is what I have observed myself over the years. Vets generally don’t raise puppies. They learn about them in books (no offence to your vet meant).

Your puppy, although he/she is ambulatory and active, is like a young toddler would be if human. He/She is a baby in a strange new environment and in some cases has just traveled a distance to his/her new home. Any challenges should be left for days to come when he/she is more familiar with you and his/her new home. For example: if he/she is hesitant on the stairs then pick him/her up and carry him/her for now. Pick up training and introductions to new situations in a few days (7-14) when your puppy is more at home.

Remember, you are a stranger to your puppy. No one likes to be bossed around by a stranger. MAKE FRIENDS FIRST.

NEW HOME ACCLIMATION

Puppies first nights in your home should be spent in a crate NEXT TO YOUR BED.

They will be scared and need reassurance.

Your puppy will be sent home with a clean toy from Admiration. This is a “scent pad” which has the scent of litter mates and the puppy’s home environment to date. Do not take this toy and immediately wash it. Your puppy needs the scent of his/her familiar environment for comfort and acclimation.

If you are in an open area and wish to give your puppy a break on the trip home, always put the leash you have been provided by Admiration before opening any doors your puppy might slip through. If your puppy gets away from you in an open area it’s very upsetting to both you and your puppy to recover him/her. Just don’t let this happen.

Never yell at your poodle. Poodles are very smart and understand a displeased tone in your voice as well as body language. They are not deaf and yelling interferes with bonding. Be calm and assertive, your poodle will be a more secure dog if you are a gentle but firm authority figure.

Never call the puppy to you and not enforce the command. Provide incentive for them to come to you, treats work best.

VACCINES

Please thoroughly read all the material in your puppy pack. Vaccine protocol information, in particular, is very important to your poodle’s health and longevity.

Your puppy’s immune system is not fully “booted up” until 9 months of age. Keep this in mind when taking your puppy to public places where there are other canines. Do not expose your
puppy to strange dogs outside your home until your puppy is at least 4 months of age. Going to training classes and other controlled activities is recommended providing the other dogs are checked for current vaccines. This includes showing them off at the local pet supply store, walking your young puppy around your neighborhood, going to your veterinarian (where they are exposed to everything under the sun) and for goodness sake don’t take your puppy to a “Dog Park” until they are at least 9 months of age. I don’t recommend Dog Parks because the average pet owner is not trained to see all the canine communication dynamics going on at a Dog Park, so particularly puppies can suffer from negative emotional and social effects that are started by experiences at Dog Parks.

When your puppy is old enough, 6 months or older, I recommend going to high end places where people walk their dogs. That’s a much more fitting family outing with a Standard Poodle instead of running amok in a wild pack of uneducated undignified dogs. Lol! I find the poodles do not find Dog Parks enjoyable either, they tend to like more sophisticated activities.

SUBMISSIVE URINATION

Submissive urination is a very common occurrence in puppies and even older dogs especially when in new environments and with new people.

Below are some techniques that can be used in order to get past this issue.

Dogs see us as most dominant when we approach standing erect with the front of our bodies towards the dog. So, approaching a dog with the proper body language is of utmost importance.

These techniques should be done on a daily basis and in a controlled environment:

• Until the dog gets over the issue, do not approach the dog with your body front and hand extended. The dog will see this as dominant and it will enforce the habit.
• Always have arms and hands in a relaxed position hanging to the side of the body.
• It’s best if you stand with your back to the dog and have a treat in your hand to coax the dog to you. When the dog comes to you to get the treat, then use a clicker to imprint this behavior. Let the dog come around the front of you on its own. Give another treat. Click again. Do not bend over and try to touch the dog. Have the dog follow you and give more treats. Talk to the dog in a high pitched happy tone.
• Let your dog drag a leash so that you can grab the leash and then start walking away from the dog. Have the dog follow you, reinforce with treats. Do not leave the dog
  unattended with a leash on.
• When the dog is in the house you can have them wear a diaper with a tail hole cut in it.
  That way if the dog makes a mistake it won’t soil your home.
• Get a grooming table and have the dog sit on it in your home environment. Be sure you have the dog secured with a grooming arm or an eye hook in the wall. Never leave a dog unattended, not even for a moment, on a grooming table. Have them sit or lie on the table or up to an hour at a time. This brings the dog to your level. In the wild and in domestic canine it’s the dogs that show superior size that dominate. This is demonstrated by dogs jumping up on other dog’s shoulders when wanting to dominate. Dogs truly live in the land of the giants with humans and this is intimidating to some dogs. Bringing the dog up to eye level makes them feel secure. This exercise can be done while doing housework or watching TV or other common indoor activities. It can also be done outdoors providing you do not venture too far from the dog on the table.
• Groom your dog on a grooming table.
• Lay flat on your back on the floor and let your dog walk all over you if he/she likes. This is showing that you are willing to let your dog be “King of The Mountain” it will promote confidence and trust.
• Lay on your stomach and do the same.
• Walk your dog on a leash daily for at least 30 minutes.
• No yelling or hectic activity around the dog until this habit is resolved.
• Put a leash on your dog when you want to get him/her out of the crate. Then turn your back on the dog and use a treat to coax him/her out of the crate.

This should resolve the issue within a week’s time or so. Be patient please, your new puppy is in a strange environment and is showing stress with this habit. Never punish a dog for submissive urination. You’ll only prolong the issue if you lose your cool.

All family members should be well versed in these techniques so that the dog has stability and consistency in his/her new environment.

Please call if you have any situation come up that does not resolve easily. Having a new puppy should be a joyous experience. If you feel yourself getting exasperated something needs to be adjusted. I have answers to each situation so please contact me if something comes up. Jacki 714-234-6367 or 615-640-0422