​Covid complicated life as a whole, but it also presented new challenges when it came to properly training and socializing new puppies.  It was during this time that training centers around the country were closed down, that we discovered an excellent online resource in the Baxter and Bella Online Puppy School.  Although we still highly recommend attending in person puppy classes, the Baxter and Bella trainers are an amazing supplement and resource to have available.  
With the lifetime membership, trainers are just a click away to assist you with any training dilemmas you may be experiencing throughout the life of your dog.  Just as people grow and change over the years, dogs will do the same.  Each age and stage brings with it new rewards and challenges, but the trying times can be resolved much more quickly when you have immediate access to a trainer.  Making an appointment with a Baxter and Bella trainer is simple to arrange under the appointment tab on the website.  You have the option to choose a one on one phone call or a one on one video session.  And because we all often struggle with similar issues, you will find group question and answer sessions under the same tab.  We have used all of these resources in training the newest additions to our family in the last year and this is a resource that we will continue to use in our home.  
Sign up for a lifetime membership and receive a 25% discount when using the promotion code: DUTCHPUP

The best time to begin obedience training your puppy is the moment they come home.  Your puppy has already started some basic obedience while still with us.  Although most view obedience training as the simple, sit, stay and come, we view obedience as a lifestyle for our dogs.  The time that you put into obedience training as a puppy will pay off with high dividends in the adult years.  We highly recommend using both hand and voice commands when training your puppy.  For instance, when we give the command to sit, I also raise one finger, the dogs quickly recognize the verbal and hand command and can use them interchangeably.  There was a time that hand commands saved one of our dogs' lives, so I will forever be a proponent of training both.  When raising the one finger and telling your puppy to sit, hold a small but tasty treat between your other three fingers and your thumb.  You only give the verbal command ONCE!  If the puppy does not sit, you move your hand with the treat up over their nose and over their head, if they still do not sit, give a gentle pressure on their hip with your other hand until they are in the sitting position.  Immediately give the treat.  Your puppy should have the sit command down pat within the first week of coming home. Our favorite treat for training is small diced up hot dogs, or the food rolls that are mentioned in the crate training information.  We recommend keeping your training sessions to five minutes or less but the more frequent in the day, the better.  For instance, we may have 10 5 minute training sessions with a puppy in a day, rather than two 25 minute sessions.  Remember every interaction that you have with your dog, they are learning something.  Good or bad, every interaction is defining their future behavior.  If their behavior won’t be cute when they are an adult dog, it is not cute as a puppy.  

I understand that life is busy, but I cannot stress the importance of puppy kindergarten or beginner obedience classes to get you both on the right road to a successful partnership for years to come.  For training a puppy or dog of any age, we recommend training with a martingale or a slip collar.  These collars are designed to place even pressure all the way around the neck of the puppy which will humanely train them from the start not to pull on the leash.  I never recommend a harness, choke chain or gentle leader under any circumstance and training your puppy properly from the start will eliminate the need for any of these devices.  

We do not recommend flexi leashes, for dogs that do not have exemplary leash manners.  Flexi leashes although loved by many can be dangerous to dogs, handlers and bystanders.  The use of flexi leashes can establish some poor leash habits that become difficult to change.  We prefer a four foot, two handled leash.  We also do not recommend using splitters on leashes in multiple dog households.  

Most of all, remember to have fun and enjoy every moment.  The puppy stage is demanding but it passes way too quickly.  These dogs are extremely intelligent and easy to train, they have biddable temperaments and will go to the ends of the earth to please their family members.  Dream big for your puppy, set lofty goals and then go accomplish them together!

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Potty training can seem like a never ending process, it can be a very stressful time for puppy and owner.  Your puppy has been litterbox trained, to make the transition to potty training as easy as possible.  Access to a litterbox has taught them from a very young age that there is an appropriate place to eat, sleep and potty.  Again, remember that every interaction you have with your puppy they are learning, good or bad.  When taking your puppy out of the crate, they should be picked up and IMMEDIATELY carried outside and told to “Go Potty”.  Do not talk to your puppy and try to not make eye contact until they are out in the yard.  Exciting a puppy that is coming out of the crate is setting them up for failure.  Timing meals and trips outside is pivotal to successful potty training.  I recommend feeding two meals a day, spaced as close to 12 hours apart as possible.  But before feeding and watering, take your puppy outside to potty.  Do not leave water accessible to your puppy, but be sure to offer water at other times throughout the day, not just at feeding times.  Only give food or water when you can give them ample potty time.  Here is an example of a schedule that we would recommend around feeding time.

6:00  Take puppy outside to potty

6:15  Give puppy ample food and water in a quiet area where they will not be disturbed (preferably their crate in the beginning).

6:30  Remove food and water and take the puppy out to potty.


6:45  Take puppy out to potty’

7:00 Take puppy out to potty

7:30  Take puppy out to potty

8:00 Take puppy out to potty

Potty training can be frustrating at best, but stick to a schedule and it will come as their body matures.  NEVER leave a puppy that is not fully potty trained unattended in the home.  At times, to ensure potty training success, I have kept the puppies leash tied to my belt loop while cooking dinner or navigating throughout the house so I could be sure to catch them if they were to have an accident.  This simple trick also does wonders to train the puppy to become responsive to your body language. 
Continuing with litterbox training can come in handy even with adult dogs.  We use washing machine pans and wood burning fuel pellets.  We do not recommend the use of potty pads as this can lead to the dogs wanting to use rugs and carpet as potty pads.  Puppies also tend to tear up potty pads, which can be harmful if ingested.  

Accidents happen and they will be frustrating at times, but this too shall pass.  Keeping a consistent schedule those first few weeks and giving your puppy ample time outside will ensure success.  

Crate training can be stressful on you and your puppy, but while your puppy was still in our care, we started crate training.  Continuing with crate training when they go home will be beneficial to both of you.  Your baby has already spent a few nights in a crate on their own, away from their littermates and mother.  When we place the puppies in the crate, we always give them the command to “kennel up”.  Prior to taking the puppies out of the crate the next morning, we give the simple command to "wait" so they learn to be patient.  Although you will find several sources that recommend removing all bedding and blankets from the crate, we actually recommend just the opposite.  We do not recommend placing beds in the crate with the puppy, as cotton batting and sponge can be ingested and cause a medical emergency.  We do recommend using small cheap fleece blankets, just enough to soak up any accidents that may occur.  It is much easier to throw a dirty blanket in the washer than it is to bathe a puppy. 

To make their time in the crate as pleasant as possible, we highly recommend some interactive toys.  We never recommend any type of rawhide be given to a dog of any age, the risk of ingesting a piece of rawhide that cannot be digested is too high.  Feeding too many treats in the crate when leaving your puppy for an extended period of time, can set the puppy up for failure when it comes to potty training.  Interactive toys similar to the ones listed below can keep their minds safely busy without filing their tummies.  

This is one of my personal favorites for busy puppy teeth!  Just be sure to order refills.

https://www.chewy.com/busy-buddy-bouncy-bone-treat/dp/48809?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=hg&utm_content=Busy%20Buddy&utm_term=&gclid=Cj0KCQiAk53-BRD0ARIsAJuNhpsZuKBtSaXrwqsEAlQtKyTu8KJdIXASqtBy26Oj9OBKphD2O1C35moaAkB9EALw_wcB

And you can’t beat the tried and true kong toy!  Just be sure as your puppy is growing to adjust the size of their Kong toy accordingly.  

https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/puppy-kong-dog-toy-849405?cm_mmc=PSH-_-GGL-_-SPP-_-PME-_-PET-_-AQU-_-0-_-PM_GGL_FY20_SBU04_SH10_Home%26Away_DogToys_PLA-SMRT-_-0-_-0&gclid=Cj0KCQiAk53-BRD0ARIsAJuNhptkB1RyPdPfv32lfAPA82UdcbyxsTENrfbDJmfo6_XDzu4C_4jNxhcaAubYEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds


Small slices make great treats to go into the Kong toy.  It can also be diced into small pieces for training treats.  

https://www.chewy.com/redbarn-naturals-beef-recipe-dog-food/dp/45783?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=f&utm_content=Redbarn&utm_term=&show-search=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAk53-BRD0ARIsAJuNhpsYIM2fzAn9-NAC-_z_eCtAvAAXPNzL5jqV-_eCVZzlE2UMjz7iCXoaAs2qEALw_wcB

And there is nothing that our dogs LOVE more than a good old Candy Ham Bone.

https://www.chewy.com/redbarn-naturals-x-large-ham-bones/dp/45965

We often will leave the crate in view of the TV during the day to provide the puppy with visual and auditory stimuli.  If a TV is not readily in view, a radio can still provide a nice distraction for them.  

Crate training is essential to raising a well rounded dog.  As with all training done when they are puppies, the time spent working with them in those first few months will provide great reward in the years ahead.  
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We raise our puppies using the "Rule of 7's".  This simple rule is discussed further by Pat Hastings in Another Piece of the Puzzle: Puppy Development, a book that we recommend to all new puppy owners.  Following this rule makes sure that each of our puppies have done the following by seven weeks of age:

• Eaten out of seven different dishes (my personal favorite is the muffin pan)
• Eaten in seven different locations (crate, outside, in the kitchen, on the porch)
• Have met and been handled by seven different people (a variety of ages and personalities)
• Have been on seven different surfaces (vinyl, grass, cement, wood flooring, raised porch)
• Played with seven different objects (stuffed animals, balls, squeaky toys, rubber bones, milk cartons)
• Have been exposed to seven different challenges (agility tunnel, stairs, boxes)
• Lived in seven different locations (kitchen, porch, basement, front yard, back yard, barn)

The greater the variations in their positive experiences, the more well rounded the puppies become.  Over the years, as our program has developed, we have added two additional rules to the training of our puppies, which includes:

• Car rides
• Time away from mom and littermates; time in a crate

Car rides are another important part of puppy socialization here.  Every puppy accompanies us for several short road trips to town, they are not crated for the ride.  The first ride they are held by a family member and subsequent rides they advance to sitting in the seat by themselves.  We also believe that the puppies should each spend short amounts of time on their own away from their littermates and mother.  This time helps them to become more confident as an individual.  Each puppy will also spend a few nights in a crate alone before going to their new homes.  This is the beginning of crate training for them as we aim to make the transition into their new homes as seamless as possible.

 As simple as these rules seem, they do make a undeniable difference in the life of each and every puppy.  We highly recommend continuing with a few rules or goals in your home once your puppy arrives to continue their lifetime of learning and socialization.  Visit our Dog Blog post Rules for Life, for a few ideas.  

All of the puppies that we raise, undergo a series of exercises at a very young age known as Early Neurological Stimulation or ENS.  These stimulation exercises were developed by the world renowned Dr. Carmen Battaglia, known best for his publication Breeding Better Dogs.  His work with dog breeding, regarding inheritance and genetics has been the foundation of many successful breeding programs.  But it was his work with the United States Military as they sought assistance to develop a program to better prepare future military service dogs for duty that created the ENS exercises for puppies.  

This series of simple exercises performed from day 3 of a puppies life, through day 16 has been proven to decrease the dogs reaction to stress over the duration of their lifetime, as well as making them less prone to disease.  There are cardiovascular and adrenal benefits that are seen as well when ENS is initiated during this critical period of developement.  Performing ENS on our puppies gives them the best possible start to a happy healthy life, and it only takes about 30 seconds per day!

There are five separate exercises that are performed individually on each puppy.  The length of each exercise is only 3-5 seconds long, so it takes less than 30 seconds a day to make a lasting impact on their entire life!  The only supplies needed are a cold and damp hand towel and a Q-tip.

The first exercise that is performed is tactile stimulation, or simply tickling their toes with a Q-tip.  The puppy is held upright with one hand, while the Q-tip gently stimulates the pad and the toes of the paw.  I also personally feel this particular exercise helps to develop puppies and dogs that are accepting of their paws being handled, which is invaluable for a lifetime of easy nail trims and grooming.  

The second exercise is the puppy held in an upright position, firmly grasped in hand, but minimally supported, the puppies head is directly above it's tail for this exercise.  

Next the puppy is tipped upside down, it's head is now pointing toward the floor and tail is directly over the head.  

My personal favorite is holding the puppy in the supine position.  The puppy is gently cradled between both hands, laying on it's back with the nose pointed towards the ceiling.

And last but not least, the thermal stimulation exercise.  In this exercise we have a damp hand towel that has been placed in the refrigerator for at least 5 minutes, or in the freezer for about 30 seconds is laid on the ground and the puppy is then placed on the towel.  (This exercise should always be performed on the ground, as a puppy may wiggle off of a higher surface and be injured in a fall.) The puppies are not restrained from moving during the short 3-5 seconds that they are on the towel.

Following the stimulation exercises, the puppies go immediately back into the warm whelping box to cuddle with mom and their littermates.  We are committed to our dogs and therefor, committed to incorporating ENS into the life of every puppy that we raise.  

For more in depth information on Dr. Carmen Battaglia and his ENS exercises visit:
https://breedingbetterdogs.com/article/early-neurological-stimulation