Expectations vs realities

Everyone wants a perfect puppy. But what determines that perfection isn't just the puppy, it's your expectations.

 

If you have realistic expectations, then you will likely have a perfect puppy, or close to it. If you have unrealistic expectations, then no matter how sweet and smart and wonderful your puppy is, you may never be happy with her, which would be a horrible shame.

 

So here's a list of a few expectations that may help you and your puppy adjust to each other and allow you to have the perfect puppy you always wanted. 

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Expectation

• Your puppy will come home completely potty trained and never have accidents.

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Reality

• Puppies don't gain full control of their bladders until they are 6 months of age. For some, it can even be a little longer.
   

• This is why we don't say that we send home housebroken puppies. We start their house training through crate training and regular trips outside, but the truth of the matter is that biologically it is not likely that your puppy not only will, but actually physically can, be housebroken at just a few months old. 

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• A few puppies do manage to go home perfectly potty trained, but they are the exception, not the rule, and you should not expect this.
   

• You should expect accidents even if you take your puppy out on a regular and reasonable schedule. This is not the fault of the puppy, and not your fault. It is simply a matter of your puppy's biology. 

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Expectation

• Your puppy will always be happy and content.

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Reality

• Puppies are babies. And much like human babies, and no matter how well-raised and cared for, they should be expected to cry, bark, and have accidents, often at very inconvenient times and places. 

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IF YOU ARE NOT PREPARED FOR THIS, PLEASE DO NOT GET A PUPPY FROM ANYBODY. 

 

Expectation

• Your puppy's training will continue to be fresh and responsive even if you don't follow up regularly.

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Reality

• We put a lot of time and effort into training your puppy. If you don't keep up with the training on a daily, or close to daily, basis, you will lose the benefits of much of this training.
   

• That doesn't mean you have to train your dog as a full-time effort, but it does mean that you should spend 5-10 minutes a day with your puppy helping it to remember what it knows and to learn new things that are important to you.
   

• Your puppy needs to be fed and taken outside to relive itself several times a day. If you don't have dedicated time to spend with your puppy, use these events as training opportunities.
   

• For example, make your dog sit and/or lie down before feeding. When you dog has to go out to potty, make her sit and wait at the door. Once that's solid, step outside one or two steps, and recall her to you. You can gradually increase duration of waiting and distance of recall as she improves. Doing these two simple tasks allows you to improve and reinforce your dog's sit, down, house manners, impulse control, and recall by just adding a few simple steps to your daily routine. 

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EXPECTATION

• Your puppy goes home with training and you can maintain it without help.

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Reality

• Some people can maintain and even improve on their puppy's training without help.
   

• But the reality is that many dog owners, particularly first-time owners or owners who have never taken a dog to a formal dog training class may not be able to continue their dog's education without help.
   

• Even if you are an experienced owner, there may be times that you need some professional help.
   

• As an analogy, we can send you home with a fancy computer system that we can use well because we are professionals, but not everyone knows how to operate every system. Sometimes there's a learning curve, and sometimes you need to get a tutor. 

 

Expectation

• Your puppy has had puppy training through us so you will never have behavioral problems

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Reality

• All puppies should be expected to behave in ways that at one time or another are undesirable.
   

• Puppies teethe.
   

• Puppies are learning their social boundaries.
   

• Puppies don't have full bladder and bowel controls.
   

• Puppies make mistakes.
   

• There will be puppy biting, chewing, barking, leash pulling, accidents, and more. This is all NORMAL and to be expected.
   

• Although we provide as much active enrichment, exposure, and training for your puppy as possible to minimize undesirable behaviors, they are going to happen anyway and you should still expect to have to handle undesirable puppy behaviors at some point or another.
   

• We provide a huge amount of information for you in our private Facebook group for our puppy families only.Use those resources. And call or email us if you need more help than that.
   

• With just a little attention and early intervention most of these problems can be minimized or eliminated very quickly. 

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Expectation 

• Getting a puppy with lifetime breeder support means you'll never have to consult another canine professional.

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Reality 

• We are here to help as much as we can. Truly. We mean it and we WANT you to contact us. We talk to some families every day for the first couple of weeks they have their puppies.
   

• Often it helps, but not always. We simply cannot fix all problems for you, as hard as we try and as much as we may want to.
   

• We are unable to train your dog for you over the phone. If you need behavioral help, you must seek a qualified trainer. 
   

• There are times when we will suggest you consult a local professional or specialist, such as a dog trainer, animal behaviorist, or a veterinarian.
   

• If you are not experienced with training a puppy, you should absolutely expect to need a dog trainer at some point .
   

• No amount of puppy training we do before your puppy gets home and no amount of breeder support we provide can change that fact.

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