First time staff pup - literature

Can any of you recommend a good book on rearing a staff puppy?

You'd raise them like you would any other dog.. pets at home and other pet shops do good books, just stay away from Caesar Millan.

Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson is a good one to start with.

I would advise reading Cesar Millan so you can get a idea of the different techniques out their and see why so many disagree with his methods. I think he has some interesting things to say in his books. Indeed their are far more kinder methods out their and far more effective in the long run.

My favourite book on dogs that ive read so far is Bruce Fogle DOG The definitive book for dog lovers some very good reading their its expensive though at £20 from WHS though im sure Amazon or e bay will have it a lot cheaper but it has tones of easy to follow info for first time dog owners.

my advice would be to get a few books so you can see the difference of opinion on training methods and find whats best for you and your dog what works for one person doesn't nescerelly works for another.

Hello Matthew welcome to Dogsey . To start off with I would suggest a little book written by two members of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers ...
The Puppy Survival Kit - by Lyn Fleet and Helen Roberts
can be purchased from Dog games or Amazon.

It will get you off to a good start using positive methods of training ...
http://dog-games-shop.co.uk/dog-trai...vival-kit.html


I would then progress to Donaldson's 'The Culture Clash' .
I agree with SLB, I would avoid Millan .


ETA I note you are in Malvern. APDT members run a number of puppy training classes there, they used to be at the community centre in Albert Road nth. I would recommend attending .
If you ring up one of the local members on the list they will be pleased to advise on classes and to have you sit in on a class before joining...
http://www.apdt.co.uk/trainers_area....Worcestershire


You may also find these excellent training videos by Carolyn Menteith of the Dogs Trust of help.
http://www.dogsey.com/showthread.php...t=Trust+videos

Thanks all for your advice. And I shall be looking into the classes on Monday. For now, I have some generalized questions.

1) How much space should I give the puppy inside the cage? I'm told to divide it so he won't eliminate in the other half... but how much space does he need? Is it common that puppies will eliminate in the other half if I give him too much space?

2) How big should the pen around the cage be? Again, this is another spatial question, but I'm merely being thorough in that I want the dog to have optimal space, and I have found no steadfast dimensions for what would be appropriate. Again, how necessary is it that he is confined to the play area and for how long?

3) How often should the puppy be left alone in the first 6 weeks, and under what conditions? ie. shut in the cage while I'm not there, encouraged to subsist without me being there every moment, and when and how to allow him free roam privileges.

4) At what age to restrict full roaming of the house, and how much supervision is required. I'd appreciate if anyone answering this question could be as thorough as possible, because I have not yet found any strict guidelines.

In closing, I will say that I am just concerned the pup grows up happy; I have had mixed experiences with rescue dogs in the past, and the pet we had who worked out best was one my family had from a puppy many years ago when I still lived with my parents.

I realize I may be coming off as a bit anal with my questions and their exactitude, but I will not be as strict in the training process, as I just want a bedrock understanding of these things and will keep them in mind when being duly flexible with training.

Thanks!

You're just trying to do best by your dog. But most things are up to you. You can only decide if the dog is allowed on the sofa, bed, upstairs, living room etc - no one else has to decide and there aren't any strict rules to follow so to speak..

Hi Matthew I am not happy with the concept of allowing a puppy to eliminate in the crate.
A dog will naturally try to eliminate away from the area in which it eats and sleeps, I guess this is an instinctive thing in many dogs to prevent vermin/infection. You do occasionally get a puppy which comes from a litter where the dam has failed to keep the litter box clean and it soils its bed but this is not common.
I prefer to take a puppy outside at regular intervals eg on waking/after meals/play/excitement/last thing at night/when it sniffs the ground and circles and about once an hour to begin with then praise it when it relieves itself and clean up any accidents in the house without a word using a none ammonia based cleaner like biological washing powder.
At night the puppy goes in a box beside my bed.
See my post here for an explanation.

http://www.dogsey.com/showthread.php...48#post2343248

Any crate should be big enough to allow the puppy to stand easily and to lay down taking into consideration the puppy will grow and you may be using the crate for some time. It is a good idea to restrict the puppy to a play pen or secure area whenever you can't watch it.
I gradually get a puppy used to being left alone during the day at times when it will be likely to settle down to sleep (after a meal/play/it has been out and I know it is 'empty') and I prefer to leave it in a bed in a play pen or if it is trained to a crate in the crate in the kitchen so that it is safe and to help with house training. At other times when I am around to watch it the puppy roams freely in the kitchen .
The puppy is taken into the sitting room for a brief visit when it has been outside and I know it is empty. As it becomes house trained it is allowed around the house under supervision.

You mention 6 weeks, not sure of the relevance of this time period ? All puppies vary slightly and you can't really put time limits on them .
With regard to house training, a puppy doesn't begin to gain physical control of its bodily functions until it is around 16 weeks old so it can't be expected to wait long to relieve itself before this time.
Have I missed anything ?

See this article on crate training which may be of help ..
http://www.dogsey.com/dog-articles.php?t=15552

Thanks. Something that just occurred to me just not; how long is the pen necessary for? Is it only for the 6 week period? Again, I'm trying to not go overboard and buy something which will be totally unnecessary. I am going to be off work for the next 10 weeks, so in the end he will have a lot of supervision, as it is. I was also wondering if I could remove the pen area under supervision at any time. I don't know how necessary it is to confine the puppy to this space for X amount of time. Again, I am sure it is individual, but a ballpark figure might be nice.

Minihaha: I had the impression that it was the first 6 weeks of having a puppy that were the most crucial. Thank you for your expedient reply.

Matthew I will reply more fully but first;
how old will your puppy be when you get it,
who will look after it after 10 weeks when you return to work,
where does the 6 weeks fit into this?