I'm getting a puppy. Any training book recommendations?

[pangloss]

Hi all. Next week we will be getting a new puppy (female, just under four months old). The dog is coming from a rescue, and they speculate that she is a collie/german shepherd cross. I've not owned a puppy since becoming an adult. The last dog I got was ~18 months old, and though she still had a lot of puppy in her, I'm sure this time will be significantly different. Does anyone have a particularly favorite book or website on dog training? I want to do a better job with training this time than l did last time. Thank you.

This pic is a few weeks old now.

[RevolverRob]

1) She's adorable.
2) Find a good local trainer and work with them. Trainers are more about training you than the dog. When we got our pup (who was ~6 mos old and came from a rescue) the trainer was invaluable in teaching my wife and I (especially my wife, who had never trained a dog before).

Lots of reinforcement and regular, scheduled, work. Our pup is 15-months old now and if I don't work with him 2x a week, I can tell the difference in his manners and behavior. But it's easy to schedule with him, he knows during the day walks will be training time, lots of treats and work. And if I ask him if he wants to "go to work" - he really cues in and starts to focus. It helps him as much as us.

[TDA]

“Don’t shoot the dog!” is highly regarded. Discussion on using only positive reinforcement is reserved for another time.

[LOKNLOD]

1) She's adorable.
2) Find a good local trainer and work with them.

Agreed on both counts.

And we've got a 15-week-old Golden puppy right now, so I have to say GOOD LUCK!

[pangloss]

Thanks everyone. I looked briefly online, and I found a local training company that looks good. I'll read more carefully tomorrow and look for other options. I also ordered a copy of "Don't Shoot the Dog." Right now my wife is reading "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by the Monks of New Skete, which she says seems much better than the book(s) she read last time.

[Poconnor]

Any of the dog training books by Richard Wolters are good

[AMC]

The Monks' book is a good start. I've become an advocate of +P training methods (positive reinforcement) mostly out of necessity. My dog is 3 now (got her at 12 weeks), and she would NOT take harsh corrections. Scary smart, and strong willed, but very responsive to positive reinforcement. If you can find a trainer who's an animal behaviorist, so much the better. Dogs are pack animals, and we need to understand this psychology, but they need to learn to live with us, not the other way around. Cesar is wrong all the way about that. Don't act like an Alpha Dog...act like the Alpha Human.

[Hambo]

Another recommendation for the monk books.

[LittleLebowski]

Just watch the first coupla seasons of Dog Whisperer and treat the dog like a dog. Also, anything @Coyotesfan97 says is gospel.

[GuanoLoco]

“Don’t shoot the dog!” is highly regarded. Discussion on using only positive reinforcement is reserved for another time.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...=2XR3KDR55R0QZ

+1.

Figure out how hard your dog is, that is, how fast or slow it bounces back from a correction. I had a 90 lb sweet bulldog a while back. She was on leash at a park and went after a rabbit. It wasn’t a good time so I yanked on her leash and it pinched her skin. She yelped and wouldn’t make eye contact for 3 days. This is a SOFT dog.

On the other hand, my mastiff wanted to go after another dog and wasn’t taking no for an answer. I happened to be carrying a lorge rotty stick/log we were playing with. I busted it over his head. It broke, he looked at me as if to say: Did you want something? Then immediately went back to going after the other dog. This is a hard dog. Harsh corrections simply dial up his fight drive.

I’m all for positive reinforcement, but some situations call for a correction. It is far better to teach a dog to be calm and avoid such responses than to correct after the fact though - you are likely in a no win situation at that point.