Welcome Mike, Mary and as yet, the unnamed puppy!

And it's Mary and her new puppy!

 I had friends come over to help with the PATT (Puppy Aptitude Temperament Test) as I am a trained PATT Evaluator. My friends (some of them students) have never seen a PATT before, so this was fun for all.  Once we got each puppy tested, we had puppy playtime and I asked each helper which puppy THEY would choose and why based on what they observed?  They shared and then I was able to do a debrief (with the breeder in the play area also) on what the scores meant in terms of temperament and training.

Mary, a dear friend LOVED this puppy and gave her reasons why. This puppy tested beautifully, in the 3'-s and 4's which is exactly what I have in my personal dogs.  The 3-4 scores are indicative of a well-balanced, even tempered, eager to please temperament which makes training EXTREMELY easy.

As a result of the PATT, Mary and her husband Mike are getting this puppy TODAY. I LOVE educating people on the PATT as it greatly helps them understand the genetic temperament of each puppy they observe being tested. As a result, they know which puppy is the BEST match for their lifestyle. The PATT are a snapshot of each puppy's natural responses to life situations and when done by a trained evaluator, the results are extremely accurate and reliable. And a puppy that tests as 3's - 4's is a VERY willing and eager to please dog making training so much easier than struggling with a dog.

Temperament testing is VALUABLE, I won't purchase a puppy without first testing the litter and getting exactly what I want.

Anyway, LOL, Wednesday morning before the PATT Mary and Mike were non dog owners at this point in their lives. And here we are, Saturday morning, and as a result of the PATT, today Mary and Mike are getting an exceptional puppy for their lives. They are starting my Mannerly Puppy Course today.

Can't wait to hear what they name this puppy-:)

Socialization for Rudy and family

 

                                                            Using the wood chips as a dig pile

         

learning to be around children

meeting the horses

Rudy had a bust week. He is now 6.2 lbs and getting a little taller. He went to work with me in Cedar City and was able to get out of the car in two separate locations to eliminate. At home he saw the horses, cats and cows. During the week my husband Clabe came home and Rudy spent the day outside with him working and putting up fence. He was exhausted! (but seemed content 😊)

 Rudy in a park behind a church in Cedar City

Seeing the cows in the pasture

Rudy from the start

 

I finally got the pictures and videos downloaded, so here's Rudy...

                                                                  

 my daughter-in-law with Rudy

Rudy in the TV room

crate in the bedroom

       

exhausted!

                                                           

Cuddling with Korina, my granddaughter

hoping to get some human food...

I took Rudy out to explore the yard. This was before my lesson with Roxanne and I learned some great techniques to help with this. I also learned to not use parachute chord because it could burn my hand or my pup's leg or body (if it is quickly pulled over them).  My lesson was informative and I enjoyed the time I spent with Roxanne and Sugar Bear. I was able to do quiet time with them and I could see the importance of the exercise. One of my favorite lessons was the use of a "digging hill" for the dog. I was concerned about this because Rudy has started to dig in my garden and now I know how to stop that. 

and lastly, Rudy's favorite place to nap

                                                  

                                 

Poppy working on sit

Here we are working on sit.  She does like to turn her head and grab the leash sometime when we are doing sit.  Do you have suggestion for this behavior?

 

And meet Rudy - the 10-week-old King Cavalier Spaniel and his owner Vanda!

The first puppy lesson is always fun for me as I FINALLY get the officially meet 'the newest puppy'. I really like being able to train students from puppy to adult. And puppies that have been PATT Puppy Aptitude and Temperament Test by me, will, for life, remember my voice and smell. 

And having new puppy students here in Utah? That is an additional benefit as I get to quickly imprint my voice and smell on their new puppies.   So, I take a few moments to handle that new puppy, get it comfortable being handled by me while I do some fast puppy temperament assessments. Helps me greatly as a trainer to have a young dog comfortable with me and for me to know what is that puppy's temperament.

My Mannerly Puppy Graduate students are invited to take my FOUNDATION Course, formal obedience training of on to off-leash in 12 weeks.  If they pass the Mannerly Puppy EXAM via a posted video, they receive a $200 discount of the FOUNDATION Course. Can they pass the EXAM? They certainly can if they follow my instructions and coaching.

Anyway, had a blast today with Vanda and her Rudy.  Here's some highlights.

'The Walk'

The Informal Recall

The "Sit"

Then, it was a blast educating Vanda on the need for a 'Mulch Mountain'. Puppies are notorious for wanting to dig and it's a frustrating challenge to NOT teach them to dig. There is a better way to handle it which is to create a specific place for them TO DIG TO THEIR HEARTS CONTENT.  Have a non-toxic tree or non-toxic plants shredded in a specific location where you're willing to just let it be for a while. I call these piles of shredded material, "Mulch Mountain" and it's where you take a puppy to let it dig to its hearts content. Even better, the ground underneath is protected and as Mulch Mountain decomposes you have better soil.  

The point is Rudy had a total BLAST on my Mulch Mountain today. It was so much fun watching him dig and climb and explore.  

Then, it was time for Rudy to meet my old pro, Master Sugar Bear, AKA Lee's UD VER JUH GN WCX GO RE GCGA. Sugar has been training puppies since he was a puppy and my first Board'nTrain was a 3.5 lb Toy Poodle named Shadow. Sugar was nearly a year old and a solid BIG Lab of 85 +, but he worked with me to train Shadow. That was the first puppy Sugar trained so he's well versed in wee tiny dogs so meeting Rudy was old hat to him.

Shadow was VERY small yet worked alongside large dogs.

Rudy learning to track with Sugar!

Sugar's days are numbered as he has a heart condition, so he's basically retired from most of my obedience classes and my Pack Runs. BUT, he can still train puppies to be respectful of a mature dog and that's what he did with Rudy today.  Had to chuckle as at one point, Rudy just got overloaded, he went and found a quiet space and just sat there. We just walked away from him as he's on a check cord so he's safe.

We got to the other side of the driveway, and I had Vanda do an Informal Recall. The secret with doing Informal Recalls is to squat down and encourage the puppy to come to you by making your body smaller and more approachable. What did Rudy do?

He came, likkity split!

"Touch" "Sit" "Good puppy!" 

Then, it was time to head for the training area inside as it was COLD today.

"Let's Go"

Once inside, it was time for Quiet Time.  Vanda had brought a bed for Rudy, alas it was to big for this wee wittle dog.  

Too big for such a tiny dog.

Puppies, and especially very small puppies/dogs, need to feel secure so having Quiet Time done with a mat or bed UNDER a chair helps a young dog to feel secure.  Took just a few seconds to reposition things a smidge...

Interesting fact is that when a dog does relax and go to sleep doing Quiet Time, they will always position themselves so there is steady upward leash pressure. Margot Woods, inventor of this exercise, said in the 45+ years she did this exercise, the dogs ALWAYS relaxed only with upward leash pressure. So, we are training the young dog to trust they CAN relax, we won't let anyone, or anything come into the Safety Zone (approximately 6- 9' invisible border around you and the dog), and the dog will relax with upward leash pressure. We structure doing Quiet Time with the dog VERY close to us so they learn they can relax, trust their owner, and be comfortable by remaining close to owner. THIS early training BECOMES VERY IMPORTANT when the FOUNDATION Course begins.

And although we had planned on doing more, how was Rudy after his 1st Puppy Lesson?

T.O.A.S.T

The end of Rudy's 1st puppy lesson-:)

Out and about with Poppy

Quiet time 1/19/2022 at Starbucks.

Quiet time 1/20 @ Jimmy Johns

We also took a trip to Home Depot1/19 and Hobby Lobby 1/20.  She did great and was very interested in what is going on around her but was quiet and calm.  
 

Kara's Final Mannerly Puppy EXAM

Poppy and family

 

Poppy playing with brother Finnick.

Poppy and Brett.

Welcome to California and our home.

Poppy and Brinlee (our middle daughter).

Picures

Meeting sister Darcey.

Physical assessment on puppy temperament testing day. I found out we have a hard 5-6 tempered dog. Not surprised because we have had terriers in the past.

Learning her manners

16 weeks, 18lbs

Learning to play nice. 

Richard in Ohio picking up Kara.

First lesson with Roxanne

 Kara in her sleeping bag. Her hair is about 1/8 inch long so she gets cold  easy. The part like about her coat is she does not shed.

Some of the things I learned from Roxanne where not training protocol but how dogs relate to others in the pack. Pack dynamics, How a dog will learn faster from another dog than a human. That’s why you need to keep your dog in good company. So he learns good behavior not bad.