How To Discipline a Puppy
Whether it is a puddle on the floor, a smashed potted plant, a chewed-up family heirloom, or a nasty nip from an over-excited pup…
There comes a time when a little bit of discipline is inevitable. And it doesn’t matter HOW cute those big eyes are.
Many first-time puppy owners may be wondering, how do you discipline a puppy properly?
How can I get them to understand without frightening them too much?
Puppies Are Not Humans
As much as we may like to refer to them as our ‘children’, or call them ‘fur babies', or dress them up and love them - dogs are not people.
This is important because it means that your new puppy cannot logically reason on situations like humans would.
Loudly scolding or smacking a puppy is just going to frighten them rather than help them to know what they did was bad. Unlike a human who can reason on their behavior and feel remorse, the puppy may begin to associate you with fear and punishment rather than the negative behavior.
A puppy also can't remember an event after it has passed. Bringing your puppy back to a chewed shoe or an indoor accident to punish them is not going to help them understand. They are not going to be able to grasp that it's the accident or chewed object that you are upset about unless you catch them in the act. Even five minutes is too long to think back on.
This is why positive reinforcement, consistency, and situational awareness are a lot more effective for young puppies.
For older puppies, if the situation calls for it, you can use ‘remote punishments’ such as a squirt bottle. This is so that the puppy associates the unpleasant sensation with their behavior and not with you getting mad.
Do Not Punish Natural Behavior
Certain undesirable actions, such as messing up potty training or chewing, are normal puppy behavior. These are both things that are hardwired into their instinct - to do their business out of the way, and to relieve stress and excitement by chewing.
So, how do you deal with it?
Potty Training Mishaps
As mentioned, a puppy often can’t grasp why they are being punished, especially not after some time has passed. This often makes potty training difficult and frustrating, since you don’t want your puppy to be scared of going to the toilet.
Like with all dog training, the best way to potty-train is with patience and positive reinforcement. If they mess up, it's definitely not out of maliciousness.
Instead, it is better to keep on the watch and quickly move them outside if it looks like they’re about to go (normally 30 minutes after a meal).
Praise them with attention or a small treat when they succeed.[1] Sometimes a smaller bed - slightly larger than the dog themselves - may discourage them from doing their business in the bed or a corner of it
Chewing Objects
Chewing objects is a common bad behavior in puppies, but it normally stems from either a need to teethe or a need to relieve some pent-up energy. Spanking or scolding may end up causing more destructive behaviors.
A better way to correct your puppy’s behavior in this instance is to provide them with more appropriate chew toys. If the object is small, you can remove it from them and ignore the puppy, taking away the ‘fun’ and stimulation of the game.
Destructive behavior in older puppies may also be a sign that they’re bored. You can try to correct this bad behavior with new or more interesting chew toys, or by providing them with more exercise and games to get rid of excess energy.
Crate Training
Older puppies may also chew a lot because of separation anxiety and boredom when you’re not home.
Crate training is when you leave your dog in a crate for short periods of time overnight or when you’re not home. It may seem odd, but many dogs feel more secure, and it may help with restless or destructive bad behaviors when they know they are somewhere safe and secure, and you’re coming back.
It may be a good idea to teach puppies to stay in the crate when they’re still young, patiently rewarding them as they slowly get used to it, making it more of a positive and secure experience for them. This will also help combat nervous behaviors such as anxiety-peeing or chewing up furniture
More Serious Offenses
Some bad behaviors are just not acceptable; they could even be dangerous, such as biting you or other dogs, or pulling on the leash when out on a walk. How can you handle a young dog who does this? And what is an appropriate response or punishment?
My Puppy Bites Me or Other Dogs
Socializing is an extremely important step in improving your puppy’s behavior and can have an impact on them long after they become an adult. This means introducing them to a wide range of people and other dogs, including women, men, children, and unfamiliar dogs.
The problem is that older puppies, that is after they’re old enough to go out and socialize, are still learning social cues. This means that they might chomp on you during play, jump up on others, or harass other dogs to the point of upsetting them.
Firstly - Avoid roughhousing. Your puppy may think that roughhousing is always an acceptable way to play and may continue to do it with strangers or when they get too big.
Secondly - End the play session immediately when your puppy bites or gets rough. Scolding and hitting may just be confusing and seem like part of the fun. Ignoring your puppy by standing up and looking away from them shows that playtime ends when the biting starts. After the puppy has calmed down again, you can reward their calm behavior with some pats and start the game again
When it comes to socializing puppies and older dogs, the best method is to monitor them carefully. Most older dogs will growl or snap at a young pup to show some dominance, don’t discipline the older dog for doing this.
However, be prepared to use a spray bottle on the puppy or separate the two if the older dog is small, too old to defend themselves, or the play is starting to get too aggressive. Shouting can escalate the tension, so rather distract the puppy with something more interesting - like a favorite chew toy - or separate them if necessary.[3]
Make sure that the older dog’s feeding area is separate from the puppy, and that there are enough resources to go around.
Reward the puppy when they behave well with adult dogs or in a public place like the dog park. They will soon learn that behaving means getting rewards, and bad behavior means that the game ends.
Pulling and Biting on The Leash
Walking takes training, and pulling and biting on the leash are common issues when going on walks.
Ideally, puppies and young dogs should be walking with a harness, as this will put less strain on their throats and may be easier to train with.
Some products, such as no-pull leashes and harnesses, will make training much smoother and easier, but ultimately it's about persistence and patience. Like with most points above, the puppy is already excited, and scolding or smacking them will only make it worse.
The best thing you can do to punish a puppy on the walk is to temporarily stop the walk. This may be a bit annoying for you as the owner, but it is the most devastating thing for the puppy, as the walk is all they want. Once they calm down, you can reward them with a treat or some love to show them that they can get what they want with good behavior before walking again.
If you are interested in seeing some high-quality anti-pulling gear, check out Sparkpaws’ Comfort Control No-Pull Dog Harness Collection
Discipline and Age
How to discipline a puppy will vary slightly depending on the age of the puppy.
Puppies are at their most receptive to ideas and good habits at 8 - 16 weeks old. This means that this is not the time to have them associate you with punishment, but is definitely the time to double down on positive reinforcement. So that you can instill the behavior you want them to have whilst growing up.
Remember, puppies' behavior will change over time, so it is normal to see some regression, e.g., an 8-month-old pup is going to be a lot rowdier and more destructive than a 3-month-old.
Do not give up or become overly frustrated, just keep on being consistent.
Discipline and You
As their master, your puppy is going to be very sensitive to your moods, tone, and actions.
Puppies are cute, but they can be very frustrating. Unless they are in the middle of the act, avoid disciplining your puppy while you are very angry or upset. It is ok to take a moment to step out and breathe to regain your composure before continuing with the training or discipline.
Losing your temper may only escalate the situation and won’t help in your long-term training goals.
Some breeds of dogs are also very difficult to train, there is no shame in calling a well-reputed dog trainer to help you set up a good plan. They may be able to help you set good habits and baselines that will aid you in training, as well as help you find discipline tactics that work for your puppy’s personality and situation.
Conclusion
Dogs cannot form complex, logical patterns (especially not puppies) which can make disciplining them difficult. A dog is not going to understand why they’re being punished unless they’re caught in the act…and even then it may be tricky to make them understand.
Punishments that involve scolding or hitting are often counter-productive, especially regarding natural behaviors. They tend to excite the dog more, or they might associate you with fear.
Rather, positively reinforcing behavior you want to see, such as providing an appropriate chew toy or praising a puppy for being calm, trains the puppy in the way you want.
If punishment is necessary, such as when a puppy bites you, then often ignoring the puppy or removing the object or other animal from the situation will calm them down. This will show them that their behavior has an impact on their reward.
For an older puppy, remote punishments such as a squirt bottle or a loud clap might distract and be unpleasant enough to get them to drop an issue.
Remaining patient, calm, and consistent in your training should iron out undesirable behavior more than physical punishment. Training may be slow, and there may be setbacks as your puppy grows and changes, but you should see improvement in time.
If you are not confident in your training ability or feel overwhelmed, then it may be better to contact a professional trainer for help regarding training techniques and setting a good schedule.
Ext Links
[1 ]https://www.humanesociety.org