A puppy is a big life change, you’re aware of that, and you’ve been flooded with advice from just about everyone in town. Some of the “advice” is wanted, some of it is annoying, and a lot of it contradicts. You’ve fallen in love with countless pictures, but you know there’s more to raising a well-behaved dog than simply choosing the “look” you like.
One thing is certain: You want to set yourself up for success.
And I want to applaud you for doing your research ahead of time.
I get asked a lot about recommendations for choosing a puppy, so over the years I’ve collected a number of tips and lessons that can save you a lot of frustration.
What to Consider When Choosing A Puppy
- Don’t choose based on looks. I’ve never known anyone who gave up their dog because they decided the dog was too ugly. I’ve worked with hundreds of dogs that were previously given up because they weren’t a lifestyle match for their original family. You’ll learn to love any look if the dog’s a good fit temperament and personality-wise. Promise.
- Research the dog’s breed. Deeply and widely. What was the dog originally bred to do? How close does this come to your current lifestyle?
- Herding dogs were bred to use controlled aggression, intimidation and motion to control other creatures. If you do not put in the work to funnel these instincts toward positive ends, you can end up with a lot of trouble.
- Terriers were bred to be independent and to relentless hunt critters. They don’t give in easily and they need a lot of management in the early years or they’ll end up dissecting furniture (or chewing through cables and electrocuting themselves).
- Malinoises were bred to use their mouth tenaciously. They’re not for novices.
- Certain breeds are bred to be aloof to strangers. They will need expert socializing, or you will need to accept the greater liability of having a dog that is doing its job when it goes after the neighbor who just wanted to borrow your leaf blower.
- These aren’t hypothetical warnings. Everything I warn against is something I’ve seen firsthand.
- Meet the (dog) parents. Learn as much as you can about them. Mom and dad can often give you a good idea of what the pup will act like as an adult. If the parents are wary of people (bad sign!), there’s a decent chance your pup will be as well.
- Pick a dog that matches your activity level. Whatever your expectations, dial this back two notches. “Active” for a person means a couple days of exercise a week. “Active” for an Australian Shepherd means hours of work a day, with dozens of miles of running. Most “lazy” breeds can still do everything an active family wants to do.
- Ask the breeder about socialization and health testing. It’s okay to push for specifics. Everyone has vague answers that sound great. However, proper socialization is a lot of work, and people who do it well will be proud to detail their steps. Be wary of anyone who acts offended by honest questions. Good breeders are looking for good matches, not quick sales.
- If adopting from a rescue, try to find a foster home with a similar lifestyle. If adopting from a shelter, realize that the behavior in the kennel may differ quite a bit from the behavior in the home environment.
- No matter what you’re promised, assume the puppy is not house trained, and start with a rigorous, structured house training program from the moment the puppy crosses the threshold of your home.
- Expect to spend twice as much money as you anticipate on puppy care, and for puppyhood to demand twice as much work and energy as you’re expecting. If you’re not getting professional help, make that four times as much. Puppies are living creatures with virtually no self-control and loads of energy. They have weapons in their mouths and limited bowel control.
- Have a plan before you bring the puppy home. Preventing issues from arising is always easier than fixing issues after they’ve become a major problem. Plan to start the training right away.
- Assume that family members, roommates and friends will help less than they’ve promised. This is not because they’re bad people; it’s because this is how it always works out in reality. The idea of a puppy is more fun than the reality of exhausting daily care. And we all get busy.
- Yes, we should apply this same doubt to ourselves: we may envision multiple walks a day and multiple outings and hours spent working with the puppy — but usually the exhaustion of having a puppy means that we never hit these goals. If you need all this activity to succeed with the dog you’ve chosen, you can get caught in a tough place. That said, I love ambitious goals, and there’s nothing wrong with aiming high, so long as you leave enough margin to get by if things don’t turn out quite as planned.
- I know I risk sounding like a cranky old man going on and on about how much work a puppy is while barely mentioning their cuteness or loyalty. And right about now you’re probably wishing you’d just listened to the people who said, “No problem, you’re good with dogs, the pup will just naturally figure things out!!” But no one ever tells me that they really overestimated the amount of work a puppy would be, and that they wish they’d spent less time planning and more time just assuming that everything would work out perfectly. Prepare for difficulties and frustrations, and you’ll have fewer in the long-term.
Last Words on Training Your Puppy:
If you’ve made some of the mistakes listed above, or if you need help training your puppy, don’t feel bad about asking for it. You can do things perfectly and still end up with a difficult dog. We’re happy to help with your puppy training if you need it. If things aren’t going well, you may need to change your approach, but you do not need to despair.
Finally, raising a puppy can be an incredibly meaningful and fulfilling experience. If you’ve read this far, you’re probably the perfect person to take on the challenge. Bravo! There will be moments of sheer joy. And by preparing for the struggles, we can make sure the difficult moments do not overwhelm those ever-precious and life-altering happy moments with our faithful companions.
Looking for help training that perfect puppy in Clovis or Fresno? Fill out the form below and let’s see how we can help!
Nate Hess is the owner of Dogspring Training, which provides dog training and behavior consultation services in Fresno, Clovis, Madera and surrounding areas. He is a graduate of Stanford University, a member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) and the International Association of Animal Behavioral Consultants (IAABC), and an evaluator for the AKC’s Canine Good Citizen (CGC) and S.T.A.R. Puppy programs. Even after close to a decade of successfully guiding unruly pups into wonderful adulthood, he still finds puppies exhausting and considers everyone who raises them well to be absolute heroes.