How to Choose a Puppy

Preparing to welcome a new dog to your family is an exciting time. Regardless of whether you will be searching shelters or interviewing breeders, it is important to do some research on what type of dog will mesh best with your lifestyle.

1. Puppy or adult? Adopting a puppy allows you to choose a dog with a temperament best suited to you and puts you in control of his early education. However, puppies require a lot of time, training and patience. If you do not have a lot of time for housetraining, socialization and obedience work, adopting an adult dog might be a better choice.

2. Breed: This is a very important consideration that requires careful thought and study. Many types of dogs have been specifically bred for certain habits and temperament. You and your future dog will be happiest if  you share common interests. For example, if you are a confirmed couch potato, a high energy border collie is not a great choice. Consider also the anticipated adult size of the canine candidates. If you live in a studio apartment, a St. Bernard puppy may not be a good fit for long!

Meet and interact with each of the puppies in a litter
to determine each pup's temperament.

3. Temperament: A dog's temperament is his personality. When selecting a puppy from a litter, observe how he interacts with his littermates. A confident puppy--who stands over or chases the others--is more likely to be strong-willed and dominant as an adult. The puppy hiding in the corner is more likely to have anxiety later on. A puppy who plays easily with his littermates, but happily follows you around when removed from the litter is a well-adjusted puppy.

If you are considering a shelter or rescue dog, find out as much as you can about his history and socialization. How does he interact with volunteers and other dogs in the shelter? How does he behave during feedings, on walks, in the kennel, when groomed?

The important thing to remember about temperament is that it is an innate part of the dog's personality. Training will NOT change his personality, but his personality will affect the type of training he will need.

4. Age at Adoption: Sadly, some very serious behavior issues stem from removing a puppy too early from his mother and littermates. Just because a puppy is weaned and eating dry dog food does NOT mean he is mature enough to leave his mother. Essential neurological and social development occurs during and after the time of weaning. Pups that leave the litter before they are 8 weeks old are at much higher risk of being fearful and anxious. Trainer Maryna Ozuna describes Five Week Puppy Syndrome for International Association for Canine Professionals Safe Hands Journal (Winter 2009-10):

• excessive mouthiness
• lack of bite inhibition
• hard biting at extraordinarily young ages
• lack of tolerance to sensory stimulation: touch, noise, visual confusion
• lack of tolerance about most anything in general
• lack of ability to generalize
• slowness of learning
• difficulty sequencing concepts and learning
• lack of bounce back
• easily confused
• highly vocal when upset or confused
• high startle response (startles easily and extremely at low stimuli)

The "piling" of puppies seen here is crucial to the normal
neurological and social development of the dog. Taking a
puppy from the litter before 8 weeks old can hinder
proper development leading to anxiety, aggression and
training disabilities.

In recent months I have met two puppies who fit this bill perfectly. One is a Brittany Spaniel who joined his human family at the very tender age of 5 weeks old! His owners complain that he is strangely and annoyingly vocal. He strongly resents affectionate touching, especially around his face. The other pup is a Visla who, though only a few months old, bites his humans extremely hard and viciously. He too is very vocal.

If these symptoms describe your early-adopted dog, don't despair. A good trainer or behaviorist can help you recondition your dog through appropriate handling, careful exposure to stimuli and tolerance training. Sometimes early separation from the mother dog is unavoidable due to her serious illness or death. However, if you are interviewing breeders and they routinely send pups home before 8 weeks of age, look elsewhere or insist the pup stay with the litter and mother longer.

5. A Word About Runts: My veterinary clients frequently report to me that they intentionally sought out the runt of the litter. While a Fern-like* desire to nurture the smallest, weakest animal is admirable, it can lead to heartache. Many times the runt of the litter is tiny because there is something physically wrong with it. Congenital liver, kidney and heart conditions, for example, can cause stunted growth and decreased vigor. While certainly every dog deserves a loving home, be prepared if choosing the runt for the increased possibility of  intensive, costly veterinary care and/or a shortened life span.

It is very difficult to overcome our emotional and psychological tendencies to choose a puppy based on it's visual appeal or antics. A little ball of fluff with mournful puppy dog eyes is hard to resist. For this reason, it is nearly impossible for some of us to visit a shelter or litter without bringing home an unplanned companion. However, it is essential for the health, happiness and well-being of your future relationship with your pet to choose wisely.

* In the classic novel Charlotte's Web by E.B. White, the heroine Fern saves runt piglet Wilbur from certain death and he grows up to be "Some Pig."

Back to School and Learn to Earn

It's that time of year again. The nights are getting cooler and coming earlier. Crickets are singing their late summer song. The Packer pre-season has begun. Back-to-school advertisements paper the kitchen countertop. Summer vacation is officially winding down and school is right around the corner again.

Obedience training my now six-month-old puppy has been on ongoing project, of course, but with another academic year looming, it seems appropriate to discuss his curriculum.

I am often asked by frustrated or anxious clients how to correct certain behaviors in their dogs. The basis of all canine training, I believe, is deference training. Also known variably as the "learn to earn" or "no free lunch" program, deference training is essentially doggie etiquette training. But like most animal training techniques, training ourselves is often the first step! Before launching any training method, thorough research into the philosophy and techniques is necessary.

Dogs sitting patiently and attending to their trainer
for a command

Timing, consistency, and attentiveness are at the heart of successful pet training programs. Deference training, done correctly, teaches even a young puppy that good things come to those who sit and wait patiently. Nothing the puppy needs or desires comes without a price. The price is not exorbitant for him, however. It is something all dogs learn early on--sitting.* The dog's meals, playtime, potty breaks, even walking through a doorway should be given only when the dog is sitting calmly and attending to you.

My puppy Guppy is expected to top 80 lbs when full-grown. It was bad enough having him barge the door when he weighed 30 lbs, but as he grew it was becoming incredibly obnoxious if not downright painful. With just a day of training, Guppy learned that the only way he was going to enter the house was if he sat nicely and watched me. Now Guppy sits at the door without any prompting on my part. Guppy also must sit nicely before he receives his meals or before he gets petted.

Deference training even helped us work through some minor food aggression problems with our late Springer Spaniel GrrrD. She was so protective over her food bowl (even empty) she made us nervous for our little kids. We overcame this irritability by having her sit nicely under our supervision while our child poured her dog food into the dish. Our child was the one who gave the "GrrrD, OK" release command to eat as well. Soon she came to realize that, though small and newer to the family, our child controlled a very dear resource--her kibble--and was to be respected (at least in this matter).

A dog learns respect for his owner and acts in accordance with her wishes because doing so benefits the dog. It's much like a star employee doing a great job not from altruism but because he knows doing so guarantees his paycheck. Pinning a dog to the ground like some kind of mutant "alpha dog" does not create an obedient dog. It creates confusion (dogs are smart enough to know you are not a dog) and potentially fear aggression.

I like many of the pet behavior resources listed on Dr. Sophia Yin's website, and here is a link to her discussion on Learn to Earn. Some dogs graduate from basic deference training to advanced programs to learn how to become search-and-rescue dogs, guide dogs, etc. But even if your dog just learns to mind his manners in certain situations (e.g., not jumping on visitors, not lunging at other dogs on walks, not barking incessantly at the cat) it is worth the little bit of effort deference training takes.

Teaching a dog to sit

* Teaching a dog to sit can be as simple as saying the word "sit" (once, not a thousand meaningless times) while holding a delectable treat over his head and then moving it backwards over his neck. Most dogs will be so "into" the treat they will naturally sit down in order to keep it in view. Eventually the dog will associate the word "sit" and your hand motion with the action of sitting, doing so on command even without a real treat. 

Stop! Be a tree!

If you've been on the internet at all this past week you've doubtless seen the horrifying video of Denver news anchor Kyle Dyer being bitten in the face by a large dog on air. The footage is raw and, of course, the dramatic incident carries highly charged political connotations. Animal behavior experts are already weighing in on what went wrong and how the bite could have been avoided.

As a veterinarian, I am at risk of being seriously bitten on a daily basis. Multiple times a day I interact with dogs and cats who are complete strangers to me. I peer into their ears, lift their lips and manipulate their limbs. These animals are often highly aroused -- for cats the adrenaline has been pumping since their owners locked them in that dreaded carrier and drove them to the clinic! Most of them associate the veterinary clinic with poking, pinching and prodding, and some are simply not going to take it sitting down. I have learned through formal training, experience and intuition when an animal poses a threat to me. And frankly, when an owner insists their growling pet "never bites" it's a sure sign I need to grab a muzzle.

Ironically the worst dog bite I've ever had was from a skittish English Setter who was waking up from anesthesia. In general, bad things happen when you let your guard down. That's why I got bit. I was tired from surgery and inattentive to the dog's signals. I was sitting in her recovery cage as her anesthesia wore off (meaning she was probably not only naturally inclined to bite but also dysphoric from her drugs) and reached over her head to adjust her blankets when she snapped and caught my arm. I did so many things wrong here I can hardly blame the dog: I was in her space while she was not in her right mind and I acted threatening to her. She was not a big dog, but I had to pry her jaws from my forearm. Tylenol, ice packs and time was all I needed. I'm grateful it was just my arm.

The tragic unfolding of events in Denver has affected me like it has many others. I empathize with Ms. Dyer and hope she recovers fully. I worry about what will happen to Max as a result of his highly publicized bite. And I fear the impending backlash against "pit-bull" breeds--already a popular target for breed specific legislation. No one can undo the damage that occurred in an instant on that television set, but we can learn from it.

I want to share a great dog safety resource with parents and educators reading this blog. One of my family's favorite board games is Doggone Crazy! This educational board game teaches kids and adults alike how to behave safely around dogs, especially strange dogs. If the spinner lands on the picture of the snarling dog all players must stand up and "Be a tree!" to make the dog go away. Being a tree means you 1) stop, 2) fold your branches [arms], and 3) watch your roots grow [count while staring at your feet]. Basically you become as non-threatening as possible.

Doggone Crazy! contains stacks of photographs of real dogs in real life situations, and players earn points by identifying not only if the dog is safe or unsafe to approach, but also why or why not. A few of the pictures are obvious, but many dogs display very subtle signs of stress. And a stressed dog may bite at (what seems like) the least provocation. My children and I have become much more skilled at observing a dog's body language from playing this fun game. Still, as I said before, inattention is a danger magnet, and my educated kids are as spacey as they come so I don't trust them unsupervised with any dog (including our own EdGrrr).