14 week old puppy on leash sits down and refuses to come...

[Cobber]

14 week old chocolate lab puppy, and have been working to establish some basic commands (not going as quickly as I had hoped.. but that's part of the puppy training I guess).

My question- when on her leash, sometimes she will simply sit/lie down, lean her weight backwards, and pull against my 'come' command.

Is she too young for me to enforce this in any way other than praising when she does it correctly? I don't really want to start the 'tug-o-war' game, but I'm really hoping to establish these main commands from the beginning..

thanks!

[MuleShack]

Just an opinion here, but you should only say it once, then lead the dog into what you are trying to train. Dogs learn thru repetition and if you continue to say a command and then not enforce it, that is training in the wrong direction.

Pull the leash, lift the pup up and walk it over to you. It has to learn that it cant get by with being stubborn. If you let this behavior continue, it will be difficult to accomplish much with the dog.

You could use treats to coerse the dog to work with you and want to do things, but i wouldn't lean on the treat thing. Repetition saying the command and then walking the dog thru the steps and if it is stubborn, go to it and walk him thru the motions and possibly follow up with the sit (by your side).

Its never too early to work on behaviors and obedience. You just dont want to punish the pup at this age. There is no adverse affects by walking the dog thru the motions you want to teach.

[MuleShack]

By the way, where did you end up getting your pup from?

[PartyWhine]

I think 14 weeks is too young for any serious training.

If you use treats and make sure its fun you can lay a great foundation.

Tip 1 : spit thin hot dog slices at her !

No better way to reward your puppy. She'll watch your every move.

Put a few between check and gum ... your ready.

Tip 2 : Go outside to play.

Tip 3 : Start with come.

ANTICIPATE when she is about to come, give the command, reward.

Same with sit and lie down.

Anticipate the behavior, give the command, reward its occurance.

You might think your not teaching anything ... but the dog is learning !!

And thats how you "train" a very young dog.

Anticipate the occurance of a desired behavior, give the command before it occurs,

then reward it as if it was your idea in the first place.

All in the context of play.

And always end on a high note.

When the time comes, you'll be amazed how easily your dog will train.

[nofishfisherman]

Is this happening while you are taking the pup for a walk? If so it could be that the pup is tired. Those little legs have to work pretty hard to keep up with us. I had a friend who couldn't figure out why his pup would stop walking with him, he never thought about the pup getting tired. Of course now his pup has turned into one of the laziest golden retrievers I've ever seen.

Like others are saying now is the time for the training to be centered around fun and play. THe dogs are already doing all of the things we want them to do, they just don't know that its a good thing. If you can catch them doing the good things and reward them for it now it goes a long way. Right now your pup is probably all excited to run up to you to play, capture that behavior by rewarding it. As you become better at anticipating it you can then start working in the command for it.

[XRap]

Cobber,

When did you get your puppy? How old was she when you picked her up?

Every puppy can be a little different in how they take to training. Without knowing exactly where your are at with her it can be tough to give solid recommendations.

The key is to keep a level head, don't get discouraged, patience and repitition are your ally's and most importantly keep the training interesting to the pup.

If you have established what motivates her that usually will work to entice her cooperation. If she is not cooperating using her motivator she could be ill, uncomfortable on leash or she may just be testing you. I typically find that there is a period in a pups development where they can become a bit defiant, ususally around 17-20 wks. Some of those times are almost non existent while others are screamingly obvious. Usually patience and repetition along with some alone time get you through.

At 14 wks my opinion would be to get down to her level, get her interested, have her motivator with you and use the leash to direct the "come" or "here" command by using a slight tug and when she does what you want be rediculously lavish in your praise and then do it again. Remember that she can identify that your are frustrated by your body language, tone and volume of your voice. At this age there should be no major corrections, if you get frustrated stop the training for awhile, she's not ready to weather your frustrations.

I had a very difficult time with potty training one of my high level pups. "High Level" Bred with all the bells and whistles and what I thought included intelligence. After 3-weeks of frustration I was beginning to think that I got a Danny DeVito in the Movie Twins...you know where Arnold Swarzenengger was genetically created to be the perfect speciman and DeVito was a mistake that carried all of the junk. This dog was Brain Dead, nothing there she just couldn't put it together and I was doing the best I could to get the point accross. I have trained alot of puppies and this one topped them all.

All of a sudden the switch flipped..like "OH! That's what you want" and you want me to learn something...oh?!..o.k. Tell you what she is now 16 months and one of the best pups i've had to work with, keep the faith and be patient and persistant.

Good Luck! Keep us posted on your progress?

[Farley]

14 weeks is pretty young, but not too young to familarize her with commands. Patience is key, sometimes it helps to crouch down to her level, slap your thigh and say "come". You said "sometimes" she will lie down etc... so she has done it right before? Defiently praise her when she does it right, I dont know if I'd go jerkin her over to me with the leash just yet. When you let her outside, maybe let her run around dragging the leash for a bit then try the come command. If she does it while you're not holding the leash I think you're going in the right direction.

[brian6715]

My dog could sit, shake, and rollover at 14 weeks. Now if I could just get him to listen better when his nose hits the ground

14 weeks is not too young for serious training!

[fishnhooks]

My younger Lab did something similar when she was a little pup. The more I tried to pull the more she resisted. I finally left the leash loose and got her to come to me using treats. I also played with her with the leash on (the dog) to help her get use to it. Now if I pull out the leash she thinks we are going someplace and gets excited.

"hooks"

[Cobber]

Thanks for the notes everyone!

I definitely agree with the suggestion to not say the command more than once, we’ve had some advancements in the last couple days.

I actually got her from Smith Farms Labradors in Grove City- good experience, and they worked with me really well in the weeks leading up to the day when I picked her up. I'm very impressed with the operation they have there. Very knowledgeable and were a big help during the process. Also- VERY impressed with the temperment of the pup already. She is all puppy- energetic and playful, however she is very controlled- relaxes when inside, lies by the fireplace and at my feet, is VERY good with my 1 year old son (won't jump on him, take things out of his hands, etc.)- and even when my son pulls her ears/nose/hair, Bailey simply tolerates it while keeping a 'wagging' tail. I think this is actually a good thing for her at this point to learn tolerance and low aggression. On a similar note- I've been doing all of the 'food' things as well - Grabbing her muzzle while shes eating, putting my hand in her dish, etc.

She has been great around the house and in her crate so far. She also is very bright as I only picked her up on Monday, and she has already learned ‘sit’, and the release command of ‘ok’. She is holding pretty well until I release her – although obviously I don’t want to push it too long and lose her attention. She also ‘knows’ the come command it seems, but hasn’t realized that it isn’t a request but instead a command.

The pup (Bailey) also has been WONDERFUL retrieving. Using a stuffed tube sock with some pheasant scent on it. She has made the connection with bringing it back to me, and does very well with that. Its great (only after 3 days) to have her get all excited when I take the sock off the shelf.

An update on the leash thing- I think it was just a simple case of being overwhelmed. She did it first in a new setting that she had never been, and only her 2nd time on a leash. I probably should have just given her more time and let her acclimate herself to the new spot. Bailey actually has already become used to the leash as I kept her leash attached as we played outside, worked on commands, etc. She has also perked up when I pick the leash off the counter, as she’s associating that with training for sit, etc. (and im sure treats….) but regardless- she is getting excited for the training.

Sorry about the book that I just wrote.. had a lot of excitement over the last 3 days

Thanks for sharing all of the knowledge everyone! I’m sure I’ll have more questions, but as for now she is doing pretty darn well I think!

Thanks,

Cobber

[Rick]

14 weeks is not to young to start training-positive training works best.

Partywhine has some good tips...if you are trully interested pay attention to his suggestions.

You need to take her for walks on a leash everyday. That's where much of your early obedience training can occur. Heel, sit, stay and come/here can be done on these walks. Short and sweet with the commands on each walk.

I use the here or come command only when I'm sure the pup will obey it and always reward them when it's completed.

Putting them at the end of a hallway and going to the other end works great. The minute they think about coming towards you use the "here" command. Reward with a treat and don't over do it with a pup. They should always end a training session wanting more. 1-4 times max usually to start. Always end with them wanting more. Don't overdo it i any one session. Patience and consistency with commands is rewarded.

[brittman]

My dog could sit, shake, and rollover at 14 weeks. Now if I could just get him to listen better when his nose hits the ground

14 weeks is not too young for serious training!

dog's nose should never hit the ground unless hunting dead ... dogs with their nose in the air are the ones finding birds.

Keep training short and being patient are the keys at this age.