Choosing a puppy -- and raising one you can live with

Call it the Obama Effect. Or more accurately, the Malian-and-Sasha Effect. The White House arrival of the nation’s First Puppy has sparked intense interest in Portuguese water dogs specifically, and in puppies more generally. Let’s imagine that you’ve caught the fever, and now you have your new puppy. Wonderful! But what next? This month we’ll discuss some pointers on what to do and definitely what not to do with your new family member, that four-legged little bundle of joy.

First, however, I would like to address something I left out of last month’s column (“A Primer on Puppies,” April 2009). That is papers. Those magical papers. Every week someone will tell me that their puppy “has papers.” That they sought out a dog with “papers.” That the puppy store must have good stock because the puppy came with “papers.”

“He has his papers, Lisa.”

To this day, not one person who bought a dog “with papers” can tell me what they mean or signify when I ask them. Yet they are very happy and impressed they have them. Well, frankly, papers do not add up to much, and certainly do not mean your puppy will be a genius or housebreak faster, no matter what the cost.

Technically, real papers signify that the parents of the puppy were purebreds and are registered with the American Kennel Club (AKC). That’s it. But many people do not know that. They get a certificate from their local pet shop, and they believe they now have official papers. Or maybe the puppy store simply makes up phony AKC papers. Many pet shops also go to breeder Websites to copy family trees. You can also get a limited registration on dogs if they look enough like a purebred. For example, Jay-J, my boldly spotted Dalmatian, is clearly a Dalmatian and can thus receive a “limited registration,” meaning he could do AKC sports like agility.

Bottom line for the average pet owner: The only thing papers are good for is to lay them on the floor to help house-train the dog. Papers won’t help you if you’re not a breeder or don’t know the other dogs in the lineage anyway. And importantly, they don’t guarantee health or temperament. Health is something the breeder screens for separately, and a quality breeder only breeds her healthiest and nicest dogs, which also conform physically to the breed standard. She will have available for you copies of the dog parents’ health tests -- hip dysplasia, eye tests, and so on.

But now that your puppy is here, we need to make him a good canine citizen. The first rule is to start small. Do not give him the whole house in which to eliminate (and possibly to wreck). Start small, using crate- or area-training first. Let the puppy earn freedom gradually. The same should be said for your own expectations in general. Start small. Think small. Do not expect too much and you will not be disappointed. You have to work with what you have, and what you are capable of. He is just a baby dog acting like a baby dog, trying to make a way for himself.

The same can be said for socializing. Yes, we want a highly social dog that we can, say, travel anywhere with at anytime. But you don’t have to overwhelm the puppy with people and strange objects all the time. Invite some friendly people over, take simple walks around the block and meet the neighbors. Watch the local children play on their skateboards from your window, to start. Same with the vacuum cleaner and other household appliances. Let the puppy hear them turned on from a distance first so as not to startle him.

Over the next two weeks, gradually take your dog to explore new areas on walks, to see new appliances and get a little closer to them, to meet new people, especially friendly men and children, who will seem more friendly if they are tossing or handing treats to the dog.

From the beginning of your dog ownership, you should establish yourself as important to the puppy. You should be the reason for all things good in his life: walks, play, and of course food. Be there to feed your dog at scheduled meal times. Do not leave him to free feed at his leisure. As with people, food is a big resource to a dog, and a shiny bowl on the floor should not receive the credit for giving it to him. You should.

Prepare his food for him, and if he has learned a cue such as “sit,” ask him to perform the behavior before you feed him. Many dogs benefit from a “Nothing in life is free” approach to all things. They will learn to look to you and make you happy first -- before they get what they want.

One of the funniest parts of training is when I tell people what I went through with my puppy Saffy. As if I am going to do something with my dog that is wildly different from what I tell them to do with their new pups! No, I’m a big advocate of practicing what I preach. And my puppy is still a baby herself, and will do puppy things, and she came with her own set of problems after living in a bad situation. So it may go faster for me to resolve things, but I still have to do the work!

In the end, puppies are in fact a lot of work, but they are worth it if you can retain your wits and your sense of humor. Remember to start small and to have limited expectations. Then you can build little successes one day at a time. Eventually you’ll think as much of your new puppy as you do the adult dog you had before him. Maybe even more!

Lisa Hartman is head dog trainer for Pawsitively Pets. You can reach her at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or www.pawsitivelypetsonline.com.

Feedback: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it