So I have a new puppy! Meet Rory the Golden Retriever:

Rory arrived from a lovely breeder who had clearly put lots of work into him. I have many things I’d love to do with Rory in the future and a long list of skills I’m planning to teach him: competition obedience, rally-o, retrieving, nose work, agility (maybe!), and lots of tricks. But what we end up doing together will largely depend on what brings the both of us the most fun and enjoyment!

Rory has been home for two weeks so I thought I’d write an update on how he’s going and what we’ve been working on. My priorities at this stage are fairly simple:

Get to know my puppy! What does he like, what does he not like, how does he like to play, what sorts of interactions does he enjoy, how curious is he, how confident is he, is there anything that worries/scares him?
Let my puppy explore the world. Socialisation, socialisation, socialisation! And no, not just meeting and playing with dogs. But experiencing all the sights, sounds, smells and textures of the world this puppy will live in.
Start teaching basic training concepts. At this stage, I’m not so much interested in my puppy knowing sit/down/stay/etc, as I am wanting him to understand the process of learning (how to earn reinforcement) and building a foundation for our communication and relationship.

So how is he going?

Getting to know Rory

Rory seems to have a lovely even temperament. He takes notice of things and if it’s something new to him, he will think about it a bit before engaging. He is curious and eager to explore. He loves loves loves to put things in his mouth and he is so much fun to play with (he’s excellent at tugging, he will hold toys in his mouth while he climbs all over you, and he loves to chase and fetch toys). One of his favourite activities is to run around the house searching for items of clothing that he will then proudly parade around the house with. He is possibly the mouthiest puppy I’ve ever had in terms of putting his teeth on me, so that’s something we are working on! At this point, he is probably more toy motivated than food motivated, although he does enjoy food. He is happy to play in his puppy area by himself with his toys and is also happy to sleep in his crate. I would say he is much more easy-going than my last two pups!

Socialisation/Exposure to the world

I'd like to give Rory as much choice as possible in interacting with the world as I present him with various life experiences. I never want to force things upon him. He’s enjoyed playing with all the friends and relatives he’s met and doesn’t seem worried by people. He seems to have very appropriate play with the few dogs he has interacted with so far. Rory has been exposed to experiences such as being in the car, going to the vet, guests visiting, vacuuming, mowing the lawn, traffic sounds, birds, children playing loudly, being carried around a pet store, a loudspeaker and lots of household noises. He has coped well with most things but seems to be a bit sensitive to loud traffic, motorbikes, helicopters, etc. He did have a negative reaction to shopping trolleys so I will work on counter-conditioning and gradually desensitising him to those. I’ve also been introducing Rory to different surfaces, objects and sounds by playing shaping games with him (giving him choice to interact on his terms and rewarding him for being brave and for different types of interaction), which he loves.

Training Foundations

I’ve been working on several different things with Rory. He understands the association between a clicker or a marker word and food. I’ve been practicing luring basic sit/down/stand positions (without verbal cues). We’ve been doing lots of shaping-type exercises: crate games, mat work, hand zen/leave it behaviour. I’ve also been playing lots of name and recall games. And I’ve been working on making him love putting his harness on. He is doing really well with everything! I’m trying to keep training sessions super short, but sometimes my enthusiasm gets the better of me and we go on too long (my bad!). In terms of life skills training, his toileting is going well (I’d say 90% of his business is done outside, and the rest is due to my mistakes, not his!). One thing I need to work on more is his ability to be left alone for longer periods of time.

In summary, the first two weeks of raising Rory have been lots of fun! He is a happy, playful and easy-going puppy and I am very much looking forward to all our future training adventures.

Rory is yet to master the skill of staying still for photographs!