Bringing home a new dachshund puppy is much like bringing home a new baby. It’s exciting and fun, and you’re anxious to get to know your new friend. As with a baby, there is the problem of elimination. Unlike a human baby, the dachshund puppy, being able to walk when he or she first comes home, is already capable of learning where to eliminate. This is the aspect of dog training that is the first thing you will want to work on. The first step in your dachshund training should take place when you first bring home your new friend, and before you set foot in the door. Take your puppy to a good place to eliminate, set him or her down, and wait. Puppies are naturally curious and like to explore, but eventually your dachshund will naturally eliminate, at which time he or she should hear the phrase you will be using for your dachshund training. Say, “Do your business,” or whatever phrase you would like to use, but be consistent about using that phrase every time your dachshund does the appropriate thing in the appropriate place. If the words and deeds always go together, your pup will learn the connection, which is essential to dachshund training.

When you are indoors with your dachshund, watch him or her for squatting. When this takes place, quickly up your pup and take him or her to the designated spot outside, saying the magic phrase as soon as the puppy is in place. Don’t be surprised if he or she seems to forget what to do. Puppies are easily distracted and have short memories. Dachshund training requires some patience, so let the puppy walk around, sniff around, play in the grass for awhile and finally get around to elimination before you go inside.

Take your puppy outside every two hours even if squatting is not seen. Again, take your dog to the correct spot and say the magic words. Sometime playing can help with the dog training, because puppies frequently feel the urge after running around and playing.

Another good time for dachshund training is after meals. After your puppy has had dinner, go for a walk. Remember to take plastic bags along to stay friends with your neighbors.

Some dog owners prefer the convenience of pet doors to having to let the dog in and out manually. If you decide to use a pet door, keep its location in mind during your dachshund training. When you take your puppy outside, make a point of going through the door that has a pet door or where you intend to put a pet door. That will get your dog into the habit of going outside through that particular door.

When you are not at home, put your dachshund puppy into a crate. When you come home, take the puppy outside immediately. Dogs will not eliminate where they sleep, so the puppy will learn to hold it while in the house unsupervised.

Some owners like to spread newspapers onto the floor for dog training, gradually removing the newspapers as the dog becomes trained. The only problem with this solution is that your dog might someday find a newspaper or book on the floor where it has accidentally fallen, and you cannot blame the dachshund for doing what it has been trained to do.

If dachshund training becomes to difficult or frustrating, by all means see a veterinarian or dog trainer for further assistance. Enjoy your new pal.

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Having a new puppy to take care of is certainly one of the more challenging things that pet owners have to do. There are a number of tasks that have to be completed day in and day out in order to keep your puppy happy and healthy.

1. Provide Attention

Your puppy will want to feed on the attention that you give him. After all, a dog is a man’s best friend, so he’ll start portraying that from the moment you bring him home. Make it a point to provide him with the attention that he needs. Doing so will help to make him more sociable with humans and will make him a more friendlier dog overall.

2. Nutrition

When puppies are young they are in the critical growing stages of their lives which means that its important that they are properly fed and cared for from a nutrition standpoint. Be certain that the food you are providing you puppy is healthy and that he is getting the essential vitamins and minerals that are needed in order to promote strong and healthy growth.

3. Obedience Training

Another puppy care tip that is as equally important than the others is to train your puppy to perform or avoid certain things that will make him more obedient. If you plan on keeping your puppy in the house, you’ll want to train him to go outside when he has to go to the bathroom. Housebreaking is perhaps one of the first things that new puppy owners work on when they bring their new friend home. Other training activities might include teaching your puppy to site, come, and stay, which are a few of the more simple commands that you can teach.

There are many other duties that you will face as a new puppy owner, and each new task you take on will present it’s own challenges and rewards. If you pay close attention to your new puppy and do whatever it takes to keep him happy and healthy, you will have a long lasting and rewarding friendship for many years to come.

The post Top 3 Puppy Care Tips first appeared on Puppy Blog.

A new puppy in the house brings happiness and joy, but sooner or later, you will have to leave him in the home alone. This separation anxiety can cause your puppy great mental distress, so it’s very important to slowly acclimate your new friend to the facts of life. Animals display a full range of emotions, and unlike dealing with a human, we cannot reason with them through language. Leaving a new puppy on his own may render him with a hopeless sense of abandonment, creating fear and mistrust, so be sure to take the necessary steps to introduce him slowly to his independence.

1. Begin with a short-term separation period of thirty to sixty minutes. Although this may seem like a blink of an eye for us, to a puppy, this time frame is enormous. Speak with a reassuring tone and lock him in the house alone for under one hour. When he gets the idea that you are always coming back, stretch the separation time until he can relax. Work schedules and emergencies may warrant your departure for eight hours or more, and you need to make sure the puppy has taken all the baby steps to reach this goal.

2. The new puppy gains confidence when he hears the sounds of human voices. For your initial short-term separations, leave the radio or television on to keep him company. Media sounds are no substitute for the one he loves, but the voices provide a distraction from his loneliness.

3. To deflect away from his morose attitude, be sure to keep his favorite toys and snacks within his reach. Creating his own activities with a ball or chew toy does wonders to calm and quiet a frightened puppy and he may bide his time on his own terms until you come home.

4. Reinforce to your puppy that when you have to leave, it’s no big deal. If you play up the situation with a highly strung tone to your voice, the puppy gets the idea that leaving him is a bad thing. Rather, he must learn that people have things to do and places to go that don’t include him and that you shall return before his next meal. Greet him warmly when you open the door, but if you play the drama queen every time, the separation anxiety may become worse.

5. If you must leave your puppy after dark, be sure to leave a small light on or plug in a night light. The dim room may encourage him to nap, but total darkness can be stressful for a baby pooch. One room with one light is sufficient to keep him calm until you arrive home.

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