What You Need to Know About Raising Poodle Pups

You really need to do your homework before bringing a Poodle pup home. If you have never had a dog before, a puppy is not the way to learn. You are better off with an adult dog, preferably a senior. Once you have had some experience living with and caring for dogs, then you can consider bringing home a puppy. Remember, Poodles are very intelligent and will find things to do you may not approve of if you don’t train them and care for them properly.

You should have some things decided on before the Poodle pup comes home. That way, you can start training your Poodle pup from day one and this will cause less stress in the home. Decide whether the Poodle pup will be allowed in beds, on the furniture and where the potty area outside will be. Also decide where the food bowl should be and where the puppy's bed should be.Keep training sessions short and fun. Only a few minute sessions several times a day can help a lot more than one full hour of training a day. A puppy's attention span is short. You will soon be able to find ways of incorporating a mini-training session into other ways you socialize with your puppy. Always saying no when they bite when you play is training. Letting them sniff new objects and praise them for a calm reaction is training. Even feeding time can be training – no food until they sit. This is easily achieved by lifting the food bowl over their heads, making their bottoms go down.

Poodle puppies will need daily brushing and handling in order for them to be less stressed when they are groomed or go to the vet. A Poodle has to go to the groomer at least seven times a year, so training now will save a lot of headaches later. Reward good behavior and ignore or say no to bad behavior. You need patience, consistent commands and a sense of humor.
Other things that can greatly benefit not only Poodle pup care but also your training sessions are proper nutrition, regular exercise and neutering. You need to go to the vet or talk to your Poodle's breeder about proper Poodle pup nutrition. They should not be getting fed all canned dog food, adult dog food, cat food or people food. They need a mixture of wet and dry puppy food. You could even use some of the dry food as training treats.

Regular exercise burns off excess energy and keeps the pup from being easily distracted in training sessions. Also, it helps keep the Poodle pup fit and less likely to get into mischief when unsupervised. Most importantly, when your Poodle pup is six months old (or when the vet advises), you should get your puppy spayed or neutered. This helps keep the puppy healthier, calmer and more focused on listening to you rather than listening to the call of the wild.

Lisa Collins has interviewed many people in two countries about the pros and cons of living with Poodle pups. Poodle puppies can be found at most rescue shelters and make great pets. Poodle puppy care instructions are easy to learn and follow.