Puppy Foundations Class part 1 November/December 25

1.Park politely when arriving at the hall with due consideration for other users.

2.Arrive to class with enough time to give your dog ample opportunity to toilet outside before coming into the hall. Bag any dog fouling and place in the appropriate bin.
Bring Poo bags.
If you are giving your dog some time to relieve their bladders on the grass verges, please take care of vehicles entering and exiting the property.

1. Ensure that your dog is up to date with vaccinations. For the first session only I will need to see their vaccination certificate.

2. Please bring your own puppy food treats and toys
   Hand gel or wipes

5.Please bring a mat or bed for puppy to settle on between exercises, they will learn to relax alongside you, as in a vet, grooming parlour or even in a café and having their own mat helps them

1. You will need puppy on a flat collar with a comfortable lead, not a slip lead and bring a long training line if you have one, or even a long piece of rope 2-3 metres. No extending leads please.

2. Make sure that puppy has not just eaten, leave a gap of 2 hours. He will be working for his dinner and we want him to be interested and not sleeping off a full tum!
   I would like you to experiment to see which treats really make his tail wag.
   Is he food intolerant of anything? You can have available his normal dried food and a selection of more high value special foods. This does not need to be shop bought dog treats, but try bits of chicken, ham or beef ( Sunday lunch left overs) chopped cheese, sausages or even toast! They need to be cut up to the size of a frozen pea, so he can swallow them easily. Too big and he will take time to chew, the rewards are often given in rapid succession, so tasty semi moist morsels are best. Have lots more than you think you will need, unused treats can be popped into a container afterwards and kept in the fridge.
   .

3. A small bag to put treats in your pocket is useful, not a plastic one. You top up this little bag from container with main supply of 2 or 3 different types. Amazon sells silicone treat training bags, -Silicone-Training-Portable-Magnetic which are very hygienic and long lasting, but even an old bum bag would do the trick. All this stops you getting a very smelly pocket in your coat and you get the treats out quickly for puppy’s reward.

4. You will need a couple of toys too. E.g. ball on a rope& soft tuggy toy would be great.

5. Children are welcome and when encouraged to participate often make competent handlers. Children under 16 years of age must be accompanied by an adult. Children are encouraged to behave appropriately in the presence of unfamiliar dogs and are requested not to run in class, or distract other dogs from working, or interact with any unfamiliar dog. For safety reasons it is advisable that no child take full control of the on lead puppy either inside or outside of class.

6. . Wait in your car until the you are called into the hall.
   When arriving at class, please avoid meeting the other dogs on lead.
   Not all dogs like to be near other dogs when restrained on lead and may react as a consequence. Do not crowd doorways and allow plenty of room for a dog to enter the hall. It causes stress for you, if your dog is pulling you towards another dog but it also causes the dog in front to become panicky about a dog so close behind

You will be learning how to cope with dog /dog interaction correctly. So try not to allow dogs to play/interact together outside the venue before a class, as this can cause excitement and a lack of attention during the session and please do not allow your dog to bark outside.

** If your bitch is going to come into season during the course or the dog becomes ill or has been in contact with a dog with an infectious disease please contact me, ASAP.

Finally

Ensure your dog is appropriately and legally ‘dressed’ in a flat collar and lead with a nametag inscribed with the legal requirements. Please refer to: http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/training/good-citizen-dog-training-scheme/information-for-dog-owners/dog-identification-tags/