What is Puppy Culture?
Algarve Lion Hunter puppies are raised with ‘Puppy Culture’, which is a program based on the latest science and studies on puppy and animal rearing. On the top level, Puppy Culture is a socialization and training program specifically developed for puppies from birth through the end of their critical socialization period (12-weeks), with age-appropriate protocols and lessons laid out in an organized format. The program consists of videos, books and a Workbook that can be found on the Puppy Culture website.
Puppy Culture is based on the premise that the puppy always leads the lead puppies learn best by appropriate experiences at the appropriate time. So what we are doing is to observe the puppy, and, based on the behavioral markers we see, serve the puppy the experience or lesson that is optimal for him at that and moment in time. By letting the puppy lead, we are:
• maximizing the benefit of any given protocol or lesson
• minimizing any danger of overfacing or scaring the puppy
creating confidence and self-efficacy by presenting the appropriate level of challenge that the puppy CAN do without failing or presenting a danger to himself.
We encourage new puppy parents to enjoy each puppy for the precious individual s/he is, and to tease out the best qualities in that puppy, rather than holding the puppy up to an arbitrary yardstick and labeling him as a problem if s/he does not measure up. Many puppies are labeled as having behavior or temperament issues when they are simply being served an inappropriate experience for their developmental age. This can hobble the puppy for the rest of his/her life with an unjust label that will cause people to treat him/her in an unthoughtful manner. By letting the puppy ‘lead’, you avoid this and can enjoy your puppy for the wonderful individual that s/he is. So, simply take some time and calmy observe the puppy and see what learning experience s/he’s ready for. Identify what those experiences are and how to effectively serve them is a big part of the Puppy Culture Program.
Why is this so important?
Because things that are perfect in one developmental period could be useless or even detrimental in the next, and vice versa. Puppy Culture teaches the breeder to know where each puppy is developmentally, and what to do right now. Puppy Culture is a “positive”, reinforcement-based program and we do not use corrections or outmoded dominance theory. It’s really all about observing the puppy and serving him/her the learning experience s/he is asking for at that precise age and developmental stage.
So what do we actually do?
What the puppy is presented with each week depends on the age and the developmental markers we observe in the litter. Below are some examples of what the pups are exposed to while staying with us.
From birth and to the day they move, our puppies receive individual cuddling sessions, involving touching and stroking by the breeder, every day. When the pups are 3-16 days Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS) is conducted. This is a process that introduces mild ‘stresses’ to very young puppies in a controlled way. These stresses help stimulate the neurological system which improves the growth and development of the pup’s immune system, cardiovascular system, and stress tolerance. Read more about the science between (ENS click here). When the pups are 2-weeks old and their eyes open, a new object is introduced, every day. The first week the objects are tactile in different materials, since the pups are too young to interact with them.
When they are about 3-weeks old we introduce objects that move and make sounds. At 4-weeks the objects are of the nature that the pups can interact with them (carry or climb over). This teaches the puppies to respond well to novelties.
At about 3-weeks old, we do daily sound desensitizing with all kinds of sounds (horses, airplanes, babies, thunderstorms etc.,). In this critical (and quite short) timeframe between the time when the puppies can hear but haven’t yet developed a ‘fear response’, we simultaneously give them ‘startle and recovery’ training. As they grow older, we give them barriers to overcome, both in their everyday play area and also to overcome a ‘barrier’ reach their food or a reward. When they become interested in food, we “charge up the clicker” which means that we train the pups to associate the clicker with a reward. As soon as this training is in place, we begin different kinds of ‘target training’ which is entirely positive enforcement based. It’s unbelievable how quickly they work out what they need to do in order to get their reward. “Manding” means that the puppies sit still demanding attention or a treat, rather than jumping at us to get it. This behavior is rewarded every time and the puppies pick it up VERY easily. As a result of ‘manding’ training, when the puppy moves into his/her new home he’s often perceived as “polite” rather than pushy and unruly which helps their smooth interaction and adjustment with their new family.
We also work on shaping ‘positive conditioned emotional responses’ in situations when the puppy may otherwise feel pressured or uncomfortable. This ‘structured training’ helps the puppy associate something potentially negative IE unexpected handling or a human taking his toy or his food or his bone, with something very positive. As the puppy gets older, we also train basic ‘recall’ work, ‘down’ and ‘heel’ commands and also ‘show stack’ and start some nose work. The puppies are continuously crate trained, take car rides, and get to see a great deal of the world outside in order to get top notch socialization before they go to their new homes. Our puppies are ‘house-trained’ to use a litter box from 3-weeks of age. The success rate varies from time to time and puppy-to-puppy but our experience is that they DO learn the concept of using a litter box. These are just some of the things a Puppy Culture puppy has experienced while in our home. Needless to say, we want our puppy families to continue to work with their puppies in a similar fashion in order to allow the puppies to grow into the best versions of themselves – filled with self- confidence and a positive attitude.
Please visit us on Facebook to see videos of Puppy Culture Training with puppies. Most of these videos are either from the Puppy Culture company or with the permission of the Rex Ventors Kennel in Sweden.