Puppy Pre-School - School of thoughts

Starlight8 on 03/04/2018 - 11:29

To all the Furrypaw lovers,

I was wondering what your take on Puppy preschool is…

I've read a few school of thoughts:

  1. Don't let your 9 week old pup socialise with other pups until its much older (sounds like confinement to me) otherwise it can catch diseases etc

  2. Puppy preschool is from 8 weeks to 15 weeks (will my pup catch diseases if he socialise with other pups who are of similar age groups?)

What are your thoughts? Would you send your puppy to preschool?

Thanks :)

Noted - dog school will only accept your dog if its desxed (therefore 6 months onwards)

Pets

Comments

  • 87percent on 03/04/2018 - 11:37
    +1

    I've done it with both of my 2 dogs, but it was more of a socialisation thing than the puppy learning stuff. It was run by the local vet and each class (went for 4 weeks) had about 5-6 puppies.

  • teacherer on 03/04/2018 - 11:45
    +2

    Diseases. All pups need their vaccinations up to date to go so that should help

  • teacherer on 03/04/2018 - 11:46
    +4

    Definitely go to puppy preschool to socialise them.
    They can't go in public on the ground etc till over 3 months which is pretty late to see their first other dog

    • [Deactivated] on 03/04/2018 - 11:53

      which is pretty late to see their first other dog

      But didn't they spend their first 8 weeks playing with similar looking puppies?

      • teacherer on 03/04/2018 - 11:53

        Didn't they?

        • Starlight8 on 03/04/2018 - 12:03

          Yeh he has brothers/sisters :)

          Just not other dogs/breeds

    • Starlight8 on 03/04/2018 - 12:03

      It should be fine for me to walk my pup around the block for exercise at 9 weeks old? But i will avoid other dogs ..

      • teacherer on 03/04/2018 - 12:19

        Nope. Have a google.
        If a dog that has had parvo or corona virus or something has walked on that ground in the last 7 years you have a dead dog.

  • BuyoTheCat on 03/04/2018 - 11:52
    +2

    I have accompanied my friend's dog to a puppy school done conducted by a dog trainer. At their class, It isnt just about letting the pups socialise. They teach the humans basic handling of dogs, understanding dogs and how to enforce basic behavior.

    • burtie on 03/04/2018 - 19:48

      Definitely agree with the above. I took my beagle to puppy school at the local vet and it was a complete and utter waste of time and money (he is now 9 years old). They said it was just about socialisation. I learnt nothing. The dog learnt nothing.
      When he was older, I ended up taking him to a “manners” course run by a proper dog trainer and we both learnt so much. Her puppy school classes go above and beyond what we did. Definitely go along but find a great dog trainer based upon recommendations.

  • Nugs on 03/04/2018 - 12:33

    "obedience training" is all but necessary.

    6 months and you should have 'decent' control over your dog for it's life.

    .

  • garffi on 03/04/2018 - 13:29

    Good for socialising and that's about it. Didn't learn any new tricks in puppy school as I've already taught mine beforehand.
    My local petstock had free puppy pre-school so I just joined that. Got some freebies at the end which was a bonus.
    I don't think my class was conducted by a professional trainer so your experience may vary.

  • singlemalt72 on 03/04/2018 - 14:14
    +1

    A good puppy preschool is not just about socialising pups (though this is important) it should really be a "Puppy owner preschool" as much as you are getting your pup socialised and learning some basic commands it should be as much about teaching you about how a dog learns so that you can correct behaviours of your own that are not helpful to your pup and enhance those behaviours that are beneficial.

    • tallkid123 on 06/04/2018 - 14:26

      I had my shih-tzu in puppy school in November last year and then additional training completed last month.

      A good puppy preschool class should only consist of 6 puppies max. Smaller classes are better as each dog's behaviour can be assessed more closely and focused on. It also should be concentrated on learning the right behaviours in your dog (and for yourself) and not just be a social party the whole time for everyone involved.

      I personally felt a little stressed from my classes as I got caught up trying to remember and implement what I had learnt with my puppy. Even playtime at the end was supervised and assessed between the pups. Basically, observe behaviour of both dogs and pair your dog with another dog of similar temperament and build. My shih-tzu for example did not fare well rolling around with a Beagle puppy.

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