Pup School Suffolk

15/11/2024

Speed demon - slow down! 🤣

15/11/2024

Putting it all together - with your liability of a handler! 🖤🩷

15/11/2024

Oh Danny you're amazing - learning your threadle wrap! 🩷🖤

15/11/2024

The puppieshad some brilliant socialisation again today. Where am I? If you know, you know! 🩷🖤

15/11/2024

❤️❤️❤️

Do you know a special pet who deserves a pampering? Nominate them for a FREE GROOM today!
This Christmas we want to give away a free grooming session and we need your help. If you know someone with a special pet, someone who is struggling, someone who spends all their time and energy on others, or someone who just needs a little extra help, then you can nominate them and their pet for a free groom! We take all kinds and sizes of dog, and are one-to-one groomers meaning that reactive or nervous dogs need not worry about other dogs in the salon with them.
Nominate yourself or someone else by sending us a PM, telling us why you think this person and their pet deserves a free groom. Nominations close on Thursday 28th November and we'll choose a winner on Friday 29th November so you only have two weeks to get your nomination in!

14/11/2024

Littermates/ sibling puppies

Tip number 2

Having two (or more?!) puppies at the same time - or a young dog under 2 and a puppy - has many positives but also some negatives! One of the negatives is over the top, continual play which can sometimes drift into fighting, particularly as the puppies get older. How do we deal with this without tearing our hair out multiple times per day?!

Firstly, check if it really is over the top play. Sometimes just a few minutes of loud play can feel too much but it isn't fair for the puppies to be separated constantly. Play can be allowed and encouraged in some places - the garden is ideal but not easy when it's pouring with rain. Look at adapting other areas temporarily - a garage or barn with loads of toys is a good place for puppies to have playtime. Other areas, the sitting room for example, might not be great.

Ensure puppies are getting rest time. Make sure puppies can be separated from very early on, always give them a lovely new chew, Kong, snuffle mat etc so separation is fun, not punishment. Make sure they are separated several times a day, for training, walks, play and rest times. Overly tired puppies are more likely to be tetchy with each other - just like children!

Train a settle - this is an excellent way to train space, self control, calmness and stillness. Initially train a settle separately and then introduce a settle near to each other - brilliant for self control and calmness. Also work on impulse control - again promoting self control and calmness.

Finally, for those moments of madness when things just become way too much, teach a positive interrupter. Rather than shout at your puppies - which may frighten some puppies and make others even more excited, and quickly becomes ignored anyway, teach a word that means - stop and you'll get the best treats/fun ever! A great way to stop puppies in their tracks and get them to immediately focus on their owner.

With these techniques and training you and the puppies can enjoy the fun and playing rather than hate it. Enjoy!

14/11/2024

Super socialisation yesterday and brilliant training today with Prim and Flora - somehow only managed to take photos of Flora - I'll take some of you next time Prim 🧡💛

08/11/2024

Flora and Primrose had a lovely time at 4 Paws Fun Dog Training - Diss socialisation session. They loved climbing into boxes, ball pits, pools of 'stuff', bubble wrap, raised beds, platforms and lots of other things in search of lovely treats! This might seem easy if you've got a labrador or a spaniel but for a sensitive rough collie this is brilliant. I also love the collaboration between Tina Williams and Pup School Suffolk - we're all better if we work together! Book your puppies in for socialisation AND training - you'll never regret it!

01/11/2024

A lovely bit of settle practice with Flora and mum Baby at Framlingham Castle cafe today. What a well behaved puppy at only 16 weeks old. Very much helped by rewarding with the cafes duck dog treats which they both loved! As you can imagine we didn't get very far around the castle without having to stop for people to say hi - great socialisation training for Flora. 🐾🐾🐾

01/11/2024

Littermate syndrome

Anyone that has 2 puppies (or is thinking of getting 2 puppies) will probably have heard the term 'littermate syndrome'. The first thing to say is this is not a researched syndrome - more term used for puppies, generally siblings, that become hyper attached to each other at the detriment of their individual (and often joint) relationship with their owners. Pairs of puppies are more likely to end up in rescue - one of both - and less likely to receive good training to make them well rounded companions.

However, the good news is this can all be avoided and littermates can be a positive rather than a curse - it just takes a little (well maybe a lot!) of additional work for their owners.

Firstly, you need to allocate time EVERY DAY for separate training, play and - preferably - walks or socialisation. Not hours, just minutes but every day. My 2 get separate training for no more than 2 or 3 minutes each, 2 or 3 times a day.

Secondly, you need to allocate separate trips out for individual social time away from their sibling. If you are already getting separation anxiety (more common with siblings) you may have to leave someone at home with one of the puppies while you take the other puppy out. Visits for socialisation, walks, training classes etc are all excellent ideas - this needs to be regularly - weekly or twice a week if possible. I tok Flora on a socialisation visit to a castle with mum Baby to help with confidence and left Primrose at home - next time will be Prim's turn!

This all helps to build strong relationships with the owners INDIVIDUALLY and produces well rounded, social puppies that can cope without their sibling.

There are huge benefits to 2 puppies but also big drawbacks - we'll look at adolescent fighting and bickering later on!

Enjoy your puppy/ puppies!

31/10/2024

Speed demon! 🐾🐾🐾

28/10/2024

HUGE congratulations to Sonia and Tilly on their Ace score at talking dogs rally online - massive well done!

❤️🐾❤️🐾❤️🐾

28/10/2024

I'm Baby's fan club!

Bald Baby no coat - straight after having her puppies with absolutely no training for about 5 months - comes straight back in at level 2 talking dogs online rally and gets a top Ace score of 204.

She's an absolute pleasure to work with! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

28/10/2024

Danny seems to have gained his own little fan club!

For his fans - he had a great weekend. 1st place in post graduate at Midland Counties championship show (his 4th consecutive 1st in post graduate)

Then we received his score for his latest online talking dogs rally - where he got an Ace score of 207.

Little ⭐️

23/10/2024

WE'RE GETTING THERE!!!!

For those of you that think your dogs aren't making progress quickly enough or that training should be something that you do a few times and your dogs just get it - IT DOESN'T WORK LIKE THAT! 🤣
I started weave training with Danny over a year ago - it wasn't going well so we changed methods and then we changed methods again, we bought new equipment and then we changed again! I've been doing short daily 5 - 10 minutes sessions since April in a bid to try to get this in the bag - that's 6 months...6 MONTHS!!! Someone, kindly, told me it takes 12 days to train 12 weaves - not with Danny!
Finally, over the last few days/weeks I really feel like we're getting there. Not ready for shows yet. Not proofed. And we've only got left weaves at the moment. BUT. IT'S GETTING CLOSE. One month (or year!) soon we'll have weaves and I'll be a happy trainer/owner/pumi lover! 🤣🤣🤣

12/10/2024

How has he even made it to 2 years old?!

Happy birthday Danny - the most annoying, noisy, jumpy but also the most clever, talented, fun dog that I've ever owned. He completely stepped up to the mark both with demoing in classes and working with reactive dogs while Baby was on maternity leave. Basically much as I moan about him I don't know what I'd do without him!

Have a lovely day doing what you do best Danny - training! 🖤🐾❤️🐾💛🐾

10/10/2024

The puppies gatecrashed Freddie's scentwork class today with 4 Paws Fun Dog Training - Diss and had a wonderful time - they're so full of confidence and mischief! 💛🧡

06/10/2024

Flora and Primrose had a lovely time socialising at Norfolk Autumn agility show today - they practiced some training near the rings and had a lovely time 💛🐾🧡🐾