Raising a puppy can be a fun and rewarding experience. Unfortunately, too many puppies grow up to be misbehaved dogs because the owners let them get away with bad behavior as a puppy because it was ‘cute’. Or, they just didn’t know how to raise their puppy to be a well behaved adult dog. There are a few crucial things you need to do.

First of all, you shouldn’t never bring home a puppy that is younger than eight weeks. During the first eight week of their life, they go through many development periods that are crucial to their long term well being. Removing a puppy from its mother and littermates too early causes behavior problems down the road.

Second of all, start the process of housebreaking the puppy immediately. Don’t wait at all. Get things started right. Don’t let your puppy develop any bad habits in the beginning. If possible, teach them to go potty outdoors from the beginning too, rather than doing paper training.

Third, don’t allow play biting. This is a very common mistake, and one that owners will regret later. You should never let your puppy bite your hands or feet, even playfully. Not even underneath a blanket or other surface. You need to always use toys when playing.

Fourth, teach your puppy right from the beginning that you are the alpha dog. Also known as the ‘pack leader’. Even though dogs are domesticated, they still have natural instincts. They still expect to be part of a pack, and every pack needs a pack leader.

If you don’t show them you are the pack leader from the beginning, it can cause serious problems down the road when they begin to believe ‘they’ are the pack leader. If you’re unfamiliar with what any of this means, do an online search on the topic and read up on it. It’s very important to know and practice.

And last, but for sure not least, it’s very important to gradually and carefully expose your puppy to new and unfamiliar sounds, people, things, etc. These experiences should be positive ones. Carry some delicious treats along with you and make sure to provide a lot of enthusiastic praise.

I hope this article has given you some valuable insight on how to raise your puppy. Follow the advice provided and I know you’ll do a great job of raising a happy, well-behaved dog that will be a loyal companion for years.

Get more tips and tricks to train a dog at DogBehaviorExpert.com, where I provide information to solve all types of dog behavior problems.