FAQs

I start my puppies with these exercises when they first come to me around 8 weeks.

Because these exercises are very low impact, making use of low, stable platforms on non-slippery floors, they are generally safe for puppies as young as 8 weeks.

As we introduce puppies to different equipments, I prefer to use bigger platforms to set my puppies up for success. Bigger platform = larger surface area = easier to “target”.

I gauge the size of the first platforms to be approximately twice the size of the puppy. As the puppy gains confident, I can switch to smaller platforms.

I prefer the platforms to be no higher than the puppy’s carpal (i.e., wrist) for safety reasons.

Every puppy is unique, so there is no hard and fast rule for how often you should do these exercises.

I usually do 2 - 3 exercises a day, for about 30s at a time. Puppies have a short attention span, and we want to keep our training sessions fun for everyone.

Every puppy is unique, so there is no hard and fast rule for how long each training session should be.

My rule of thumb is “keep it short and sweet.” I make sure to end the session before the puppy gets bored, frustrated, or tired.

For puppies 8-12 weeks, my training session is usually about 3-5 minutes total. It may look something like:

30s play

10s train

60s play

15s train

30s play

15s train

60s play

The goal of these exercises is to show the puppy that training is fun. We are exposing the puppy to all the different things they can do.

Therefore, I do not emphasize on the number of repetitions. When I first start, I take a handful of cookies, work on one exercise. When the cookies are gone, I am done with this exercise for this session.

Nope! Although some exercises build upon each other (e.g., front feet side stepping requires puppy knows front feet target first), the puppy does not have to master one exercise before moving on to the next.

In fact, I often do 2-3 different exercises in one training sessions to keep things interesting.