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Bringing a new puppy into your home is an exciting journey, and early training is key to raising a well-mannered, confident, and happy dog. Our Kindergarten Puppy Training program is designed to teach essential skills, prevent unwanted behaviors, and set your puppy up for success in family life.
In our fun and interactive puppy classes, we’ll guide you through effective training techniques to help your puppy develop positive behaviors and avoid common problems before they start.
We introduce your puppy to new people, sounds, and environments in a safe and structured way, reducing fear and anxiety as they grow.
Learn how to prevent jumping up on people and dogs by reinforcing calm and respectful greetings.
Puppies explore the world with their mouths! We’ll teach them what’s appropriate to chew on and how to play without nipping hands or furniture.
Get expert guidance on setting a reliable bathroom routine so your puppy quickly learns where and when to go toilet.
Avoid the frustration of puppy walking uncontrolled on the leash—our training ensures your puppy learns to walk calmly and under control setting the standard as they grow up.
Teach your puppy how to relax at home and in new environments, preventing restless or hyperactive behavior.
A strong recall is one of the most important skills your puppy can learn for safety and freedom—ensuring they come back when called, even with distractions.
Help your puppy feel comfortable and secure when left alone, reducing separation anxiety and destructive behavior. Your experienced Instructors will provide the right advice.
I just wanted to say thank you SO MUCH for all the wonderful training and tips you have given me and my dog Nitro.
You Basil and your trainer’s all deserve so much praise for the love and compassion you have for all of the dogs who come through your classes. Thanks again to Command Dog Training School for such a positive and rewarding experience. I will highly recommend this school to anyone who is Seeking to raise a happy and well behaved fur baby.
Mary Zarras
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This could be the start of Separation Anxiety which if not addressed during the pup’s “Imprinting Period” (between 8 – 16 weeks of age), may end with chronic Separation Anxiety for the rest of its life. Simple steps like changing your routine before you leave can help de-sensitise your pup.
Setting clear boundaries in your home and teaching your pup to stay on its bed for short periods and then giving it a ‘release’ command are great methods to minimise separation anxiety.
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This is most likely teething but also could be a sign the puppy is bored or showing dominant behaviour.
If this behaviour is not addressed during pup’s “Imprinting Period” (between 8 – 16 weeks of age), it will become a habit that will be hard to break. Further, some people don’t think puppy mouthing is that bad as it may only be light bites that don’t really hurt and allow the biting to continue. This is a very bad mistake.
As the puppy gets older its bites will become stronger and if allowed to develop past 16 weeks, can have drastic consequences with the pup biting harder and harder to get its way leading to dominant behaviour towards the family.
Enrol now in our 3-session Kindergarten Puppy Training program (cut-off is 14 weeks of age) so you can learn how to address these problems over a 3-week period.
These are just some of the many things you will learn during the course and set the seed of a good foundation for the rest of your pup’s life. End your frustration by booking now!
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These behaviours are usually caused by lack of effective communication, consistency by all family members, lack of Pack-Leadership by owners or a dominant pup exercising its unruliness. These behaviours need to be addressed before 16 weeks of age (Imprinting Period is between birth and 16 weeks of age) otherwise the behaviours will be so much harder to modify after.
Enrol now in our 3-session Kindergarten Puppy Training program (cut-off is 14 weeks of age) as we incorporate problem solving within the structure of the course. Problems like jumping up, attention seeking barking and destructive behaviour can be resolved right here and from the first session.
The program teaches your pup to listen to you the Pack Leader using simple but effective training methods. All you need to succeed is attend and practice a little at home each day. You will then end up with a well-adjusted puppy that will make you proud.
(cut-off is 14 weeks of age) as we incorporate problem solving within the structure of the course.
Did you know that if you start toilet training correctly from the moment your puppy arrives home, you can have it toilet trained within 3 – 5 days? Pups have a very week bladder and need to go to the toilet regularly and as often as every hour when they first arrive home. Therefore, it is so important that you give your pup every opportunity to go to the toilet but on its pads or outside. It is up to you the owner to ensure you and family members are vigilant in this otherwise your pup will imply find it owns spot. If this becomes a habit, it will be difficult to change.
Other things that affect a pup’s toileting is the environment it was bred in. If in that environment the pups were in a small enclosure with their bed, water and food in the same space, then they will have formed the habit of soiling in that space because of environment.
Enrol now in our 3-session Kindergarten Puppy Training program (cut-off is 14 weeks of age) and we will teach you from the first session methods to commence at home to change the current bad habits of soiling to good habits where the pup understands clearly where it should be going. Sometimes it’s a case of only employing one or two simple steps to achieve success. Over the course of three sessions your instructor will provide support and assistance. Further, our office is a phone call away for support between sessions. End your frustration by booking now!
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Provided customer can travel to any location for the make up
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We have many more testimonials spanning 20 years at our office if you wish to visit and review.
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A Plea To All Puppy Owners – benefits of starting puppy training as early as possible. By Basil Theofanides
I am compelled to write this and convey my despair, frustration and anger at the continuous misadvise that many puppy owners receive from so-called professionals in the pet industry. This includes some vets and many breeders who for some reason think that puppies should be isolated until their final vaccinations and never be allowed to venture out from their owner’s home until then. I’ll site a recent case-in point. A puppy owner booked her 8 week pup to start one of our Kindergarten Puppy Training programs. I outlined the benefits of starting as early as possible due to the critical periods of development (between 8 – 16 weeks of age ) to which she replied that although she was “very keen to start ASAP” the vet told her not to until after its final vaccination (anywhere between 12 – 16 weeks). I advised her that even though her pup was not fully immunised she needed to consider the detrimental impact isolation would have on it I.e. more than likely develop aggression, nervousness, fear, lack of ability to adapt to unfamiliar environments and so forth.
Do we isolate our children from society until they’ve had all their vaccinations and then send them out into the big wide world? I think not. Which is why we should acknowledge the absurdity of isolating pups. Anyway, the puppy owner seemed satisfied with my advice and confirmed her attendance. However, the next day she rang an hour before class commenced. Again voicing concern about the vaccination issue and that now her breeder advised strongly against taking pup to class. I reiterated my advice and also stated that more dogs die each year from euthanasia due to aggression than die from catching parvovirus. To my despair, unfortunately she decided to pull out of the puppy course. I see this situation repeating itself year in year out due to the many vets, breeders et al. who do not consider the importance of the mental development of puppies and strike fear into the hearts of puppy owners with their collective chorus of “do not take the puppy out until after all its vaccinations”! As far as I’m concerned they are partly culpable for the rise in dog attacks within our community, all of which, could have been avoided by using some basic common sense.
Hence, if you know anyone with a baby puppy urge them to enrol in puppy school by 10 weeks of age for the pup’s and community’s sake.
Basil Theofanides has been a professional dog trainer for 25 years and has worked with guide dog & police dog trainers.
This is a common problem in dogs, that in most cases can be simply fixed. Incessant barking can be a product of:
A dog that is bored.
An untrained dog.
An unexercised dog.
A dog suffering separation anxiety.
If your dog fits any or all of the first 3 categories, then the problem can usually be addressed in a fairly straightforward manner. If however, your dog is suffering separation anxiety, a more detailed approach needs to be undertaken to solve the problem.
A dog is usually bored if it is left in the back yard all the time with minimal contact of family members. Furthermore, boredom can be exacerbated by not walking the dog daily to stimulate it outside its home environment.
To aid in solving the problem, dog owners should ensure the dog is given daily walks and exercise. Bringing the dog inside the house to spend quality time with the family and training it in obedience, will aid considerably, to stop the barking behaviour.
For further details contact our Home Training Service on 03 9877 6522 during business hours.
When a dog jumps up on its owner, it is usually a greeting that has been allowed to develop over the years, unwittingly by the owner.
For example, if the dog has been allowed in the past to jump up for a pat or greeting, then this has imprinted as a normal behaviour pattern in the dog’s mind. Furthermore, if some members of the household encourage the behaviour yet others do not, it will confuse the dog to no end. If the dog does not effectively respond to commands by the owner, obedience training must also be considered to help solve the problem.
To aid in solving the jumping dog problem, never praise or give reward to the dog if it jumps. When you arrive home, ignore it. Do not immediately go out to greet it when it is hyped up. If it does jump, turn away and go inside. By doing so, the dog will learn that its companionship with you ceases, as a consequence of its actions. However, if the problem continues, seek the help of our qualified trainers through our Home Training Service.
Telephone our office on 03 9877 6522 during business hours.
Once again, this is a sign of a bored dog. As mentioned with the incessant barking problem, you need to ensure the dog is walked and exercised daily, obedience trained and allowed to spend time in the house with the owners. However, some dogs, such as Alaskan Malamutes, Siberian Huskies or Golden Retrievers, may dig a hole for themselves to lie in. This is a natural trait in some dogs, as it helps them to keep cool during the warm weather.
A little trick you might try in solving this problem, is to bury your dog’s faeces in the hole it digs. This, in most cases, will create an unpleasant association with the hole digging and hopefully cure the problem. Moreover, if the dog has a tendency to bury bones, ensure you remove the bone from the environment once the dog has stopped chewing it.
There are many ways to solve problem behaviour. However, because dog’s are diverse in character just as people, it is important to always consider your dog’s temperament before embarking on a course of remedial training. Command Dog Training School’s Instructors are able to assess this and advise you on the best methods to suit your pet.
If a problem seems insurmountable, ring Command Dog Training School and find out how our many services can help solve your problems.
Telephone our office on 03 9877 6522 for further information.
No Refunds under any circumstances. We will not refund any portion of fees under any circumstances including if you have a change‐of‐mind and/or return your dog to a shelter, breeder. However, we will provide you credit for any unused portion towards another course. We will not transfer any unused portion to private or home training sessions. If we must suspend classes, your course will resume at the same session (week) it was suspended on.
Bookings will not be held unless payment made prior to course commencement.
If you’re currently unsure of how to approach your need for puppy training, obedience classes or support towards a specific issue, please do not hesitate contact us on 03 9877 6522.
Alternatively, get started and ensure you get a spot in our next session by enrolling online now.
Abbotsford, Albert Park, Burwood East
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