Imprinting Your Puppy to Play
The video above is a short clip I shot of Phender playing with a me and a broom one day while I was cleaning the yard. As it turns out Phender is really into the broom. I can’t say why exactly, but he loves to play with it. This for me is a huge plus. Having the ability to get my dog to play with me or something I can control, such as a broom or toy enables me to train him to do a variety of tasks and maintain a high level of motivation and intensity during his training sessions.
Phender is a Dutch Shepherd X German Shepherd puppy about 12 weeks old. He will grow and develop a lot over the coming months. At this point in his life though training is about having fun (phun). The more fun he has now, the easier it will be to teach new things later on in life.
The other advantages to playing with your puppy at an early age surround socialization. By playing with my puppy in and around new situations, objects, places and people allows me to desensitize him to anything that might potentially seem scary to him. This will allow him to grow up to be a confident and well adjusted adult.
