Teach your puppy that good behaviour is not always rewarded with a treat. Of course, it is nice to give your puppy some dog treats but you should reward good behaviour with a variety of responses as well as treats. There will be times when you do not have treats to hand and you need to show your pet that they have behaved well; you do not want to over feed your puppy with dog treats.

With punishment, you must make sure that this is effective and not frightening to the puppy. Simply yelling loudly at the puppy will startle them and it may not necessarily correct their behaviour. You need to ensure that when you punish the puppy, you also correct their bad behaviour so that they associate the punishment with the crime.

Above all, you will want to enjoy the time when your puppy is small and cute but with some attempt at training in the first year of your puppy’s life, you will find that you and the new companion in your home can grow to live very happily together.

 into family life. With a crate, your puppy can learn to relax during times when you cannot supervise the dog. However, make sure the crate is not so big that the puppy decides to make part of it the bathroom!

Treats are essential to motivate your puppy and demonstrate your praise when your puppy behaves well. Combined with encouraging words, when your puppy has gone in the correct place, reward them with a treat to help train your dog as they will be highly motivated by food.

Using a lead and a collar in your home can be very useful when trying to train your puppy to use the toilet in a specific spot. This will enable you to keep the puppy within your control when you sense that they are looking to go to the toilet e.g. sniffing the floor or pacing around, and you can lead the puppy to the designated spot. 

Lastly, invest in some cleaning products. With the best will in the world, your puppy will make mistakes and you will need to be prepared.

One of the ways that you should avoid training your puppy is through punishment. Remember the dog is only young and your pet will not necessarily equate a punishment with the action that they have just done. Particularly if you find dog mess on the floor that you did not see the puppy make, it may not necessarily understand that a clip on the nose is as a result of their mistake. Follow the ’10 second rule’ – if you don’t respond within 10 seconds, then it’s too late; leave it.

A better way to train a puppy is through rewards either by spending time together, affection or with good old fashioned doggy treats. Of course, your dog may be naughty sometimes and you may feel like you should give a response but withholding treats or attention from your puppy when they have been naughty compared to the attention or treats you give when they are good, should be enough to demonstrate to your dog the kind of behaviour that you expect.

Whatever way you choose, it will take a lot of time, patience and self discipline to keep going with your training regime when your new little friend is running rings around you in your home. The time and effort will all pay off though when you are rewarded with a very special relationship with your dog as he or she grows up.

During the day, your puppy will probably be surrounded by a constant stream of companions looking to play with and pet the puppy but during the night, it can be a challenge to leave your puppy alone and get them to sleep. Your puppy will be looking for constant affection as well as having a seemingly boundless energy, which means he is always ready to play – until he’s worn out of course.

Try to make sure that there is a clear difference between day and night for the puppy, with lots of exercise and play in the day and clear guidance that it is time to settle at night time. If you keep your puppy active throughout the day and try to avoid him catching too much sleep after his feeds then he will be exhausted by the evening and ready to sleep at night.

Lead the puppy outside in the evening to encourage him to go to the toilet and avoid any waking during the night. Most of all, as puppies love to be praised, make it clear to your puppy that when he goes to bed in the evening, he is being a good boy.

One of the first commands that you should teach your puppy is to sit. If your dog is sitting, they are a lot more attentive than when running around. If your dog is taught to sit, you will be able to easily put the collar on when it is time for a walk or if you need to groom him; teaching them to sit will be invaluable. Not to mention when visitors come, if you can command your dog to sit, then your visitors can greet your dog themselves rather than having an enthusiastic pet throwing itself at them for attention, which many find offputting.

Teaching your puppy to sit will take a lot of perseverance and in the first instance, it can be an idea to put your puppy on a lead in order to stop him walking off. Use treats and put the treat above the puppy’s head so that they follow the treat whilst you place the puppy’s bottom into a sitting position. Repeat this several times until the puppy understands that you want him to assume the sitting position to get the treat. Then introduce the word sit as you give him the treat at the precise moment that he sits down so the puppy associates this sitting action with the word.

Dogs are abandoned for many reasons. For example, greyhound dogs who have been bred for racing are often discarded as they grow older, cannot run as fast and are no longer profitable. Animals with disabilities can also be abandoned as owners do not want to pay out to keep them healthy. These dogs end up at rescue centres if they are lucky but even so, the rescue shelter can only do so much to give the dog a home he deserves as they can often be inundated unfortunately with abandoned dogs. Other dogs are just abandoned because the owner cannot afford their upkeep any more or just don’t want them.

Rescue shelters work to try to ensure that abandoned dogs are rehabilitated and suitable for being re-adopted by good homes. Sadly sometimes, depending on health or behavioural problems, some abandoned dogs are not suitable to be re-homed – but there are many others who just need some care and attention and they will be a great addition to your family.

Make sure there is a quiet space for your puppy to retreat to when they want to be quiet, whether it’s a basket or a dog cage. When they are in this space, ensure the whole family understands not to disturb the puppy. Some people use a cage for this reason, not to confine the animal, but to give their pet somewhere to go when they are tired of the attention. Children in particular may struggle to understand that the puppy does not always want to play and you will need to be vigilant to ensure they give the puppy some space. Puppies can nip and snap when they feel threatened or scared and so you will need to give the puppy some alone time to keep the situation calm.

Of course, your puppy will still spend plenty of their time being playful and it is always better to use this playful time to try to teach your puppy the right way to behave, rather than having to use punishment to control them.

Teaching your puppy his name and therefore practicing how you grab his attention can take some time, so you will need to persevere. When you bring your puppy home, several times a day you need to take a few minutes to teach the puppy his name. Using toys and treats, you can attract your puppy’s attention and then call his name. As he looks up at you as you say his name, reward him. Always reward the puppy when he looks at you. By repeating this over and over again, the puppy will gradually learn that the sound you make as you say his name. This is his cue to look at you and give you his attention.

At first, you may need to experiment with what toys and treats grab your puppy’s attention best. You may need to put your puppy loosely on a lead whilst you train him to avoid the puppy running off to explore another part of the room.

At the same time as rewarding the puppy with a toy or a treat, make sure you praise him too. As time goes on and your puppy progresses, you will be able to use your praise as the reward for his attention when you call his name rather than a treat every time.

If you buy a pedigree dog, regardless of whether you plan to breed your dog or compete in dog shows, a responsible breeder should have the appropriate documents and pedigree information for your puppy. A good dog breeder should also provide you with a full history on the medical health of the puppy including the shots that they have had and any other procedures such as routine worming.

You should always visit the breeder and see where the puppies have been raised. Your puppy should be in a clean environment with good food and water – and look out for signs that the breeder has too many dogs with multiple litters or any signs of neglect. If a breeder will not let you visit, then ensure that their reason sounds valid. A breeder should allow you to see the puppies in their home but they may refuse in the first instance if the puppies are considered too young.

Finally, if the breeder is responsible, then you should expect a grilling from them before you buy a puppy. A good dog breeder will want to know that the puppies are going to a good home with proper care and so if you get an easy ride, this should raise questions over the kind of breeder they are.

Of course, you will not be able to spend every waking hour with your pet but you should consider how many hours you will be in the home or as a companion with your pet. If you are single, living a busy working lifestyle, do you want to be tied to a pet that needs lengthy walks or a sociable creature that will get very bored or destructive in your home if left alone for hours on end? Remember that dogs can live a very long life and so you must consider your situation now and what it might be in the future.

Although a dog will be happy to live wherever you are it is only fair to consider the size of your home when buying a puppy. All puppies will grow but some much more than others and for some breeds a garden is a necessity to allow your dog some space to roam when you cannot take your pet for a walk.