Deciding on Your Pup
The idea of raising a new pup by yourself may be frustrating. You need a puppy that will fit  perfectly with your life style. Your life in Tolland, Connecticut possible is stressful, you may have a full-time schedule, maybe you’re raising a young family, you like to travel or you’ve just retired. Peace of Mind Puppy provide s a stress free experience to add in that  awesome dog to your life.

The Program Begins With a Assessment
We know it’s essential that you know who you will be dealing with. Building a rapport is very important to our team in Tolland, Connecticut. Our talk starts with straightforward questions and leads into an in depth conversation, which will give us a clearer idea of who you are and what your dream dog might be. We would like to have a wonderful working partnership with you. It starts the journey to decide on, teach and raise your pup.

Picking The Perfect Breed For Your Household
Once you have decided you want to include that amazing dog to your life in Tolland, Connecticut. You have your heart set on a specific breed or maybe you want one of our pups that are currently in our puppy raising program. There certainly are things to take into consideration including where you live, maybe you work full time, are raising a young family, you you may love to travel or maybe you have recently retired. This information will not reduce your choices, but instead help shed light on your life-style in Tolland, CT. We help guide you in your decision making process. As we learn more about you, we can certainly assist you pick what you want and which puppy will best match your life-style.

Selecting The Right Breeder in Tolland, Connecticut
We coordinate with responsible breeders who are truly interested in improving their breed with good health and excellent temperament of their puppies. The first eight weeks of a new puppy’s life are as important as to what comes after. A excellent breeder understands this and helps get the puppy off to a great start.

We have developed a relationship with many outstanding breeders. We particularly find breeders who recognize the early part they play in a puppies life. They know when one of their pups grows through our program, it ensures the puppy will end up having a wonderful life.  It is incredibly important to work carefully with the breeder. We rely on the breeder’s input in addition to our years of knowledge to pick the puppy with the best temperament for the potential new family.

Your Puppy‘s Training in Tolland, Connecticut
Training your pup is a combo of teaching new skills including manners, setting boundaries, fostering healthy relationships, together with exposing your puppy successfully to people, other dogs and desensitizing him or her to all different types of environments.For example, we may have the pup stay overnight with various people in different settings; which creates a dog for you who is comfortable and easy to live with because he or she can easily adapt|adjusts} to your lifestyle. As a result of this and exposures to other factors your dog readily bonds with you and your family.

Imprinting Good Behavior ~Birth to 16 Weeks
Getting your puppy from the breeder

Training starts the minute a new puppy is in our care in Tolland, Connecticut. Once we select the puppy from the litter, the first thing we would like to achieve is building confidence and a bond with this new puppy. We begin our relationship having fun while always teaching. Under our close guidance, we start exposing the pup to its new world. For example, getting him or her to follow us, go up and down stairs, walk over logs, and maybe even get relatively near to loud noises. By doing this, we are environmentally socializing your dog to the world while boosting our bond. We are huge dog lovers, yet remarkably aware in those moments it is essential to focus more on being a leader and guide as the new puppy discovers this new world without having the presence of its litter mates or mom.

Most important time for learning
During the first few weeks we are teaching your new puppy boundaries, trust and focus. There is no limitation as to what we will integrate into our methods. Often we take advantage of specific spots or objects to create an experience for the puppy. At times a spur of the moment opportunity may present itself in Tolland, Connecticut. Our decisions and creativity are unlimited. Every exposure and experience builds upon the previous one. Through all of this, we thoroughly monitor the puppy. We do not limit ourselves to rigid rules. We try to get more creative, think outside the box, and make the most of events that manifest before us. Those opportunities are priceless when it comes to teaching the pup.

Every interaction with the new pup is a teaching moment. We like to consider it as an early investment in the life of this dog. This is the first time away from his or her littermates and staying with us in Tolland, Connecticut. Puppies have a small window of time during brain development when they are most impressionable. This is called the imprinting also known as the critical learning period. Puppies learn more during this period than any other period of time in their lives. The quality and quantity of what they encounter will have a significant impact on their future personalities and determine a number of their “good” or “bad” behavior tendencies. During the imprinting period, every experience is vital. It is essential to build their confidence. The phrase ‘don’t sweat the small stuff’ does not apply to their early interactions. Because puppies are absorbing every experience like a sponge, we must stay very aware of all interactions and yet still have fun with our new pup.

A Well-Mannered Pal
4 to 6 months 

A trained puppy is much more than just obedient. Knowing how to sit, stay or walk nicely on a loose leash are important things to learn. Good manners, great social skills and a healthy relationship with his or her family are extremely important. Furthermore, desensitization, exposure to various distractions and situations, in addition to being comfortable to fit into a lifestyle in Tolland, CT  is equally important.

Our focus is to create a puppy with remarkable manners and social skills. We begin by teaching obedience the day we bring them home from the breeder; which continues as we improve the dog’s behavior. The goal is to have a stable foundation by about 4 to 6 months. We practice obedience, making it a normal request in our regular routine as well as within each new situation we expose your dog to. We go from shaping to formalizing commands and testing them with distractions, duration and distance. Communication is at the center of our philosophy. Being very clear and consistent is key. We limit our words when giving commands. We want your dog to understand what we want when we give them the command. When we say ‘come’ or ‘here’ we expect 100% response immediately.

Proofing Behavior in a Social World in Tolland, CT
6 months to young adult

Enter the teenage years– adolescence. This is the typical age when many dogs are re-homed or given up to shelters. The adolescent stage can find your sweet pup turning into a monster. That nice puppy can be more mouthy and disobedient than you could ever think of. Many owners hope their canine will outgrow unfavorable behaviors. Their dog is testing what is allowed and what is not. Allowing a dog to continue rehearsing naughty acts makes changing unwanted behavior more challenging.

Working in the Real World in Tolland, Connecticut
We work to prevent any unwanted behavior by instilling boundaries and practicing obedience in high distraction areas. For instance, we practice recalls when your dog is highly distracted maybe chasing something as common as a squirrel. We test and proof obedience in high traffic locations, around barking dogs, near playgrounds and within public places.

As the puppy moves through the adolescent stage we continue to challenge the dog by putting it in various situations. We consider each situation as a picture. How does that look like to the puppy? How does that picture change from day to day or location to location. We are working to teach a dog how to cope in each new and various setting or scenario. We are raising a dog that isn’t dependent on continuous commands that dictate what he or she should and should not do. In fact, we prefer a dog that can make good decisions. Our top goal is to have a well-balanced puppy, who will be comfortable your home.

We continue to strengthen and refine good manners making good behavior a habit for the dog. During this time, the dog has been staying with the dog trainer in their personal home. During this time, your dog will also spend a few days and nights hanging out with another relative or friend. Giving this opportunity, encourages your dog to continue to be confident and comfortable in new environments. This ensures those habits and good manners will stay when he moves on to your home in Tolland, CT.