Dog Training Supplies - Getting a "Lead" on Good Behavior

If you've decided to get the family a pooch, and have already stocked up with food, dishes, and other goodies, don't neglect to also lay in a few dog training supplies. Obedience is something that can be taught right from the time your new puppy comes home, although he/she won't be eligible for formal classes until after their last vaccination.

Most municipalities have leash laws, which makes leash training your dog, a real necessity for when they need to go out, or you want to keep them exercised by walking. So your first purchases are going to be a collar and lead. If you are planning on formal obedience classes, or even if you plan to train the puppy yourself, it's a wise move to buy a second set, to be used solely for training. Dogs become used to repetition, and will recognize the difference between a leash and collar used for fun times, and the ones used for "work".

Young puppies should never be fitted with a choke collar, as they can too easily damage an immature skeletal structure. Choose a leather or nylon collar, by first measuring the dog's neck behind the angle of the jaw, and up around behind the base of the ears. Before drawing the measuring tape just to the point of meeting, place two fingers flat against the neck.

Take the tape measure with you to the store, as many collar makers measure in different ways, from buckle to tip, or end of collar to middle of a hole. And remember- you may be puppy training now, but that puppy is going to grow. Make sure the collar has two holes left over after the right fit. Longer collars will end up getting chewed as the puppy finds something tickling his throat.

Select a four-foot lead to start out with, either in nylon or leather. As your dog grows, and perhaps becomes rambunctious, you may want to re-consider some of the flat nylon leashes that can burn the hands when they are yanked through them.

While you practice your dog training over the next weeks, check the fit of their collar often. With a puppy's rapid growth, then can become too tight, before you know it.

Puppy training can occasionally be frustrating, especially when your new companion appears to be as deaf as your teenagers. But a little persistence, and positive reinforcement of even the smallest accomplishments, will have you headed in the right direction for a well-trained pet.

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