Puppies have lots of energy. They are both curious and hesitant about their world. The best part about getting a puppy is that everything is new to him. If you introduce a ball to your puppy, it's the first time that he's experiencing a ball. Here is Loki being introduced to a ball for the very first time. As you can see, he doesn't quite understand what it is. It was so fascinating to observe his reaction. I also remember when Loki first encountered a speed bump on the pavement. He was rather wary of it, but soon learned that it was nothing to be concerned about. I suggest that you slowly introduce many things to your puppy. Get him or her accustomed to all sorts of things, toys, textures, environments, and types of flooring. Also, get him or her accustomed to all sorts of people, dogs, and other animals.
When Loki was a puppy, we played with him using a bunch of different dog toys. You can try some standard games like fetch, wrestling, and chase. Here are some other ideas based upon what we did with Loki. We used some string to play with him. We gave him a puppy kong (Kong Small Puppy Toy
). Sometimes it was filled with dry kibble. Sometimes we used peanut butter. Sometimes we used banana. When he was a little older, we gave him some puzzles to solve to work his mind. For instance, we put kibble in a water bottle and he had to figure out how to get it out. (Later we stopped using a plastic bottle, because he's end up chewing on it. And instead we got a Tug-a-Jug.) And we also had him try to figure out how to retrieve a toy ball on top of his exercise pen. Loki also really enjoyed unstuffing his stuffed toys. I personally don't care for this activity, because it doesn't take long before the toy is completely destroyed. And lastly, of course, all puppies love doing the Shiba 500, which is when they run around like crazy. This isn't something that you do. They just do it all on their own, whenever they feel like it.Puppies (as do all dogs) enjoy being outdoors. Take her on walks after she has received the necessary vaccinations. Let her explore the vast new world. Take her on hikes, to the beach, to the mountains, to park, to the lake, or to the busy city streets.
Life is about experiencing all that the world to offer. So be sure to offer those opportunities to your puppy.
2 comments:
Wow, thank you! This is a great help! I've heard of the Shiba 500 before...it is very famous after all!
I agree with all your suggestions. When my shiba was a puppy (now almost 3) she loved new experiences, even though she was a bit timid.
She loved to go for walks in new places (the new sounds! new smells! new textures!) and she really enjoyed the puppy obedience course we took together. She still loves training sessions and learning new tricks. The added bonuses were we had a chance to socialize her with other people and dogs when she was young and we learned techniques we still use to teach her new things.
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