I see a lot of posts of new community members embarking on their first raising of a Golden. To say it’s a great experience far under-expresses the absolute joy of it all, in spite of some of the frustrations involved.
After raising 3 Goldens, I just picked up our forth and am going into her 10th week on Friday and can tell you, even after 30 years of doing this there are always better, newer ways of doing this.
Thirty years, in no way, makes you an expert…not even close. Don’t go into anything in life, much less raising Golden’s, thinking that you know it all. I was reminded of that when after receiving an extensive, well documented and informative packet of Intro to Golden material from our breeder, that I was going to see a lot of information I was aware of and might gloss over the read since I had been doing this for a while. Sure, a lot of what I knew was in there, what I didn’t realize is that over the years I had forgotten much about the puppy experience since, in the grand scheme, it is a relatively short time in the process BUT…it is extraordinarily important. I read that packet front to back a couple of times and soon realized that it organizes and aligns your thinking going into the puppy experience properly. A lot of what I knew and quite a few new ideas came to light in an organized manner, which I’m once again incorporating in our day to day with our girl; Thank you Cynthia! I might say if you aren't fortunate to have these material handy, hit the bookstores, internet, live on this forum and just research the experience as much as possible!
One thing we always did with our puppies was to keep a in depth journal which detailed their day, wake ups, naps, pees, poops, playtime, special toys, training, weight etc. This quickly gives you a remarkably accurate idea of what to expect in your day to day with your puppy. I can predict, pretty much, how her day will go any day of the week which goes a long way in setting my schedule. Fortunately, being self-employed helps us in terms of flexibility but we too have time constraints. This journal is invaluable for housebreaking, is a great resource at your vet appointments and quite helpful for anyone that sits your puppy. The one thing, if anyone was to ask, that is the most important facet of this process is CONSISTENCY. Put your puppy on a schedule and stick to it. If you do anything, this is it IMHO. Puppies respond positively to predictability and structure. If you doubt it, look around at those who fly by the seat of their pants during this process and see how that turns out.
Another thing we do is to introduce our puppies to 200 people in the first 12 weeks as part of the socialization process. It helps with eliminating the mailman chase, climbing up on the toddler and offers a wonderful opportunity to use those new yet essential basic sit, stay, come, no, down commands.
Make your experience personal between you and your puppy, share the opportunity to go out into the word together every opportunity you get, carry that camera, keep the phone/camera charged and most of all have fun; your puppy will pick up on the vibe…trust me. If it seems like a lot, hang outside when your local church or school lets out or simply walk that irresistible puppy down Main Street. Take care not to overwhelm or crowd your puppy, and keep most at arms- length suggesting they take turns. This will pay dividends in a well-mannered, composed Golden and perhaps make you a few new friends.
You are in the best forum for any questions Golden related bar none, use it! I have seen the generosity this forum offers daily and look forward to it everyday and, if I haven’t said it before…thank you one and all!
In the meantime, enjoy your Happy Golden Days Everyone!!!
Ok before I start getting the Pic requests, here is a pic of our girl Desi (Dez)
If you haven't seen the facebook group "Life With Rune" you might enjoy looking over it. Susan has so many great, creative ideas on working with puppies and may have some suggestions you haven't thought of. She is such a thoughtful trainer, the group is so good.
