I’d like to you keep in mind for the duration of our puppy class that your puppy has ‘puppy brain’. This may seem obvious, but let’s talk about it for a moment. How many weeks has your puppy been on the planet? On average it’ll be 20 weeks or less.
Holy COW! When we were babies, we couldn’t even crawl at this age and they’re already left their homes and families. They’re living with an alien species and learning that there are places you’re not supposed to pee.
That’s Amazing!
Talk about amazing! They’re adapting to life in a human household and they’re doing it without the benefit of frontal lobes. That’s the part of our brain that allows us understand concepts like ‘fast food’ and generalize similar things into categories like ‘chair’. We’ll get to more info on how puppies DO think in the Puppy Math article. For now, take my word for it, they’re amazing little creatures, and they deserve a lot of respect.
What Was That Middle Part Again?
As amazing as they are, they’re still just little tiny puppies and just barely out of their mother’s womb. Keep in mind that they’re doing the best they can, and they’ve got an awful lot to learn in a very short time. Don’t be surprised if all of a sudden they appear to have forgotten something you thought they knew.
I Forgot
It happens, they forget stuff because they’ve got a lot to learn and remember. He isn’t ‘blowing you off’ or being disobedient. If your puppy forgets something you taught him, it’s your job to remind him by going over his lessons again. Even when dogs are grown, they’ll occasionally appear to forget some things they’d previously learned. Don’t be concerned, it just happens.
Patience Is The Key
You’re going to be amazed at how quickly your puppy learns in puppy class, and he’ll learn even faster still if you keep in mind that “Puppy Brain” means:
- Your Puppy is a baby
- He’s adapting to an alien environment
- He doesn’t have frontal lobes and can’t generalize
- He is trying to please you, but he’s not very smart yet
- Making him smart is your job
Keeping these points in mind will ease your process by helping you to:
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Understand your puppy’s actions
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Stay calm in the face of occasional frustrations
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Give you the perspective to appreciate what amazing creatures they are.
Remember, we’ve been on the planet for more years than they’ve been here weeks or days, so the thinking and the understanding is up to us. We’ve got mental and size advantages over them (not to mention opposable thumbs) and we’re going to use those to our advantage, while we teach your puppy everything he needs to know.
Links to Puppy Class 101 articles
- Welcome to Puppy Class
- Vision The Dog Language
- Easy as 1, 2, 3
- Who’s the Big Dog?
- Doggie Sheriff
- Watching Your Every Move
- Doggie Math 1+1=1
- Time Out For Puppies