Adventures With Makai: Our Puppy Training Journey

It’s been almost two months now with Makai! He’s about 4 ½ months old, his adult teeth are coming in, and he’s already bigger than Roxi! He’s settling into the family nicely after the rocky first few weeks we had. We’ve made a lot of progress with puppy training through positive reinforcement training techniques and it’s been so fun watching him learn and grow.

Since he’s so young, there’s lots of training that we’ve been working on like potty training, managing the puppy biting, teaching him his name and of course we’re doing lots of bonding! Believe it or not though, even though I’m a certified dog trainer, I’ve done very little obedience training with Makai so far. It’s just not at the top of the priorities list right now. Obedience training can come at any age, but time is of the essence to get him the life experiences he needs to help shape him into a friendly, safe, well-rounded dog. So, what am I focusing on? Based on his age, his development level and his individual personality, here’s where I’ve been concentrating most of my attention…

Teaching My Puppy That the World Is Safe

I want what most people want- a dog who’s friendly, easy-going and adaptable. One that I can enjoy walks with, take to dog-friendly restaurants and events, and who greets family and friends calmly, without any barking, growling or lunging. As a positive reinforcement dog trainer who’s studied puppy development, I know that one of the best ways to get an easy-going adult dog is with proper socialization in early puppyhood. Good socialization teaches puppies that the world is safe, so they grow up more confident and resilient, and less likely to exhibit fear or aggressive behaviors. That’s why one of the biggest chunks of our training time has been focused on this critical topic.

Makai people watching in the beach parking lot

Since we didn’t get Makai until he was roughly 11 weeks old, we’ve been in a time crunch. Puppies go through a critical socialization period between about 3 weeks and 12-16 weeks of age. This is the time that they’re most accepting of novel things. If they have pleasant experiences during this time window, they’re more likely to be accepting and comfortable around new things as an adult. If they have negative experiences, they may develop long-lasting fears. So, we’ve focused on giving Makai at least one socialization experience each day to maximize the time we have left in this developmental stage.

This might sound daunting, but socialization doesn’t have to be complicated! There’s a misconception that socialization involves having your puppy meet a bunch of dogs and people but that’s not completely accurate. It’s about allowing your puppy to experience a variety of novel stimuli, including sounds, smells, and objects, along with unfamiliar people and animals, in a positive way. Makai’s socialization has included letting him see and hear objects like the vacuum, blender and lawn mower. We’ve sat outside to watch cars and people pass by. He’s walked on different surfaces including grass, gravel, sand and concrete. He’s met people of all ages and ethnicities and played with other well socialized dogs.

On busy days when we don’t have much time, socialization has been as simple as hanging out on the deck when our neighbor mows their grass so Makai can smell and listen to what’s going on, taking a walk down the driveway to the mailbox together, or going for a drive through the Dunkin’ drive thru. When we have more time in our day, we’ve taken Makai to parks, pet stores, dog friendly restaurants and beaches. We’ve spent time sitting in busy parking lots, observing the hustle and bustle as people come and go, and spent extra time after vet visits sniffing and exploring outside of the building.

Makai watching a garbage truck in the neighborhood

The most important thing about doing socialization right is not necessarily what your dog experiences, but how they experience it. Makai has shown some fearful behavior towards loud sounds (especially dogs barking) and some unfamiliar people. So, we’ve been very careful not to overwhelm him or put him in situations that would scare him, as this would only make things worse. Instead, we’ve done a lot of people watching from a distance Makai feels safe from. I’ve been pairing loud sounds with high value food he loves, like wet dog food and chicken, to help him form a positive association (known as classical conditioning). Makai is much more confident when Roxi is around, so the four of us have been going on walks and field trips together to help him feel more secure. Thanks, Rox, for helping your little brother build his confidence!

I know that no matter what I do though, some of it’s out of my control. No matter how carefully I socialize Makai, no matter how diligent I am to make sure he gets only positive experiences, I can’t fully control the dog he develops into. Contrary to popular belief it’s not “all in how you raise them.” Genetics are a factor in personality and temperament, as are the early life experiences that Makai had before we got him. Since I can’t change either of those two things, I’m focusing on what I can control with fun, positive and safe socialization experiences.

Teaching My Puppy That Alone Time Is Safe

Makai, relaxing in his crate

This one has definitely been our biggest struggle so far. My little guy is not a fan of being alone. On his first night with us, he jumped over the fence of his playpen and chose to sleep on my husband’s head instead of in his dog bed. On night two, it took a lot of consoling for him to fall asleep, and we both woke up very exhausted. This wasn’t surprising to me given his age and history. He was a very young puppy who had spent his entire life in two different shelters without much security or structure. I knew it would take time for him to adjust, as it does for most dogs, and I was confident that with some time, his sleep habits would improve.

I was right. Within a few weeks, Makai began comfortably sleeping through the night in his crate in our bedroom without a fuss. Daytime has been a different story, however. It’s clear that Makai is afraid of being alone. For the first few weeks if we tried to put him in his crate or playpen and walk into the other room, Makai would begin to vocalize and get anxious almost immediately. Again, this isn’t uncommon for young puppies, so I was hopeful that with time, he’d adjust to this too, but this time, we didn’t have such good luck. He’s certainly improved but we haven’t been able to leave him alone at home at all without Makai becoming distressed. So we’ve moved on to plan B.

I’ve now implemented a desensitization training plan for Makai, very similar to the training I do with my separation anxiety training clients. We’ve worked on very gradually building up the time Makai can comfortably be alone for, and we’re seeing a lot more success now! Makai is learning to relax in his crate when we’re in another room, as well as when we leave the house. I’m excited with where we’re headed and look forward to updating you on our journey soon.

Fostering Healthy Play Between Makai and Roxi

If you’re wondering who Makai’s favorite family member is, it’s definitely Roxi! He absolutely adores his “big” sister. Makai is easily going to tower over Roxi when he’s full grown, so I want to make sure both dogs are safe and enjoy each other’s company for many years.

Makai and Roxi

At first, Roxi was a bit unsure of what to make of her new brother, so we supervised very closely, gave her plenty of alone time away from Makai and plenty of chances to opt-out of interactions (we still do and will always continue to do this for the rest of their lives!). The first week was full of a lot of stiff body language and very clear “no’s” from Roxi. She spent a lot of time up on the furniture or upstairs where Makai couldn’t reach her. She was clearly overwhelmed with this new creature running around. Being a puppy, Makai didn’t understand boundaries, but soon, he began to learn to read Roxi’s cues and started politely asking her to play with him (instead of barreling into her) by lying down, play bowing, sniffing the floor, backing off when Roxi turned away and offering appeasement licking. This began to pique Roxi’s interest and by the end of the first week she played with Makai for the first time!

In the grand scheme of things, it really didn’t take Roxi much time at all to warm up to Makai, but I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t worried during that first week. All of the worst-case scenarios went through my head as I questioned whether she’d ever bond with him. Seeing her actually ask him to play for the first time was such a huge relief!

I’m not letting my guard down though. Now that they’re both fond of each other, I have a new worry- managing their play styles. Both dogs have a very rough, highly aroused play style. Which on the one hand is great, because they suit each other perfectly, but on the other hand, I know how easily a play session can turn ugly when arousal levels get too high. So, to avoid any fights breaking out, I’m carefully monitoring Roxi and Makai while they play, teaching them to take breaks, and not letting the play escalate out of control.

I also know that as Makai grows and develops, his personality is going to change. Like humans, dogs go through an adolescent period and like humans this means physical, neurological and behavioral changes that can present many challenges. This is the time that a puppy may begin to challenge an adult dog for resources and be less likely to back down during conflict. I know that I’ll need to be even more on guard with Roxi and Makai’s interactions as Makai hits adolescence, but I’ve got a plan in place to keep them safe and continue to foster a healthy bond between both dogs.

So, What’s Next?

As we round out month two with Makai, I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made. Makai is nearly fully potty trained, he’s getting along with Roxi, he’s good about chewing on his toys rather than our furniture (though teething has presented some challenges) and he’s sleeping really well in his crate. Although obedience training has taken a backseat, I’ve taught Makai his name, sit, down, touch and we’re working on recall. So far, Makai walks nicely on leash, without pulling, so leash walking skills can wait a bit longer while we continue to prioritize positive socialization experiences and alone time training. Luckily, both my and my husband’s schedules are flexible, which has allowed us to slowly acclimate Makai to alone time at a pace he’s comfortable with. However, it’s not easy for us each to juggle our businesses while coordinating puppy care, so this has now become our top priority.

Raising a puppy can be challenging, but each day gets a little easier, as Makai has grown and become more acclimated to our home and comfortable and confident with the world around him. While nothing is guaranteed and we’ve still got lots of work ahead, he’s made a ton of progress in just a couple of short months, and he’s on his way to becoming that calm, fear-free dog we all hope for.

With wags and aloha,

Cori