First couple days home with Nae Nae!

It was a big day for little Nae Nae. So many new things to investigate.

She was introduced to her long term confinement area in the main living space. Wiggle Womble ball seems to be the favorite on day 1. This are is placed so she can still be around the family but still be in her own space.

Alone time is super important to practice with young puppies. We want to teach them to be happy alone. Help your puppy associate this space with good things, feed them meals inside it.

Begin by closing your puppy in the confinement area with a puzzle toy or other constructive activity, then quietly walk out of the room. Return immediately and reward them with praise and a treat. Repeat and slowly increasing how long you’re away each time. In the beginning, even one or two minutes might feel too long for your puppy, but over three or four days, you should be able to build up to fairly long periods. Nae Nae is actually really happy in her area alone for a good amount of time thanks to the puppy culture the breeder worked on before she came home. (AKC)

It is very important to practice settling down in the crate. Below is a video on her first crate training session.

Mini Training Sessions

I just take a couple of minutes at a time to throw in random training. I mostly am focusing on capturing behaviors that I like. I started teaching her hand targeting, touch, sit, down, watch me. I have not added any cues yet. The most important thing is to expose her to all types of smells, touch, sounds, movement, and noises. Getting her used to things like a collar/harness, leash, touching her feet, ears, teeth,mouth, basically anything you can think of that a vet would have to handle.

Name Game

She meet 3 new people the first day home!

She also had her first vet visit where she meet 6 new people! Though she struggled on the car ride, she did really well and will get more comfortable with her crate with practice.