As mentioned in my previous post, we’ve added another puppy to our pack. We’re all very excited, in part because this is Laddie pup! Here’s a picture:

The new puppy’s registered name is Turbo Lancelot Bold and True, and his call name is Lancer. Born 10-16-2019, he’s now 18 lbs and just over nine weeks old. I’ve had him since the day he turned seven weeks old.

Over the past four years, this journal has had two purposes: to tell Lightning’s story, and to explain the Positive Retriever Training (PRT) program I’ve been developing with two dogs before Lightning, namely Lumi and Laddie, as well of course as with Lightning himself. Of all of them, Lightning is the only Labrador Retriever. Lumi and Laddie were both Golden Retrievers, as is Lancer.

For now, at least, I don’t plan to change the focus of this journal as being about Lightning and his training. Hopefully he still has many years of exciting development ahead of him, and I expect that to form the core framework for describing PRT.But where I feel my new experiences with Lancer might be a useful adjunct to the previously provided information, I’ll try to include that information in separate posts like this one.
In addition, I’ll go back and update relevant older posts from Lightning’s earlier days with forward references to Lancer posts like this one so that readers can, if they wish, consolidate the information about the two different dogs in their minds as they work thru the program.

Here then, in no particular order, is a breakdown of the work I’ve been doing with Lancer in his first two and a half weeks in his new home;

• Here. I generally carry around treats such as string cheese or hot dog slices. At every opportunity, indoors or out, I lower my hand so my palm is facing Lancer and call Here. As soon as he comes running, I take a treat out of my pocket and try to have it ready to put in his mouth the instant he arrives. Within less than a day, he began alerting to the cue and looking around to see where I was so he could come running.
• Field recall. No different from Here. I just wanted to emphasize that I also work with Lancer on this when we take Lightning out to train. The field has many scents and other distractions that don’t occur indoors. A rock solid field recall is far and away the single most important skill for a field retriever to have.
• Retrieving. As often as possible, at least once a day, I clear the breakfast room floor of distractions and throw a paint roller for Lancer over and over again, typically five times per session. He runs to it, and as soon as he picks it up, I cue Here and he races back with it, then drops it as I give him a treat. As I’ve discussed elsewhere, I don’t believe in delivery to hand for puppies, because I believe it effectively punishes the pup for bringing you the article, which he regards as his own prize that he just brings to show you, not for you to take it away. We’ll work on building a formal retrieve with reverse chaining, that is, starting with the delivery, when Lancer is a bit older.
• Socialization. Lancer is in the company of, and plays with, other dogs, both family dogs and others, as well as a variety of humans, every day. Socialization is of course hugely important for any dog.
• Feeding. Under guidance of our holistic vet, Lancer eats a raw diet. It’s the same diet our adult dogs eat. We began him on his new diet from the first day he came home.
• Sleeping. Of course Lancer takes naps throughout the day like any puppy. For my bedtime, he sleeps in my bed. I created some “stairs” for him out of dog beds and pillows next to the bad so he can climb up down from the floor. However, after the first three or four nights, he just stays on the bed with me all night. I bunch up my bathrobe and put it on the bed also, and he seems to like curling up next to that. He was very bitey the first few nights. I would let him bite my hand as long as I could take it, then hide it under the covers. Meanwhile he had chew toys on the bed I would try with varying success to divert his biting to. All thru the night, I repeatedly set my alarm so that I can get up in the middle of the night, put on my robe and slippers, and carry him outside to give him a chance to air, which he almost always does. Often, Lightning goes out with him so it takes several minutes for them to wander and play outside before they come to the door to come back in, even in subfreezing weather. I don’t let Lancer have any food or water during our eight hours of sleeping time. When we go back to bed, sometimes after another short session of biting, I set my alarm again and we sleep for another few hours. Typically I set the alarm for two hours when we first go to bed, then three hours at a time after that. I don’t know if that’s optimal for all pups, it just works for Lancer so that he doesn’t pee in the bedroom.
• House training. I take Lancer outside many times every day, with trips often as close as 15 minutes apart. In his first 2-1/2 weeks here, he has never pooped in the house, thank goodness. We have not been so lucky with his peeing despite all the trips outside. We do not treat him any differently after a mistake, though if I can catch him just as he’s crouching down to pee, I pick him up and whisk him outside. We immediately clean and sanitize every wet spot.
• Tug. Tug-of-war with a toy is an excellent game for retriever puppies. It’s an opportunity for energetic play and an outlet for biting, and it builds confidence and enhances the relationships of the players, whether me, another human, or another dog. If you don’t make it too easy for the puppy to grab the toy, but pull it away if he’s not fast enough, it builds drive, a desirable trait in a field retriever. I don’t think it matters whether you or the puppy “wins” each round. The benefits come from that first, drive-building grab and then playing the game. I usually do let my dogs win though. Here’s a video of Lightning training Lancer to play tug:
• Sit. My darling wife Renée gives all the dogs various kinds of treats throughout the day, and she requires each one to sit before getting the treat. I also do more formal Sit training with Lancer every day. I say Sit, and if necessary hold my open hand with the back of my hand toward his face over his head, as if holding something in my hand, to lure him into a sit, then instantly give him a treat. He seems to be learning to sit from the verbal cue, without the visual cue, already. Sit is another important cue for a field retriever. I avoid having him sit in any particular orientation with respect to me since soon I’ll want him to be able to do a remote sit and not just sit right in front of me.
• Touch. Renée and I often offer an open hand to pups, including Lancer, and when the dog touches our hands we instantly give them a treat. Renée also cues with a verbal “Touch” and makes a clicker sound, which is probably good, but I don’t bother with that these days. In any case, this open hand cue, later without the pup necessarily actually touching the hand, will be used as a primary method of communication throughout the dog’s life to draw him from one place or position to another, such as gesturing for him to jump in the car, bringing him to heel, and so forth.
• Stairs. If I think Lancer is about to pee, I carry him. But the rest of the time, he’s quickly learned to climb stairs, first climbing up, a few days later climbing down as well. He now chases Lightning up and down stairs both in the house and in the backyard on the run.
• Wearing the dog. One of the most useful tools for strengthening a pup’s relationship with you is tethering, what my friend and expert dog trainer Jody Baker calls “wearing the dog.” I’ve read that it also helps shy dogs gain confidence and helps tame more aggressive pups, though none of my dogs happen to have had either of those traits. In any case, it’s not really leash walking. Instead, you attach yourself to the dog with a short lead and go about your business, walking around the house as normal. The pup quickly learns to pay attention and stay close. You can dispense with the tether during times the pup is following you around on his own, then attach it again when he begins to get distracted. Eventually we’ll formalize this behavior as Heel.
• Nail grinding. Once a day, I set my Dremel on the lowest setting and pick up Lancer in my lap. I take each of his four paws one by one and gently press the vibrating handle against the top of his paw, which I guess feels like a gentle massage. Then I touch the spinning grinder wheel to each of his nails of that paw for a split second. I’m not holding it long enough to keep his nails as short as they should be yet, but Carol had no difficulty grinding his nails to the correct length when he had his 9-week veterinary visit thanks to the early conditioning. I’ve always given my other dogs treats after a nail grinding session, but I haven’t bothered doing that with Lancer.
• Crate training. My circumstances have not required me to do much crate training in the house, and my Nissan Leaf doesn’t have room for a crate, much less two for both Lightning and Lancer. As a result, I’ve done relatively little crate training with Lancer. He does, however, occasionally spend hours at a time alone in my puppy-proof bedroom with the door closed. Sometimes I can hear him screaming a little at first, but it doesn’t last long. He’s pretty much over that. He’ll probably need to spend some time in crates when he’s older, for example at group training or a competition, and we may need to do more crate conditioning at some point for him to be able to do that.
• Riding in a car. I take Lightning and Lancer with me on most of my excursions, often leaving them in the car alone for up to an hour or so when I go to the gym, shopping, etc. I leave the car running with a little heat on (it’s winter here) and the windows cracked but the doors locked, since my car’s smart key lets me do that and it’s an EV so zero emissions. Your approach may well be different, but in any case, he’s comfortable riding in cars, which will be essential for group training and competition.
• Hand feeding. I often feed Lancer by hand, and I also occasionally take food, bones, or toys away from him. He’s a gentle little pup and it’s no problem for him at this age. I intend to continue doing those things as he gets older. I don’t want him ever learning to resource guard.
• Gunfire. When I’m training Lightning out in the field each day, I sometimes use a blank pistol as part of the training. I am very conscious of Lancer when I make the shot. I do not fire when he’s in the middle of play because I don’t want him to accidentally learn that play predicts something scary. I keep my distance from him so it won’t seem so loud to him, and the instant I fire, I reach down with my open hand and call Here, then give him a treat as soon as he runs to my hand. My first retriever, Lumi, was gun-shy at first and it took me weeks to counter-condition. I don’t want any of my other dogs to have to suffer thru that.

It’s too cold to go swimming unfortunately, and I’ve probably forgotten a few other items, but that’s a fairly complete list of the initial training I feel is good for a young retriever.