Deciding on Your New Puppy
The thought of raising a new puppy by yourself can be stressful. You really want a puppy that will fit  nicely with your lifestyle. Your life in Highland Park, Illinois can be busy, you may have a full-time schedule, a young family, you like to travel or you’ve just retired. We provide a anxiety free experience to add in that  remarkable dog to your life.

The Experience Begins With a Consultation
We know it is very important that you know who you will be dealing with. Developing a relationship is incredibly important to us in Highland Park, Illinois. Our conversation starts with straightforward questions and leads into an thorough conversation, which will give us a much better idea of who you are and what your ideal dog will be. We want to have a great working partnership with you. It starts the journey to pick, teach and raise your pup.

Selecting The Best Breed For Your Family
Once you have decided you are ready to include that amazing dog to your life in Highland Park, Illinois. You have your heart set on a specific breed or maybe you’re interested in one of our dogs that are presently in our puppy raising program. There are things to consider such as where you live, maybe you work full time, are raising a young family, you you may love to go on vacation or maybe you have recently retired. All this will not limit your options, yet help shed light on your everyday life in Highland Park, IL. We will help guide you in your decision making process. As we learn more about you, we can help you choose what you want and which breed will best suit your life-style.

Picking The Best Breeder in Highland Park, Illinois
We team up with responsible breeders who are truly interested in improving their breed with good health and exceptional temperament of their puppies. The first eight weeks of a new puppy’s life are as significant as to what happens after. A excellent breeder recognizes this and helps get the puppy off to a great start.

We have developed a relationship with many exceptional breeders. We specifically seek breeders who recognize the early role they play in a puppies life. They know when one of their puppies goes through our program, it ensures the puppy will end up having a fantastic life.  It’s very important to work closely with the breeder. We depend on the breeder’s knowledge and also our years of knowledge to select the puppy with the best temperament for the potential new family.

The Puppy‘s Training in Highland Park, Illinois
Training your pup is a combination of teaching new skills including manners, setting boundaries, promoting healthy relationships, as well as exposing your puppy successfully to people, other dogs and desensitizing him or her to all types of environments. For instance, we may have the puppy stay overnight with various people in various environments; which develops a dog for you who is comfortable and easy to live with because he or she adapts|adjusts} to your lifestyle. Because of this and exposures to other variables your dog readily bonds with you and your family.

Imprinting Good Behavior ~Birth to 16 Weeks
Picking up your puppy from the breeder

Training starts the minute a new puppy is in our hands in Highland Park, Illinois. Once we select the pup from the litter, the very first thing we want to accomplish is developing confidence and a bond with this new puppy. We begin our relationship having fun even though we’re always teaching. Under our close guidance, we begin exposing the puppy to its new world. For instance, getting him or her to follow us, go up and down stairs, walk over logs, and even get somewhat close to loud noises. By doing this, we are environmentally socializing your dog to the world while boosting our bond. We are huge dog lovers, yet remarkably aware in those moments it is essential to concentrate more on being a leader and guide as the new puppy discovers this new world without the presence of its litter mates or mom.

Crucial time for learning
During the first few weeks we are teaching your new puppy boundaries, trust and focus. There is no limitation as to what we will integrate into our methods. Typically we make use of specific areas or objects to create an experience for the puppy. Occasionally a spur of the moment opportunity may present itself in Highland Park, Illinois. Our decisions and creativity are endless. Every exposure and experience builds on the prior one. Through all of this, we closely monitor the puppy. We never limit ourselves to inflexible rules. We try to be more creative, think outside the box, and benefit from events that manifest before us. Those opportunities are priceless when it comes to teaching the dog.

Every interaction with the new puppy is a teaching moment. We often think about it as an early investment in the life of this puppy. This is the first time away from their littermates and living with us in Highland Park, Illinois. Puppies have a small window of time during brain development when they are most impressionable. This is called the imprinting also known as the critical learning period. Puppies learn more during this period than they can learn in a lifetime. The quality and quantity of what they experience will have a huge effect on their future personalities and determine a number of their “good” or “bad” behavior tendencies. Throughout the imprinting stage, every experience is critical. It is important to build their confidence. The phrase ‘don’t sweat the small stuff’ does not apply to their early interactions. Because puppies are taking in every experience like a sponge, we must stay very aware of all interactions and yet still have a good time with our new puppy.

A Well-Mannered Pup
4 to 6 months 

A well-trained puppy is so much more than just obedient. Knowing how to sit, stay or walk nicely on a loose leash are important things to learn. Good manners, great social skills and a healthy relationship with his or her family are important. Furthermore, desensitization, exposure to many different distractions and situations, as well as having the flexibility to fit into a lifestyle in Highland Park, IL  is equally important.

Our focus is to raise a puppy with impeccable manners and social skills. We begin by teaching obedience the day we bring them home from the breeder; which carries on as we improve the dog’s behavior. The goal is to have a strong foundation by about 4 to 6 months. We practice obedience, keeping it a normal request in our everyday routine as well as within each new situation we expose your puppy to. We go from shaping to defining commands and testing them with distractions, duration and distance. Communication is at the core of our philosophy. Being very clear and consistent is key. We limit our words when giving commands. We want your dog to understand what we want when we give them the command. When we say ‘come’ or ‘here’ we expect 100% response right away.

Proofing Behavior in a Social World in Highland Park, IL
6 months to young adult

Enter the teenage years– adolescence. This is the typical age when many dogs are re-homed or surrendered to shelters. The adolescent stage can find your sweet pup developing into a monster. That nice pup can be more mouthy and disobedient than you could ever envision. Many owners hope their puppy will grow out of undesirable behaviors. Their dog is testing what is allowed and what is not. Allowing a dog to continue rehearsing naughty acts makes changing undesirable behavior more challenging.

Working in the Real World in Highland Park, Illinois
We work to stop any unwanted behavior by instilling boundaries and practicing obedience in high distraction areas. For instance, we practice recalls when your dog is highly distracted perhaps chasing something like a squirrel. We practice and proof obedience in high traffic spots, around barking dogs, near playgrounds and within public places.

As the puppy moves through the adolescent stage we continue to challenge the dog by putting him or her in various scenarios. We consider each situation as a picture. What does that look like to the dog? How does that picture shift from day to day or location to location. We are aiming to teach a dog how to cope in every new and various environment or situation. We are raising a puppy that isn’t reliant on ongoing commands that dictate what he or she should and shouldn’t do. Instead, we desire a dog that can make good decisions. Our top priority is to have a well-balanced dog, who will be comfortable your home.

We continue to reinforce and fine-tune good manners making good behavior a habit for the dog. During this time, the dog has been residing with the dog trainer in their individual home. During this time, your puppy will also spend a few days and nights hanging out with another relative or close friend. Giving this opportunity, encourages your dog to continue to be confident and comfortable in different settings. This ensures those habits and good manners will remain when he or she goes on to your house in Highland Park, IL.