YOUR PUPPY

Before they come home...

There’s no better feeling than when we match one of our precious pups with their loving new family. It’s why we put so much time, love and effort into making sure these special babes are prepped and ready for their big life adventure ahead.

It all starts on day #1!!

We spend hours with each puppy doing several different techniques to ensure your new family member starts out with every opportunity to be an amazing addition to your family.

Before you consider buying a pup from a breeder, or anywhere else for that matter, double check they incorporate an early learning program for their puppies. These programs set these little pups up for amazing success in whatever calling they are asked to accomplish.  

Our program is based on the research of animal behaviorists, researchers and experts.  We also use our personal experience of puppy training/rearing, working with our puppies.

We believe that animals should have the opportunity to develop emotionally, socially and physically from the moment they're born.  This is done through exposure to a variety of activities and exercises that are necessary to enable an optimal learning experience.  Working with puppies right after birth instills a deep rooted bond to humans, builds confidence, fosters enthusiasm for training, instills loyalty to their people.  it also, reduces the possibility of a mature dog ending up in a shelter because of behavioral issues etc. Our goal is helping these developing puppies reach their full potential, if that is service, companionship, therapy, we want to give them the best shot possible.

Puppies continue to spend ample time with their mother and litter siblings to encourage proper canine social behavior. While at the same time we have created environment that will offer human interaction, mindful play, exploration, problem solving, and curiosity.  

​We "puppy promise" that each and every pup is given the right balance of puppy life, they play and rest so they enjoy learning and never feel overwhelmed.  We devote a significant amount of time to human socialization and make it a priority to socialize them with every human age from baby to elderly. We are striving to develop a puppy that is adaptable and can socially adjust at any given moment. 

Puppies are whelped and raised in our home environment to mimic their future role which facilitate a balance of a calm atmosphere, day-to-day activities, constant care, and learning opportunities.  We want puppies to grow up in an environment that is conducive to their future. We feel a home rich in stimulus will be conditioned in their developing brain.

PROGRAM COMPONENTS
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​PRENATAL CARE

Stress reactions by the dam during gestation can be passed on to her puppies, so take great care in providing a calm, non-stressful prenatal environment.  Also ensure the mother receives proper exercise, nutrition and attention.  By providing these measures you'll be able to produce puppies with a better start to life.

PRENATAL STIMULATION
Studies have shown that when a pregnant animal is petted, the litter is more docile.  The petting activates the parasympathetic system, facilitating relaxation, emotional attachment and socialization.  Puppies from a petted mother have a greater tolerance to handling than puppies from a mother that is not petted or loved. 

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BIOTINUS TESTING
We start getting to know our puppies in the immediate moments after their birth by performing the Biotinus test, also known as the vigor for life test.  We combine these results with all our other exercises, tests, observations, etc to get a better understanding of each individual puppy and their potential future. 

NEUROLOGICAL STIMULATION
We utilize neurologic stimulation based on Dr. Fox's research as well as the U.S. Military's "Bio-Sensor" program.  Incorporating exercises from both sources, our puppies are gently handled using a series of exercises to produce brain wave activity that would not naturally occur otherwise.  Early brain development is enhanced by creating more neuro synapses.   This early stimulation has significant and lasting effects which include improved future performance as well as the ability to withstand stress better than pups that are not-stimulated. 

IMPRINTING
Imprinting is a form of learning which occurs from birth to 16 weeks of age and includes behavior patterns which are developing, attachments to people, and preferences for stimuli they've been exposed to.  We facilitate this process with various stimuli and activities so the puppies will have a low fear, low anxiety association during this critical window of opportunity

HUMAN SOCIAL ATTACHMENT & BONDING
To facilitate the human/animal bond in our puppies, we begin human social attachment and bonding exercises from the moment the puppies are born, and continue throughout their stay.  We want puppies very closely bonded to humans, but not so dependent that they suffer from separation anxiety in the future.  We strive for a balance of dependence and independence.

HANDLING & TOUCH CONDITIONING/DESENSITIZATION
We provide gentle daily handling from the day the puppies are born which has been shown to improve their ability to thrive.  In addition, touch conditioning and desensitization is provided by manipulating their bodies so puppies are accustomed to being touched in various ways, resulting in low body sensitivity.  This conditioning allows for their positive associations and interaction with people, which in turn produces puppies that prefer human interaction opposed to other dogs or the environment.  The desensitization also prepares the puppy for potential day-to-day body bumps, tail grabs by children passing by, or environmental stimuli such as wheelchairs, crutches, etc while working.

STRESS REDUCTION & CALM CONDITIONING
In an effort to help the puppy develop into a calm and confident dog, we provide the puppy with stimuli and exercises, including Touch to reduce stress, and facilitate them in learning how to relax in stressful situations.  This conditioning begins the moment the puppies are born, and continues until they leave, but we strongly encourage new owners to continue this process.

TACTILE STIMULATION & CONDITIONING
Since a puppy's tactile sense is functioning at birth, we begin slowly acclimating the puppies to surfaces and textures they are likely to encounter as an adult.  Through short, structured exercises, the puppies are introduced to various stimuli in an effort to condition them, but not over-stress them.
 
OLFACTORY STIMULATION & CONDITIONING 
Not all senses are functioning in a puppy when born, but the olfactory sense is, so we begin acclimating the puppies to smells they are likely to encounter as an adult.  This is also a time when scent conditioning for future work in scent detection is introduced and exercises are performed on a daily basis.

VISUAL STIMULATION
A puppy is born with his eyes closed and is isolated from visual stimuli.  As the puppies eyes begin to open, we utilize exercises to stimulate and enhance their vision.  These exercises continue in a careful and systematic fashion to ensure an optimal, stress free experience.

ENVIRONMENT ENRICHMENT
Research has shown that animals raised in a sensory rich environment develop thicker cerebral cortexes, have more synaptic contacts between neurons and have higher levels of neuro-endocrine transmitters in their brains than do those that have been raised in a non-stimulating environment.  When measured later in life, the results show that the animals raised in an enriched environment tend to be more inquisitive, more adept at performing difficult tasks, and are more intelligent because they have experienced a great deal while they were young.   

Based on this research, we provide an enriched environment for our puppies in a systematic fashion to ensure they have the best chance of developing a sound temperament and the capacity to cope with life situations in the future.  The puppies get to exercise their curiosity while having fun exploring the novelties they encounter.  This results in a puppy who is comfortable in a changing, new environment.

SOCIALIZATION
The developmental period from three to 12 weeks is the most influential nine weeks of a puppy’s life.  This period is associated with the development of many social behavior patterns and a great deal of learning about the environment.  Much of what is learned during this early period is permanent and provides a foundation for adult behavior patterns.  To decrease the possibility of fearful responses as a puppy develops, it is essential to expose them to many people, places and things during the socialization period when they can most effectively socialize, localize and habituate to these stimuli.  We are systematic in our socialization program based on the things the puppy is expected to coexist with in his future role including people, places and other animals.  All socialization is performed in a progressive, step-by-step process to ensure the puppy is having an enjoyable interaction, is safe, and is forming positive associations.  We also introduce friendly, rock solid adult dogs for the puppies to interact with, so they can learn appropriate "doggie language" from others in addition to their mom. 

​FIELD TRIPS/OUTINGS
We want to expose our puppies to new stimuli without creating a stressful experience, so they are slowly and methodically introduced to new situations and environments, including a vehicle.  We continuously watch body language, and monitor heart rate for signs of stress.  By introducing the puppies to new environments in a structured fashion, they are able to habituate to the stimuli and have positive interactions, thus reducing future issues in unfamiliar situations.

​HABITUATION TO NOVEL & ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULI
Habituation is a form of learning in which an animal become acclimated to novel and environmental stimuli through exposure and stops responding, ultimately ignoring the stimuli.  We provide non-threatening, structured exercises to our puppies through various mediums in an effort to facilitate habituation of day-to-day and novel stimuli in their environment such as vacuum cleaners, blenders, garbage disposals, moving objects, etc.  As soon as the puppies eyes/ears open, novel stimuli is put into their whelping box, and continues in the puppy pen, and then the puppy play yard.

SOUND CONDITIONING & DESENSITIZATION
A puppy is born with his ears closed and is isolated from sound during the first couple weeks.  Once his ears open he can respond to sound indiscriminately.  His new capacity for learning quickly enables him to discriminate between situations that pose a threat and those which are insignificant.  If a puppy is not exposed to sudden noises followed by a low level startle response, and a quick return to normal, he will most likely over react to noises followed by prolonged fearfulness when he enters the fear stage.  

We provide sound conditioning and desensitization in a gradual fashion, slowly introducing various sounds in different locations.  This is done during the critical period when the puppy's central nervous system is developing.  This activity conditions the puppy to have appropriate startle responses followed by quick recovery.  In addition, because the puppies are conditioned from an early age, they often develop more confidence and lower noise sensitivity.  So, although they will hear an unexpected sound, they may ignore it and continue their assistance work un-phased.

MENTAL & PHYSICAL CHALLENGES
We provide tiered mind challenging problems that will exercise the brain and enhance its development.  This stimulation helps them develop problem solving abilities, confidence, resiliency and mental coordination. Puppies raised in environments lacking challenges are more likely to develop into fearful, less successful adults. 

We also challenge the puppies physically in an effort to improve muscle coordination, balance, motor skills, confidence, agile movement, body self awareness, and development.  We provide a “playground” of challenges which helps to develop strength, agility and coordination skills in a fun environment.  We begin in the whelping box, and continue in our puppy play yard which is filled with equipment including ramps, tunnels, wobble boards, various obstacles, stairs, planks, high reaching toys, and many, many novel items that help build confidence. 

GROOMING CONDITIONING/DESENSITIZATION
We begin touching all parts of the puppy's anatomy from the time they're born in an effort to desensitize to touch.  Because many puppies/dogs have an aversion to grooming, we begin by making it a very positive experience.  By the time our puppies leave at 7-12 weeks, they are comfortable with bathing, brushing, ear cleaning, teeth brushing, nail clipping, nail dremeling, body checks and more.

INDIVIDUALIZED ATTENTION
In addition to the activities that our puppies do as a litter, and the time they spend with their mom learning important life lessons, we also work with each puppy separately to develop their individual personalities.  Puppies act differently as a group, in sub-groups, and in pairs than they do individually, so it's also important for us to observe the changes in personality in various situations.  Helping the puppy build their confidence outside the litter is a very important aspect to the program.

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CRATE TRAINING
We acclimate puppies to crate training at an early age because it's a great help in house training.  It also gives the puppy a safe place of its own so it gets accustomed to being confined for short periods of time and associates it with positive events.  When the puppies go to their new homes at 8-9 weeks of age, they do not have difficulty adjusting to their new home, and the feedback we receive is how well the puppy in adjusting. 

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As you can see we want nothing more than to see these pups excel. We are anxious to see the amazing impact these furry friends make in your life! 

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