Take Your Time... You're Growing a Friendship, Not Just Training a Dog

When we bring a child into our lives, we don't expect them to know everything overnight. We patiently teach them how to communicate, where the toilet is, how to share, how to behave around others and how to cope with the world around them. That learning doesn't happen in six weeks. It takes months, years and countless little moments of guidance.

Yet when we bring home a puppy - or welcome an older rescue dog - we often expect exactly that.

Within days they're walking on a lead, visiting busy parks, meeting strangers and dogs, travelling in the car, being left home alone, learning house rules and somehow expected to understand what we want... despite never having lived in our home, never having met us before and not speaking our language. It's an enormous amount to ask.

Think back to the first day you moved house, started a new job or entered a new relationship. Were you completely relaxed? Did you instantly know what was expected of you? Did you immediately trust everyone around you? Probably not.

puppy learning to hand target in their own time

Now imagine you're eight weeks old. You've just left your mum, your siblings and everything you've ever known. Every smell, every sound and every surface is different. You don't know where the toilet is. In fact, just like a human baby, you don't even know when you need the toilet yet. You don't understand why you're attached to a lead instead of walking freely. You have no idea why people keep saying words that have no meaning yet. It's a lot.

Before we ask our dogs to cope with the world, let's help them feel safe within it.

Spend time growing your friendship before chasing adventures. Let your puppy discover that you're predictable, kind and worth paying attention to. Teach them their name. Help them understand that coming back to you is rewarding. Allow them time to observe the world, not just rush through it. Build trust before expecting confidence.

The strongest recalls aren't built on commands. They're built on relationships.

The calmest dogs aren't created by exposing them to everything immediately.

They're created by feeling safe enough to explore at their own pace.

Whether you've welcomed a new puppy or an older dog with a history you may never fully know, remember that learning takes time. Confidence takes time. Trust takes time. And that's okay. Just as importantly, be consistent.

Dogs learn through repetition and predictability. If one person allows jumping up while another doesn't, or one family member rewards a behaviour that someone else discourages, your dog isn't being stubborn - they're simply trying to work out which rules apply.

Consistency isn't about being strict; it's about being clear. The clearer and more predictable we are, the easier it is for our dogs to understand what we're asking of them.

And consistency means everyone in the family. The adults, the children, grandparents, visitors, the dog walker - anyone who spends time with your dog should be working towards the same goals, using the same cues and rewarding the same behaviours. When everyone is on the same page, learning becomes much less confusing and your dog can succeed.

So today, my plea is simple.

• Slow down.

• Take your time.

• Be patient.

• Be consistent.

Grow the friendship before you expect perfection. Remember my golden rule - Practice makes permanent, not always perfect!

Your dog doesn't need you to have all the answers on day one. They need you to guide them with kindness, patience and consistency.

Because when you grow the friendship first, everything else becomes so much easier. Your puppy won't remember whether they mastered "sit" in their first week home.

They will remember how safe they felt with you. And that feeling - the trust, the understanding and the friendship you nurture together - is the foundation for everything that comes next.