Harper’s 10 Week Journey

Training Begins: May 1st, 2025 | Training Ends: July 10th, 2025

Behaviors Harper will learn or begin learning during her stay here:

BEHAVIOR	5 Weeks In Training
Sit	Harper is really good at “sit”! She sits very well to be let out of the playpen, her crate, and at doorways. She also sits before she gets her meals and sits for attention. If she is jumping and I ignore her, she sits quickly.
Down	Harper is one of the fastest to learn a verbal down I have ever had! At only 2 weeks into training she was a pro at “down” on both a verbal and hand cue.
Name Recognition	Harper knows her name very well!
Touch	Harper loves to “touch”! “Touch” is when I hold my hand out and they touch their nose to my hand. I use this to redirect them, get their attention, or for an easy cue to distract them or help them settle down.
Recalls	Harper does a great recall, and I honestly still can’t get her to go very far away from me! This will change as she ages and becomes more independent, so we are working on those recalls every chance we get!
Go Into Crate	Harper can tell when it is nap or bed time and will run straight to her crate for her treats! She is sleeping all the way through the night and taking 2-3 hour naps throughout the day.
Leash Walking	Harper is still in the early stages of leash walking, but is doing a good job! Harper goes on very short walks right now to ensure the entire walk is a success. These small puppies can’t go far before they lose focus and start and I prevent that by slowly increasing the duration of walks. So far, she’s doing well for her age!
Place	Harper loves her “place”! She goes to the place board eagerly, knowing its a high value place to be.
Stay	Harper is progressing nicely through the stages of “stay”. She stays for 10-15 seconds, stays while I take 5-8 steps away, and will stay when I throw toys near her. Stay is built up in stages and so far she is progressing very nicely!
Drop It	Harper is doing well with “drop it”. She isn’t a big tugger yet, so we haven’t had a ton of opportunities to work on it, but when we do she is quick to release items for a treat.
Leave It	Harper is able to leave treats that I am holding out in an open hand and is in the process of learning to leave treats dropped from a small height near her. She’s progressing perfectly through this!
Wait	Harper picked up on being polite around doorways really fast and continues to be one of the first puppies to sit and wait to be released.
Potty Training	Harper had a rough first couple of weeks with potty training but is making huge progress. She was peeing in her playpen the first 1-2 weeks and I was having to let her out every 10-20 minutes to avoid this. Now she is lasting 30-40 minutes in the playpen without needing a potty break. Out in an open room, I am keeping it to 30 minutes or less between potty breaks right now and she is doing well.

Harper’s Midway Update

Harper is sweet as can be – and while energetic and outgoing once she’s comfortable, she’s a shy pup! I am surprised by how shy yet bold she is. She tends to be the one at the back of the group, and while she loves greeting people, it takes her a while to warm up to people. Once she does, though, she’s a party girl! She loves a variety of toys and really enjoys being around everyone.

Harper loves her training sessions and has been such a fun puppy to teach. She stays focused for long periods of time for her age and really loves every treat I’ve got! She picks up cues with ease and has been advancing through everything so quickly. By the time she goes home, you will just need to keep working on her cues in new environments, with more distractions, etc. but she’s done so well I know she’s going to continue to be a star!

Potty training has been the hardest part for Harper (and her sister, Liba). I find girls take longer to mature when it comes to potty training. They still need potty breaks every 30 minutes when active in the house, and are starting to handle an hour in their playpen fine. I imagine she will get to an hour out of the playpen and a couple of hours in it by the time she goes home. All puppies don’t gain full bladder control until about 6-8 months old, so them needing frequent potty breaks is normal, it’s just something to be aware of! She does great going out every 30 minutes when she’s playing. They are still at an age where, if they are too wound up, they won’t think, they will just go, so it’s better to take them out often to give plenty of chances for success. She has not had an accident in a couple of weeks.

Leash walking has been a breeze with Harper and she’s actually doing better than some of my older puppies, even! She has a focused heel and is doing a wonderful job on short walks. I cannot wait until after her last vaccine to be able to take her out in public because I know she’s going to do such a good job by then!

Harper is such a sweet, loving, amazing little puppy! Her shyness is a bit of a hurdle that we are still working on with frequent outings, and she is growing more and more confident in new environments. Moving at Harper’s speed with new situations, people, and pets will help her continue to gain confidence. She is doing so well!

Harper’s Favorites

Favorite Treats: Harper is not picky at all but she really loves these Nibs and so do I; they break in half very easily. She also really enjoys cheese and chicken!
Favorite Frozen Treat (to stuff her hoof/Kong/etc.): I picked Royal Canin puppy cans up recently and everyone has really been loving it.
Favorite Toy: Harper LOVES the flirt pole!
Favorite Bed: Flat Bed – this keeps her comfy without making her too hot.
Favorite Chews: Beef Tendons

Harper’s Photo Gallery

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