EARLY LEARNING PROGRAM - HIGHLIGHTS

**Please note:  Early stimulation, and the other early work we do, like most things can be good or bad.  It all depends on your knowledge and experience.  If not performed correctly, it can be dangerous!  Extreme caution should be exercised to avoid excessive stress to the puppies, especially during certain developmental periods.  Don't take the risk of harming your puppies... contact us for more details, or visit the education and training opportunities page, as the outline below is just a snippet of what our program entails.

Our program is based on the research of animal behaviorists, researchers and experts. Our early learning program is based on concepts derived from these animal behavior researchers, as well as our practical experience of dog training and working with our puppies.  We believe that young puppies 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 that are necessary to enable an optimal learning experience.  Teaching puppies at a young age gives them a solid foundation for all future endeavors, fosters enthusiasm for training, and instills a deep-rooted willingness to be of service.  Our early learning focus is on developing puppies to their fullest potential, helping them explore, learn and achieve... making them a puppy prodigy! 

Puppies continue to spend time with their littermates and mother to learn proper canine social behavior while at the same time we foster an environment that provides a comprehensive learning platform to enrich the puppies spirit, increase their social skills, build confidence, exercise their bodies, and stimulate their minds.  We ensure that we give our puppies the right balance of stimulation, play and rest so they enjoy learning and never feel overwhelmed.  We devote a significant amount of time to human socialization because we strive to develop a puppy who is confident, yet socially dependent which is a good combination of traits for assistance work. 

All puppies are whelped and raised in a home environment to facilitate a balance of a calm atmosphere, constant care, and learning opportunities.  We want our puppies to grow up in an environment that is conducive to their future role as service dog, and feel a home rich in stimulus will be conditioned in their developing brain.  Our program consists of structured protocols based on very specific developmental timelines in the young puppy, and includes three components.  The first component focuses on imprinting, stimulation, conditioning, enrichment, habituation and socialization which are strategically implemented and include the following which are described below if you scroll further down the page:

• Prenatal Care
• Prenatal Stimulation
• Prenatal vibrational therapy
• Biotinus Testing
• Neurological Stimulation
• Imprinting
• Handling & Touch Conditioning/Desensitization
• Tactile Stimulation & Conditioning
• Olfactory Stimulation & Conditioning
• Visual Stimulation
• Environment Enrichment
• Socialization
• Field Trips/Outings
• Habituation to Novel & Environmental Stimuli
• Sound Conditioning & Desensitization
• Mental & Physical Challenges
• Grooming Conditioning/Desensitization
• Individualized Attention
• Separation Conditioning

The second component of our program focuses on training and helps advance the puppy's intellectual development.  They have a natural curiosity, and we find it extremely easy to teach them an array of behaviors beginning at about 18 days of age.  Our assistance dog puppies are learning to tug doors open at 4 1/2 weeks, turn lights on at 6 1/2 weeks, and so much more.  This is because of their developmental processes at this age, as well as their enjoyment of training and eagerness to learn.  We use reward based training with positive reinforcement which includes clicker training and lure/reward training.  This early training helps build confidence and problem solving skills.  Some of the behaviors and skills that are taught are:

• House Training
• Crate Training
• Behavior Skills Training
• Assistance Dog Skill Training

The third component of our program encompasses supplemental activities which include:

• Whelping of Litters for Breeders/Other Organizations
• Advanced Training of Our Puppies
• Evaluation of Assistance Dog Potential
• Temperament Testing
• Puppy Placement
• Follow Up & Support
• Ongoing Research

PRENATAL VIBRATIONAL THERAPY We have developed a vibrational therapy program which includes vibrations delivered to the pups through a device held against the mother's belly.  These various simulations are used in an effort to help the puppies begin their socialization and awareness process pre-natally.  Using this stimulation has showed increased activity of the pups in the womb.

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.

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 our 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. Our handling also includes TTouch to release any tension or stress that the puppy may have felt during the birthing process.  TTouch continues throughout the puppy's development to ensure a calm and confident puppy.

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.

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.

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.

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 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, 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.

WHELPING OF LITTERS FOR BREEDERS/OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
We will whelp a litter for breeders and other organizations, and then provide our neo-natal and early learning program to the puppies.  This can be done at our location by transporting the dam after breeding so she does not deal with the stress of traveling while pregnant.  Or, we can provide or services including help with whelping, and the complete neo-natal program on site, at your location. 

ADVANCED TRAINING OF OUR PUPPIES
Most of our puppies are placed with assistance dog organizations and others who need them when they reach 49 days of age.  However, we retain a number of puppies and continue their training until they've matured and are ready for their career placement.  We will again make these "finished" dogs available to organizations so they can be matched with an appropriate client.  A Puppy who continues in our program is provided the consistency of his early training which produces a dog with deep-rooted abilities, proficiencies and the enthusiasm to assist.

EVALUATION OF ASSISTANCE DOG POTENTIAL
From the time the puppies are born, we begin noting each of their individual traits.  Starting at six weeks of age, we begin performing some tests to determine if they possess the traits and natural tendencies to be placed in an assistance dog program.  This testing is complemented with temperament testing that is performed at 49 days and described below.  If we determine that a puppy isn't appropriate for an assistance dog role, we will evaluate the temperament and traits that would be applicable for other programs such as search and rescue, scent detection, social therapy, etc.  The puppies would then be placed with a program that best matches his/her traits.

TEMPERAMENT TESTING
We begin making assessments of a puppy’s temperament from the first week.  We keep notes on individual traits which can provide clues to subsequent development.  During this time we’re looking at sociability, emotionality, problem solving ability, group dynamics, motor abilities and more. 

Since the puppies live with us from the moment they’re born, we typically have a good idea of their individual temperaments, and which show natural inclinations toward future assistance or career work.  However, formal temperament testing is performed at 49 days of age.  As you know, temperament testing is more indicative than predictive of adult behavior patterns.  Therefore we use the testing to isolate and quantify a puppy’s various strengths and weaknesses at the time of testing

PUPPY PLACEMENT
After evaluations and temperament testing has determined each puppy's individual traits, they are matched with assistance dog programs, individuals who wish to owner train their own dogs, or other programs.  The puppies that are not placed in programs are released and adopted to pet dog homes.  For more information visit our Puppy Placement/Aquisition page.
 

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
We have been asked by many breeders, assistance dog programs, trainers, etc to provide educational opportunities so they can learn our methods and use the Puppy Prodigies neo-natal & early learning program on their litters.  We have several opportunities available, and are working on more for each specific situation.  If you'd like to learn what is available, please visit our Education//Training opportunities page.

FOLLOW-UP & SUPPORT
We provide continuous follow up and support to those who receive our puppies to ensure what we started is built upon.  Behavior never remains the same – it’s always changing.  So, we’ll be there to help if you need assistance. 

ONGOING RESEARCH
We enjoy working with behaviorists and researchers to further the study on canine development.  We also perform various tests and keep specific criteria for future measurement and interpretation.  If you're a researcher and would like to coordinate activities with us, please send us an email.
 

**Please note:  Early stimulation and the other early work we do, like most things can be good or bad.  It all depends on your knowledge and experience.  If not performed correctly, it can be dangerous!  Extreme caution should be exercised to avoid excessive stress to the puppies, especially during certain developmental periods.  Don't take the risk of harming your puppies... contact us for more details, or visit the education and training opportunities page, as the outline above is just a snippet of what our program entails.
 

"From small beginnings come great things"
Unknown
 

4 1/2 week old puppy learning to "tug" a door open
 

6 week old puppy learning to pull a "zipper"