Puppy early learning:

AFTER puppy testing my own Rottweilers for 20 years in Australia, I have probably the most complete records that are available of the correlation between predicted responses and actual measured behaviour in a particular breed. The results are very consistent, partly because the buyers are each required to test the litter and score according to the response sheet and the results of each test is kept on the puppy's records. I use this information to decide which puppy should be placed in which situation - both according to the requirements of the buyer and the potential of the puppy.

Since I am now testing for potential Assistance Dogs (but not within a single breed), I am hoping to establish a complete database on the dogs that are tested, selected, trained and eventually tested for suitability to be placed with a recipient. In addition, I keep performance records of the dogs after placement. I have also worked with a Vallhund breeder, and a Havanese breeder. They video each assessment and keep records of all puppies which are placed, in order to follow them through adulthood.

The majority of Assistance Dog puppies behave at 18 months of age in ways consistent with their puppy assessments, in terms of their social attraction, possession of article and attraction to other dogs. The ways in which there is a difference, include behaviours that develop before, during and-or after puberty, and are therefore hormone-related and not observable beforehand. Such behaviours as resource-guarding, dog-dog aggression, and sometimes noise sensitivity, are not necessarily obvious until the hormone fluctuations trigger extreme responses.

The key to success of my puppy assessments is that they are part of an overall "Dog Development System", rather than an isolated event. The puppy buyer (or Puppy Parent in the case of the Canine Partners dog) receives pre-puppy instructions and a complete manual for training the dog, beginning with the first day home, as well as instructions for a diet to facilitate training potential. Classes are available from seven weeks of age throughout the life of the dog in the case of the puppy buyers; the new owners sign a contract to train and trial the dog to the highest level possible. The Puppy Parents for Canine Partners have a programme with over 70 commands and tasks, which they agree to teach the puppies.

I place all puppies with families according to the way they have scored and buyers are not given a choice of puppy (they must defer to my greater knowledge of dogs!). My own puppies are all tested by every potential buyer and the scores from each test recorded on the dog's card.

Each puppy has a card that begins with birth weight, sex, normal or breech birth, neonatal and teat-seeking movements, and records responses to very mild stress (change of temperature). It continues at 21 days of age with initial tests for recovery, investigation and problem-solving and includes responses to the training regime, which the puppies undergo before they go to their new owners. I use the first meat meal to teach sit, bark on command, recall, "feet up", "find", fetch and to walk on lead, so that the puppies all have the basics taught to them before they go to their new environment. This means, of course, that the puppies are already familiar with a learning interaction with humans and have already developed a consistent approach to some of the basic words that people use when talking to puppies. In other words, they know how to work out what is required of them.

This Early Learning Programme will also be implemented with future Canine Partners puppies bred by the charity. We will also be negotiating with some breeders who are interested in this aspect of breeding, and have expressed an interest in breeding puppies using this programme, and offering puppies to us for purchase.

The bottom line for puppy breeding, training and development is that they need to be prepared for a challenging life in the modern world. Anti-dog legislation has made it very dangerous for dogs to express "normal" or "typical" dog behaviours in public, such as growling a warning, barking out of fear or surprise or excitement, or defending themselves against threatening behaviour by loose or uncontrolled dogs, or over-friendly people. The stronger their immune system, the more they are exposed to sounds, sights, experiences in a positive way, from the earliest days of life, the easier it is for dogs to cope. This is especially important for assistance dogs that are required to work in crowded shopping centres, supermarkets, busy traffic, inside lifts and in hospitals and medical centres. This is the best insurance we can give a dog for the challenging yet remarkable work of being an Assistance Dog in society.