Your First Few Months With A Cockapoo

Cockapoos are little balls of energy that love attention and play, and at no point is this more true than the puppy stage.

Those first few months can be a huge adjustment, even for those who have had dogs in the past – cockapoos just don’t seem to get tired.

So, when you’re getting things started with your new little ball of fluff, do it right. While it can be tiring -overwhelming even- the bread and butter of training a cockapoo are fairly simple.

You want to make sure that they are learning (the puppy period could have long-lasting effects on behaviour), they are getting all of their energy out, and you want to give them the right amount of time to rest.

While it’s not rocket science it can be time-consuming, and while cockapoos aren’t often stubborn there will likely be some resistance and cheekiness, don’t let that discourage you – it’s all part of the process.

The Basics

So, here are the three main principles that you want to keep in mind;

Walks

Walks are key, try to get out at the same time/s every day and give them a little bit of time off lead. While they are young try to socialise your pup, get them used to other dogs while out on their walk

Cockapoos love to learn, they love tricks and treats and they definitely love to show off a little. As well as their walks (1 big walk a day or 3 shorter 15 min walks) set out some training time.

Have a set time every week where you go to a set space and work on tricks, be it the essentials like recall and not tugging while on the lead or maybe some more fancy stuff like rolling over.

Remember at this point your Cockapoo is still very young and may not manage more complex tricks yet.

The main point of this is to give them a little mental workout, it’ll make them calmer at home and you will be encouraging good habits from the get-go.

Play

Playtime! Their favourite time! This is a great opportunity to develop a bond with your cockapoo.

Make sure that you engage with your pup as often as you can, again, set up a playtime so that they learn not to nag you if you are working from home.

Play can be so much more than just a bit of a laugh – it will help encourage your pups’ play drive and can actually help with training.

Cockapoos often already have a high play drive as a result of their boundless energy so developing this can be a useful tool.

For example; if you play with a ball from an early age they will be drawn to playing with a ball later on in life.

I have found this to be useful with my pup – if there’s a nippy pup nearby we can easily avoid it, just whip out the ball and they will be solely focused on that – in other words, develop the  “ball is life” mentality.

Rest

Yes, believe it or not, even cockapoos need to recharge. Sometimes they can sleep up to 12 hours a day, it’s no cause for concern.

If you’ve had a big day, give your pup some space and let it snooze. Sometimes over-exhausting a puppy can be detrimental to its learning and development.

You also want to make sure that it’s health is taken care of, make sure you are getting all the right shots at the vet and checking in on anything that seems abnormal.

Then there’s diet, now is the time to find out what works, for many cockapoo owners, raw feeding is becoming a popular option.

Whole foods get broken down easier and with pre-prepared raw dog food companies like Bella & Duke offer pup specific meals (click here to learn more) it has never been easier to try out a raw feeding