As much as we would like everything to be stress-free, comfortable and voluntary for puppy, sometimes there are things that just have to be done. Help puppy learn to cope with mild stress, roll with weird stuff, and trust that you won’t put him in circumstances he can’t handle.
Puppy can learn to like, or at least accept, the situations he needs to be in.
In this activity we are putting puppy up on a table. This is similar to what might happen to puppy at the vet. You can prepare puppy for potentially scary stuff like this by pre-exposing him, in a positive and supportive way, to the same sorts of things he might need to encounter in real life.
Make sure the set-up is EASY and one that you expect to be only very mildly stressful for your puppy. Be certain that the treats you are using are ones that puppy generally loves. It is easier to do this exercise with two people, but modify for one person if necessary.
Generally, the person puppy is most comfortable with should lift and place puppy and the second person should feed. The timing and generosity of the feeding are the most important thing. Treats should be dealt like cards to the puppy right on the table under his nose. Keep dealing treats as the puppy is lifted off the table. Put puppy back on the floor between reps. Repeat. Switch roles if puppy is beginning to like being lifted and put on the table (less-familiar person lifts, comfortable-person feeds).
If puppy is comfortable being placed on the table, you can
- wait longer before starting the food
- add some gentle restraint and or gentle body-part examination before starting the food