How to Train a Afghan Hound Dog Puppy – The Best Dog Training Near Me

Bringing home a new Afghan hound puppy is an exciting time! Afghan hounds are elegant, dignified dogs that make wonderful companions when properly trained and socialized. Like any puppy, Afghan hound puppies require time, patience, and consistency to become well-mannered adult dogs. Here are some tips for successfully introducing an Afghan hound puppy into your home:

Puppy proof your home. Afghan hounds are tall, lanky dogs that love to jump and explore. Remove any choking hazards, secure cords/wires, block off unsafe areas, and lock up household chemicals/medications. Puppies will chew and ingest anything they can get their mouths on.
Create a safe, confined space. Set up an exercise pen, crate, or dog-proofed room for your puppy when you cannot directly supervise them. Puppies should not have full run of the house until they are fully house trained. The confined space should have a crate with bedding, food and water bowls, and plenty of chew toys.
Establish a routine. Afghan hound puppies thrive on structure and routine. Set up a regular schedule for feeding times, potty breaks, training sessions, play time, walks, and crated downtime. Puppies need 18-20 hours of sleep per day. Enforcing naps prevents overstimulation and problem behaviors.
Start socialization and training early. Safely introduce your Afghan hound puppy to new sights, sounds, people, animals, places, and experiences. Positive early socialization prevents fearfulness and anxiety later on. Begin basic obedience training right away using positive reinforcement techniques.
Provide proper nutrition. Feed your puppy a premium large breed puppy food formulated for growth. Feed set meals rather than free feeding. Afghan hounds are prone to gastrointestinal issues so discuss an appropriate diet with your veterinarian.
Give your puppy downtime. The Afghan hound breed can be sensitive and high-strung. Make sure your puppy gets plenty of solo downtime in their crate each day to decompress. Avoid too much excitement or overstimulation.
Begin grooming routines. Gently handle your puppy's paws, ears, and body often so they become accustomed to grooming. Brush their long silky coat regularly to prevent matting as it grows in. Trim hair around paw pads if needed.

With diligent training and socialization during these formative months, your Afghan hound will grow into a well-adjusted, polite member of your family. Be patient – this elegant hound is highly intelligent but can be stubborn! With time and consistency, your puppy will learn good manners.

Housetraining an Afghan Hound Puppy

Housebreaking is one of the most important training goals with a new Afghan hound puppy. While housetraining any puppy requires diligence and patience, the Afghan's reputation for being stubborn and difficult to housebreak is exaggerated. Starting the right housetraining techniques early and sticking to a consistent schedule will have your Afghan pup reliably housebroken within a few months. Here are some key tips for housetraining an Afghan hound puppy:

Set up a predictable routine. Take your puppy outside to potty first thing in the morning, after every meal, after drinking water, after naps, after playtime, and every 1-2 hours in between. Puppies need to eliminate every 30-90 minutes.
Choose a potty spot outside and always use that spot. Take your pup there on a leash so you can praise and reward with treats for going in the right place. Use a verbal cue like "Go potty."
Limit access inside the home until fully housetrained. Use an exercise pen or crate when you cannot directly supervise your pup. Close off rooms or block access if needed. Confinement prevents accidents.
Watch for sniffing, circling, squatting – get your pup outside immediately when exhibiting signs they need to go. Praise for finishing outside.
Never punish for accidents. Respond calmly and firmly with a neutral "No." Clean soiled spots thoroughly with an enzymatic cleaner to remove odor.
Be extremely consistent about taking your Afghan out. Puppies have weak bladder control and often need to go after eating, drinking, napping, or playing.
Limit water intake 2-3 hours before bedtime. Take your puppy out right before bed and as soon as you wake up.
Celebrate successes! Housetraining takes several months. Be patient and reward each step. Limit corrections and focus on rewarding wanted behaviors.

With close supervision, very consistent scheduling, confinement when unsupervised, and positive reinforcement for doing the right thing, your Afghan hound will catch on to good house manners. Stick with it – this intelligent hound will be trustworthy in your home before you know it.

Crate Training an Afghan Hound Puppy

Crate training is essential for introducing your Afghan hound puppy to their new home. When done positively and gradually, crate training teaches a puppy to view their crate as a safe, comforting space. Contrary to popular belief, Afghan hounds do not have an aversion to being crated. In fact, they often come to see their crate as a peaceful retreat. Follow these tips for crate training an Afghan hound pup:

Obtain a crate sized for adult Afghans. It should allow standing and turning around but not excessive room. Place a comfy crate mat and chew toys inside.
Introduce your puppy to the crate during calm, low-key times. Scatter treats around and inside the crate so they enter willingly. Praise calmly.
Feed your puppy their meals inside the crate with the door open. Let them come and go freely at first.
Practice brief crating sessions multiple times daily. Lure your pup inside with a food treat or chew toy. Close the door briefly while you are home and reward calmness.
Crate your pup for short periods while home. Ignore any crying as attention rewards that behavior. Reward when quiet in the crate.
Place a worn t-shirt with your scent inside the crate to comfort your puppy. Use a pheromone spray on bedding to ease anxiety.
Ensure your puppy is well-exercised and has eliminated before longer crating periods. They can hold it 1 hour per month of age.
Make the crate a positive place. Give chew toys, bones, frozen Kongs to occupy your pup while inside.
Use the crate whenever you cannot actively supervise your pup. This prevents destructive chewing, accidents, and unsafe access to household dangers.
Never use the crate for punishment. Your puppy should have only good associations with their crate.

With patience and consistency, your Afghan hound puppy will come to see their crate as their own personal den for safety and solitude when needed. Proper crate training provides essential confinement for housebreaking and eases separations from you.

Providing Mental & Physical Exercise

Afghan hound puppies have abundant energy and curiosity. Making sure your Afghan pup receives sufficient physical and mental exercise is key to proper training and preventing problem behaviors. Afghans were bred to run and hunt over long distances. While a powerful hound, their lean build requires activity levels suited for a growing puppy. Here are some ideal ways to exercise your Afghan hound pup:

Short, frequent walks. Start with 10-15 minutes twice a day on leash around your neighborhood or backyard. Allow explore time. Increase duration as they mature.
Playing fetching games. Afghans love running and chasing balls or toys. Play gentle fetching games in your yard or hallway. Do not throw balls forcefully to avoid injury to growing joints.
Running/hiking. As your puppy matures, take them hiking or jogging for short periods after 12-18 months old when growth plates have closed. Afghan hounds make great running companions when properly conditioned.
Positive training sessions. Afghan hounds thrive on mental stimulation. Practice basic cues – sit, stay, come, down. Use food puzzles and interactive toys to make your pup think and earn food rewards.
Socialization outings. Safely expose your Afghan puppy to new environments, people, and animals. Trips to parks, stores, or classes provide mental stimulation.
Puzzle toys and food dispensing toys. Kongs, treat balls, snuffle mats etc filled with your pup's kibble or favorite treats provide enrichment indoors. Supervise to prevent ingesting toy parts.
Chew time. Provide appropriate chew toys to satisfy your Afghan puppy's need to chew and prevent destruction. Monitor use of rawhides, antlers, hooves etc as chewing can be intense.

Giving your energetic Afghan puppy both physical and mental exercise will set them up for success as they mature by preventing problem behaviors borne out of boredom and frustration. Start activity slowly and increase duration and intensity as your puppy develops to meet their needs. Your pup will be ready for those famous Afghan running skills when fully grown!

Socializing an Afghan Hound Puppy

Early socialization is imperative for raising an Afghan hound puppy to be a well-adjusted adult dog. Afghan hound puppies go through important developmental phases for learning about their world. Exposing your puppy to a wide variety of sights, sounds, people, animals, and situations should begin right away and continue into adulthood. Follow these tips:

Enroll in a quality puppy kindergarten class after your puppy's first set of vaccines. This provides crucial interaction with new dogs and people. Use rewards-based training.
Arrange controlled meetings with friend's vaccinated, gentle dogs and puppies. Supervise all interactions.
Frequently handle and examine your puppy's paws, ears, mouth etc so they become accustomed to grooming and handling.
Play recordings of sounds like fire alarms, thunderstorms, traffic at low levels to acquaint your puppy with loud noises. Pair with treats so they develop positive associations.
Take your puppy on car rides, outings, and errands (once vaccinated) to experience new environments and people. Go slowly and watch for overstimulation or fear.
Enroll in novice obedience courses once your puppy has mastered basic commands through positive reinforcement. Maintaining training is a lifelong endeavor.
Schedule one-on-one play sessions with trusted, vaccinated adult dogs who have good social skills. Pick calm dogs at first.
Introduce your puppy to people of all ages, appearances, and abilities. People with hats, beards, uniforms, wheelchairs etc. Make sure children know how to approach properly.
Be cognizant of new stimuli your puppy may find frightening. Go slowly, pair with treats, and watch body language. Never force interactions if fearful.
Avoid dog parks/daycares until fully vaccinated and grown. Supervise closely with unfamiliar dogs. Interactions should always be structured and positive.

Raising a confident, social Afghan hound requires commitment to ongoing socialization, training, and exposure to the many things they will encounter in the human world. Preventing fearfulness and anxiety hinges on ensuring all new experiences are positive and structured during these key development phases. With proper socialization, your Afghan friend will be ready for a lifetime of adventure together!

Leash Training a Afghan Hound Puppy

Teaching your Afghan hound puppy to walk properly on a leash and control impulses is an essential – and rewarding – training task. Afghans were bred to follow scent trails at great speed, and that urge to run must be curbed through patient leash training. Follow these tips to leash train your Afghan hound pup:

Introduce a flat collar and lightweight leash around 8-10 weeks old inside your home and yard first. Let them drag the leash and get used to the feel.
Hold treats by your side and encourage your pup to come toward you using their name and the treat. Reward each step toward you to build association.
Work on "let's go" and change of direction commands inside your home or yard at first before going outside. Reward following you.
Head outside once leash manners and focusing on you are solid indoors. Bring high-value treats. Keep the pace slow with frequent changes of direction and reward check-ins.
Choose low distraction areas like your own street when first leash training outside. Avoid areas with many people or dogs until focus is reliable.
Reward and mark desired behaviors like eye contact, slack leash walking, sitting, or focusing on you. Use verbal praise and treat rewards.
If your puppy forgets leash manners and pulls, do an about turn and call them back to you excitedly. Heavily praise and reward returning focus to you.
Use a command like "easy" if your puppy starts reacting to sights and smells on walks. Regain attention and treat before continuing.
Gradually increase distractions and duration of walks as your Afghan puppy masters leash training. But go back to "easy" mode if needed.
Practice obedience commands during walks. Work on sit/stays, downs, leave it, heel, etc.

With much patience and consistency, even the most headstrong Afghan hound puppy will learn good leash manners that allow for peaceful walks together. Proper leash training prevents pulling and reactivity that Afghan hounds are prone to without direction from you. Put in the early work, and you'll have a wonderful walking companion for life.

Afghan Hound Puppy Biting and Nipping

Puppies explore and play with their mouths, so nipping and mouthing behavior is completely normal in young Afghan hound puppies. However, allowing mouthing to continue can lead to painful bites as your pup grows so it's crucial to redirect biting and teach gentle jaws early on. Here is how to manage Afghan puppy biting and nip training:

Provide plenty of appropriate chew toys. When your puppy starts to nip or bite, redirect to a toy. Praise for chewing the toy instead. Rotate toy bin to keep novelty.
Teach "no bite" command. Say this firmly when puppy mouths skin. Ignore your puppy briefly if they continue or give an appropriate timeout. Reward stopping biting.
Avoid rough play, wrestling, or tug of war during bitey overstimulated periods. These can ramp up biting and make training more difficult.
Give teething puppies cold chew toys or frozen wet rags to soothe sore gums. Biting often increases around 4-5 months old during teething.
Practice handling exercises like touching paws, ears, collar handling and brushing to get your puppy comfortable being handled gently. Reward tolerance.
Teach and reinforce a "gentle" command by praising and treating any inhibited, gentle taking of treats or toys from your hand.
Consistently interrupt biting and end play anytime teeth touch skin. Give timeouts in the crate for several minutes if needed.
Avoid screaming, shouting or quick movements when nipped which can ramp up your puppy's energy. Redirect and remove attention calmly.
Be patient and absolutely consistent ignoring biting while rewarding gentle play, handling, and toy chewing. Afghan puppies are quick learners with consistency.
Seek professional guidance from trainers immediately if bite inhibition training is not working as the puppy matures. Afghans are strong dogs.

Keeping a sense of humor while remaining utterly consistent in your training is the key to curbing mouthing and biting while also building your bond. Your Afghan puppy will soon learn how to play gently and control those needle-sharp puppy teeth.

Afghan Hound Puppy Training Commands

Afghan hounds are highly intelligent and trainable despite their independent nature. Starting basic obedience commands using positive reinforcement methods right away sets the foundation for a well-trained adult dog. Always keep training sessions short, energetic, varied, and fun for these sensitive yet headstrong pups. Here are some key commands to master:

Name recognition: Say your puppy's name excitedly and reward with treats when they look at you. Build strong name recognition first.

Watch/Focus: Hold a treat at your eye level to encourage your pup to make eye contact. Mark and reward. Build up duration of eye focus.

Sit: Hold a treat over your pup's nose and slowly move it back towards the tail to lure the sit position. Mark and treat. Add the verbal cue "sit" once the behavior is consistent.

Down: Show the treat in your closed hand right in front of your pup's nose, then move it straight down to the floor between paws to lure lying down. Mark and treat each small step. Add "down" once the behavior is reliable.

Stay: Have your puppy sit or down, say "stay", take a few steps back, then return and reward for staying put. Gradually increase duration and distance.

Come: Call your puppy excitedly. When they come, reward enthusiastically with treats. Always make coming to you extremely rewarding.

Leave it: Place a treat on the floor and cover it with your hand. Say "leave it". Lift hand only once your pup stops trying to get the treat. Reward ignoring the treat.

Drop it: Say "drop it" and offer a high value treat in exchange for releasing an item. Reward when they release the item.

Heel/Let's Go: Lure your pup into perfect heel position at your side using a treat. Praise and reward correct position. Say "let's go" and reinforce staying in position as you walk.

With multiple short, fun sessions daily your Afghan puppy will master these starter skills in no time. Praise lavishly, keep sessions short and sweet, and your brilliant hound will make you proud.