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By the time you bring your new puppy home he will probably be around 8 to 10 weeks old and this is the perfect age to start teaching him. French bulldogs are known for their stubbornness so it is important that you start out as you mean to go on from the word go. Here are some of the most important things you should start teaching your new puppy straight away:

The routine

It is very important to teach your new puppy how life will be in his new home, puppies like to feel safe and have some kind of routine to their day and now is a good time to start. Some of the things you should teach him are:

* Where he will sleep.

* Where to find his food and water.

* When it is time to go to bed and get up.

* Where he will go to the bathroom.

* Where his toys are.

Once this is established your puppy will begin to form a bond with his master, he will find that you are dependable and can provide him with what he needs, he will feel safe. You can then go onto teaching other just as important things such as:

* What the word “NO” means – this is a word that you will probably find yourself repeating very often in the beginning, however by repeating it every time your puppy does something wrong he should quickly learn what the word means.

* Housetraining – this is the perfect age to start teaching your new puppy housetraining, you can introduce him to his bathroom and persist in taking him there every half hour, however due to the young age it can take several months for his young bladder to grow strong enough to stop accidents from happening.

* Being handled and groomed – your new puppy will be just like a young child always wanting to play and run around, however you should start a grooming regime at this young age to get into good habits. It is also wise to get your puppy used to being handled and picked up.

* To be gentle – now is a good time to teach your puppy how to be gentle, for example when he is taking something from your hand or when he has something in his mouth you want to take from him. You should teach him not to bite, grab or hold onto anything tightly.

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There are many myths surrounding spaying and neutering of your pet, here are a few of those myths dispelled:

* It costs too much to have my pet spayed or neutered

The cost of spaying or neutering your pet will depend on several factors such as the sex, age, size and vets fees, but the cost is a one time fee and when you take into account all the benefits it has to offer it is worthwhile. When you take into account the cost of having a litter and paying for its care until the puppies are old enough to leave their mother it really isn’t that expensive. You will also have peace of mind over the health of your pet and prevent unwanted pregnancy and litters.

* I don’t want my male dog to feel less of a male

Our pets don’t have the same ego or sense of sexuality that we humans do so neutering will not change your dog’s outlook this way, your dog wont suffer from any emotional distress due to this.

* My dogs a guard dog this will change after the operation Spaying or neutering your pet won’t affect their ability to be a guard dog in anyway, your dogs guarded and protection skills come from their built in genes not their sex hormones.

* My pet will get lazy and put on weight

Most pets that put on weight and get lazy do so because their owners feed them too much or give them the wrong diet to start with, this also stems from a lack of exercise and spaying or neutering doesn’t have an affect on the attitude or cause them to become lazy.

* Its better for the female dog if she has a litter

Medical evidence has shown us that a female dog that is spayed before her first heat is in fact the healthier dog, now many veterinarians are offering to sterilise kittens and puppies as young as eight weeks to help prevent unwanted litters later in life.

* My children should experience the miracle of birth

Allowing your dog to give birth just for the sake of the children is wrong in all aspects; besides the chances of your children actually being there when you dog give birth is very remote. Most dogs give birth in the very early hours of the morning and like privacy and seclusion while doing so, giving birth shouldn’t be a show which someone can watch and only a very irresponsible owner would even consider this.

* My dog is purebred it should be used for breeding

Unfortunately 1 in every 4 unwanted pets which are brought to animal shelters are in fact purebred, just because your dog is purebred doesn’t mean that it has to be bred, there are far too many unwanted animals for that to be the case and only an irresponsible owner would even consider breeding for this reason.

Every dog is different when it comes to being sociable as are different breeds; some are more sociable than others just the same as with people, some will mix more easily than others. Some breeds will downright ignore other people and pets while some will fuss just about everyone and everything, some are fine with only members of the family and remain aloof with just about everyone else.

Some dogs love women and hate men or vice versa and some are fine with adults but shy away from children while some just don’t seem to like anyone or anything other than their owner. A lot of this is due to certain breeds but some of it is down to the actual dog themselves, dogs are just like people and have personalities of there own just as people do. However breeds that are known to be genetically inclined to dominance, territoriality or generally regard people with suspicion are:

The French bulldog, American pit bull terrier, Belgian Shepherd, Chinese shar-pei, Doberman pincher, chow chow, German Shepherd, mastiff, Rhodesian ridgeback, Rottweiler and Tibetan mastiff.

However on saying this, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your dog will be aggressive towards people, as all dogs have their own personality. Only that they are genetically inclined to do so more than other breeds, this is due to the fact that they were originally bred to hunt, fight or guard. Your dog’s behaviour and attitude will stem from many things including:

Your dog’s parents

Puppies will usually inherit traits from their parents so if their parents were good natured and got on with other dogs and people then there is a good chance your puppy or dog will follow their parents.

This is why knowing the background history and seeing your puppy’s parents before you buy are very important, a reputable breeder should always show you the puppies parents or at the very least the puppies mother. If a breeder shy’s away from showing you first hand the puppy’s parents then this should be regarded as a warning sign that something is amiss.

Your puppy’s early environment

If your puppy had a very bad experience when very young this could have left an imprint on him, your puppy should not have been taken away from its mother before the age of seven weeks old. Puppies learn from their mother and siblings up to this age and puppies which have been separated from their mothers and siblings too early in life can develop a fear of other dogs or become aggressive with other dogs due to this.

How well you socialise with your puppy

From around 8 weeks to 6 months is the most important time of your puppy’s life in regards to socialising, and then your puppy will enter the “teenage” stage around 6 months and ends around the time your dog is 1 to 3 years old. Your dog will then be much like a human teenager and this can bring all the problems associated with a teenager such as their bad attitude.

During this time your dogs mood may change rapidly from one day to the next, one day he might be fine with other dogs and humans the next all surly and bad tempered. This can be a very stressful time not only for your dog but also for the owner and much patience and training will be needed during this stage.

Your new puppy’s parents and its genes will play a big part in how your puppy will turn out when it’s fully grown into an adult dog, you of course as the owner will also be able to influence this outcome. By petting, playing and teaching your new puppy good behaviour you can help your puppy to develop good socialisation skills.

Your puppy will have been weaned around the age of 6 weeks but they still learn valuable lessons from their mother up to around 8 t0 10 weeks, this is the time when they are ready to leave their mothers and litter mates. Here is a general guideline to your puppy’s stages of development:

Two to four weeks

* This is called the transitional period and it is the time when your puppy will be most influenced by its mother and its litter mates.

* Teeth begin to come in and the puppy’s eyes will start to open, their sense of smell and hearing will now develop.

* They begin to stand and try to walk, the tail will wag and the puppy can bark.

* By the end of the fourth week the eyesight should be fully developed.

Three to twelve weeks

* During this period the puppy should have contact with other people.

* By three to five weeks the puppy is well aware of its surroundings and its companions.

* By weeks four to six the puppy is influenced by its littermates.

* From four to twelve weeks a puppy will start to be influenced by the people around it, they will learn how to play and begin to develop social skills.

* Seven to nine weeks and the puppy will begin refining its skills and can start to be house trained * Eight to ten weeks the puppy can experience fear and needs positive training from this age.

* Nine to twelve weeks the puppy begins to refine its actions and explores its environment more, the puppy will focus more on people.

Three to six months

* A puppy will be greatly influenced by playmates.

* The puppy will begin to grasp ideas of submission and dominance.

* The puppy will begin teething at this stage.

Six to 18 months

* The puppy is more influenced by people.

* During the months seven to nine the puppy will go through another stage of chewing anything and everything.

* Dominance will increase particularly in male dogs.

* Sexual behaviour will start to show in dogs that haven’t been neutered or spayed.

One of the biggest traits of the French bulldog that almost all owners of this delightful little playful dog will tell you is that it is a clown; the breed has been dubbed absolutely hilarious and delightful. If you are looking for a faithful companion pet then you can do no better than the little Frenchie. Here are some useful tips :
The French bulldog has one of the sweetest personalities of any breed of dog and is well known as the joker who is easy going for the majority of the time, although just as with people dogs differ too in personality and while the Frenchie has an excellent temperament they can have their off days just as anyone can.
While the French bulldog will generally get along with anyone and everybody they do tend to choose one person in particular and then stick with that person. The bond that the Frenchie develops with his main carer and owner is like no other and they are completely devoted and thrive on attention and love, they do not do well when left alone for long periods of time. The French bulldog isn’t a dog that you can own and then ignore except for when you want it around, it is a companion dog and it does need lots of attention and above all love from its owner, the Frenchie is not a dog that can be left alone outside in a kennel as it simply will not thrive without love and affection.

The French bulldog’s temperament with other dogs is generally considered to be good; the majority of time they will get along with other dogs and even other pets in the household but the male dog can sometimes be very aggressive with other males.

While the French bulldog is a very sweet adorable clown the breed does tend to have a mind of its own at times and can be very wilful, you do have to have a firm voice when it comes to training but it is essential that you are very persistent but patient when it comes to the training. Never ever be tempted to hit or jerk your French bulldog around if it doesn’t do as you want, they will not respond to this and will more often than not rebel against it.

The French bulldog does have an excellent temperament with children but because of its small size it can feel intimidated and it can tire easily when around boisterous children, it is a relatively good breed but is best not left at the mercy of very small children and is best with older children who are more considerate and will not chase the poor dog around if he should want to rest. On the other hand some French bulldogs simply seem to have all the energy in the world and are continually on the other move almost all day long; they can be over enthusiastic and don’t know when enough is enough, they can make a lot of noise to get your attention although they are not considered to be yappy.

Just as with people dogs do differ and while the above is a relatively true picture of the average breed of the French bulldog the Frenchie can vary, some are more boisterous than others but almost all French bulldogs have the loyalty and love for their owners which makes them an excellent companion.