ONLINE Training Access for the Entire Family!! 
Recognizing the importance of positive reinforcement training and wanting to help you get started on the right PAW as quickly as possible, we have partnered with BAXTER & Bella to provide discounted lifetime access to their exclusive MEMBERS ONLY online puppy school, including all their valuable training resources! Starting your puppy right, leads to the very best in canine companionship! ​

In order to save, use our code: RIVERBEND for 25% off of a LIFETIME membership. This means that a LIFETIME Membership priced at $238, will be yours for $178.50! A savings of $59.50!

This program discount is available to everyone, not just our Riverbend Families. Feel free to share it with your friends and family, and together we will raise our puppies to be the PAW-SOME family members we always dreamed of!

RIVERBEND PUPPY TRANSITION TRAINING 
We highly recommend the puppy training provided by positive reinforcement trainer Jennifer Topalian at The Grateful Dog LLC. This is an amazing 3 week course that starts at 9 weeks and goes to 12 weeks of age. When your puppy comes home at approximately 12 weeks of age, he/she will have a great foundation of training and behavior started. The value of taking the puppies at 9 weeks is that the trainer will help to transition them from being a part of a group or litter, to being an individual. Puppies learn like little sponges at this stage, and under the proper guidance, they will blossom into wonderful little bundles of joy as opposed to the bundles of energetic shark-teeth they sometimes portray themselves as.

  • LEARN HIS/HER NAME
  • BEGIN CRATE TRAINING
  • BEGIN HOUSE-TRAINING (NOTE: PUPPIES ARE NOT FULLY HOUSE-TRAINED, BUT ARE WELL STARTED.)
  • BEGIN CAR RIDING ETIQUETTE
  • SOCIALIZATION TO DOGS, CATS, CHILDREN, NOISES OF A NORMAL SUBURBAN HOME AND LIFESTYLE
  • EXPOSURE TO STAIRS, ETC.
  • LEARN TO UNDERSTAND AND DEVELOP HOUSEHOLD MANNERS SUCH AS NOT JUMPING, NIPPING, ETC
  • LEARN TO “FOCUS” ON CUE
  • LEARN “SIT”
  • LEARN “DOWN”
  • LEARN GO TO “PLACE/CRATE/BED”
  • BEGIN A “STAY/WAIT” CUE
  • LEARN “TOUCH” FROM SHORT DISTANCES (COME).
  • DEVELOP LOOSE LEASH WALKING

The puppies are in excellent hands during the transitional training period, and live with Jennifer’s family in their home during their training time. During the 3 weeks the puppies are trained multiple times during the day for specific learning, but as puppies, they are really learning all the time, all throughout the day. Exposure to positive interactions and safe socialization with other dogs, people, places, sounds, etc. is essential for continued growth.

You are also provided a training session upon pick up of your puppy to review the progress and learn the training cues and words used for introducing your puppy into your home and family with continued success.

You can pick up your puppy here with us or transport can be arranged for our long-distance families at an additional charge.

Jennifer also has other training services to offer if you are located nearby, or if you have a vacation coming up and would be interested in their in-home boarding/training services. Feel free to visit her website or Facebook page to go back through some of the photos, videos, and training tips being shared. 

Positive Training books we recommend:

  • Puppy Socialization, An Insider's Guide to Dog Behavioral Fitness, by Caryl Wolff
  • Train Your Dog Positively, by Victoria Stilwell
  • The Puppy Whisperer, A Compassionate, Nonviolent Guide to Early Training and Care, by Paul Owens and Terence Cranendonk
  • The Dog Whisperer, A Compassionate, Nonviolent Approach to Dog Training, by Paul Owens
  • Don't Shoot The Dog!, by Karen Pryor
  • Inside of a Dog, What Dogs See, Smell, and Know, by Alexandra Horowitz