Some people say that once a dog isn’t a puppy anymore, you cannot teach him new things anymore. But is that really true?
Studies have shown that puppies start learning things when they are around 3 weeks old. When they are 7 weeks old, their brain is, from a neurological point of view, fully grown. Their brain is still ‘empty’, and it’s up to the new owner to fill their brain with the right information. Whatever a dog learns during the following weeks, will stick with him forever. But what if you never got the chance to raise your dachshund properly, due to ignorance at the time, or rescuing him? Will your dachshund still be able to learn tricks and to be taught good behavior when he is not a puppy anymore?
The answer is yes. It might not be as easy as training a puppy, but it is definitily possible. It is always worth training your dachshund, no matter how old he is. A trained dachshund is a calm dachshund, because he sees you as his owner and therefore won’t try to constantly misbehave or act scared all the time. He has someone to follow, and therefore does not feel alone or like he has to train YOU.
But why is it more difficult to train an older dachshund? A puppy, during his first few weeks, takes in everything he learns and remembers it. This is in his nature, because animals need to learn very quickly in order to survive in the wild. When a dog gets older, this need is gone, because he has learned to survive already and it will be more difficult to teach him new stuff, simply because it is not ‘necessary’.
Just because it is not as easy, does not mean it is impossible. So just go for it and put in that effort to strengthen your relationship with your doxie. In the end, all the training will pay off, because your dachshund now drops the toy when you say so, leaves the room when you tell him to and gives you a kiss when you ask for it.
