Handling & Grooming Prep

Your Spartan puppy has already had a head start. Now the goal is to keep it going.


Handling isn't just about grooming.


Throughout your dog's life, there will be times when you, a veterinarian or someone else needs to touch their feet, look in their ears, examine their mouth, give medication, trim their nails or simply hold them still for a few moments.


That's a whole lot easier if your puppy grows up believing:


“This is normal. I know how to cooperate.”


And that's something I start teaching almost from the moment they're born.


Handling Starts From Day One


From the day they're born, my puppies are accustomed to my touch, scent and presence.


One of the little things I've always done is hold each puppy close and gently breathe toward their face. At that age, they can't see or hear the world the way they soon will, so scent, warmth and touch are a big part of how they experience what's around them.


For me, it's the very beginning of their relationship with people. I want my presence, my scent and being held by human hands to be familiar from the start.


During those first weeks, they're also picked up and handled frequently as I rotate and care for them around the clock.


Human contact isn't something that suddenly begins when they're several weeks old.


It begins on day one.


Early Neurological Stimulation & Early Scent Introduction


Beginning on day 3 and continuing through day 16, I do Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS) and Early Scent Introduction (ESI) with each puppy.


ENS includes a series of brief, controlled exercises involving different types of handling and positioning.

ESI introduces the puppies to different scents during this same early developmental period.


Both become part of the individual attention and handling each puppy receives during those first weeks.

And as they grow, that early work simply becomes part of everyday life around here.


Your Puppy Has Already Been Handled—a LOT


Before your puppy ever comes home, they've already experienced:

  • regular handling from a very young age
  • ENS and ESI from days 3–16
  • being picked up, supported and held in different positions
  • having their feet, legs, ears and body handled
  • having their nails trimmed every week
  • getting accustomed to a Dremel-style nail grinder
  • several baths
  • deworming
  • vaccinations
  • microchipping
  • veterinary examinations
  • sleeping independently in their own kennel


So when I hand you your puppy, you're not starting this process. You're continuing it.


Your puppy has already begun learning:

“Being touched, handled, examined and experiencing new things is just part of life.”


Teach Your Puppy to Relax While Being Handled


When my puppies are still very small, I practice holding them in different ways.


One thing I'll do is support a puppy with my arm underneath the front of their body and hold them securely in front of me, allowing their legs to hang relaxed.


A puppy who trusts me will often simply relax into it.


That's what I'm looking for.


I'm not trying to wrestle with the puppy. I'm teaching them that they can relax while someone they trust supports, holds and handles their body.


As your puppy grows, continue that same idea.


Touch them. Examine them. Hold a foot for a few seconds. Look in an ear. Lift a lip. Run your hands over their body.


Then let them go.


Make handling something ordinary instead of something that only happens when there's a problem.


Feet & Nails—Start NOW


This is one I don't want you to put off.


Your puppy has had their nails trimmed every week while they've been with me.


Keep it going.


Handle their feet regularly. Touch each toe. Hold the paw for a moment. Gently separate the toes.


Even when the nails don't need much trimming, you can still practice the routine.


Clippers or a Dremel?

You can certainly use nail clippers, but I really like using a Dremel-style nail grinder.


The nice thing about starting with a puppy is that you can teach them that the sound and vibration are no big deal.


Start simply.

Let them hear it. Handle the foot. Turn the Dremel on nearby. Touch it briefly to a nail. Praise calm behavior.


Then you're done.


You don't have to grind every nail perfectly during every practice session. At first, you're teaching the puppy to cooperate with the process.


When using a grinder, use brief touches rather than holding it continuously against the nail so you don't create excess heat, and keep hair safely away from the rotating tool.


And remember:

It's a whole lot easier to convince a 15-pound puppy that having his feet handled is no big deal than to have that discussion for the first time with a 110-pound Rottweiler. 😂


Practice Looking at Everything


Don't wait until something hurts before you start examining your puppy.


Get them accustomed to you looking at and touching their:

Feet and toes.
Ears.
Eyes and face.
Lips, teeth and gums.
Legs.
Belly and body.
Tail and rear area.
Collar and neck.


Lift a lip and look at the teeth.


Look inside an ear.


Run your hands down a leg.

Hold a paw.


Feel between the toes.


None of this needs to become a big training session.


A few seconds here and there during normal life can teach your puppy:


“People touching and examining me isn't a big deal.”


Bathing & Grooming


Your puppy's first bath won't be with you, either.


They've already had several baths before going home.


Continue making bathing and grooming a normal part of life.


Get your puppy accustomed to bathing, rinsing, towel drying, brushing, having their feet wiped and having their body handled while you're grooming them.


Keep it calm and matter-of-fact.


You don't need to turn bath day into a spa retreat.


You also don't need to turn it into a rodeo. 😂


Prepare for the Vet BEFORE You Need the Vet


Your puppy has already had quite a bit of experience with medical handling.


They've had vaccinations and deworming with me. They've been microchipped. They've also already been examined by a veterinarian.


Keep building on that.


At home, you can practice many of the same things a veterinarian may eventually need your dog to accept.


Briefly hold them still. Look in their ears. Lift their lips. Touch their feet. Run your hands over their body. Feel their belly.


Handle their legs.


The first time your dog really needs an ear examined shouldn't be when that ear is already sore.


The first time you need to carefully inspect a paw shouldn't be when something is stuck in it.


Practice when nothing is wrong.


That makes it much easier when something actually is.


Kennel Training Is Part of Vet Preparation Too


This may not sound like handling or grooming, but it absolutely belongs here.


A dog who is comfortable in a kennel is much better prepared for situations that may happen throughout their life.


Your dog may someday need to be kenneled at the veterinarian, before or after a procedure, during recovery from surgery, while boarding, during travel or as part of other care.


That's another reason I put so much emphasis on kennel training.


Your Spartan puppy has already started sleeping independently in a kennel before going home.


Keep using it.


Don't let kennel training disappear simply because your puppy is behaving well in the house.


Don't Turn Handling Into a Wrestling Match


There may be times your puppy would rather not have their feet touched or sit still while you look in an ear.


That's okay.


We're teaching them.


Keep your practice short. Stay calm. Reward cooperation. Then try again another time.


If your puppy is becoming increasingly frightened or overwhelmed, make the exercise easier rather than escalating the battle.


There's a difference between teaching a puppy:


“I need you to hold still for a moment.”

and teaching them:


“Every time someone touches my feet, we're going to have a fight.”


We want the first one.


Watch Your Puppy's Body Language


Just like we talked about in Socialization & Confidence, your puppy's body language gives you information.


A little squirming or “I'd rather be doing something else” isn't unusual for a puppy.


But watch for increasing fear, frantic struggling, stiffness, trying desperately to escape or becoming more upset instead of settling.


If you're getting that response, slow down.


Make the exercise easier. Practice for less time. Reward a smaller success. Then build from there.


Think About the Adult Rottweiler


Ask yourself the same question we use throughout our training:


“What do I want my ADULT Rottweiler to do here?”


Someday you may have a 100+ pound dog standing in front of you.

  • Can you hold his foot?
  • Can you trim his nails?
  • Can you look in his ear?
  • Can you check his teeth?
  • Can you examine between his toes?
  • Can a veterinarian touch and examine him?
  • Can he calmly go into a kennel if he needs medical care?


Those behaviors don't magically appear when your puppy grows up.


We teach them now.


Keep It Simple


Handle your puppy regularly.


Practice when nothing is wrong.


Keep sessions short.


Continue trimming their nails.


Get them comfortable with the Dremel.


Look in their ears and mouth.


Touch their feet.


Give them baths.


Keep using the kennel.


Reward cooperation.


And don't wait until you NEED your dog to accept something to teach them how.


Start while they're little, practice often, and make being handled just another normal part of life.