Puppy Playgroup
About Puppy Playgroup
Looking to enrol your pup into a class with other peers of similar ages and sizes? Our puppy playgroup is for you! This class is designed to facilitate socialisation during their sensitive period (between 8-16 weeks of age) to maximise their learning opportunities.
You are also welcome to attend as many sessions as you wish to (until your puppy reaches the age limit) as this class operates on an open-enrolment basis. Come meet our trainers and visit our campuses when you bring your pup for class!
Class information
Schedule
- One hour per session.
- *You may attend as many sessions as you wish.
Day & time
- To be announced! Stay tuned to our Instagram for when the class launches!
Age eligibility
- Mini or other puppies between 8-20 weeks of age.
Class size
- Two to four puppies per class.
- One trainer is assigned to every two puppies!
Campus location
- Newton Campus — 182 Bukit Timah Road; or
- Namly Campus — 78 Namly Place
Price
- 1 one-hour lesson— S$109
More about Puppy Playgroup
What will your dog and you learn?
Since every dog have different preferences, finding what your dog likes is the first step. Understanding what motivates your dog is key to helping them learn faster and improve behaviour, all while keeping them engaged and interested during training.
Learn how to get your puppy’s attention, as well as understand what appropriate interactions with other puppies and older dogs look like.
Together with your puppy, you’ll both learn how to understand the body language of another dog who does not wish to engage or continue the play.
Give your pup the opportunity to safely learn group play and social skills under the supervision of certified trainers!
What's Puppy Playgroup about?
There's no better way for a puppy to learn than through play! Not only will your pup get to socialise, exercise, and expend their energy, they'll also be able to build confidence and resilience around other dogs and humans.
In Puppy Playgroup, your pup will have the opportunity to interact and socialise with other peers, while developing appropriate play and social skills under the guidance of our trainers. This includes meeting other well-socialised dogs from our Montessori School carefully selected by your trainer(s)!
You will also find out what motivates your puppy and how to reinforce the behaviours you want! This sets the foundation for training later on.
As this playgroup is centered around your puppy’s socialisation, it is recommended to take other topic-based classes to complement the skills they have learnt in this class. If there are other specific areas you wish to work on with your puppy, you may take a look at our Puppy Life Skills private class, where the training curriculum can be adjusted to meet your needs.
This class is great for anyone with a puppy who wish to give them a headstart in their socialisation and learn how to read appropriate puppy play.
Since puppies are pretty much a blank slate, starting them early gives them more time to learn how to play nicely with others. You’ll have more time to understand their personality and play style, as well as reinforce appropriate behaviours more. At the same time, you’ll also learn when to step in to stop inappropriate play, which prevents aggressive behaviours from forming.
To keep our students safe, our Puppy Playgroup is held indoors in our campus, with only a maximum of four puppies in one playgroup (one trainer to every two pups). Doing so allows our trainers to teach and explain what’s happening as your pup is playing. You’ll also be able to engage with our trainers in real-time as your pup plays in different ways to better understand the situation.
As dogs communicate differently from humans, it’s normal to wonder if your dog is having fun, if their play is appropriate, or if they need a short break. Understanding their body language will help you interpret what’s happening better. This way, you’ll be on the same page as your dog and understand what they’re communicating through their behaviour.
Understanding motivation and reinforcement
Finding out what motivates your dog makes it easier to keep them engaged or focused on the training session or task at hand. It is paired with a reward to reinforce the desired behaviour you’re teaching your dog.
Getting your puppy’s attention
The first step to training is getting your puppy’s attention. If they’re not looking at you, then they’re probably not listening to you. In this class, you will learn various ways to get their attention and practice them.
Identifying appropriate interaction with other puppies and older dogs
It is through play that dogs develop their social and motor skills, along with communication skills as well as form social connections. By instilling appropriate play behaviour in your pup early, they can then better communicate with other dogs in the future.
Your puppy will get the chance to meet an older, well-socialised dog from our Montessori School, who can impart appropriate social skills during the class. Through such interactions, your puppy will learn the body language of another dog who does not with to engage or continue play. You, as their owner, will also learn what these look like so you can continue guiding your puppy in interactions outside of class!
Since 2008, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behaviour (AVSAB) has taken the position of puppies starting socialisation before all vaccinations are complete. You may read their full statement on puppy socialisation here.
To minimise the risk of illnesses, the Puppy Playgroup is only conducted within our campus indoors, where the facility is cleaned and sanitised daily. If you have any further concerns, you may let us know when signing your puppy up!
The Puppy Playgroup class is designed to facilitate socialisation for puppies between 8-20 weeks of age.
It is not designed for puppies with existing behaviour issues such as excessive barking, over-excitement, aggression anxiety, extreme fear or other issues that is beyond the normal dog behaviour. Should there be any existing behaviour issues, please take a look at the classes offered for Behaviour Modification!
Who can enrol in Puppy Playgroup?
- Puppies with an understanding of basic cues, such as: sit/down, and some level of being able to come when called.
- Puppies who have started their Distemper, Hepatitis and Parvovirus vaccination.
- Puppies that have started appropriate parasite prevention (heartworm, intestinal worm, flea & tick).
