Perfect Puppy in 7 Days: How to Start Your Puppy Off Right

by Sophia Yin, Lili Chin (Illustrator)

With 400 photos and a step-by-step plan, this puppy book visually guides you through socialization, potty training, and life skills while making the process fun. Dr. Marty Becker; "America's Veterinarian" of Good Morning America, says, "This is like no other puppy book you've seen before. It’s not just about teaching your puppy manners, it's a step-by-step recipe for bonding with your puppy, learning to communicate with him, and preparing you pup for life! With Dr. Yin's approach your puppy will learn more in a week than many dogs learn in a year!" Victoria Stillwell from Animal Planet's "It's Me or the Dog" says, " This book is a must-have for any puppy parent or canine educator." Dr. Johan Bradshaw, author of "Dog Sense" says, "This book is a comprehensive and humane guide to puppy behavior and training, incorporating a detailed guide on how to interpret your puppy's body language. Worth buying for the socialization advice and checklist alone." Dr. Ellen Lindell, veterinary behaviorist, states, "This well-organized book is filled with essential information about puppy development and learning. Experts and novices alike will appreciate the illustrations and analogies that turn science into a clear and enjoyable read. Most important, Dr. Yin offers a plan that incorporates critical socialization and training into a daily routine. It will be a puppy life-saver." Nancy Abplanalp of "Thinking Dogs" says, "I own tons of dog training books and none of them are as much fun to read as this one. It's accurate and easy to access. The puppy socialization chapters and checklist are especially well done. If you have a puppy, work with puppies, raise puppies, or just plain like puppies, get this book. Chapters • How Your Puppy Developed Before You Got Her • Why Start Training So Soon? • Preparing for the Puppy • A Foolproof Potty Training Program • Dr. Sophia Yin’s Learn to Earn Program for Puppies • Socializing Your Pup to Dogs, People and Handling • A Head Start on All the Rest

Genres: Dogs, Nonfiction, Animals, Reference, Self Help

191 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2011

About the author

Dr. Sophia Yin is a veterinarian, applied animal behaviorist, and the author of many books, including Perfect Puppy in 7 Days, How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves, and Low Stress Handling, Restraint and Behavior Modification of Dogs & Cats (book and DVD). She sees behavior house calls and lectures and teaches workshops on animal behavior, training, and low-stress pet handling in the U.S. and internationally. She writes for a number of veterinary and popular magazines, and was for five years the award-winning pet columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle. She has consulted for several zoos and served as a behavior expert for TV shows such as Animal Planet’s Dogs 101. Dr. Yin’s mission in life is to improve our understanding of animals and their behavior so that we can care for, appreciate, and enjoy our time with them better. Learn more at her animal behavior website, drsophiayin.com.

Reviews

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Update: So, I've had my new puppy home for nearly a month, (she's almost 11 weeks old at this point) and I've followed Dr. Yin's book almost to the letter and I can now FULLY attest that this is a MARVELOUS resource! Ember, (my pup) is so well behaved! She's almost totally housebroken, (no accidents in the house for almost two weeks now - knock on wood!), she sits, has nearly perfect recall, knows her name, fetches, knows "drop it", will obey "leave it", has no fear of plastic bags, thunderstorms, fireworks, or cars. She greets other dogs with a happy readiness, looooves meeting strangers - from children to adults, and is fairly good at heeling on my right side on our daily walks. Her default behavior when nervous or unsure is to sit and wait for me to instruct her.

So far, no spastic puppy issues, just a marvelously well behaved pup, and everyone who meets her says the same thing! I'm so proud of my puppy, and honestly, I'm a weensy bit proud of myself because it's been a great deal of work, but Emmy and I are so beautifully bonded in just one short month together which was a side benefit I hadn't really given much thought to prior to starting the plan. In fact, most of the time all I have to do is point and Emmy picks up what I need from her as if we were connected telepathically. This isn't the case all the time, of course, but she's so used to getting her cues from me that it's incredible how often she simply intuitively understands what I need from her. This has been especially helpful in the kitchen when I'm cooking and Emmy is patiently sitting on a little square of carpet, waiting for me to acknowledge her or reward her for simply sitting and not getting underfoot. For that alone this book is worth its weight in gold!

Now, I will also restate that to follow this plan it has taken a LOT of work - we have little mini 10 minute training sessions throughout the day for a total of about an hour of specifically directed training time - but truthfully, I'm training her for much of her awake time. I also brought home a dog from a breed known for their extra high energy, (I'm down 3 pounds just from trying to keep up with her!) :) But this has been work and effort that I'm happy and more than willing to put in, because my schedule is so tight, and I have a great deal to accomplish in the next few months and chasing after a pup who won't listen or mind isn't an option. Again, I can't recommend this book enough. It's been an invaluable resource, a life saver, really, because without it, I'm quite certain I never would've brought home a new puppy for fear that it would be too distracting, and knowing my sweet, adorable, lovely little pup as I now do, that would've been quite heartbreaking.

So, if you're willing to put in the time and follow the steps I can assure you that Dr. Yin's method really, really, really works!!!

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

Original review posted 6 weeks prior to bringing puppy home:

I genuinely enjoyed this book and learned SO much! It's been 14 years since I had a puppy in the house so I'm diligently preparing for another in May, and studying up on all of the best techniques to ensure that the new relationship between me and my pup will be as seamless as possible. I want to be the very best human to my pup that I can possibly be, and I want her to have all the proper coping skills that she'll need to confidently exist in this world.

Dr. Yin's primer provided a manageable, step-by-step process to make ME feel confident about bringing home the new pup, and raising a well behaved, balanced, and most importantly CALM puppy into adulthood, and help to hedge off those bad habits we associate with most young dogs. I'm on a few breed-specific pages on Facebook, and it's amazing to me how many of the members are throwing their hands up in frustration when their dogs display just awful behavior, (jumping on guests, destroying the furniture, biting, getting underfoot in the kitchen, stealing food, hogging the bed, etc., etc.) and I can see the huge difference early training and guidance makes. And you can easily see that difference from the posts of those folks who have model canine citizens compared to those who settled for 6 weeks of puppy obedience classes but never followed that up with continued training, that the problems aren't the dog's fault, they're not "breed specific" per se - the humans just didn't really have a good enough base themselves to be able to guide their dogs into adulthood. I do plan on enrolling my pup in at least two puppy classes, and then into agility, but I know that's not ALL I need, and this primer from Dr. Yin was exactly what I was looking for to serve as the base for that plan.

Specifically, I loved the book for all the photos, the sage advice, the easy to follow steps, and I DEFINITELY loved it for the schedule she puts near the end. It's nice to know that I won't be getting up at 2:00 a.m. and 4 a.m. to take the puppy out for a potty break if I stick to Dr. Yin's schedule...I might actually be able to sleep in those first important early weeks! So incredibly helpful.

Now, I will say that while this primer is perfect for me, (I work from home) I'm not sure that it's the absolute perfect fit for a busy working person who will be out of the house 9 to 10 hours at a time. This book is really dedicated to those folks bringing a new puppy into the home who have the advantage of being around a bit more, however, if you were to bring your new pup home, and take a week off simply to get the basics down, then I think this book would still be a wonderful resource. And while this book is specifically targeted to puppies, there's still PLENTY of awesome guidance for anyone who's adopting an older pup and wants to help that dog with the transition into the new home.

Overall, an excellent, excellent read!

[Britt B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recommended by our vet for the new pup. A great book for first-time dog owners, has a lot of great advice and information.

[Taylor Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tomorrow is 7 days… rue is not yet perfect believe it or not. But whose fault is that! Cadens

[Dee Slattery · Rating 5 out of 5]

No review yet; Seems easy enough to follow, let’s see what happens when the puppy arrives in a few weeks 🤪

[Johann Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is THE book to read when training a puppy. Such a time saver, simple and effective! Took my pup about 4 days to catch the hang of this method in its entirety. LEARN 👏 TO 👏 EARN 👏...

[Cole Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good insights, but sometimes hilariously stilted in terms of actual, wholistic training. Midway through the book Dr. Yin admits it will likely take longer than seven days for some behaviors to develop. Note that the training program here requires your puppy to be attached to you via leash for most of the day, and puppy will receive no traditional meals (all food will be given as rewards for behaviors). The conclusion of the book states that the basis for good behavior constitutes: sitting, following you, walking politely on-leash, likes being handled, and only focuses on toys (rather than chewing on shoes, etc.). And while these are all good behaviors the methods Dr. Yin implements will likely not be feasible for anyone who hasn’t taken a full week off when they get their puppy, doesn’t have a private yard, has a puppy not yet fully vaccinated, or is in the throes of teething. There are really good bits here. The way Dr. Yin teaches sitting as a form of please really worked for our pup. But just be forewarned that these are the criteria and essential requirements, so they may or may not work for you!

But other times, there are glaring oversights in terms of individual breed behaviors (I wonder if much of this works for a stubborn breed like our Shiba), and there’s an unintentionally hilarious page towards the end where Dr. Yin acknowledges she hasn’t talked about teaching a dog to stay, and then tells you to buy a piece of tech to do so that costs nearly $200…and that’s her only advice.

So, mixed thoughts! Definitely a good primer, but reading most of this before we got our pup and then finishing it up throughout our first week with her felt a little weird seeing how much of Dr. Yin’s methods just weren’t working for us.

[Mekatill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, that was really helpful at the beginning of my puppy journey! It took me more than 7 days, but that’s on me. I recommend it to anyone who has a new, fluffy member of the family.

[Juan Pablo Marquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this book 2-days before Nopalito’s arrival, looking forward to teaching him a few tricks!

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have no doubt that Dr. Yin knows what she is talking about and has great success at training dogs. However, I don't think her techniques will work for everyone. I agree with what others had to say about the book such as this is more like training a show dog. We have a problem with mouthing and she dedicates a couple sentences to this problem. Give him a toy and give a treat when he stops biting you. Well, that is totally not helping. Hand feeding ALL food is not realistic. Some things work. I use the leave it techniques. The pictures are great. Perfect Puppy in 7 days? Not so much.

[Jeannie · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you have militant self-discipline, and want to train your dog in the same way, this book will probably really suit you. As for myself, I knew right from the start it was too demanding for me, and I would never have the time or motivation to be follow such a regimented program. So, I will say that our dog ended up as trained as we wanted her, but I doubt Sophia Yin would be impressed. At all. Not even a little. Nope.

[Julė Jankauskaitė · Rating 4 out of 5]

First things first: it’s the FIRST book I read while getting ready for my FIRST puppy, so I hardly have any experience with which to compare.

The book’s great - consistent, clear, and well-structured. I especially liked the example plan for the day and the socialization checklist - it helped with that feeling of overwhelm I first experienced.
I would’ve liked some more “what to do if stuff doesn’t go as planned” and a bit more focus on the common errors that we humans make.

My puppy isn’t coming until Autumn, so it’s hard to say how easy/difficult following the program with her will be - I’m sure I’ll refer to the “perfect puppy” right when she comes around!

[David Matthews · Rating 3 out of 5]

My gf made me read this. Informative and lots of helpful pictures but felt like homework

[rue mortensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

i basically skimmed this whole thing and only used the parts i needed

so does that count as reading it?

no.

am i counting it?

yes.

[Moh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple, easy to follow, informative. The methods are working for our pup so far 🤪

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful and clear. Love all the photos! Glad I bought this one. The best of the puppy books I tried.

[Donna R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative

This was a great book, can’t wait to try the techniques outlined. The pictures were super helpful in my opinion.

[Viktor Lototskyi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good step-by-step guide on how to start with a puppy using positive reinforcement.
It's more about how-to than why, with more pictures than text. But it's also what makes it good.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book offers a lot of unique and useful training tips for how to start your puppy off right. There are plenty of high quality pictures that clearly demonstrate each exercise in the appropriate way. It is a very easy read and it packs a lot of information into a relatively short book. I appreciated how the book covered almost all of the areas of concern I have with a puppy (potty training, general training, handling the puppy, socialization, biting, etc).

Similar to many other puppy books, though, I find myself wishing there was a bit more to it. I felt like some of the exercises / training tips could have been expanded on a bit more. Also, I feel like the book doesn't do a great job of explaining what you should do if the training tips don't actually work out. The author references a lot of sites that can expand on certain parts - but I do wish there would have been slightly more in the book (maybe as an appendix or something?).

Regardless - I feel like of all the puppy books I've read, this one feels like it creates the best path forward. I don't have a puppy yet but I do intend to try out her training regiment and I plan on comparing it to other puppy books I've read. I will come back and update this review based on how the puppy does with the training and what my thoughts are after I've had a puppy for awhile :)

[Mónica C · Rating 2 out of 5]

It has some good ideas and it’s easy to read, but it’s totally unrealistic. You would need to devote all your time to train your puppy, and most people just can’t - you can’t keep eyes on your dog 24/7 if you have to work, or a family to care for. Also, the book assumes we all have the same living conditions ie, a house with a fenced garden for your pup. What about people living in a flat, or with a garden with no fence? On the other hand, It implies that if your puppy is older than hers, there’s nothing to be done. The constant ‘this has to be done before such age’ is really tiring and frustrating - not to mention the subtle bullying to the human (if you use a bowl for food you are lazy - if something doesn’t go by according to plan YOU didn’t do well enough...)

[Sher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. This book was recommended by quite a few people who are in a wire-haired pointing griffin club I belong to online. Yin teaches positive training training for your puppy, which includes her famous Learn to Ear program. Many helpful illustrations. I also found the beginning section covering what a puppy experiences the first 8 weeks of its life and how the breeder can help you by preparing the puppy for its new home--new information for me.

[Abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this read! Taught me a lot about how to get started when I get a new puppy. Also, although some of the stuff in this book was definitely stuff I've heard before, there were a lot of nuances in it that I haven't heard before, so I really appreciated that!

I'm confident I'll be referring back to this book when I get my puppy in August!

[Kat Genevieve · Rating 2 out of 5]

good for a few things and recommended by a vet but seems to be training for show dogs more than house pets

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good book for people getting a new puppy. Many of the methods discussed here work very well and I like the way the book was laid out.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seems really useful but I would have enjoyed less product promotions

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have the time to stay home for the first week with your dog, this is an excellent book. Basically, the author has you supervise your puppy 100% of the time or have it in a safe, limited area. The book is filled with series of photos illustrating every step in each behavior being taught. I like that the learn to earn method and the sit to "say, please" method.

There are a few things I don't like about the book.
- The font size is often tiny, maybe an 8 font.
- The author is a perfectionist, yet she doesn't give many examples of what to do when things go wrong. There are no reassurances that things will go wrong and that it will still work out okay. I find myself despairing at times . My puppy doesn't love to be petted and often isn't much interested in food.
- The author assume you are agile enough to squat for training sessions and to pop up and down without using your hands for assistance.
- You need to know your dog's name from day one. My puppy didn't have a name for the first 9 days I had him.

I ended up buying a paperback of the book along with the Kindle because I find it easier to search, actually. I can flip through it to find what I want easier, however, the type is tiny.

I also recommend the you tube channel SimPawtico and Ian Dunbar's books.

[Kap · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fabulous book for any puppy owner. Dr. Yin uses simple, clear, humorous language (accompanied by colored pictures) to illustrate effective training techniques and canine body language. I really appreciated that everything was thoroughly explained and backed by science.

The title is a little hyperbolic. Yin admits as much in her conclusion, noting that part of the reason why she was so successful was because she already knew the techniques beforehand and could ensure that anyone interacting with her new pup would also abide by these rules. The most important take-aways I got were: 1) consistency is vital, and 2) every time you interact with your puppy you are teaching them. Raising a puppy is much, much more challenging than I anticipated. This book is extremely helpful. Not only is a great tool for training, but it's simple language and illustrations make the techniques actually feel attainable.

(Side note: Lucy, the Australian Cattle Dog puppy featured in this book, is insanely cute!)

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just got a brand-new puppy, Maizie Rose (my first time ever having a puppy - before I always adopted dogs who were 3 and one was 8). So, I felt like I needed a puppy training book, and this one did not disappoint. Very well written and I love the layout with lots of pictures and captions. The puppy psychology is helpful, relevant and easy to grasp. The training plan is completely step-by-step and seems fool proof if followed correctly. Dr. Yin does a great job of teaching some basic principles and how to implement them step by step to achieve a more enjoyable well-mannered puppy. She provides checklists and step by step guides accompanied by pictures and personal anecdotes that deliver puppy education in an easy to digest format. All in all I am left better educated on the psychology of my dog and more prepared to teach him to become the family companion we desire. Great to read if you are in the market for a new puppy! 🐶🐶🐶🐶

[Ahs Cartwright · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I enjoyed the book, but when it came time to implement the methods, my dog wasn't really responsive, although I admit that I didn't do it perfectly. My biggest hangup was that I was lost about what to do when she misbehaves/is destructive and won't redirect. This "gentle-parenting" method doesn't seem to be for me with dogs any more than it was with my kids.

It did have several helpful parts. I especially found the images explaining dog fear signals to be useful, as my girl has been very fearful and skittish. The explanation helped me recognize when she was afraid and, as she relaxed, when she was just being curious.

It might be her age; she was almost 5 months old, already housebroken and on a regular feeding schedule when I got her. This book is more for baby puppies. My dog is going to be extraordinarily large when she is full-grown, so I will likely just give in and hire a trainer.

[Mlepp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a new (for me) way to train a dog and it makes perfect sense. I taught my 10 week old puppy to sit ( and more) in three days without saying a word or touching her. From sit you move to everything else you need for puppy good citizenship. Add a little conditioning to make the puppy comfortable on odd surfaces, vet and groomer friendly, avoid fear of cars, trucks and the vacuum cleaner. Other things, like no jumping, barking or nipping, come when called, sit, stay, leash manners etc follow straight out of the sit. And you never need to say no.

Wether you are training a puppy or rehabbing an older rescue this book will help. Why train from day one? As Yin says. Everything you do trains a dog. So why not train intentionally to get the behavior you want?

[Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

This helped point out any mistakes I was making with my training and gave me lots of good pointers. I’m trying to follow this book as much as I can (besides tethering my dog to me the whole day) and I can already see a big improvement in my new puppy’s behavior after a couple days.

She’s already starting to pull less on the leash and slowly learning to make eye contact and sit beside with me when she really wants to go somewhere (when before she’d ignore me entirely outside). She now sits politely inside and when I grab the leash instead of zooming around the room excitedly. Great training tips thank you :)