Self play is an important skill for puppies to have. We cannot and should not entertain them all the time.

This video is a good example of a puppy entertaining himself with self-play. We love it when puppies can entertain themselves sometimes and not always need a playmate to entertain them. Ideally I want a puppy who can play well with others but also play by himself when someone is not available to entertain him.

This video is ALSO an example of a puppy entertaining himself with an INAPPROPRIATE item! While I am very happy to see Zooka play by himself, I do NOT want him learning to entertain himself with objects that are not his toys.

This video is also an example of what happens when you leave your spouse in charge of the puppy. Sometimes, said spouse, helps your puppy learn how to play with inappropriate items and start on the road to developing bad habits. Like, playing with flip flops and other shoes, for example. . .

If Zooka had been playing with one of his own TOYS like this, that would have been perfect. So, this video shows examples of both good behavior and inappropriate behavior at the same time.

So when people say to me, “You're such a great trainer, your dogs must be perfect!” I can show them videos like this and then they understand why my dogs are not perfect!

Help your puppies learn how to self entertain so you don't have to provide constant entertainment. Make sure they have appropriate toys to play with though, so they do not start on the path to bad habits like playing with inappropriate objects.