So you are ready to welcome a Golden retriever puppy into our home? Congratulations. The lovable Golden Retrievers are an easy breed to train, their intelligence and desire to please the owner is the reason behind this. Most owners like the idea of training the new pet themselves. One should be very careful about ones capability to do this as faulty training and training methods might ruin the dog. However, if the owner has had some experience and training in dog handling, the experience might turn out to be an interesting and fruitful one.

Basic Discipline at Home

After the puppy has had a few days to familiarise himself with his new surroundings, new owners can start basic training at home. This does not require much technical know-how, just lots of love and patience. Also new owners should think over all the rules that they want the puppy to learn. Changing rules every few days will not work as this confuses the puppy and he loses confidence in himself and his owner. Golden retrievers are a happy lot, confusion can make them miserable and a small puppy is like a child. He has too much to cope with after he has left his litter. Making his first few weeks at home a happy experience helps creates strong affiliations that will last through life. So be firm, but kind and teach the Golden Retriever pup basic commands like ‘sit,' ‘stay,' ‘no,' etc.

Formal Training

Once the time has come to train your Golden Retriever puppy, it is advisable to look for a good training facility. The correct age to start formal training is after the first three months and once all the basic inoculations have been completed. Look for established institutions that offer ‘puppy classes.' Group training works well with Golden retrievers, as they love socialising with other pups and people. Ask questions regarding the methods of training before signing up. The classes should be offering positive rewards during training. Golden Retrievers love positive rewards like food. Yelling, shouting, strong corrections do not work with this breed. Remember to ask for references and the experience of the trainers. In fact, the best way to locate a good training facility is to ask around in the neighbourhood among owners of dogs who seem well trained, regarding where their dogs were trained. Stay away from institutions or people advertising ‘new' and ‘latest' methods, as also start ups in backyards or garages.

What to Expect

Puppy training classes give both the owner and the pup valuable lessons. The puppy learns to interact with strangers and other dogs. The owner learns how to teach the pup commands, dog handling tips, grooming etc. The bonding exercises help strengthen the relationship between the owners and their new golden Retriever pups. The puppies get a chance to play with their peer group, something that no amount of human interaction can provide. Besides this, experts also resolve issues and problems that owners face related to raising the new Golden retriever pup. Overall, training your Golden Retriever pup at a training facility can be a learning experience for both of you.