General Training:
Your new Golden Retriever puppy will need some sort of training at a beginning stage. Do NOT take them to any formal training until they've had their 16 week shots. You can start with your family using the Basic Commands below without going to any structured setting. This training will shape how your puppy will act and respond as an adult and also will give your puppy a base for good discipline. You can start with the basic preliminary training and continue into more advanced training if you feel it is important for you and your lifestyle.
Obedience training is the first place to start. It is important to remember that your puppy does not speak the same language that you and I do. You have to find a way to communicate with your new puppy in terms that he will understand and obey. Basic obedience training includes teaching your puppy not to jump on people, run away, or act disobedient in any manner. Taking your dog to professional structured training is recommended. Spending a lot of money on this is NOT recommended. It is more your time investment, and the pups', than the cost of the class(es). This starts as very basic obedience training and will allow your puppy to become socialized and well behaved.
You should continue the training classes or do your own training classes at home for 10 min a day with your new pup. Starting training very early on is essential to success. Single word commands are best. Using a simple but stern "No" for bad behavior, and rewarding for good behavior is a form of training even though most owners may not even realize they are not only teaching but training their new pup. Teaching your puppy what is acceptable and what will not be tolerated is very important. There are tons books on the basic rules and training techniques that can help you with your new puppy. Each puppy is different and may take to different methods of training. Try out a few forms until you find what your puppy will respond to.
It is important to understand that you should never hit your puppy. Being consistent and using rewards and praise are truly the best way to train. Using "No" during the unwanted action is important, but should never be followed with a hit or a slap. There are very productive ways to train your puppy without using violence. Dominance over your dog will come by using a leadership mentality not harshness.
Training your puppy is about communication. Even our dogs can't speak human language (though we swear they do sometimes), so you have to teach your pup what's good and what's bad with a more structured system of rewards and corrections. The methods used to train your Golden Retriever puppy can be divided into three stages: motivation, correction, and distraction.
Motivation Stage
The first step of teaching your puppy the behaviors you desire is associating them with rewards your puppy desires. When your dog does something you like, such as correctly obeying a verbal command, you reward him with a treat and affection. The treat should be a healthy bit of food that can be eaten quickly so your Golden Retriever doesn't get distracted from the lesson by chewing and tearing at it. You can also use the treat to guide your puppy's attention to the focus of the lesson. When displaying affection toward your doggie-in-training, be enthusiastic! Your puppy needs to want the rewards as much as you want the behavior. You can also buy a clicker device to click at the same time you give a treat. If you use them together, the clicker becomes a consistent, clear signal that the puppy has done something right, even after you no longer use food rewards.
Start simple; if you're training your pup to sit, you'll have to guide him, reward him, and worry about staying later. Early training sessions should be short and to the point in a quiet, focused environment inside your home. Once your puppy seems to be learning the first part of the command you want to teach, add the second part to it, and so on. Also, as your puppy learns a part of what you want to teach, scale back the food rewards; you eventually want your puppy to follow your commands without food always in hand. Don't move too fast for your puppy to keep up mentally, and remember to keep these three training steps no more than seconds apart:
Command
Response
Reward
If you wait too long between the command, response, or reward, your pup won't understand how they fit together. Also, be sure to keep your commands short, distinct, and regular. Your puppy will remember a command exactly as you said it in training, so keep it brief and clear.
Correction Stage
Once your puppy learns the initial expected behavior without a treat, you need to correct any mistakes your puppy makes, like standing too early after being told to sit and stay. Continue to reward good behavior, but when your puppy slips up, give a consistent signal of disappointment (a verbal "oops" or "uh-uh!"), no reward, and correct the behavior. Your puppy will associate his mistake with the "oops" signal and getting no treat, and avoid it. Remember that you must show your puppy how to do it right, and not just hold back rewards. Again, correction training should be done in longer and longer time spans. For example, reward your puppy for staying 2 seconds, then 5, and so on, until you're satisfied with her behavior.
Distraction Stage
Now that your puppy knows what to do and what not to do, bring your training sessions from your quiet, distraction-free environment out into the real world, like neighborhood, the park, Petsmart, etc.. Your puppy must learn to ignore noises, movement, and other distractions when you give a command, using similar techniques to the correction stage. Still, keep the lessons gradual. Don't move straight from a silent room to a city street! Once your Golden Retriever puppy is trained to obey your simple commands without slipping outside your home, it's time for your reward: a well-trained dog!
Basic ONE Word Commands:
"Come":
To teach the come on leash you can do it when the dog is occupied with something and then command, "Come!". Right after you give the command, pull the dog toward you and happily praise your dog when the dog is right in front of you. Do this repeatedly until he or she responds to the come command immediately. Then with the long line on your dog you can work on the come from a further distance. Once your dog does this very well, try the come without long line or leash in an enclosed place in case your dog doesn't come.
"Heel":
With leash and collar on your dog, command, "Heel!", while walking out with the foot closest to your dog. If your dog's head or neck is not level with your leg while walking, jerk your dog into this position. You may have to jerk your dog continuously if the dog constantly forages or lags. Have the dog heel on your left side, ALWAYS.
"Sit" and/or Sit-Stay:
With leash and collar on your dog, command, "Sit!", while pushing your dog's rump down, pull the leash up or hold the dog's head up. For the stay, put your hand out with palm facing flat toward dog and the command, "Stay!", and then step right in front of him or her. Stay there standing in front of your dog. If he or she moves any time after you say this, command, "No!", and then put him or her right back where he or she was. When your dog stays after half a minute praise him or her vocally, only. Petting may cause him or her to move. Continue to do these steps and he or she will learn both commands. Once your dog is able to stay with you right in front of him or her, then gradually work out further standing in front of him or her until you reach the end of the 6 ft. leash. Once your dog does this well, you can now try long stays. I suggest doing this in your house, fenced backyard, some other confined area or use a long line on your dog in open areas. The possibility of a loose dog is just too great. If he or she goes down, stands or dashes from position, put him or her right back where your dog was in a sit. When you are correcting a dog back into the position you don't say the command because you want the dog learn when you say it the first time you mean it. Therefore, you just put your dog into a sit by pushing your dog's rump down and pulling the leash up. Once your dog stays well with this step, you can try putting him or her into a sit-stay and go do something in the same room or not far in the backyard. When he or she does well with this step, you can try going out of sight. If the dog is able to do the long sit for 5 minutes, then you can work with him or her around more distractions.
"Down" and/or Down-Stay:
It is best to start training with the least distractions. With your dog at heel position, command, "Down!", while you take your right hand with palm down in front of your dog's head and bring your hand down to the ground. Then you grab your dog's furthest leg from you and hold the dog in place as you take your dog down. Or, you could get in front of your dog and take your dog's paws with your hands. When your dog has learned this after four days, you should only grab the leash a foot away from the snap if you command your dog 'down' and he or she does not go into a down. You may have to do this several times if the dog is stubborn about obeying your command to down. Once your dog obeys the down command every time you tell the dog to do it, then you can start teaching the stay command. With your hand out with palm facing flat toward dog, command, "Stay!", and then step right in front of him or her, using your foot furthest from your dog. Stay there standing in front of your dog. If your dog moves any time after you say this, command, "No!", and then put him or her right back where he or she was. When your dog stays after half a minute, praise him or her vocally, only. Petting may cause him or her to move. Continue to do these steps and he or she will learn both commands. Once your dog is able to stay with you right in front of him, then gradually work out further standing in front of him or her until you reach the end of the 6 ft. leash.
Once your dog does this well, you can now try long stays. Do this in your house, fenced backyard, some other confined area or use a long line on your dog in open areas. The possibility of a loose dog is just too great. When you are correcting a dog back into the position you don't say the command because you want the dog to learn that when you say it the first time you mean it. So you just jerk your dog into a down and use the down hand signal. Once your dog stays well with this step, you can try putting him or her into a down-stay and go do something in the same room or not far in the backyard. When he or she does this step well, try going out of sight. If the dog is able to do the long down for 5 or 10 minutes, then you can work with him or her around more distractions.
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