Golden Retriever Training Essentials

Golden Retrievers are a favorite among dog lovers. The little canines are very friendly and sociable. They’re cute enough tag along with, and they’re great company at home. But like most good dogs, Golden Retrievers need a lot of training before you can let them run around. Without the Golden Retriever training, your dog could ruin your garden or seats and pretty much everything in between. These few tips will help you train your canine friend to be on his best behavior.

Gather the Tools for your Golden Retriever training

When you’re learning to swim, you get a swimsuit. When you’re going to class, you carry books. In the same way, when you’re training your Golden Retriever, you need a few tools! Now, that doesn’t mean that you go shopping for everything in the grocery store. You have almost everything you need with you. First, you’ll need patience because training a puppy is like handling a baby in that can get on your nerves. Secondly, you need to get yourself a positive outlook because training is taxing work and lastly, arm yourself with tasty treats to get your furry friend in line.

Start with the basics

What’s the first thing you notice about a good dog? People have different answers to that question. Some people notice when a dog is well-groomed. Some see things completely differently. They’d notice a well-behaved dog before a well-groomed one any day.


Getting a dog to understand commands is one of the most important aspects of Golden Retriever training. Typically, there are six commands that your dog needs to learn- sit, lie, stay, come, heel and bed. Teaching those commands will need all your patience. What you have to do is ask your dog to follow a certain command. After that, make a gesture that your dog can associate with the command and show him what you want him to do. An example is patting your knees for “come”. When he obeys, click and hand him his special treat. That way, your dog learns that obedience brings treats, so he learns to obey. The more you practice the command, the easier it will be for your dog to remember them.

Move on to Full Training

Golden Retriever training takes months to go through. When your dog can follow commands, teach him to socialize and get by without you. Start by potty and crate training him. Lead him outside to do his business and reward him for it. Command him to get into his crate and reward him. Rewards can be toys, treats or simple hugs. Take him out when he’s older (between 7 weeks and three months old) and let him explore other places, people, dogs, sounds and smells. Let him stay longer in his crate and socialize more with other dogs. He’ll start learning to get by without you. Finally, teach him to be gentle with his teeth with well-placed yelps to say ‘no biting’ and treats for encouragement.

Training a Golden Retriever may look easy on paper, but it’s harder when it comes to practice. The most important thing to remember is that you need to understand your dog to train him.