Training your Goldendoodle puppy is an essential step towards ensuring your dog is prepared for your home, your family, and the rest of the world. These tips on training are sure to set your Goldendoodle up for success.
Obedience Training and Commands
When you bring your Goldendoodle puppy home, your first priority should be obedience training. This helps them learn what is expected of them as they settle into their new home. Build a strong foundation of basic commands such as “come,” “sit,” and “stay.”
Make sure to keep your command words short and sweet and avoid repeating their name or the command too many times. This practice supports the puppy’s connection between the command word and the behavior. It can also prevent your directions from fading into the background. Always remember, consistency is key!
Routine
Your Goldendoodle is an intelligent dog. Having a routine in place that everyone follows will help your dog know what to expect, and when to expect it. Try to set a schedule that makes sense to you and stick to it!
For example, plan your dog’s mealtimes at the same time every day, followed by a potty break 30-60 minutes afterwards. After they’ve done their business, make playtime a priority! Get your family’s support with this — they’ll benefit from having a well-trained puppy.
Plan a regimen that works for you and your family. As long as it includes plenty of exercise, rest periods, and training with lots of fun, you are well on your way to a well-mannered Goldendoodle.
Socialization
Goldendoodles are social animals that thrive when they are in the company of their owners and other playmates. This is why it is so important to socialize your puppy early. At Platinum Goldendoodles, we give your Goldendoodle puppy a head start by socializing all our puppies with children, adults, and other animals. We shower them with love so they’re predisposed to be relaxed and friendly.
Dog parks are not recommended for puppies, as they haven’t received all of their vaccinations yet. However, if you’re familiar with other dogs who are up to date on their vaccines, go ahead and get your puppy playing!
Puppies can be socialized in many other ways as well. Try introducing your new Goldendoodle to unfamiliar people, car rides, and a variety of sounds. Body handling, touching their ears, paws, tails, etc., can prepare your dog for interacting with strangers, including children.
Positive Reinforcement
Gone are the days of negative reinforcement training! Although it can be frustrating training a puppy, your Goldendoodle won’t understand yelling, time-outs, or physical punishment. These only serve to make your dog anxious, create more issues later on, and can make your dog avoid you. When training, always focus your attention, energy, and treats on accomplishments, not failures. Toys and treats are very reinforcing.
Even seeing you happy will motivate your dog to repeat the desired behaviors and helps strengthen your bond.
Patience
No one said training a new puppy is easy. That is why patience is the most important part of training your Goldendoodle. Your puppy will make mistakes, have accidents, and regress, even after months of obedience training. Try not to stress or get disappointed. Training is a learning process that can take months. Even though Goldendoodles are exceptionally easy to train, they are no exception to being a puppy. Setbacks can happen, but that doesn’t mean your puppy isn’t learning.
Reinforce good behavior, be consistent, and, most importantly, have fun bonding with your lifelong, Goldendoodle companion!