How early can you start training a pup?

[Themasterandmargaritas]

Mine is 9 weeks and can already do sit and come (well sort of ish). Is this just a fluke?

What do I start with and how?

you can start training as soon as you get them but don't do it for too long. Just few minutes every now and then and don't do anything to advanced or they get bored or confused and then lose interest.

So do you just add a little more on as they get older? Do you use treats?

Start as early as you can!!
sit
down
wait
walking on a lead (in the garden if vaccinations are not complete)
heel work off lead
Recall from the minute you get your puppy
their name from the monute you get your puppy
Settle (a command so they know to go and settle down away from you)
To sit when greeting people
Correct behaviour when the door bell rings

If you don't have a recall from a young puppy it will be much harder when they are older and more confident so I would be working on that now. They tend to be a bit like ducklings and follow you everywhere so really work on this now when they are young.

5 minutes training bursts throughout the day usually before being feed ( and as they are feed 4 times a day ) that is at least 20 mins you will have a perfectly trained puppy by 5 months.

If you want guidance get to a good puppy class look for a ADPT traininer.(they usually take the puppies from 12 weeks) to help you.

It is never too early to start training a puppy. leave it too late and it is much harder. Get the puppy out and about before they are 12 weeks as they find things much easier to cope with at this age.

Thanks minimu. We are working on sit and down, come and his name. He is so small what kind of lead do I use?

I'm a bit limited here to what I can get my hands on, but I have seen small harnesses, is this a better option than a choke chain? Are choke chains no longer recommended?

Our other dog has a choke chain but made out of material, but she is terrible on the lead. I don't want to make the same mistakes twice .

No, please dont use a choke chain, they are potentially quite dangerous. You can train a dog to walk on a loose lead. They pull because they want to get somewhere, so you have to stop and make them stop the pulling before you walk on again. Initially it is very hard work as it takes them a while to understand that pulling means they get there slower, not faster. Don't expect to get all that far with your first few walks, you have to be consistent. If you let them pull you then they learn that pulling lets them get places so they repeat the behaviour.

Definately now is a great time to do the training. Lots of rewards and as said before not too much at a time but regularly is great.

What do you mean exactly by a loose lead? Clipping it straight onto a collar? Won't he pull himself out of the collar then as he wriggles about?

Agree never use a choke chain.

May sound odd but teach heel work off lead and now is a great time to start.

Grab some treats hold them in your left hand and when the dog is in the right position treat him (I would use a clicker as well at this point) Walk ahead and gently lure him into position and then give him treats. Do this a lot for a few steps several times a day. After several days of doing this and when the dog is happly walking to heel you can say the word heel. When the dog can walk down the garden nicely to heel (do keep treating all the time) then you can add the lead. DO not pull on the lead if the dog goes ahead turn around and then treat when the dog is in the correct position.

Re the recall call the dogs name and run away the puppy will 99.9% of times chase after you give a treat and praise like mad - again do this loads of times at home and then you build this up to doing it out and about.

Clip the lead straight onto a buckle collar. The collar needs to be tight enough to not dlip over the ears but you should be able to get two fingers in it easily. You could use a harness if you prefer. What type of dog is it?

IMO, you should train a puppy to walk to heel with a normal lead clipped to a normal, flat collar. The puppy should learn to walk to heel because it is rewarding to do so, not because it is trying to avoid what will happen if it doesn't. Also, choke chains or slip leads (like a fabric/rope version of a choke chain) can cause serious damage to a dog that isn't trained to walk to heel, especially a puppy.

Going back to your original question, puppies can learn from very early on, well before they even leave the breeder. They can also learn several things at once, so you don't have to wait until puppy has learnt 'sit' to teach 'down' for example, you can teach them both at once.

As minimu has said, use the fact that the puppy will be very interested in you at this age to teach a good recall. Make sure you always reward the puppy well for coming, and also teach the puppy that coming to you often means he/she can return to what they were previously doing and coming doesn't mean the end of 'fun'.

And yes, yes, yes, do use treats/some of puppy's usual kibble. You can also use toys/games a s reward. I never really get how people do train without rewards, it's alien to me.

Have you a clicker? I heart my clicker, and so does my puppy . It makes training so much easier imo.

I also am going with the approach 'you never get something for nothing' so throughout the day if I am going to do or give something good to my puppy (opening the pen door, opening the crate door in the car, opening the front door, clipping on the lead, giving her her dinner) then she has to do something to get it first. She's 16 weeks now and I've just given her a tripe chew [boakamundo] and she had to do a down wait at about 10 metres for half a minute before she got it.

we are teaching our 9 week pups to walk to heel already. i say that, but only one can do it, the other lies on the floor and refuses to budge

Loose lead means dog not pulling on the lead when clipped to the collar - so a bit of slack between you holding and where the dog is. Collar must be on sufficiently tightly that the dog will not be able to pull out of it yes! Obviously not so tight that is uncomfortable though. Some really good advice on here.

Oh dear misdee.

I'm finding walking on a loose lead by far the hardest thing to train so far. All the single commands my puppy got quite quickly with the clicker but walking to heel still requires constant attention, not because she is pulling forwards but because she is endlessly stopping to sniff anything and everything.

Yes that is all incredibly helpful thanks. Unfortunately i cant get a clicker here but will get one when i'm back in the UK next month, in the meantime i'll use treats. I'll have to find some way of keeping the other dog away as she gets quite jealous.

He is a springer cross.

slubber, the one who refuses, is the one who is more likely to roll over for a belly rub at any moment. he seems a bit slower to learn as well, bless him.

master (or do you go by margaritas ?) Wynken is clicker training her dog using the clicker training techniques but without a clicker. I think she just makes a clicking noise with her tongue to 'mark' the correct behaviour and then treats. I've watched a lady on YouTube who says "yes!" in a very particular and expressive fashion.

Slubberdegullion you need to walk faster. It is not a good idea to let the dog sniff etc when on the lead or as you find the just keep doing it. When on the lead they walk when you walk and only stop when you stop.

Obviously it is up to you to make sure you give the command to wee etc otherwise keep moving.

Misdee I reckon the one lying on the floor is the clever one - he is just waiting for you to up the anti and give him yummier treats to get him going

awww misdee.

Not sure about what you do about a reluctant walker. Click & treat even the tiniest forward motion with the lead on I suppose.

hmmm that is really interesting minimu because when she is off the lead she walks to heel perfectly and keeps up at the pace I am walking at. Walks on lead are an orgasmic sniffathon/dullerama stop-startathon depending on your species.

Will up my speed on lead

i hadn't thought about making my own clicking noises.

Like that?

heh heh

I do a sort of tut tut noise for 'watch me'. Didn't even do that intentionally but as the breeder used the same noise to get the puppies attention and I've just continued with it. Does look and sound a bit odd when in company but hey whatever works.