When it comes to puppies, there are some that are easier to train. Some examples are a Golden Retriever, Border Collie, or a mini Aussiedoodle, which is a breed that is steadily growing in popularity. 
You can find out more about them at https://petdt.com/are-mini-aussiedoodles-actually-good-dogs/.
While some are easier, all dogs are able to be trained. All you need is patience, treats, and to make every training session fun and entertaining. Remember, rewarding your puppy is more effective than punishing them.
Below are 5 basic commands to help you get started with training your puppy.
Sit
- Hold a treat in front of your puppy. When they sit say ‘yes’ and give it to them.
- Move a little bit in the room so your puppy stands up.
- Repeat step 1.
- After a few tries, you can start saying ‘sit’ as they begin to sit.
- Soon your dog will learn to sit on command in order to get a treat.
Down
- Hold a treat in your hand and slowly move it towards the floor. Your dog’s nose should follow it.
- Give your dog the treat when their elbows touch the floor.
- After a few attempts, do this motion with an empty hand. Give the treat to your dog after they lie on the floor.
- You can start saying ‘down’ as you move your empty hand towards the floor.
Come
- First, you must choose if you want their recall command to be their name or the word ‘come’.
- Just stand next to your dog, say the command, and give them a treat.
- Next, drop the treat and let your puppy eat it. Say the command and when your puppy looks at you give them another treat.
- Repeat the last step but move the treat slightly farther away each time. If your puppy stops responding then move back a step.
- Now you can start moving away from your puppy. If you want to you can make a game out of it, when you call your dog to ‘come’ then you can make it into a chase. Once your dog catches up to you then make sure you give them lots of treats, praise, and pets.
Stay
- The goal of this exercise is to get your puppy to stay until you give them a release cue. A common release cue is simply ‘okay’ or you can pair it with the ‘come’ command. When teaching ‘stay’ it is easier to teach the release cue first.
- First, toss a treat onto the floor and say your release cue when they go towards it.
- Repeat this step until you can say the word and the puppy moves before tossing the treat.
- Next, pair this with the sit command. When they sit give them a treat and wait before giving them a second one. Say your release cue and give them a treat when they move.
- Now steadily increase the time between the 2 sit treats.
- If your puppy stands up before you say your release cue that’s okay. Simply shorten the time between the sit treats again.
- Once your puppy can sit for a while, say ‘stay’ and take a step back before giving them a treat.
- Increase the number of steps in between each step. First, do every step, then do every third step, etc.
- Practice this technique when facing your dog, and also facing away from them.
Walking On Lead
- It is better to teach your dog how to walk on a leash before you take them out on their first walk. You don’t want your dog to be constantly pulling you along.
- Make sure you use the same command each time, a popular choice is ‘heel’ or ‘with me’.
- First, get your puppy comfortable with the leash. This may take lots of treats and praise.
- Stand next to your puppy while loosely holding the leash. Give them treats for sitting or standing nice.
- Take one step forward, when your puppy follows say the command and give them a treat. Make sure you are giving your treats at the same level as your knee or hips.
- Increase the number of steps you take between each treat, remember to say the command every time your dog stops next to you.
Conclusion
You want to make sure you don’t overwhelm your puppy, so a little bit of training per day would more effective. Once your puppy has mastered the basics, then you can work on harder tricks. Good luck!
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