Getting Started Properly
Training a Golden Retriever
"Training a Golden Retriever is important and can be challenging and fun!"
There are ways to housebreak your dog and to direct his habit for digging. Training a Golden Retriever is enjoyable if you do it the right way.
Get started by giving the dog some time to get used to its new surroundings after you bring your Golden home for the first time. To start with, remember to be generous with praise and firm but gentle with expressing displeasure.
Whether your dog is a puppy or an adult, your Golden will have come from an environment where acceptable behavior was probably at least somewhat different from what you expect from them. Training a Golden Retriever teaches your dog what your expectations are for them. Your dog has a strong desire to please, but he needs to know what to do to earn your praise. Give him praise when he is good and discourage him when he is not.
When potty training, remember that you shouldn’t discipline them for having an accident unless you catch them doing it. This also applies as a general rule to not put off addressing a training situation. Don’t delay praise or discouragement. A potty training accident is an example of the time that you will need to be firm in showing your displeasure with your dog.
You should help your dog learn proper behavior by setting him up for success. When housetraining a puppy, put newspapers or other toilet area not far from his bed. Soon after eating, put him on the papers and praise him when he uses it to let him know that this is good behavior. Put him on the papers and hold him there if he has an accident somewhere else. Thoroughly clean the accident spot to get rid of smells so he doesn’t think that is the toilet area and go there again.
Training a Golden Retriever includes focusing destructive habits in a nondestructive direction. Since Golden Retriever puppies love digging, there should be a place in the yard that where he is allowed to dig. You can provide a sandbox with his toys in it where he can dig them out of the sand. Encourage this good behavior with praise.
As he gets older, you can give him further training to direct his digging.
