# on average, how well trained should a 6 month pup be?



## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

sit, stay, down, all those commands with distance, heel???

i want to gauge where my dog is in regards to training. i'm talking about these commands with distractions. any dog with half a brain will do commands inside the house with treats. i was at the dog park and the only command i felt was rock solid was his recall. he could be playing with another dog and when i call he'll come running full speed. every other command and he pretends he's deaf. how good are your dogs commands in public at this age? i dont know if i am lacking in training or expecting too much?


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

LOL, 

I have two, one was born 1/29, the other born in March. I am really just getting started with commands, They will sit and down, stay somewhat, no distance, but in class, with other dogs around. I would not expect a puppy to be in high gear romping and playing, and immediately start ot do obedience commands while the game is up. 

Sorry, but I think that is a bit much to ask of a youngster and if he is recalling consistently, that is great. I hope you are praising that recall to ensure that it doesn't get boring to come running back to you. 

I am not in a hurry to get my dogs from here to there. I am perfectly happy to take my time and enjoy the journey. If I had just one, that might be a different story, and regular work, every day, without overwhelming the dog, should result in a very well-trained dog somewhat quicker than a slacker like me might expect.


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## shugarhey (Jul 29, 2013)

This is a good question. I have a 4 month old. Who just finished his first puppy classes. He knows all his commands. He chooses not to listen when he is trying to play with the other dog unless I have a treat. So frusterating... we start our second round of classes this Thursday, I can't wait. I think he got bored in between classes.

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## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

Confession. 7 month old Russell doesn't know how to do ANY of that. Not sit, down, heel, stay. Nada. Never taught him. Never even tried. 

He knows "kennel" means to get in your crate, and "load up" means get in the car. And he knows what "outside" and "food" is, and "go get your toy". He walks nicely on a leash, doesn't take your fingers off when you give him a treat, and rarely jumps on anyone. He always cheerfully comes to me when I call him. He's extremely well mannered for a 7 month old puppy. He just isn't obedience trained. 

He is, however, enrolled in a beginning obedience class starting in 3 weeks. Pretty excited to go to this particular trainer (about 45 minutes away). She also teaches nose work, so I'm signing him up for that while we're at it. 

Oh, he did learn how to catch popcorn tonight. 


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

I think if you really want a well trained dog then you have to put the effort into training them. Find what makes them tick, whether it be food, praise, a toy, etc and work with them often but keep it fun.

Yes there are those that wait until the dog is older until basic obedience is taught, though manners are usually taught. I started training Delgado in obedience when I got him home at 9 weeks old. I kept it light and my expectations low, but he just loved learning and we're still learning together even now when he'll be 2 in January

A well trained dog doesn't have to be a robot


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

I have a VERY well behaved 4 year old GSD. When he was a puppy we worked on sit, shake, down, stay, come, speak, hand signals, etc. very early on.

This time I am slacking. I have a 3.5 month old Dalmatian puppy. We are mainly focused on socialization and potty training right now. Both are extremely important to me. He's young and he deserves to have fun. We are working on "sit" and "shake" right now though along with how to walk on a leash. He also knows that I won't give him his food when he is bouncing around like a kangaroo so he has figured out that if he sits there quietly I will put his food down. 

At 6 months old though I would make sure he is potty trained, knows sit and stay and knows how to walk on a leash.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

being well trained depends on the dog and the training given. at 6 months
old my dog knew a few commands (very few). by the time he was 2yrs old, 
2.5 yrs old he knew a lot of commands. learning 1 command a month
gives you 24 commands in 2 yrs. i think 24 commands is a lot. now that's
24 commands given. think about all the things the dog does automatically
from training. my dog was in a puppy class at 10 weeks old. the class was
more about socializing than training. OB started at 4 months old.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

don't give your dog commands that he's not going to follow. when i taught
my dog to follow commands at the dog park i did it slowly. first i gave him
a command or 2 in the parking. going into the dog park was part of his reward 
along with praise and a treat. we slowly neared the fence with training. after a
while we trained along the side of the fence. the dogs are close enough to offer
a lot of distraction but the fence doesn't allow contact. as times passd we entered
the dog park. in the beigining of being inside the park i gave 1 command then he 
rewared and free to play. as time passed i started giving him 2 comands, then 3 
commands and so. i slowly added distance between me and him when giving commands 
verbally and with hand signals. i like adding distractions to training
slowly. i like having some control over the dog before adding in a lot
of distractions.



boomer11 said:


> sit, stay, down, all those commands with distance, heel???
> 
> i want to gauge where my dog is in regards to training. i'm talking about these commands with distractions. any dog with half a brain will do commands inside the house with treats. i was at the dog park and the only command i felt was rock solid was his recall. he could be playing with another dog and when i call he'll come running full speed. every other command and he pretends he's deaf. how good are your dogs commands in public at this age? i dont know if i am lacking in training or expecting too much?


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## MichaelE (Dec 15, 2012)

Lisl was trained early too. She takes to it very well and is usually happy to learn something new.

We still have a problem with stay when I'm out of sight, but we're working on it.

Lisl will be 1 year old in two weeks and knows eight or so commands, comes consistently, and understands simple sentences, such as 'let's go outside', let's go get ice cream', 'go potty'
'go find Kong', 'go find your ball, 'Grandma's coming!' 'let's go eat', 'want some water?" Etc. She has been taught these simple sentences because I use them often and consistently.

Commands are not always one word instructions following her name, although formal commands are.


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## Galathiel (Nov 30, 2012)

My pup is 6 months old. While he 'knows' several things .. he has little concentration while there are distractions around. He's the first dog I've had that wasn't leash trained by the first month I've had him home. He still forges ahead, lunges, pulls and I'm constantly having to work on that. It's not fun walking him at the moment and I'm probably going to break down and get my first harness ever just because he has no regard whatsoever at the moment for a flat collar. Hopefully with an easy walk harness, I can at least enjoy walking him again AND he can become more accustomed to behaving even while distractions are around. 

He knows sitz, platz, gib laut, such, bring (he also knows them in English), he 'gives five' and will roll over--inside. Outside he will reluctantly do them because he reallllly doesn't engage with me well. Something to work on *sigh*


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

dogfaeries said:


> Confession. 7 month old Russell doesn't know how to do ANY of that. Not sit, down, heel, stay. Nada. Never taught him. Never even tried.
> 
> He knows "kennel" means to get in your crate, and "load up" means get in the car. And he knows what "outside" and "food" is, and "go get your toy". He walks nicely on a leash, doesn't take your fingers off when you give him a treat, and rarely jumps on anyone. He always cheerfully comes to me when I call him. He's extremely well mannered for a 7 month old puppy. He just isn't obedience trained.
> 
> ...



I am so glad I am not the only one. They do take treats very nicely, and will come when I load them up, and they will go into their kennel area when it's time. We are working on the heel thing.


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## RiverDan (Mar 22, 2013)

My guy is nine months old now. I started tricks very early. Then someone here posted how he is just a baby, and to slow it down. So I slowed down.
He knows all his OB commands now. Maybe 15 tricks/commands. He listens extremely well. Knows which toy I want him to bring me, ie. ball, frizbee, giraffe...
The only trouble I have is getting him to listen with other dogs around. He thinks he is allowed to play with every dog we see. (My fault. Too many dog park trips. Which I have stopped)


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## TrickyShepherd (Aug 15, 2011)

boomer11 said:


> sit, stay, down, all those commands with distance, heel???
> 
> i want to gauge where my dog is in regards to training. i'm talking about these commands with distractions. any dog with half a brain will do commands inside the house with treats. i was at the dog park and the only command i felt was rock solid was his recall. he could be playing with another dog and when i call he'll come running full speed. every other command and he pretends he's deaf. how good are your dogs commands in public at this age? i dont know if i am lacking in training or expecting too much?


If both you and the dog are having fun and the pup is learning..... then I'd say, you're both doing well!

I wouldn't judge this based on others, or gauge anything. IMO, when training a dog, it's about the individual dog/puppy, the bond between the owner and them, and about getting it right where BOTH enjoy it..... not about expectations, which can run the risk of rushing or ruining the 'fun' in it. Both of which won't leave a good lasting impact for either and training won't be productive. All dogs learn at different paces and many with different techniques. One dog could be running a BH pattern perfectly at 8months, while another may not be there until they are 2yrs old.

Enjoy the pup and training them.... let age and expectations not exist. Goals are good as long as they are obtainable and not on a time crunch. It'll all work out and be perfected in time.


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## Merciel (Apr 25, 2013)

TrickyShepherd said:


> I wouldn't judge this based on others, or gauge anything. IMO, when training a dog, it's about the individual dog/puppy, the bond between the owner and them, and about getting it right where BOTH enjoy it..... not about expectations, which can run the risk of rushing or ruining the 'fun' in it.


Yep, this exactly.

Comparing yourself to others, IME, can only lead to frustration and disappointment, and it really tarnishes the joy of the journey with a dog.

I see this a lot in the sport world when people get new performance puppies and feel like they're on some competitive timetable with everyone else. It really does a disservice to the dogs.

The trainers who are most successful are the ones who start early but _also_ keep things flexible and adaptable and _fun_. My cousin is a super role model for me here. Her accomplishments are flat-out amazing, and she gets them very early in her dogs' careers, but it is always always _always_ about enjoying the journey and celebrating the dogs as individuals.


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## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

boomer11 said:


> i was at the dog park and the only command i felt was rock solid was his recall.


That is a huge big deal! Way to go, you have no idea how many people are jealous of that, lol. Good puppy!!! 

I'm also a slacker. I don't bother with 'heel' at all, since the walks we have are simply for pleasure so there's no need for him to be glued to my ankle. The only thing I really cared about a 6 months was 'drop it' and he was 100% with that. The rest of the stuff was just basic companion dog manners, like training him to go into his crate when I prepared food, or taught him to stay inside instead of bolting, when I opened the front door. I wasn't worried about how well trained he'd turn out to be when he was just a little guy.


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## KatsMuse (Jun 5, 2012)

I'm with Selzer, Shade and Doggiedad on this one.

It depends on what you're wanting to do with the dog, sport(s) or otherwise. Some people jump right in with a lot of commands, others go slower.

My first priority is meeting all of the pup's basic needs and bonding. 
It is a baby and getting used to me, my home and routine.

I start mine off with basic manners (a must!) and if I see more potential, I'll train more/harder.
I do like to see what a pup's true personality/spirit is like first, then go from there.

Everyone does it differently. 
I don't do 'cookie cutter' training either since all of my dogs have been different.
Some have required a more gentle approach while others a stronger one.

I'm not one to expect my dog to be doing something another person might be doing, by a certain age. 
I'm not in a race or out to prove anything.

JMO. Kat


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

Blanketback said:


> That is a huge big deal! Way to go, you have no idea how many people are jealous of that, lol. Good puppy!!!


yeah its a great feeling when your dog is in the middle of playing with dogs and you call it and it comes running full speed to you. everyone there looks at you like you're a professional. and then you tell your dog to sit and it looks at you weird and then runs off. lol immediately humbled. 

i honestly was just curious how much of a slacker i was compared to everyone else. its good to know most here are slackers too. i was told to just have fun with the pup and bond and socialize until its closer to a year old to begin real obeidence. i guess putting too much pressure on a pup does more harm than good.


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## Benson** (Sep 4, 2013)

Our 10 week old pup Benson loves learning and will do anything for food, so far he knows: sit, down, bow, paw, other paw, high five, stand (to jump from the sitting position), legs (to stand normally, because i stupidly taught him stand first lol), round in a circle (both ways round), bed, come, wait, slowly (when he runs and I'm doing the come training), bed, leave it (occasionally), touch, and currently trying to teach him roll over and crawl but they are seeming trickier to teach at the moment! So proud of our little fluff ball!  of course we haven't done any of this outside with distractions, so it will be fun to see how it goes when he's allowed outside!


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

at just over 7 months, Singe entered his first Rally trial. He earned 2 legs toward his Novice title. The 3rd day, he played tug with his leash in the ring. Growled and rolled on his back like an alligator. Basically, he had a blast, mortified me, and had the whole crowd roaring with laughter.
My point is, no matter how well-trained they ARE that doesn't mean that they will act like it. One step forward, 2 steps back is the nature of the beast at this age.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I got a few CGCs at eight months. I think my earliest RN was at just under a year old, and most of them were a year or a year and a half. Rolling on the back like an alligator -- priceless! 

Usually, I will take puppies to puppy classes at 10-12 weeks, but we only do the stuff for the hour during class and the class is designed for puppies who have the attention span of fleas. 

By the time we are done with that class the dog is 4-5 months old. We go to basic classes generally, and again, we only work for that one hour a week. At home, they learn to do what they need to do, kennel up, stay off the counters, go where I want them to do, take treats nicely, but there is really no obedience training going on. 

Sometimes I repeat basic. I know that if I would just work with the pup, we would be ready to move on, and the instructor doesn't hold us back, but sometimes, I want to spend another couple of weeks on the basics. So the pup is now 6 to 7 months old, going through basic again -- like Karma. She can sit. Her stay is a little unsteady. Her down, well she knows the mechanics and each week she gets better at all of it, including heel. But again, outings with me during the week, we don't do obedience at all. We may play at the park, see the kids, have a play date with one of her elder brothers at his house, but we do not work on any obedience save that one day a week during class. 

I about lost my cookies one day when I heard some woman say after my dog completed a complicated manoever, "we can tell who works with their dog." I mean, generally, I would have taken that like, "yeah, I really should be practicing during the week with her." But she was serious. My dog was doing great, and she was a little jealous. If only they knew how little I do when it comes to obedience training. 

After I feel the dog is ready to be done with basic, I take the CGC test, or I go to CGC classes and then take the test. At this point the dog is usually ready for a novice RN title if you are not really trying to get first place. 

Joy was born July 26th, (about four years ago) and I knew I was going to keep her, so I started her in STAR puppy classes at 10 weeks old. 

10/15 -- 11/30 Star Puppy.
12/7 -- 1/21 Star puppy again. (It was offered, and I had another dog in basic)
2/1 - 3/15 Basic Obedience.
4/1 - 5/15 Puppy Agility (I thought she could use the self-confidence.)
6/0 - 7/15 Basic Obedience.
7/15 - 8/30 CGC 
9/15 - 10/7 Conformation
10/15 - 11/30 Rally
12/13 - 12-15 -- Rally show at IX center RN, scores 92, 94, 93 -- two different judges. We did not place, but we qualified every day, got a decent score, same as her litter sister who was placed with a person who trains her dogs for obedience titles. 

She is very well behaved, easy in any situation, and loves to go out and do anything, training, show, park, play-date. Other than a single class to fill in for someone else, she hasn't been back to classes since she was 1.5 years old. But if I take her out, she remembers it all. I think going slow, and just keeping it light and fun works for me. 

That isn't the path most people would take. Just working with the dog once a week like that, starting young, but not overwhelming the dog or boring the dog, or pushing the dog. 

I see other people in classes, who claim to be working with the dog all week long that seem to really struggle with their dogs. I wonder if they really aren't working with the dog, or if they are trying too hard, doing too much with the dog.

I have placed in rally about half of the times I qualified. So I can do that too. I guess I feel like the turtle and the hare in threads like this. I just mosey along with my dogs, and when the finish line looms ahead, we mosey on through it, and who cares where that hare is anyway.


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

Sue, we had actually just entered because it's our local kennel club and I was working as a ring steward anyway. We figured that it wouldn't hurt to get him used to the show environment and noise. He scraped a qualifying score on the first two days. The third day is still a running joke in the club lol


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I "took one for the club" a few times, LOL! Usually, its with CGCs with dogs that aren't ready. (Sometimes, I even pass, which is really scary.) My friend took a 4 month old pup that never left the kennel and it passed the CGC test. It had to do the stay twice though. Still, only a few of us knew the pup had 0 training, LOL.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

I think mine all behave nicely with moments. Training in my house will never end. This what my poor neighbors hear daily...no, leave it, drop it, bring it, get your ball, don't eat the puppy's head, don't make me chase you, get in this house, yes I'm sure they love us


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

Oh and let's not forget...don't eat that poo as I'm running with the scooper.


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## Kaun (Aug 23, 2013)

I've been taking things very slowly. I have a nasty habit of putting too much pressure on myself to achieve things right away but with my current puppy (4 1/2 months old) I think we're managing to have fun training.

I enjoy training my dogs and want to enter my first obedience trial next year with my GSD. We are taking puppy class right now and I will hopefully start an obedience class later this month. Sometimes I panic and think I am going way too slow but then I remind me that she's only 4 months old and that we have a lot of time ahead of us. She's not even allowed to trial until 9 months old.


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