Your puppy training timeline

Get the lowdown on how to train a puppy with our expert advice, video tips and training schedule.

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It’s exciting to welcome a young dog into your life – and you’ll probably be wondering when to start training your puppy and introducing them to new skills and experiences. We’ve worked with Petplan dog behaviourist Nick Jones to put together a handy puppy training schedule by age – and to get his top puppy training tips.

When to start training a puppy

Dogs are capable of absorbing information from a very early age, so it’s never too early to start introducing the principles of puppy training.

Most people bring home a new puppy at around eight weeks of age, which is an excellent time to start getting them into good habits.

Puppy training schedule by age

Follow our week-by-week puppy training timeline to make sure you’re on the right track.

0–8 weeks: early foundations

For the first eight weeks of life or so, your puppy is likely to remain with their mother and littermates. Find out from their breeder or rescue centre what sort of puppy training they’ve had during these early weeks, so you understand the foundation you’re building on and any gaps in their experience.

What routine is your puppy used to? Have they had plenty of human contact and handling? Have they experienced car travel, or physical examinations by the vet?

8–10 weeks: puppy training basics

When you first bring your puppy home, make sure you have a few days to give them plenty of attention and focus on their needs. Handle them frequently, introduce them to the family and help them get to know their new home.

‘Start as you mean to continue,’ says Nick Jones. ‘I place an emphasis on appropriate behaviour as soon as a dog enters my home. It’s not training as such, at this stage – more introducing the puppy to the household and installing the basics.’

Those essentials might include introducing toilet training, mealtime manners and basic commands such as ‘sit’, ‘stay’ and ‘lie down’. This is also the time to familiarise your new puppy with their lead, start crate training (if you’re using one) and get them accustomed to household noises like the vacuum cleaner and hairdryer.

‘From 8 to 14 weeks is the key socialisation period, when the brain is maturing. That’s when you want to be making lots of positive introductions to people, animals and situations,’ says Nick. ‘Even at eight weeks old, a dog is pretty sharp. They’re motivated by food and praise, and will do pretty much anything for you.’

10–12 weeks: introduce the outside world

By 10 weeks old, your puppy should have a consistent routine and rules at home. These might include: not jumping up, not biting when playing, and always sleeping in their bed or crate. Get them used to spending some time alone too, starting with a few minutes and building up to an hour or more.

Although your unvaccinated puppy is too young to go to the park or woods, you can introduce them to new experiences in the safety of your garden or other people’s homes, as long as there are no other unvaccinated dogs around. Try going out in the wind or rain, or meeting a child or cat for the first time. This is also the time to get your puppy more used to walking on the lead and bring in additional commands, such as ‘heel’ and ‘fetch’.

12–16 weeks: consider puppy training classes

By 12 weeks old, your puppy should have had a full course of vaccinations – and ideally be insured against illness and accidents – so you can start venturing out together. Aim to introduce them to a wide range of environments and experiences, such as public transport, parks, shopping streets and the seaside. If you regularly need to take your dog into a strange environment such as a bus or a lift, always start while they’re young.

Once your dog has been vaccinated, you could also think about joining organised puppy training classes. These are a brilliant opportunity to work on more advanced training techniques, such as improving their recall, and to socialise your puppy with other dogs and people.

At around 12–16 weeks your puppy’s adult teeth will start to come through. Don’t tolerate biting during play, even when they’re experiencing teething discomfort.

16 weeks plus: advanced puppy training

Age four to six months is a good time to introduce your puppy to some more advanced skills. You could try teaching them to retrieve an object and drop it on demand, or begin dog agility training with tunnels and hurdles.

‘Every dog is an individual, and their capabilities and behaviours vary massively depending on their age, breed and background,’ says Nick. ‘If you’re struggling with any aspect of puppy training, reach out to a professional for help. Behaviourists like me are likely to have seen most dog behaviours and we’re used to dealing with the more difficult situations.’

Tried-and-tested puppy training tips

Your dog must learn that you are the key to all the resources they need – and that cooperation with you is the way to get ahead. Read on for some successful puppy training strategies:

• Puppy training is all about rewarding the behaviour you want with food, play, praise and affection, and ignoring any undesirable behaviour. Scolding or punishing a pup tends to be counterproductive and can damage your dog-owner bond.
• Keep instructions calm and clear, set consistent behaviour boundaries, and make sure everyone in your household does the same.
• Puppies need a lot of sleep – as much as 20 hours a day at eight weeks old. Don’t attempt to teach your puppy new skills when they’re tired or hungry.
• Take it slowly when introducing your puppy to different environments or skills. Be sensitive to the signals they give when they’re struggling to cope, such as putting their ears back, blinking, licking their nose or lips, panting or raising a paw. If your pup’s not coping, return to a place where they can relax.
• Don’t overwhelm or overstimulate your puppy. They only have a small window of concentration, so do your training in short bursts of three minutes at a time, several times a day, in different locations around the house and garden.
• If your puppy training session isn’t going well or your pup doesn’t understand a new skill, take them back to something they can do already. This might just be a simple exercise, such as ‘sit’, but it will finish the session on a positive note.
• Think about why your pup found it difficult to learn the new skill you were attempting – was there too much going on in the background, or were they tired? Try again later but go very slowly!