Finding a Talented Trainer is a must!
At Bias Ranch, we believe puppy training starts with love, structure, consistency, and a plan. Poodles and Doodles are intelligent family dogs, and early obedience training helps them grow into confident, respectful, well-mannered companions.
Training Matters
We take immense pride in raising our Poodle and Doodle puppies, and we want to see each one go on to become the very best dog they can be. Before your puppy goes home, we highly recommend that you start researching local trainers or obedience classes in your area.
Finding a talented trainer is a must. Ask family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, and local online groups for recommendations. Try to find someone close to your home, city, or work so training is easy to stick with. Training costs should be part of your budget when bringing home a new puppy.
Because Poodles and Doodles are so smart, they need an owner who is willing to provide structure, boundaries, and consistency. We will provide you with a healthy, intelligent puppy who is ready for you to love, guide, and mold. From there, it is up to you to help your puppy become an obedient, well-mannered adult dog.
Your puppy will be part of your family for the next 10–15 years. Making obedience training a priority early on can have a huge payoff in the long run, giving you and your dog more freedom, happiness, confidence, and peace of mind.
Start by doing a little research and getting a plan in place for the type of trainer and training that best fits your family’s needs.
If you are hoping to find a program that takes puppies right at 8 weeks old for training, (puppy bootcamp) I know many trainers have started offering that option. Just please do your homework and ask plenty of questions about how they keep such young puppies safe from parvo and other illnesses. At that age, puppies are still very young and do not have full protection yet, so they need to be treated with extra care.
Ask the trainer how they handle sanitation, where the puppies are kept, what other dogs they are exposed to, and how they protect puppies who are still completing their vaccine series. Make sure you feel completely comfortable and confident that your puppy will be well cared for and treated as if they have very little immune protection.
I have met trainers and have dropped puppies off to trainers before. If this is the option you choose, please visit your trainer meet them see the setup, and feel good about where your puppy will be staying.
Now is the time to start making a training plan. You may choose to train your puppy yourself, start searching for a trainer now, use a trainer later, or attend obedience classes when your puppy is ready. It is completely up to you and what works best for your family — the most important thing is having a plan and staying consistent.
A good trainer can help teach your dog:
Sit
Come
Down
Stay
Shake
Ask for permission
Fetch
Put toys away
Eliminate on command
Commands from a distance
Quiet
Walk slower
Door manners
Leash manners
Commands from a distance are especially important when you are out at places like the beach, park, or dog park. Another very important skill is teaching your dog not to run out open doors. Many dogs will dart out the front door, and some will head straight toward the street. A trainer can help teach your dog to stop, sit, and wait at an open door until they are given permission to go outside.
Fun tricks your dog can learn:
Spin
Roll over
Bow
Sit pretty
High five
Bump
Kiss
You name it — Poodles and Doodles can learn it!
I highly recommend continuing training consistently until about age 2. Hit the basics hard during the first year. The second year, you can start getting fancy with more advanced skills and fun tricks. Around age 3, many dogs begin to settle more into adulthood, and all the hard work you put in during those early years will start to really show.
Please understand, we cannot stress this enough: training matters. Poodles and Doodles are incredibly smart, and without structure, that intelligence can quickly turn into mischief, bad habits, door darting, pulling, jumping, barking, and a dog that starts running the household. We say this with love and experience — put the time into training early. It is much easier to raise a well-mannered puppy than to fix an out-of-control adult dog later.
These dogs are smart, willing, and capable, but they need a family willing to lead, teach, and stay consistent. Skipping early training can allow small puppy habits to become much harder adult-dog habits, so begin early and stay consistent—you will be grateful later.
A well-trained dog does not happen by accident. It comes from love, consistency, patience, and the right guidance. The time you put in now will help give you an enjoyable companion for life.
