We all want a well-behaved puppy, but you have experienced how challenging it can be to get them to listen. Puppies are easily distracted, and you will have your fair share of frustration. However, don’t give up! Puppies need lots of consistency to complete the command you tell them successfully.
We also want our puppies to learn tricks showing off their cuteness while entertaining a crowd. However, you have to work your way up to fun dog tricks to impress your friends, like sitting pretty, giving hugs, or your dog dancing the tango with you (yes, that would be quite an amazing feat)!
A great way to create a good canine citizen is by playing training games with your puppy. Start by building a foundation with easy games. These games can be played before you introduce the actual command word. For example, you’ll lure them into a Sit position before saying “Sit” so they are used to the movement before you pair the word. Then you’ll slowly add on the command.
Training games for puppies help create a playful environment teaching essential commands, reducing behavioral issues, and promoting positive reinforcement. Keep reading for 14 fun training games to teach your puppy to keep their attention engaged and mentally stimulated.
Tips for Successful Puppy Training Sessions
Before you start, you’ll need to follow guidelines to get the most out of your puppy training sessions. Taking the time to get set up will result in better outcomes for both of you while strengthening your bond with your puppy.
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Choose a time of day when your puppy has napped, has pottied, and after a rigorous play session to get out the “zoomies.”
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Consider using kibble during mealtime to make them work for their food and slow down puppy scarfing.
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Gather small, low-value treats like their kibble and high-value treats like bits of chicken or special training treats. Keep the treats handy in a pouch you wear for easy, quick access.
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Choose a marker that indicates a treat will follow the desired behavior. Some choose to use a clicker, while others utilize a special word like “yes” or “good” to mark correct actions.
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Feed your puppy the reward within 3 seconds to make a quick connection.
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Pick a neutral spot with minimum distractions at first, like inside in a quiet, familiar place. You can add more distractions outside or with other people and animals later.
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Use a non-retractable leash, even inside. Your puppy should stay tethered to you when training.
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Keep sessions short, around 5 minutes or so. Always try again if they lose focus. It’s about repetition, consistency, and patience. You can spread out the games throughout the day instead of cramming them all into one session.
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Switch up the games. Do them in a different order to keep things fresh and exciting.
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Don’t repeat the command. Give your puppy a chance to respond.
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Most importantly, maintain calm and have patience! We know it can be hard to do. Take a break and try again if you feel yourself getting frustrated.
14 Games to Play to Introduce Puppy Training
Help your puppy learn basic commands with these 14 interactive puppy training games to ensure a well-mannered puppy. Establishing a solid foundation for increasingly complex commands will boost your puppy one paw ahead of the rest. These are not the only games you can play with your puppy, but they will certainly help pave the way for more elaborate commands.
1. Name Game
Every puppy needs to learn his or her name quickly to enable other training behaviors. Say your puppy’s name happily while she is paying attention. Give her a treat. Repeat this 4-5 times in short bursts, and mark and reward when she looks at you after you say her name. Refrain from getting frustrated, saying her name harshly followed by a punishment. We never want our puppies to associate their names with negative consequences! We know it’s hard not to get frazzled, but remaining upbeat for their training success is crucial.
2. X Marks the Spot
You’ll want to get your puppy used to your marker sound so she knows a treat is coming next. Make the marker noise and reward your puppy with a treat immediately after the sound. Your puppy will associate the marker word with an incoming treat. And that’s the whole game! Easy, right?
3. Look at Me
For this game, you don’t even have to say anything! As soon as your puppy looks at you, present your marker (a click or a verbal marker) and give a treat. This teaches your puppy to pay attention without calling her name. You can increase the fun by tossing a treat in the opposite direction. She’ll snoot and sniff around for the treat. As soon as she turns around and looks at you when she’s done, mark and reward.
4. Good Boy/Girl
Good Boy/Girl is an easy one that requires no command. Catch your puppy when he is doing desirable behavior, like resting quietly, not barking at the vacuum, sitting in front of a food bowl, or when he has all four paws on the floor when greeting visitors. Mark with your sound and give treats to reinforce that positive behavior you want to see all the time.
5. Lure Shaping
Lure shaping for dogs is when you use a treat to lure your puppy into a desired position, like “Sit” or “Down” without having to say the words. Get your puppy’s attention and mark and reward that behavior. Then take a treat and place it right above your puppy’s nose but not so high that she has to jump for it. Slowly lift your hand, and your puppy will naturally go into the “Sit” position. Mark and reward. Follow the same concept for the “Down” position from the “Sit” position. Make sure she is not popping up right away and that her body is completely on the floor with her back paws off the ground instead of off to the side.
6. Oops!
You thought you adopted a puppy, but you got a landshark instead! Those razor-sharp teeth HURT, and you need a way to discourage biting. When your puppy sinks those dental daggers into you, say, “Oops!” and remove yourself from his reach. Make yourself as boring as possible, turning away with your arms and hands close by your side and standing still. Your puppy will get bored. As soon as your puppy doesn’t show interest, mark and reward.
7. Trade you!
When you teach “trade you,” you exchange something of higher value than what is in their mouth. This method can be expanded to “drop it” when your puppy drops the object, going beyond allowing you to take it from their mouth. Keep chew toys and treats easily accessible in every room of the house. As soon as your puppy goes to chew on you or picks up a forbidden object, trade them for the chew toy or treat, whichever is the higher value item nearby, saying “Trade!” along with your marker and followed by a treat. This command helps reduce the chance of resource guarding and saves your possessions from getting ripped to shreds! Avoid trying to forcefully remove items from their mouth for non-life-threatening things like shoes unless the objects are toxic or truly dangerous, like cat poop, grapes, chocolate, or a packet of rat poison.
8. Leave it
“Leave it” is a vital puppy training command that may save their lives, avoid a call to poison control, an expensive and scary emergency vet visit, or at least save them from a bath! This game is often played with “trade you” to reinforce the need to drop or leave an object. Start by holding a low-value treat in your right hand and the high-value treat in your left by making a fist. Extend your right hand toward your dog. She’ll try to sniff, root around, and get the reward. Say, “Leave it.” As soon as she turns away or is uninterested in the low-value hand, mark the behavior and present the high-value hand as a reward.
9. Find it
Puppies have an uncanny ability to locate our most expensive pair of shoes, the corner of the decorative pillow, or the furniture legs. As soon as your puppy shows interest in the forbidden object, scatter treats in the opposite direction and say, “Find it!” Then mark and reward, playing the game until his attention is elsewhere, like the chew toy you’ve kept handy or when he gets bored.
10. Catch Me If You Can
Dogs love to run and chase, but you don’t want your dog to run away from you! This game is meant to establish a foundation of them running toward you rather than bolting out the door, thinking that you chasing them is a fun game. Instead, run AWAY from them, luring them to chase you. Mark and reward when they “catch” you.
11. Monkey in the Middle
Grab a friend or family member for this game. You each have treats in your hand. Call your puppy’s name one at a time. When they look at you or come toward you, mark and reward. Then the other person repeats the process. Your puppy will run toward the person calling his name, reinforcing recall, paying attention, and learning his name.
12. Wait
While it may be cute if a little puppy slips between your legs and out the door or bolts excitedly out of his crate, it sure isn’t when that puppy becomes a giant barreling toward you. Teach your puppy to wait until you give a release command, whether when exiting a door to a house or crate or waiting to approach their food bowl to eat. Lure your puppy into the Sit position. Say “wait” and open the door. Your puppy will try to exit, but close the door as many times as needed until your puppy gets the hang of it. As soon as your puppy remains still when you open the door or present the food bowl, mark and reward. Your puppy will catch on and learn to wait longer periods before you give them the release command. People can choose “Okay” or “Free” for the release word to let the puppy know when it’s okay to move forward.
13. 1-2-3 Eyes on Me
The 1-2-3 puppy training method sets the foundation for loose leash walking and teaches your puppy to pay attention to you while tethered. Start by putting your puppy in the Sit position on your left side with the leash on. Count, “1, 2, 3!” and mark and reward when your puppy looks at you on “3.” Next, add some movement by slowly moving forward, saying, “1, 2, 3!” and marking/rewarding. To get your puppy to stop moving forward, toss the treat on the ground at “3.” This method also helps prevent pulling while walking, something every puppy owner will appreciate while going on walks.
14. This way
Speaking of puppy pulling, most puppies will naturally get excited and want to move forward whether it is an appropriate time or not. They may lunge and jump at the end of the leash. “This way” is a game to specifically stop pulling. When your puppy pulls, cheerfully call out, “This way!” and turn in the opposite direction, walking away from your puppy. They will be forced to follow you. If they keep pulling, keep moving in the opposite direction. They’ll quickly figure out they are not able to move forward and get bored with pulling – or at least that’s the idea. The reward here IS moving forward, so you won’t necessarily need treats. Once your puppy stops pulling, move in the direction you are headed. Now, this may look funny to someone looking out the window since you’re walking back and forth several times, but it will pay off when your puppy walks nicely on the leash by your side.
Play Training Games With a Pawrade Puppy
At Pawrade, we’re committed to presenting you with tools to be the best puppy pawrent you can be. We provide a variety of training resource articles to help you live your best life with your new canine companion.
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