How Long Should It Take To Train My Dog? Realistic Expectations For Every Age & Stage #303
Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett
DogsThat
4.8 • 679 Ratings
🗓️ 23 April 2025
⏱️ 17 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Visit us at shapedbydog.com
How long should it take to train my dog? That’s a popular question I get, so I’m covering how to set realistic expectations for every age and stage of a dog’s life. Dogs are lifelong learners and learn with all their senses, so we’re looking at how to create success with intention rather than letting things around your dog train them, so you can avoid the frustration of needing to untrain anything.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
• Why age and stage play such an important role in dog training success.
• Why dogs are lifelong learners and how that affects your training expectations.
• What the "honeymoon period" is in dog training.
• What to do when the honeymoon phase ends and distractions become a challenge.
• How to handle the 8-18 month phase when hormones take over.
• Why dogs can’t learn “don’t,” only what we want them to do.
• How the first 8 months of a puppy's life are the bulk of the training work.
• Why ongoing maintenance of your dog’s education is crucial for long-term success.
Resources:
1. Podcast Episode 197: Outsmarting Distractions: How To Use Environmental Reinforcement in Dog Training - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/197/
2. Podcast Episode 24: Distraction Intensity Index: Help For Dogs Who Chase Chipmunks, Bicycles, And Neighbor’s Cats - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/24/
3. Podcast Episode 218: Puppy Development Stages And Your Dog’s Behavior - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/218/
4. Podcast Episode 255: Rescue Dog Training: Priorities For Your First Week Together - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/255/
5. Shaped by Dog Podcast - https://shapedbydog.com/
6. Article: Early Spay/Neuter, Desexing Risks by Dr. Karen Becker - https://drkarenbecker.com/spay-neuter-and-desexing-for-dogs-veterinarian/
7. YouTube Playlist: Reactive or Aggressive Dogs: Key Insights with Susan Garrett - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy0Tbd6ZybIXgJk3mtpBLLk7&si=FR2taAxKQiMZZj-5
8. Podcast Episode 62: 12 Keys to Helping My Dogs Live a Long and Happy Life - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/62/
9. Podcast Episode 48: Potty Train Your Puppy in a Week (Easy 3 Step Process) - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/48/
10. Podcast Episode 254: Why Your Older Puppy Or Dog Is Not House Trained And What To Do About It - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/254/
11. Podcast Episode 109: Project Calm Dog: Prevent Over Enthusiastic Greetings - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/109/
12. YouTube Playlist: Puppy Biting Help with Susan Garrett - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy03hWZgAQfG1t5Q6YzGPi7z&si=aWLdw6Xfpd6kaegl
13. Podcast Episode 293: MRI: A Simple 3 Part Dog Training Formula To Fix Problems Like Counter Surfing, Reactivity And More - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/293/
14. YouTube Video: Susan Garrett’s 5 Games for Puppies - https://youtu.be/Hxd1sVEQp2Y
15. Podcast Episode 302: The Recall Myth: Why Your Off Leash Dog Isn’t Coming When Called And How To Fix It - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/302/
16. YouTube Playlist: Loose Leash Walking with Susan Garrett - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy1mGMfdVKXq_hiJ27Ej1shW&si=BmL3AN6YON62PhSM
17. Watch this Episode of Shaped by Dog on YouTube - https://youtu.be/mNnvP8QtMLA
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | A common question that we get asked here at Dogs at is, how long should it take to train my dog? |
| 0:07.0 | Because my dog seems to be taking a long time. |
| 0:10.8 | And that's a question I've never addressed and it's got a somewhat complicated answer. |
| 0:16.3 | But I believe this shape by dog episode should be listened to by everybody before they consider |
| 0:23.8 | getting a dog. |
| 0:24.6 | Hi everybody. I'm Susan Garrett. Welcome to Shape by Dog. How long should it take to educate your child? |
| 0:42.2 | Well, that depends on do you want your child to grow up to be a street panhandler? Or would you like your |
| 0:49.9 | child to become a board certified brain surgeon? Like the education of one will take a lot longer than the |
| 0:57.2 | other. So in today's episode, we're going to talk about what the expectations should be, |
| 1:01.8 | what they could be, what you might want to train your dog to do, and what you possibly should be training your dog to do because all of |
| 1:12.9 | those things go into the ability to answer that question. How long does it take to train your dog? |
| 1:19.8 | First thing you should know is dogs like me are lifelong learners. They are little processing |
| 1:27.3 | machines. They take in data and process it and spit |
| 1:31.9 | out information so fast, so many times a day. And they're taking it in by a lot of their senses. |
| 1:39.4 | Yes, they're learning by seeing. They're learning by listening. They're learning by investigating |
| 1:44.8 | with their nose. They're investigating with how things feel, how things taste. And all of that |
| 1:50.4 | data gets processed. And it's an ongoing processor. As long as your puppy or dog is awake, |
| 1:58.3 | they are learning. Part of that learning might intentionally be happening |
| 2:03.9 | by you teaching. Part of that learning might be by you ignoring them and then getting reinforcement |
| 2:13.0 | from external sources. So any reinforcement that goes through you ideally helps create a better |
| 2:21.1 | bond, a better relationship with you. And if you're studying the use of reinforcement, |
| 2:28.0 | maybe you're in one of my online classrooms, then you're learning to grow behaviors by the |
... |
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