At what age should I start training a golden retriever puppy?

From the day they come home, in the sense that basic manners and name recognition can start straight away in short, gentle sessions. Formal obedience work tends to go better from around four to six months, once the puppy can concentrate for longer than a minute or two, but there is no need to wait to begin building good habits informally.

Why has my golden retriever suddenly stopped listening?

This is common around adolescence, roughly six months to two years, when hormones and a growing independent streak can make a previously biddable puppy test boundaries. It is rarely a sign that training has failed — going back to basics, keeping sessions short and rewarding, and being patient through this stage usually sees the dog come back round as it matures.

Are golden retrievers good with recall?

Generally yes, because the breed's natural willingness to come back to a handler with something in its mouth extends well to coming back for a reward. Recall can still fail around strong distractions like other dogs, water or wildlife, so it is worth building it up gradually in increasingly distracting places rather than assuming the breed's reputation means it will happen on its own.

Do golden retrievers need a lot of mental stimulation, not just exercise?

Yes. A tired golden retriever is not necessarily a satisfied one, and a dog that has had a long walk but nothing to think about can still end up bored and mouthy indoors. Short training sessions, puzzle feeders and scent games all use up mental energy in a way that a straightforward walk does not, and tend to settle a lot of frustrating behaviour that looks like a training gap.

Are golden retrievers easy to train?

Yes, as a breed golden retrievers are among the easier dogs to train. They were developed to work closely with a handler, carrying game without damaging it, which selected hard for a dog that watches people and wants to get things right. That is a genuine head start, not a guarantee — how the dog is raised and worked with still decides whether you end up with the easy dog the reputation promises.

Why the breed's reputation is fairly earned

Retrieving work needs a dog that takes direction, holds a soft mouth under excitement, and comes back reliably with what it was sent for. Generations of breeding for that job produced a dog that is naturally food and praise motivated, reads a handler's tone well, and recovers quickly from a correction rather than shutting down or holding a grudge. Those are exactly the traits that make basic obedience training go smoothly.

Golden retrievers are also a genuinely sociable breed, bred to work alongside people rather than independently like a terrier or a livestock guardian. That makes them keen to engage in a training session in the first place, which is half the battle with breeds that would rather be doing their own thing. None of this is unique to the breed — plenty of individual dogs of any breed train well — but as a group, goldens start with more of it than most.

Where the reputation can mislead you

Easy to train is not the same as easy to raise. Golden retrievers are a large, high-energy breed as puppies, and a lot of what looks like a training problem in the first year is actually an under-exercised or under-stimulated puppy with too much energy and not enough outlet for it. Jumping up, mouthing and ignoring recall in an exciting environment are common at this stage regardless of how trainable the adult dog will turn out to be.

They also mature slowly for their size, often not settling mentally until two or three years old, so a golden that seems to have forgotten its training at eighteen months has usually not gone backwards — it is still finishing growing up. Consistency through that stretch matters more than any particular training method, and giving up on recall work during adolescence because it has got harder is the most common way an easy breed ends up with a genuinely difficult habit.

What actually gets a golden retriever trained well

Food and toy motivation work reliably with this breed, so reward-based training tends to get faster results than anything built around correction. Short, frequent sessions suit them better than long ones — five minutes several times a day beats a single half-hour slog, particularly with a puppy whose attention span is still short.

Because the breed is so food-driven, weight creep from training treats is a real and common problem rather than a minor one. Splitting a dog's normal daily food ration into training rewards, rather than adding treats on top of a full bowl, keeps a highly trainable dog from becoming a heavy one by the time the training has paid off.

Kit that makes the sessions easier

A treat pouch and a genuinely small, low-value training treat matter more than people expect, because you need to reward often without filling the dog up after the first minute. Soft, pea-sized treats work better for repetition than a biscuit-sized one meant for an occasional reward.

A well-fitted lead and a harness that does not restrict the shoulder are worth getting right early, since goldens grow fast and a harness bought for a ten-week-old puppy will not fit a dog twice the size six months later. Puzzle feeders and snuffle mats are also useful for burning off the mental energy that fuels a lot of the "untrainable" behaviour in the first place, outside formal training sessions altogether.

Kit for this breed

Things we stock that owners commonly reach for here. Nothing on this page depends on you buying one.

Inflatable Herding Ball with Handles for Dogs

A large, tough inflatable herding ball that taps into your dog's natural chase-and-nudge instinct. Reinforced bite-resistant fabric and grab handles make it great for active outdoor play with medium and large breeds.

£29.99

Chicken-Wrapped Milk Stick Dog Treats

Chewy dog treats of soft milk sticks wrapped in real chicken for tasty, protein-rich rewarding.

From£12.99

Waterproof Dog Harness, Collar & Lead Set

A sturdy waterproof harness, collar and lead set that keeps walks tidy and your dog under control.

From£7.99

Plush Strawberry Snuffle Mat

An interactive foraging mat with removable plush strawberries that hide treats and kibble. Encourages natural snuffling and slows feeding, providing mental enrichment for dogs, rabbits and guinea pigs alike.

From£13.99

Browse all of Knowledge Hub →

Common questions

At what age should I start training a golden retriever puppy?: From the day they come home, in the sense that basic manners and name recognition can start straight away in short, gentle sessions. Formal obedience work tends to go better from around four to six months, once the puppy can concentrate for longer than a minute or two, but there is no need to wait to begin building good habits informally.
Why has my golden retriever suddenly stopped listening?: This is common around adolescence, roughly six months to two years, when hormones and a growing independent streak can make a previously biddable puppy test boundaries. It is rarely a sign that training has failed — going back to basics, keeping sessions short and rewarding, and being patient through this stage usually sees the dog come back round as it matures.
Are golden retrievers good with recall?: Generally yes, because the breed's natural willingness to come back to a handler with something in its mouth extends well to coming back for a reward. Recall can still fail around strong distractions like other dogs, water or wildlife, so it is worth building it up gradually in increasingly distracting places rather than assuming the breed's reputation means it will happen on its own.
Do golden retrievers need a lot of mental stimulation, not just exercise?: Yes. A tired golden retriever is not necessarily a satisfied one, and a dog that has had a long walk but nothing to think about can still end up bored and mouthy indoors. Short training sessions, puzzle feeders and scent games all use up mental energy in a way that a straightforward walk does not, and tend to settle a lot of frustrating behaviour that looks like a training gap.

Sources

Written against guidance published by UK veterinary and welfare organisations. Always confirm specifics with your own vet.

Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.