5 Minute Training Drills

Sometimes you only have 5 or 10 minutes to sneak in some training with your new puppy. While that's not quite enough time to go for a walk or work with birds, there are some drills you can try. The focus of these short drills should be to have some fun time with your puppy. If you and the puppy are having fun then the training will stick even better. Everything I've seen mentioned thus far has been no-pressure, happy time type stuff rather than any real training. Here are 6 of our favorite 5 minute drills when time is short.

1- Here or Come drills are probably the easiest. With two people you can call pup back and forth.

2- Whoa and stay drills are one of our favorites. You can build interest by adding treats as a reward.

3- A few throws of the tennis ball or dummy each morning is another good one. Works on several skills at once like whoa, steadiness and retrieving to hand.

4- If you have a big yard or farm you can let pup run off some wild birds. Just a few minutes of free time with you can be time well spent.

5- Obedience on a lead is a great 5-10 minute everyday drill. Short lead working on heel and teaching pup to walk with you and pay attention only to you.

6- The kennel command, and then call the dog back out. You can repeat this three or four times. We like the kennel comand because it is so easy for the dog to get it right.

Tips: Each dog is so different as to what works for him or her, once you find a method of training, command, drill or idea just stick with it. Do what works.