Things You'll Need
- Dog clicker
Instructions
Attend a dog training class taught by an experienced trainer. A clicker training class would be most helpful as that is one of the easiest ways to teach your dog jobs at home later. If you're starting with a young puppy, attend a puppy kindergarten class first.
Choose jobs for your dog that are compatible with your dog's heritage. Retrievers were bred to retrieve and usually have a "soft mouth," meaning they naturally tend to hold things gently. Fetching or carrying items might be an excellent job for such dogs, although other breeds can also learn to fetch. Terriers are intelligent problem solvers, so consider ways to give your terrier complex tasks to figure out.
Start with simple commands and ideas, such as simply "carry." Once a dog knows how to carry something, it can be taught to use that command in other ways, such as carrying groceries and mail or putting laundry into a basket.
Divide each job into simple steps, then teach the steps to the dog one at a time. Plan the steps and how you will teach each one before beginning to work with your dog.