Marker word and clicker foundations
Build a precise marker, a clicker or a short word, that tells your puppy exactly which instant earned the food, before you use it to teach anything else.
Open the lessonLife with dogs, made clearer
Dog training, in a sensible order
Free step-by-step lessons for every stage, from a puppy's first week to a recall that holds in a busy park.
Recommended starting point
Not sure where to begin?
Most people start in the wrong place, either drilling obedience a dog is not ready for or skipping the foundations that make everything else work.
- Dog under about six months. Start with puppy training, whatever else they can already do.
- Older dog, little formal training. Start with beginner training, even for a dog that has lived with you for years.
- Solid basics at home that fall apart outdoors. That is a proofing problem, covered by intermediate training.
3 levels, all free
Choose a level
Levels get harder by extending duration, distance and distraction, not by relabelling the same exercises.
Level 1
Puppy training
Early foundations for dogs under about six months, built around short sessions and plenty of rest.
17 free lessons
Level 2
Beginner training
Core everyday skills for a dog of any age starting structured training for the first time.
16 free lessons
Level 3
Intermediate training
Making everyday skills hold up in the real world, plus distance control, scent work, retrieving and cooperative care.
10 free lessons
43 free lessons
Where each level starts
Every lesson gives you a method, a session length, an observable standard for moving on, and the point at which to stop.
Teaching your puppy to respond to their name
Build a name that reliably turns your puppy's head, using short paired repetitions in a quiet room before you ask for it anywhere harder.
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Focus and attention around mild distractions
Teach the dog to look at your face on request, the foundation skill every other beginner lesson builds on.
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Recall on a long line
Build a reliable return from a distance using a long line, so the dog never rehearses ignoring you.
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Fading the food lure
Turn a behaviour that only happens when food is in your hand into one that happens on a word, with the reward still paid from a pouch.
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Recall around distractions
Proof a long-line recall against a toy, food and movement in the same field, one distraction at a time, and pay by releasing the dog to what they wanted.
Open the lessonSkills
Training categories
The skill areas covered by the published lessons.
- Foundations
- Settle and calmness
- Impulse control
- Cooperative care
- Loose-lead walking
- Recall
- Handling
- Distance and duration
- Distraction proofing
- Scent work
- Retrieval
Plan the week
Fit training around exercise
Training is mental work and counts towards what a dog needs in a day. These tools help you plan a realistic routine.
Dog Exercise Planner
Get a general daily activity pattern balancing walks, play, training and mental work.
Open the planner
Dog Name Generator
Browse curated names by style, theme, length and first letter, and save your favourites.
Open the generatorWhat this section does not cover
These lessons teach everyday skills to dogs who are broadly comfortable. Aggression towards people or animals, severe separation distress, noise phobia and sudden changes in behaviour are not self-service training problems. They need individual assessment by a qualified behaviourist working with your vet, and a sudden change should be checked for pain or illness first.
Training law and welfare rules differ between countries, including rules on lead use, livestock, and which training equipment is legal. Check what applies where you live.