Best Golden Retriever Training Books (2024 Updated)

Zak George is so relatable as a dog coach that you can’t help but love him, You feel you can actually do this stuff and it will work and then magically it does. He doesn’t act like he’s perfect and never gets it wrong either so it takes a lot of pressure off.

I love the methods he uses, they work and they are kind both to the dogs and to us. So glad Zak came along and proved all those alpha wolf believers wrong and gave us a new way to move forward in training our beautiful dogs.

This book is a great resource for any dog parent wanting to ensure they can successfully train their dog in a respectful way and get great results. I used this book from the first day our new pup joined our family, he is now 18 months old and I receive so many compliments on how well behaved he is and how smart he is.

Great book, would use it again with any new pups or older dogs that join the family.

Zak’s videos are great, yet having a book you can study or quickly reference really helps pull it all together. Playing and pausing the videos with a dog in training mode looking at you means you spend more time looking at your phone or laptop than with the dog, which makes a really crappy training session for you and your dog.

I found myself taking notes from the videos to have beside me when working on the various training exercises. This helped but as Zak always promotes the book as a way to help support his excellent free videos I thought why not.

It is a great book and whilst the internet is great and pretty much all the points and lessons in the book can be read online in some form or another. I found having a single collection of collated information from a person who continuously demonstrates he knows what he is talking about to really help focus my efforts and get results.

Plus, even if you don’t read it, it is a few bucks Zak’s way to help him continue making his free videos :).

It works! I’ve been using the techniques in this book to train our 6 month old Labrador puppy to come to a whistle since she was 4 months old. I am a petite woman with a small voice, and want to be able to recall her at the beach where it’s loud and she can get far away from me.

I bought an Acme dog whistle which I love. I’m proceeding very slowly and using treats like roast chicken, just like Pippa says, and I am so pleased with the results. Takes patience not to progress too quickly! Worth it.

Having bought Pippa Mattinsons The Happy Puppy Handbook, which has recently become my reference and instruction bible after my Cavapoochon arrived, I needed to expand and continue learning so that I can make sure my puppy has a solid recall, and comes to my signal whenever I need her to.

I read reviews on this author’s book on the subject of recall, and once again I found that it’s very highly regarded, and even though I’m only two chapters in to Total Recall, I too think it’s brilliant.

She has such a style about her writing that makes you feel as if she were there talking to you, with practical, calm advice tinged with a bit of humour. always a good sign. Whenever I’ve had problems with my puppy, and I’ve had lots, I’ve looked to Pippa’s books for advice and every single time she has covered the subject in depth and guides the reader to realise what went wrong and how to correct it.

because it’s never your dog at fault, simply the owner!! I can heartily recommend this book.

very well written – easy to understand and makes perfect sense. very good explanations for situations where people normally go wrong (and why). dispelled a lot of myths.

I have not trained a puppy since 1994, things have changed! This book had some great ideas examples and pictures. Some of it is complicated or difficult to do. This trainer is a stay at home person, I dont have time to hand feed every meal of kibble.

Its hard to retrain old habits, like only use the dogs name for good, not when they are doing something bad. So got a good start w puppy but will be going to a live trainer to help train me.

Easy to understand and follow training for a dog. Our border collie quickly picked up on all the skills outlined in this program and it really worked. The closer you follow the plan the better your dog will be.

No ‘constricting’ collars are physical/verbal reprimanding a very gentle approach to training your dog.

It’s been 8 years since I reared a puppy and I was looking for a “refresher. ” I’m not interested in the extensive narrative, I want concise instructions for the basics. I had to dig too long to get the information I needed.

My new puppy is smarter than me. She can open her wire crate doors, jumps a three foot baby gate, climbed over a five foot stack of two baby gates and many other things I have yet to learn. This book is helping me to understand my high energy puppy and the need for me to learn how to train her.

She and I will be going into training in the near future. In the meantime the book is a valuable resource for me.

Judge this book by its cover. Is exactly what it says it’s going to be. A lot of good tips and tricks (for you and your dog). it teaches via a clicker so if you want to get straight to training purchasing a clicker before you get the book would be beneficial.

This book is a front to back cover can’t put it down book. Filled with excellent training techniques it opens the door to new fields I never thought of taking my best friend. I recommend it.

Excellent condition, as new. The book, for me, is far too detailed. The mantra is click and reward which is more or less all you need to know. When your pup performs as youve requested, you click, then reward so this long book was wasted on me.

Im not saying its badly written but just far more instruction than I need to get over to my pup the basic commands. however, if you want I highly trained dog you may find it useful.

I bought this second hand for 8. At this price, definitely worth it. It’s a good, simple-to-read primer about the fundamentals of clicker training, how and why it works, with a few basic routines to get you started.

People who think this book is too simple are missing the point – it is intended to give you the knowledge to develop behaviours incrementally using positive reinforcement and I think it does a decent job of that.

This book was published over 15 years ago but the content is still relevant today. Simple easy steps to help train your dog with positive reinforcement, not punishment.

This book was recommended to me by a trainer whom I respect. I immediately ordered it then read some reviews which were not exactly glowing recommendations. Now that I have been using it for a couple of weeks the training is going well and the results are starting to come.

It may have been written a couple of decades ago but the techniques remain totally valid and Spaniels brains havent changed a lot in that time.

An excellent read for anyone who is training their spaniel to work in the field. Simple clear concise directions and do’s and dont’s. Perfect whether you are an experienced spaniel handler or just a beginner – the book is primarily aimed at dogs that will be worked in the field however but is ideal for training even the pet spaniel.

Joe fully explains the drive and natural hunting ability spaniels have and need to use to keep them happy dogs so techniques can be adopted accordingly. There is nothing complicated and its one step at a time.

A great book to dip and out of if you have a problem training or want to start from scratch.

Its a bit old but the basics do not change and he is quite right about a lot of things you wouldnt think about.

Richard Wolters changed the bird dog training world forever with the publication of Gun Dog. This tome is still useful all this time later. Should be on every birders bookshelf.

I was so glad to find a copy of this book. I have a friend that has a pup and I highly recommend this book in order to train his dog. I have used it on two of my own and they were both great dogs and very easy to train with the instructions in the book.

I had loaned my copy out to someone years ago and never got it back. I bought a copy for myself and another for my friend with the new pup. Absolutely the best book I have ever seen with great results.

SHORT AND SWEET! BEST BOOK WRITTEN ON TRAINING A BRITTANY PUPPY (IF YOU WANT A WELL TRAINED DOG). I’VE HAD 5 BRITTANY’S IN THE LAST 30+ YEARS, USED THE BOOK (FAITHFULLY) AND IT WORKS! GOOD LUCK!

It’s the first book I can ever recall ever reading from ‘cover to cover’. It is so inspirational and is helping me to prepare for the arrival and delivery of my GSD, next year. I’ll definitely be re-reading it at least once more, so I don’t miss anything! Can’t wait for their training book to arrive in the mail.

Well done to all concerned putting this resource book together – I love it!.

The book is informative. It contains a good amount of canine backround findings that are helpful to understand how a dog thinks and matures. The training portion is a small amount of the typed word but I believe that understanding the dog itself provides a good base to figure out how to work with the dog rather than force training upon them.

I am a lifelong dog owner/companion for over fifty years and includes hounds, pleasure and working dogs. Oh yeah, and mutts. This book has altered how I work with them. I am currently dealing with an Australian Red Heeler female pup to be a direct companion for myself and a guard for home and family.

The book deals with German Shepard which is close enough.

Excellent book – down to earth, honest, no nonsense and common sense advice and techniques. It just makes a lot of sense when you stop and really think about what is written in this guide. These Monks know what they’re talking about.

I’m especially impressed with their principle of not ignoring bad behaviour, but to actually address and correct it on the spot in a humane but effective way! Many dog trainers preach “reward the good, ignore the bad” – this simply does not always work.

I mean, why ignore bad behaviour? Correct it instead, no?! I’m certainly going to put the advice and techniques outlined in this book to good use with my next puppy. I’ll buy the latest edition of this book too, just to see how it differs from this edition.

Oh and check out their other magnificent book – “How to be your dog’s best friend”. Compelling reading!.

This is the Holy Scriptures of puppy raising! This book is not full of vague piffle. The monks tell you what you really need to know in clear language. What you apply from the book will depend on your own pup, but most everything is essential to know.

Thank you Monks of New Skete!.

I haven’t actually finished reading this book yet, but I’m already very impressed with their knowledge and translation with easy to understand and follow principles. It should have a different title as it doesn’t do it justice.

It’s so much more than just training. With so many dog ‘experts’, especially American, it is great to see Aussies bring a basic, common sense approach to dog ownership obligations. It covers information such as breed selection and the avenues available to purchase a dog or puppy, which is so important.

Anyone contemplating a dog should read this first. Too many people rush into the process which often leads to re-homing or worse. Also good to retain in the bookcase as a ‘go-to’ for any stage of dog ownership.

We got a puppy more quickly than we had planned (read not a lot of pre-planning or set up) and this book was an absolute lifesaver in helping us set up our puppy for success. It is easy to read and easy to put into practice straight away.

A really accessible combination of theory and practice which helps you to understand both what to do to support your dog and stay sane and also why you are doing it! Would highly recommend (preferably before you bring your puppy home but would be useful to any dog owner!).

This book answers all of the important dog training questions and then some. It’s easy to read and I love how the authors have incorporated a personal touch in the way they’ve written it. Their personalities really shine through and it makes it fun, engaging and real.

There’s no doubt these two trainers really know what they’re talking about and they’ve shared everything a dog owner needs to know to raise, train and live with a happy amazing dog. I hope every dog owner out there reads this book!.

I bought this book as a gift for my son who is considering an upland pointing dog. Gun dog was published before he was born but I remember it as the single gun dog training guidance in my home as a young hunter.

My father trained setters and beagles using this book and I know the straight-forward methods decribed in the book work! For anyone starting a dog training program I believe this book has the right guidance not only to to begin but to maintain a sensible and effective approach throughout the life of the gun dog.

After reading part of it, I realized Family Dog, by the same author, was what I actually wanted. This guy knows and loves dogs.