Dog Breeds That Are Easy (or Challenging) To Train
By Michele Welton, Dog Trainer, Breed Selection Consultant, Author of 15 Dog Books
Fencing needed for confinement
Risk of Aggression Toward People
Risk of Aggression Toward Other Dogs
Have you ever read any article about any breed, where the article was written by people who love that breed, and that article said, "Our breed is sort of dumb and hard to train"?
Nope. You read the same thing in every article: "The Miniature Pumpkinhead is a highly intelligent breed, eager to please and easy to train."
Hmm. And hmm.
What is intelligence, anyway?
- Learns quickly. Smart dogs catch on fast. You show them something a few times and they get it.
- Good memory. Smart dogs remember what they've learned.
- Curious. Smart dogs like to make things happen, to find out what things "do" when bumped or pushed or played with. Smart dogs have inquisitive minds.
- Flexible & creative. Smart dogs don't get stuck trying the same thing over and over if it isn't working. Smart dogs keep trying new things and play "trial and error" until something works.
- Keen observation. Smart dogs watch you. They observe your facial expressions, read your body language, and interpret your moods. If they see another dog do something that earns a reward, they may try it themselves to see if they get the same reward.
Should you WANT a highly intelligent dog?
That's an odd question, isn't it? Why would anyone NOT want a smart dog??
Well, because smart dogs can be difficult to live with.
Smart dogs get bored quickly. Smart dogs are always looking for mental stimulation, mental challenges, interesting things to do. They want to go for walks in new places, meet new people, play with new toys, learn new words, solve new puzzles.
Smart dogs may also use their clever reasoning skills to do things you don't want them to do – for example, figuring out how to open the back gate, or the cookie cupboard or fridge.
Intelligence and trainability aren't the same thing
Many owners overestimate their training skills and find themselves with a breed who is "too smart" for them to handle.
So, you should not focus on high intellligence, but high TRAINABILITY.
Trainability is ease of training – whether a dog is easy or hard to train.
No matter how high or low their intelligence, dogs can be easy to train, difficult to train, or somewhere in between.
Now, breeders tend to get all huffy and defensive when their breed is labeled as difficult to train. They'll announce, usually loudly and indignantly, that their breed can be trained successfully to the highest levels of obedience. Then they'll rattle off the names of notable dogs in their breed who have achieved high scores.
And they're right. In experienced hands, every breed certainly CAN be well-trained to high levels.
BUT... with a novice at the other end of the leash, some breeds are much more difficult to train than others. Maybe their breeders would prefer the word challenging to train, instead of difficult?
What makes a dog easy or challenging to train?
Dogs that are challenging to train...
- May be stubborn, resistant, strong-willed... or simply independent, or easily distracted.
- May learn readily in their own area of expertise (herding sheep, hunting birds, chasing rabbits, pulling sleds), but outside of that specific field, they don't necessarily learn well. In fact, the working behaviors hardwired into their genes can be a nuisance in a normal home environment.
Now, if you have experience "reading" a dog's body language and if you can commit to a Respect Training program (see the bottom of this page), you could consider these breeds. Just don't overestimate your own abilities. And don't underestimate the breed.
Dogs that are easy to train...
are more likely to forgive mistakes made by inexperienced owners. These dogs quickly accept that training means learning new words and behaviors, and they're happy to participate in this activity with you.
When a dog respects you and is eager to please, training will go very well... even if a dog is only of average or below-average intelligence.
Thus, trainability (ease of training) has much less to do with intelligence, and much more to do with how accepting a breed is of the training attempts of the average owner.
Breeds that are easy (or challenging!) to train
TINY DOGS
Most tiny breeds are challenging to train in the sense that you must walk a fine line being careful about their safety, yet requiring them to stand on their own four feet whenever possible. Spoiling a tiny dog (by carrying him around like a baby or making excuses if he acts rudely) can turn him into a neurotic, nasty creature.
Most tiny breeds are also challenging to housebreak. Their miniaturized bladder means they need to go to the bathroom frequently, and often the urge comes on them quickly. If they're free to sneak behind a chair to "go", they quickly develop the bad habit of "going" in the house. See my main housebreaking article.
The tiny breeds that are EASIEST to train are Papillons and Toy Poodles.
SMALL DOGS
Most challenging to train:
Chinese Crested | Norwegian Lundehund |
Italian Greyhound | Schipperke |
Lhasa Apso | Welsh Terrier |
Lakeland Terrier | Xolo |
EASIEST to train are Miniature Poodles and SOME Jack Russells (JRTs can be brilliant, but as I explained earlier, intelligence isn't the same as trainability). A distant third is the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
MIDSIZED DOGS
Most challenging to train:
Basenji | Kerry Blue Terrier |
Finnish Spitz | Miniature Bull Terrier |
German Pinscher | Shiba Inu |
Irish Terrier | Staffordshire Bull Terrier |
EASIEST to train – as long as their needs for exercise, mental stimulation, and calm leadership are met – are the Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie), Lagotto Romagnolo, and Cocker Spaniels (American and English).
MEDIUM-SIZE DOGS
Most challenging to train:
- Australian Cattle Dog – Highly intelligent, but also independent and strong-willed, this breed requires tons of exercise/activities and an experienced leader to bring out the best in him.
- Border Collie – What?? Border Collies are one of the most intelligent breeds on earth... how can they be challenging to train? Here's how.
- Standard Schnauzer – One of the smartest breeds, and one of the best problem-solvers, but also strong-willed and demanding, so needs an experienced leader.
- Bull Terrier
- Chow Chow
- Pharaoh Hound
- Siberian Husky
EASIEST to train – IF their exercise/stimulation needs are met – are the Australian Shepherd and English Shepherd. The two Springer Spaniels (Welsh and English) are also fairly easy to train.
LARGE DOGS AND GIANT DOGS
Every large/giant purebred was developed to be a working dog – to hunt or herd or guard or pull sleds, etc. As such, their trainability to do those jobs is different than their trainability to be a companion/pet .
For example, it's not difficult to teach an Alaskan Malamute to pull a sled, a Clumber Spaniel to find pheasants, an Afghan Hound to chase after a mechanized lure, a Briard to herd sheep, or a Rottweiler to protect you.
But what about teaching them to lie down, to come when called, to be polite with strangers and other dogs, to always defer to your judgement? How easy (or difficult) is that to do, for the average owner? That's the kind of trainability I'm referring to in the following lists.
EASIEST to train – as long as their needs for physical exercise, mental stimulation, and calm leadership are met – are the Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, and Standard Poodle.
The most challenging large/giant breeds to train:
Large/giant breeds that can have different temperaments
In some breeds, different breeding lines produce very different temperaments and trainability. Show lines are focused on appearance and a more mellow temperament, while working lines produce more determined dogs with higher energy and a more intense, assertive temperament.
In these breeds, I would say that the dogs from show lines will have moderate trainability, while the dogs from working lines will have easy to moderate to challenging trainability.
Large/giant breeds whose trainability varies from easy to moderate to challenging, based on show vs. working lines:
Airedale | Cane Corso |
American Bulldog | Doberman Pinscher |
Beauceron | Dogo Argentino |
Belgian Shepherd | German Shepherd |
Bouvier des Flandres | Giant Schnauzer |
Boxer | Rottweiler |
Bullmastiff |
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