Boing!! We hear you’ve had a Springer Spaniel puppy bounce into your life! What a joy. These little dragons are like machines when it comes to scent and gundog work, but they’re also huge cuddle monsters. You get the best of both worlds when you get a Springer. They really are fabulous dogs.
Owning a Springer Spaniel is not for the faint-hearted, though. You’re definitely in for a roller coaster…Yes they are all of those wonderful things described, but alongside that comes the big responsibility of training a Springer Spaniel puppy. They will lap it up, don’t worry, but they definitely need it.
Prerequisites for training my Springer Spaniel puppy
What age can I start to train my Springer Spaniel puppy?
You can, and should, start training your Springer Spaniel puppy as soon as you get them home. Hopefully, your breeder started doing some basic training and teaching them about life already, but they are like sponges and will absorb any training you give them.
What do I need to train my Springer Spaniel?
You don’t need a huge list of fancy equipment when training a Springer Spaniel puppy but at the very least consider the following essentials.
A food or treat pouch – Although Springers are pretty toy motivated and actually have a remarkable ethic for just wanting to work they also like food and it can make training go faster. The Rapid Rewards treat pouch has lots of cool features, and even space for a ball, a cheaper option is The Mikki treat pouch and that’s fine and dandy too.
A comfortable collar – In the UK as well as many other countries it’s the law that dogs wear collars and an ID tag. We’ve got lots of suggestions for what to look for in a collar here.
A Harness for leadwalking: Springers traditionally barely wear a lead, never mind have to learn how to walk on one. The world is also very exciting with lots of birds to look at, and it can make them more likely to pull. Wearing a harness will stop them from choking themselves the next time they spot a bird, or sniff an exciting smell.
Good to know about training Springer Spaniel puppies
What are Springer Spaniels bred for?
Springer Spaniels are bred as hunting dogs and were used to flush out, or ‘spring’, birds and game into the air so that they could be shot. They were also used to retrieve the shot game, and have a wide mouth so that they don’t damage the bird when bringing it back to the hunters.
These days they are popular companion dogs. They are so soppy!! But they’re also used in drug, money, bomb detection, and other search dog tasks.
What does this have to do with how I train my Springer Spaniel?
It’s always useful to know what a dog is bred for, as that will give you an idea of your puppy’s motivators which you can use in your training.
When training a Springer Spaniel puppy remember that they love to sniff, and they generally love their owners.
Overview of the training programme and topics we’ll cover
In this training programme, we’re going to be letting you know what exercises you should be doing with your Springer Spaniel. We’ve split them up into Socialisation, Obedience and Handling and Grooming.
We mostly think of training as being about obedience, even though Life Skills are really what you want to train puppies for so that they’re happy and confident as adults.
In this 8 week Springer Spaniel training guide we’ll let you know when you should be teaching your Springer Spaniel all about
- Sitting
- Lying down
- Learning their name
- Coming when you call them
- Walking nicely on a lead
- Playing fetch
- Sleeping in their crate
- Coping with being left alone
- Going to the toilet in the right place
How we build this programme: Push Drop Stick
In order to get the best out of your Springer Spaniel puppy it’s important that you keep them mentally challenged.
You can do this by increasing the level of difficulty in training exercises using the push drop stick method.
Never heard of it? No worries, here’s how it goes.
The Push, Drop, Stick method works by repeating an exercise 5 times. Each time your puppy gets it right they get a reward. If they get 5 out of 5 right, then we’re going to push. That means pushing the level of difficulty, or increasing the criteria for that exercise. An example might be asking them to sit for 3 seconds, if they get 5 out of 5 right, we might try for a 5-second sit on the next training set.
If your Springer puppy only managed to stay in their sit for 3 seconds on 3 or 4 out of 5 then we would stick and try another 5 again. Maybe practising at the same difficulty will get us 5 out of 5 right, which means we’re then able to push and make it more difficult, yay!
If they only got 1 or 2 out of 5 right then we’d drop the level of difficulty to maybe one second, and see if we can get 5 out of 5 right at that level.
By training in this way we make it really predictable for the dog, and we don’t get stuck on the same boring level all the time, but we also don’t make it too hard too quickly.
Week 1 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
If this is your first week of training a Springer Spaniel puppy and having them home then you’re going to want to take some time getting to know them, kissing those tiny little feet, nuzzling that velvety fur and enjoying that sweet puppy breath!
In the first week of training, we’ll still want to dive straight into socialisation exercises, training and husbandry tasks, because your Springer can do it and will thank you for it.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Let your puppy explore the garden – Teach your puppy about surfaces | – Name – Sit – Recall – Retrieve – Crate Training – Toilet Training – Alone Training | – Hand Touch |
Sleep Training
If you’re wondering how to start sleep training a Springer Spaniel puppy or how to get your Springer Spaniel puppy to sleep through the night, then we can safely say you’re not alone. Despite being hunting dogs they really do thrive on company and as they don’t have any littermates or their mother around anymore, that company will need to be you…just for now anyway.
We suggest having them sleep next to your bed, preferably in a crate . The temptation to have them in your bed is strong, and they will be more than pleased to oblige you. Just a warning though, Springers get quite big and hairy, so being in the bed might not be something you want for the long term, but please never let them cry it out in a room far away or downstairs.
Keep to this bedtime routine when sleep training a Springer Spaniel puppy and you’ll be fine!
Alone Training
When teaching alone training to a Springer Spaniel puppy take it slowly. They are sociable but generally ok left alone for short periods from a reasonably early age.
Set up a puppy cam and test out how they are when you leave them with a stuffed puzzle toy. We have a full programme on how to teach your Springer Spaniel to be ok on their own in our Zigzag puppy training app.
Toilet training
In our experience, toilet training a Springer Spaniel puppy is usually not too much of a bother. Their mother will have done a lot of hard work for you, but you have to keep up with getting them out often so that they don’t have a chance to have accidents inside. Remember every accident is a missed chance to show them where to go.
Socialisation exercises to do this week
Socialisation training for a Springer Spaniel puppy will be important so they can be confident dogs. Some of the best hunters and working dogs can also be a bit shy or nervy, so make sure you take it slowly, use plenty of rewards and make socialising your Springer puppy fun!
This week we recommend
- Letting your Springer Spaniel puppy explore the garden – they will love all of the sounds and smells
- Teach your puppy about different surfaces – give them the confidence to walk on anything!
Training to do this week
You’re going to love training your Springer Spaniel puppy – they are hard workers and eager to learn. They can get a bit stressed and ‘clown about’ when they’re worried about getting something wrong so keep it light and use plenty of rewards.
This week try the following exercises with your Springer Spaniel puppy:
Preventing resource guarding
Springer Spaniels are bred to retrieve game, so not wanting to give it up would be a huge disadvantage for their working owners wouldn’t it? Having said that, they will have been trained, since they were puppies, that giving up items is fun!
Make sure you practice lots of swaps with your Springer Spaniel’s favourite toys so that you don’t end up with a resource guarding situation when they’re older.
Husbandry exercises to do this week
- Handling your puppy – Focus on touching your Springer Spaniel puppy all over – when they’re older they can get grass seeds or dreaded ticks so they have to be taught that being touched and checked is ok.
Week 2 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
How have you found training a Springer Spaniel puppy? They want to learn a lot, you can always jump ahead a little bit and teach them some fun tricks to keep it interesting. This is a great one for kids to get involved with too.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Fireworks – Watch the world go by outside your house – Play dress up – Sit in the car – Invite friends over | – Alone Training – Crate Training – Toilet Training – Name – in garden – Recall – cue word – Fetch – Drop -Sit – add a cue word – Leadwalking | – Grooming |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
In this week’s socialisation training a Springer Spaniel puppy, we will focus on new experiences and noises. A lot of Springer Spaniel puppies will be fine around noises, they might have been taught to hear gunshot from a young age, but it’s worth keeping on top of unusual noises at home too.
- Fireworks – check out the guide to firework training in the Zigzag puppy training app.
- Watch the world go by – train your Springer Spaniel puppy to just watch and learn
- Play dress up – that’s you, not your Springer pup! Get them used to you wearing big boots and a funny hat.
- Sit in the car – check out our car carrier guide to get them somewhere safe and comfortable to sit.
Training to do this week
Plenty to be getting on with training a Springer Spaniel puppy this week.
- Alone training – keep building up the time you leave them with food toys to prevent separation anxiety.
- Crate training – does your Springer Spaniel puppy love their crate? Most tend to like their ‘den’ but might need convincing that being shut in is ok.
- Teach them their name in the garden – there will be an element of distraction here, as they will be very interested in all of the smells. Use good treats, or maybe their favourite toy as a reward?
- Recall training: add a cue word as they’re coming towards you. Lots of praise and tasty treats!
- Fetch and drop
- Introduce lead walking training – this is hard for most working dogs. They are independent and walking next to you or to heel can prove tricky. Use a harness to teach them at first.
Husbandry tasks to do this week
- Brushing your puppy – your Springer won’t need heaps of grooming, but those feathers on their legs can get a bit tangled, and they can get brambles and other unmentionable things in their coat when running through hedges and bracken so make sure you teach them that grooming is fun!
Week 3 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
Week 3 of training your Springer Spaniel puppy! Are you amazed at their wonderful nose? Or maybe they’ve jumped in the local pond to show off their swimming skills?
We hope we’ve given you enough to be getting on with, don’t forget to download a trial of the Zigzag puppy training app so you can move the training on. We also give you access to a team of expert puppy coaches, so feel free to send us your questions.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training Exercises to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Scent Trails – Go for a drive – Invite Friends Over – Write a puppy socialisation checklist | – Recall – outside in the garden – Four Paws on the floor – Not Jumping up – Down – Generalisation – Alone Training | – Harness fitting |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
Let the fun begin! You might be training your Springer Spaniel puppy outside if they’ve had their vaccinations. But if not just use a bag or stroller to carry them to the car or other places so they get to experience the world.
- Scent trails – your puppy will ace this game. Find full details in the Zigzag app
- Invite friends over – make sure your Springer Spaniel puppy gets the choice of when to approach and say hello. They can easily get overwhelmed by people wanting to touch them so ask your friends to take it slowly.
- Go for a drive with your Springer Spaniel puppy – make sure they’re safely in their car carrier, and bring a friend with you. They’ll make sure your pup enjoys the ride.
- Write a puppy socialisation checklist for your Springer Spaniel puppy: what kind of things fit your lifestyle? Do you use buses and trains? Put those on there then.
Training to do this week
- Recall: teaching your puppy to come when called, outside. More distractions! But bring that favourite tennis ball and your Springer Spaniel will likely come back at lightning speed!
- Stop your puppy jumping up – they’re not called Springers for nothing. Honestly, Springer Spaniels often jump up on people, and while sometimes it’s to be friendly, it’s often because they’re overwhelmed and trying to appease us.
- Generalisation – different locations. Teach those fabulous obedience skills your puppy has been aceing at home, in a different place, even just a different area of the garden is fine.
- Teach your Springer Spaniel puppy to lie down – try teaching this from a stand, Springer Spaniels often find it easier than from a sit.
- Alone training – how is your Springer Spaniel pup doing? Can you start extending the time you leave them for?
Husbandry tasks to do this week
Harness fitting for a puppy – it’s worth getting a harness for your Springer Spaniel puppy as you’ll find teaching lead walking much more comfortable with one.
When harness training a Springer Spaniel puppy we suggest a y shaped padded harness like the True Love padded harness, or the Dog Copenhagen Comfort Walk Pro harness.
Use plenty of treats so your Springer Spaniel puppy is happy to have the harness taken on and off.
Week 4 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
We’re halfway through our ultimate guide to training a Springer Spaniel puppy, but in reality, you’ve just started your training journey. Yep plenty for you to learn and training to do with your puppy!
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Meet another dog – Find a puppy class | – Settle on a mat – Lead walking – Recall games – Push/drop/stick on known exercises | – Grooming sensitive areas |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
How is the socialisation checklist that you made up? Have you been ticking things off, but perhaps you’ve not met another dog yet? This week we suggest you do if you haven’t already, and find a good puppy class while you’re at it.
Sure, we believe the Zigzag app covers all of your socialisation and training needs, as well as having access to our expert puppy coaches. Still, sometimes it’s just nice to meet up with a group of puppy owners face to face (I know, yes we have a Facebook community which you’ll love but it’s not IRL!)
- Meeting another dog – preferably a friend’s dog who you know likes puppies. Keep your dogs at a distance and just reward your puppy for being calm around them. No need to rush and go straight in for a play date.
- Find a good puppy class for your puppy – in the UK we recommend finding a trainer who belongs to one of the member organisations of the UK Dog Behaviour and Training Charter. Ask if you can watch a class before you sign up too. That way you’ll see if the classes would suit you.
Training to do this week
How is the training going? Have you found your Springer Spaniel’s off switch yet? This week we suggest you try teaching them a nice settle on a mat. Probably best to do it after the lead walking practice and recall games. That way, they’ll be nice and snoozy.
- Settle on a mat – training your Springer Spaniel to settle nicely when you’re out and about, will be really useful. Use a piece of vet bed and a stuffed kong under your foot so that your puppy is engaged with that rather than being interested in things around them.
- Lead walking – keep practising this in places with low amounts of distraction. Often walking up and down the same road will help as your Springer Spaniel puppy will have sniffed all the smells over and over and it will be familiar for them and less exciting.
- Recall games – Play tennis with your Springer Spaniel puppy! Grab a friend or family member and call your puppy between the two of you!
Husbandry tasks to do this week
- Grooming a puppy – this week focus on sensitive areas, see if your Springer Spaniel puppy will let you touch in between their toes. Do it gently when they’re sleepy so don’t mind so much, or when they’re awake with lots of treats,
Week 5 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
We’re pretty sure you’re learning the ropes now and are doing brilliantly with training your Springer Spaniel puppy.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Go to the pub – you deserve it! – Tick 3 things off your personal socialisation checklist | – Alone Training – Recall – outside using a lead – Lead walking – outside – Push/drop/stick on known exercises | – Pretend nail clips – Grooming |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
This week all of your training will be rewarded with a lovely visit to a dog-friendly cafe or pub – it’s for your puppy’s socialisation, honest!
- Go to the pub/dog friendly café – you deserve it!
- Tick 3 things off your personal socialisation checklist – what will you choose this week?
Training to do this week
You’ve probably been doing really well at these basics, now’s the time to push things along if you can a little, and keep things challenging. Training a Springer Spaniel puppy keeps you on your toes doesn’t it?
- Alone training: increasing time alone so that you can start to go out and about without your puppy if you can.
- Recall – Outside, using a lead or long line if you need to. Learn how to deal with distractions, make a funny kissy noise, or get down low to get your Springer Spaniel interested in what you’re doing.
- Lead walking – outside, loose lead walking is difficult, so you’ll need to practise an awful lot! It’s worth it though, so put the work in now, as Springer Spaniels get quite strong when they’re older and it will be harder to do then.
- Push/drop/stick on known exercises. Keeping things interesting will stretch your Springer pup’s brain, increase the difficulty methodically – get a notebook to keep track if you can!
Husbandry tasks to do this week
Although pavement walking, and running around on a hard surface can be great for claws it can be quite hard going on a Springer Spaniel puppy’s joints, so you’ll want to teach them to have their claws clipped but it needs to be a slow and gradual process!
This week start pretending to clip your dog’s nails – do this by having a pot of treats near you, and nail clippers in hand, take a paw and lightly touch the paw with clippers and give your puppy a treat. No need to actually clip them just yet, keep things short and sweet and just do one paw at a time. You can revisit this exercise later in the day and do another paw and so on.
Week 6 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
You’re in the final stretch of this guide – we hope you’ve found it useful. Don’t forget we give you a much more detailed training programme and give access to a live team of expert puppy coaches in our Zigzag puppy training app.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Tick 3 things off your personal checklist | – Following on walks – Push/drop/stick on known exercises | – Check puppy’s mouth |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
- Tick 3 more items off your socialisation checklist – what new things can you do with your puppy?
Training to do this week
Training a Springer Spaniel puppy can be a little trickier as they get older, and their confidence grows. No longer are they sticking to you like little shadows on walks. Perhaps they’re chasing after birds, or wanting to say hello to other dogs?
- Following on walks – have a special toy or delicious treat, and reward your puppy lots for following you.
- Push/drop/stick – keep increasing the difficulty and testing to see what level you’re at with training exercises.
Husbandry tasks to do this week
Dental problems can be common in dogs if you don’t keep an eye on your puppy’s teeth. The easiest way to do this is by teaching them that it’s fine to have their teeth brushed. To do this you’ll need to work on them being happy with you handling them around their mouth.
- Start checking your puppy’s mouth and teeth – do this by teaching them that hands near their mouth – treats. Start really gently, touch their cheek – treat, touch their chin – treat, and so on.
Week 7 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
The 7-week itch? Well, we hope not. We’d imagine your Springer spaniel puppy has their paws firmly under the table and has become an inseparable member of your family!
Here’s what we’ll be focussing on in training a Springer Spaniel this week.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Puppy Agility – Tick 3 things off your personal checklist | – Wait – Walk with a friend’s dog – Recall – off the lead – Push/drop/stick on known exercises | – Pretend ear drops |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
This week why not try something new with your Springer puppy like puppy agility? While your puppy shouldn’t be jumping and twisting, there are many good skills they can learn at a good puppy agility class, ready to rock the agility ring later on.
Tick 3 things off your personal socialisation checklist this week – maybe a trip to the beach to feel the sand between your Springer Spaniels toes? Don’t be too surprised if they have a good dig on the beach!
Training to do this week
- Teach your Springer Spaniel puppy to stay
Next up in training a Springer Spaniel we’ll work on teaching them to be still and stay – this is not so easy for a busy spaniel, they can be so intense!
- Go for a walk with a friend’s dog
Taking your Springer Spaniel puppy for a walk with friends and their dogs, is the stuff that dreams are made of? Well for now just practice with one friend’s dog, so you can reward your puppy for doing all of the wonderful things they do.
- Recall – off the lead
We know, it feels scary to train your Springer Spaniel puppy off the lead, but they’re usually quite good at sticking with you. Reward frequently, do lots of play so that you’re the best thing ever in the park - Push/drop/stick on known exercises
Do a longer sit or down, train your Springer Spaniel in a different location. Anything really which pushes their training on, in a fun and methodical way.
Husbandry tasks to do this week
- Pretend ear drops
Spaniel ears can get quite dirty, so training a Springer Spaniel puppy to have ear drops is a useful thing to do so when you need to do it later, it’s not a big deal. Use an empty bottle or keep the lid on and begin by just teaching them to have their ears looked in for treats. Then bring the bottle out and touch their ear with it for treats and so on. Increasing the difficulty little by little each time, but making sure they’re comfortable at all times.
Week 8 – Training your Springer Spaniel puppy
We’re on the last week of this guide, but you’re certainly not going to be on the last week of training your Springer Spaniel puppy. Training a dog is a lifelong commitment, even when you think to yourself ‘I’m not going to train my dog today’ your dog is always learning.
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| – Joggers and Cyclists – Tick 3 things off your personal checklist | – Practice exercises in different locations – Teach a hand target – Introduce nose work – Push/drop/stick on known exercises | – Nail trims |
Socialisation exercises to do this week
Although the socialisation window is closing for your Springer Spaniel puppy, you should know that exposing them to new experiences in a positive way, that teaches them not to be scared or worried by things, is generally a good idea.
- Joggers and Cyclists
Your Springer Spaniel puppy needs to learn not to chase or similarly be scared of joggers and cyclists. Keep them on a lead or long line at the park until they can stay calm around them.
- Tick 3 things off your personal socialisation checklist
Did you enjoy taking your Springer Spaniel to the beach? Maybe they’ll like a city farm, or working on some training near a field with livestock in?
Training to do this week
In the final week of the training guide we’ll talk you through generalisation and how it matters when training a Springer spaniel puppy. You’ll also want to learn some new skills won’t you? Great, let’s go!
- Practice exercises in different locations
AKA Generalisation. General…..what?? Yes, generalisation is the principle of teaching your Springer Spaniel puppy that sit means sit whether they hear it in your kitchen at home, or at a DIY store, the side of the road, or up a mountain! Dogs are not very good at generalising and you’ll need to practice in different locations around the house, in different areas of your garden and at the park, to start with. - Teach a hand target
This is a great behaviour to teach to any puppy and your Springer Spaniel puppy will love it too.
Grab some treats and put them in a pot or in a treat pouch.
Hold your hand out close to your Springer Spaniel’s nose, they will likely sniff it as they’re pretty curious dogs.
As soon as they make contact with your hand, say your marker word ‘good’ and give them a treat.
Keep repeating this, and then start holding your hand a little further away to make them move towards your hand more.
- Introducing nose work to your puppy
Training a Springer Spaniel to be an amazing scent worker is one of the most fun and simple things you can do as a handler. After all, they do all the work, don’t they. - You could try and get them on your scent and find your keys, or maybe they’ll seek out their favourite toy behind some sofa cushions?
Husbandry tasks to do this week
Trim your Springer Spaniel puppy’s claws
You’ve done some great work on training a Springer Spaniel to be ok with ‘pretend’ nail clips, and now we’re going to do the same thing but for real!
Don’t stress you’re going to do exactly the same thing, except this time you’ll clip a nail then give them a treat. You might need to take this super slowly and just do one clip and then leave it a while before you try the next one.
What’s next for your Springer Spaniel puppy?
Looking for more puppy training tips? Discover how brain games help your Springer Spaniel puppy.
Why not take a look at some of the other training you can do with your Springer Spaniel puppy in the Zigzag puppy training app? You’ll find more in-depth training, games and socialisation advice – access to a team of expert puppy coaches to help you every step of the way too. They’re awfully friendly too.
(in Google Playstore)