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A Labrador can be the perfect choice as a family pet, as long as you are willing to put in the time and effort for proper Labrador obedience training. These cute, playful puppies quickly evolve into big, rambunctious dogs if they are not taught good manners while they are still young.

Training a Labrador doesn’t have to be an unpleasant challenge for you or your dog. This breed is extremely intelligent and eager to please, making it a good candidate for effective obedience training. However, these dogs can also be a bit strong-willed, meaning that if you don’t show your Lab who is boss in the house right from the beginning, he may very well try to run the show himself.

Much of Labrador obedience training has to do with teaching your dog respect for the alpha dog in the household - who happens to be you. Once you have established the proper pecking order in your home, your Lab puppy will be much more likely to acquiesce to your authority with prompt obedience.

One of the first steps in effective Labrador obedience training is consistency. Just like small children, a dog needs to know that the rules are the same all the time, and that if he doesn’t follow them, he will get a scolding from you. This means that if you want your Lab to stay off of your bed, you can’t allow him to jump up even once. Any exceptions to the rule will quickly be picked up on by this intelligent creature, and he will continue to push you to the point of exasperation if he thinks his efforts might be successful.

Consistency is another important key in effective Labrador obedience training. For example, if you want to make it a rule that your dog does not jump on the furniture, you need to be consistent with that rule and never let him up on the couch. Not once. Not ever. Intelligent dogs like Labs will quickly recognize when they can push you and the rules to the limit and will do so whenever possible.

Labrador obedience training with a very young dog should be limited to just a few minutes, and should include lots of praise and rewards. When your dog is first learning a command, keep distractions to an absolute minimum to ensure that you have your puppy’s full attention.

Begin with the following commands; sit, stay and fetch. Choose one command for each session at the beginning, and try repeating the command a number of times until your puppy gets the hang of it. These early sessions should be as free of distractions as possible, but later sessions can add some distraction like bouncing a ball or clapping your hands to ensure that your dog will obey you under any circumstance.

While rewards should initially come to a pup that sits for only a second or two, later sessions should require that your dog obeys for longer periods of time, and even when he cannot see your face or you are at a distance. By investing the time and effort in proper Labrador obedience training at the beginning, you will enjoy many happy years of companionship with your pet.