Golden Retriever Puppy's First Training Session Leaves Her Adorably Exhausted
We all know how tiring school can be, having to sit still, pay attention, learn new information, and practice new skills. For a golden retriever puppy named Lottie, the first day of school proved to be exhausting, in the cutest way possible. In a TikTok video that's been viewed more than 278,000 times, Lottie at first looks cheerful and alert in her little harness. Then, the video cuts to later in the training session. The camera pans to show other dogs in the room still participating in the training — and Lottie sound asleep on the floor.
@cassiolsen She gone 🥱 #puppy#goldenretrieverpuppy#dog#fyppp
"We started puppy training at 12 weeks after talking to her trainer, which she thought was a great idea. But she was still the youngest in the class by a couple of months," Lottie's owner, Cassi Olsen, told Newsweek. Toward the end of the class, Olsen went to toss something in the garbage and expected the puppy to follow her as usual. Olsen said, "I went to see if she was behind, turned around, and she was out cold. She cracks me up!"
Viewers instantly fell in love with the snoozing student. "Sleep skills = mastered!!" one wrote, while another added, "Just got done with 12-hour shift 🤣." One person joked, "She said she felt that meeting could've been an email 🤣."
Why is puppy training so important?
As every responsible dog owner knows, puppy training is vitally important for both the animal itself and all of the humans who ever encounter the pooch. After you start training your dog, you'll find that your dog becomes not just more obedient but also more confident. Positive reinforcement training, unlike negative reinforcement, can be an enjoyable experience for everyone involved, teaching the dog to replace bad behaviors with good behaviors through a system of rewards and encouragement instead of punishment. Training also encourages a strong bond to form between you and your dog, as you both learn to pay attention to each other and understand one another better.
Training is good mental stimulation for any dog. Many dogs were bred to be working animals and can become bored, restless, and even destructive if left alone for hour upon hour with nothing to do. For even more of a challenge, clicker training can be enjoyable for many dogs.
However, training should be done a bit at a time for young puppies, to keep it fun and not too tiring. As one of the viewers of the TikTok video observed: "It's exhausting being that stinking cute. A full-time job. Take good notes so she can borrow them later."