How Long to Train a Puppy?

[Aquitane]

Hi, all!

We lost our beagle last summer.  We thought we would never get another dog, but here we are seriously considering it.  My FIL is seriously ill, so we know that right now isn't a good time, so we are thinking maybe at the start of next summer.  I am a teacher, so I thought that if we got our puppy right when school let out he/she would be pretty much trained before I went back to work. 

We got our last dog when she was 5 months old, so we never potty trained a puppy.  I should add that I would love to get an older shelter dog instead, but DH is dead-set against it (bad experience from the past), so I've resigned myself to a puppy.

So, how long does it usually take?  I know that every dog is different, but if we were to get a puppy in June would it be trained by the beginning of September?  The puppy wouldn't be alone all day when I went back to work.  I would come home at lunch and also my parents want to "keep an eye on him/her."  (i.e. They want a dog themselves, but not the "hassle" of one!)

Thanks!

[Arduinna]

It really depends on the breed, some breeds are notorious not getting it while others are a snap. But regardless it really should not take 3 months. Are you going to paper train for during the day? I've never formally paper trained myself. Although my pug is really good about peeing on paper LOL even paper you don't want pee'd on. 

[NikonMama]

Our dogs took about 2 months, but we were working with two at once.  They are now 4 months old and have been trained for over a month now.  My husband and I are both home 24/7, though.  We crate trained, never paper trained.