Dogs need training no matter what breed, but some are more suited to service training than others.

I have seen Berners being trained as therapy dogs in our city. How old should a Berner be before considering enrolling them in a program like this?

As far as I know you can start training Berners (or any dog for that matter) from when they're only a few months old. I think in a lot of cases it ends up being the earlier the better so the training really sinks in and becomes part of the dogs behavior.

I think Riley was 12 weeks old when we started a training class. We learned as much as he did from it!

I started training my dogs when they were about 6 months old. I didn't realize you could start them younger. I learned alot from the training myself. I think the training is more for us people and not the dogs.

We started training at home when Toa was only 8 weeks old and he picked it up really quick. I think the best window is up to 4 months-- not to say you can't train after that-- but it's when you have the best attention span.

The only thing I would be concerned about is that you really shouldn't work a large breed pup too much because it puts a lot of stress on their growing bodies.... so maybe keep the sessions short at first.

Good luck, it sounds like you're in for some great fun!