beau is now 18 months old.

[lozrob]

my dog beau is now 18 months old, shes a sprocker. come from a working background.

is there a level that she should be at by now.

 

its really frustrating for me at the moment as to what she SHOULD be doing.

she sits,

she stays ( only for as long as im looking.)

she will retrieve to hand,

she has no problem being around a gun.

BUT,

she will not walk to heel .

she will run off at any chance she gets when were out, 200 / 300 yards ( she does come back to me if i run off in the other direction.)

she just wants to hunt and not bothered what im trying to get her to do,

she pulls like a train on a short lead.

and on a long line,

ive taken her pigeon shooting with me over the last few months to try and get some steadiness in her , , which is fine , but as soon as i send her out to pick up

a bird shes off, in a massive circle , then eventually comes back with a lot of help from me to find the downed bird.

also she is now trying to take a second bite on the pigeon for better grip and damaging the bird,

 

if she is too young for the shooting part , what age is good,

what should i be expecting her to do,

 

have i got to start basic training again.

ive been training with a long line for 3 months now, everything seemed ok then tried the same exercises off lead . and shes off like a train.

 

cheers for any help.

 

 

 

[bigbird]

Hiya.

Firstly there's no set rule for what a dog 'should' be doing at any certain age, they're all different.

Secondly (and no offence) it looks like your Sprocker's running rings around you. A second pair of eyes and advice is always good, particularly when you're starting to get understandably frustrated.

Best bet is to look for a good gundog trainer in your area for a one to one. It might just take just one session to set you off on the right path again.

[bigbird]

Ok, I'm no expert but I've had a look back at Beau's previous exploits.

 

"i will do as you suggested with the long lead, i have just come back from a walk around the streets near my home, with beau on a retractable lead. she just started jumping about at

first then soon settled down.

every junction and every 100 or so yards , tugged the lead , blew the stop whistle , and she sat and stayed untill i told her " to get on "

i will continue for as long as it takes , will keep everybody posted."

Do you use 'get on' for a hunt command? Just asking as we do and many others. If so it's no wonder she's pulling like mad on the lead for starters. As for retractable leads, ditch 'em

Anyway, I'm no keyboard (or even real life lol) trainer but that's what jumped out at me initially.

You need to find somebody to train you

Hope you get sorted soon

Edited September 16, 2014 by bigbird

[lozrob]

cheers big bird,

no offence taken , i need help.

when out walking on short / long lead , i stop her ( on a whistle ). she sits. then i use " come " somebody else mentioned that before .

" get on " is only used when out in the field or the woods.

[loriusgarrulus]

Retractable leads are great for an elderly dog that has gone blind or deaf or maybe a bit senile. No use for them otherwise.

Seen too many owners near busy roads with the dog at the full extent of a 5 metre lead a few feet away from the traffic.

Edited September 16, 2014 by loriusgarrulus

[bigbird]

pm'd you a possible contact

[kent]

I fear the heel bit is going to be hard now but very doable, restricting hunting range likewise. Getting a second hold is normally a sign of inexperience and a soft mouth, yet you say she is damaging stuff? I think you need some hands on help. The dog is not ready for the shooting field I should stop that for now if I were you as you will only do more harm

[loriusgarrulus]

I found the gentle leader type head harness good for getting a headstrong dog that has learned to pull back in position without tears and aching arms. Used it on the setter when I got him for a few weeks to get him into the idea that I wanted him by my side not 3 ft in front. Once they get the idea you can swap back to a normal lead.