gwb Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Hi We have a 20 week old black lab pup who has had some obedience training. He comes to the whistle 95% of the time, sits and stays for upto 30 seconds while Im 20-30ft away. His retreiving isnt very good I realise he maybe a bit young of course but now he just sniffs the dummy or returns to about 2ft away from me even with a lot of praise and encouragement? Should i leave the retrieving until he is older? What is the average age when formal training should start? we hope to compete in field trials in the future as well as rough shooting so any tips would be most appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mec 9000 Posted January 11, 2010 Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Some dogs are insatiable retrievers some are not and can be easily distracted to other more interesting things, some get fed up if you overdo it. I always think that if you don't allow the dog to get it wrong in the first place then you don't need to correct it. 30 yards leaves no room for correction at this stage, get the pup into a hallway so that it can't get past you on return, use small soft toys as dummies can be too big and heavy, make it short fun exercises with plenty of praise, extend to garden when confident that it will pick and return. If having problems, stop and think it through. try again another day. Leave all the advanced work till about a year old. Only move on when confident that what has gone before is instilled. When I visit a litter for a pup I look for a healthy pup that I like the look of and use a small furry toy to see which wants to retrieve it the most. If I see all this then the rest is shooty in, if not I look elsewhere. At the end of the day a dog that is reluctant to retrieve becomes a pet so it is important that this is where the dog gets it's pleasure. Take your time and try to think like the dog. Good luck Gerry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mec 9000 Posted January 11, 2010 Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Some dogs are insatiable retrievers some are not and can be easily distracted to other more interesting things, some get fed up if you overdo it. I always think that if you don't allow the dog to get it wrong in the first place then you don't need to correct it. 30 yards leaves no room for correction at this stage, get the pup into a hallway so that it can't get past you on return, use small soft toys as dummies can be too big and heavy, make it short fun exercises with plenty of praise, extend to garden when confident that it will pick and return. If having problems, stop and think it through. try again another day. Leave all the advanced work till about a year old. Only move on when confident that what has gone before is instilled. When I visit a litter for a pup I look for a healthy pup that I like the look of and use a small furry toy to see which wants to retrieve it the most. If I see all this then the rest is shooty in, if not I look elsewhere. At the end of the day a dog that is reluctant to retrieve becomes a pet so it is important that this is where the dog gets it's pleasure. Take your time and try to think like the dog. Good luck Gerry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwb Posted January 11, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Thanks for your advice Gerry. He did start ok and retrieved in the garden but has now got bored of the idea so I have gone back into the hall wich is only 10ft long and only 2-3 times per session. Would it be wise just to leave retrieving until he is older and maybe get some proffessional help. Even though he is only 4 and a bit months old he has never been a keen retriever to my untrained eye so i know i am going to have to be careful, he has a good pedigree if that makes any difference? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb79 Posted January 11, 2010 Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 My advice (for what its worth) would be to keep all training as playful as possible. If you want the dog to get a bit more excited about retrieving, try and find a toy that he gets really excited over and likes to carry around and use that for the time being. Chuck it about and make a really big thing about it to keep his attention. Don't overdo it at this age as there is plenty of time for him to progress...and most importantly, keep it as a game all the time. Go for 'play training' for about 3 times a week for no more than ten mins at a time, and just enjoy bonding with the dog whilst letting him play about around your feet etc. Don't worry about 'formal' training until he's at least 6 months old, and even then, restrict it to short sessions. If its your first dog, I'd definitely recommend employing the services of a good trainer to get you started on the right track. Its too easy to ruin a really good dog by making simple mistakes. My youngest lab wouldn't pick anything up until he was a year old no matter what we tried. We persevered until one day he just started doing it and now we have more of a problem keeping him steady to falling game...but thats another story! Best of luck and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwb Posted January 11, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Thanks Jimmy we are looking for a trainer at the moment we have a few numbers to ring. I notice from your signature that you have a 686e. I have one myself what do you think, very reliable in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb79 Posted January 11, 2010 Report Share Posted January 11, 2010 Good luck with finding a trainer. Always a good idea to try and watch the trainer in action before taking your dog to him. Sadly, I had a very nasty experience with a trainer was incredibly aggressive towards the dogs and both my labs came back from being kenneled with him for 2 weeks with serious issues. Its taken over a year to sort them out and they'll still flinch if I move too fast which is something we're still working on. I now go to a couple of trainers who are far better with the dogs and it makes the world of difference. There is very rarely a need to be physically aggressive with a dog and hitting a dog is completely unacceptable, but unfortunately, our first trainer had different ideas. On a lighter note, the 686E. Absolutely love mine. I've shot a fair few guns and ended up taking my wife's 686E out on the clays one day. I'd never shot as well with any other gun, so I went straight out and bought my own. Brilliant all-rounder, and hopefully reliable. Only put a few hundred shots through it, but its hit more than its missed in the short time I've had it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwb Posted January 19, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2010 Hi Just a quick update. We now have "jed" retrieving a tennis ball indoors 95% of the time. He returns once he has circled behind me We also hide the ball behind furniture and send him to find which he enjoys and returns enthusiastically. Next step we tried outdoors in the garden again he wasnt interested. He would return but not return with the ball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted January 19, 2010 Report Share Posted January 19, 2010 Don't rush things maye hes only young! Do too much too soon and he will lose all interest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacklab Posted January 22, 2010 Report Share Posted January 22, 2010 I don't start serious training before 7 - 12 months old, depending on the pup. Before that I would get the pup used to its name recall voice/ whistle, sit & a little retrieving. all play training at this stage with pleanty of praise. Lee swingtip gundogs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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