Stretch Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 Hi everyone, i've got a question so thought i'd make my first post after browsing the site for months. Just wondering if you could advise me the best way forward. I've got a puppy labrador that i brought for the guns, i can't wait to get her on the field to start her working, i am a little impatient when it comes to waiting and i very nearly took her to introduce her to gun fire today (she's 18 weeks old) but decided against it. Could anyone tell me an ideal age to start her gun training??? I know i need to perfect the "fetch, sit, stay" and other basic commands prior to this and she is progressing very well. Thanks Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb79 Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 Best advice is here mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delbert Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 I usually start with a childs cap pistol - when you are preparing the dogs food let it off a couple of times best with the dog waiting outside the room so it makes a good association with the sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hookbones Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 take her in the car and park up neat a clay ground ,dont take her out just let her sniff out the window and hear the bangs at range.keep her calm and dont make a big deal out of it all.. when she shows shes calm take her for a lil walk somewhere close by but not at the ground its self.build her into it slowly and dont rush it cos if u rush n she gets gun shy its almost game over,iv known 2 dogs so far that were exposed too soon and both have never got over their skitishness <1 only has to see a gun bag and its gone> i introduced fargo gradually to shot at 5months and hes solid now,infact i just walked in with him 10 mins back after a morning on the clays .after we have all shot he fetches the ones that have gone in the water Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stretch Posted April 4, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 Thanks guys, very helpful. Probably for the best i did'nt take her today, will give it 2 more months. I will be devastated if she turns out to be gun shy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markyboy Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 my lab was 9months and i think i started to early anything after a year imho. 18weeks is way to early,the gun is the last thing you bring in. you get a gun shy dog then you could ruin her. dogs remember things if she dosent like the loud bangs at an early age and gets scared then you have got alot of hard work to get her confidence back up. good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziplex Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 My liitle Springer is 10 1/2 months old and a little nervy generally so i've been cautious. What I decided to do just lately is let her run around on some fields I go to and fire a few blanks into my coat pocket which creates a very muffled sound after sending her for a retrieve/when she's 'busy', left it a day or two then done the same but fired a few towards the ground out of pocket, after a week of occasional shots and no sign of fear I pipped her whistle whilst she was about 30 yards out raised the pistol high and fired it into the air. She sat down as hoped, I put the gun away went to her and made a huge fuss then give her a few retrieves as a 'reward' ....prior to this i've given her balloons to play with, fired party poppers, purposely banged cupboard doors etc, etc. I'll keep up with the short blanks for a good while then try the longer ones, same with a dummy launcher, then onto the shotgun at range and so on. At home i've left fired blank cases in the gun and show it to her just before going out for a walk, when she sees/smells the burnt powder she associates it with going out and is keen on the sight of it now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 I wouldnt take her anywhere near a clay ground for her first introduction. First of all start by bangin metal plates together (the dog food ones are good) and things like that! The kids cap gun was a good way. Work your way upto a starter pistol far away until its up close. Then shotgun far away n working closer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stretch Posted April 4, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 There's hell of alot more to think about in gun training than i first thought, i've spoke to a few people today and read all your replies, 9 / 10 months seems to be a common age to start them. I've started making a few loud bangs today after reading your posts, think thats the way forward for now, shall try to buy a kids cap gun tomorrow, i've not seen any of them for years though, do they still sell them?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul@Ribchester Posted April 5, 2010 Report Share Posted April 5, 2010 There's hell of alot more to think about in gun training than i first thought, i've spoke to a few people today and read all your replies, 9 / 10 months seems to be a common age to start them. I've started making a few loud bangs today after reading your posts, think thats the way forward for now, shall try to buy a kids cap gun tomorrow, i've not seen any of them for years though, do they still sell them?? I got mine from Amazon mate....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeksofdoom Posted April 5, 2010 Report Share Posted April 5, 2010 (edited) Hi everyone, i've got a question so thought i'd make my first post after browsing the site for months. Just wondering if you could advise me the best way forward. I've got a puppy labrador that i brought for the guns, i can't wait to get her on the field to start her working, i am a little impatient when it comes to waiting and i very nearly took her to introduce her to gun fire today (she's 18 weeks old) but decided against it. Could anyone tell me an ideal age to start her gun training??? I know i need to perfect the "fetch, sit, stay" and other basic commands prior to this and she is progressing very well. Thanks Craig !8 weeks way to early, what you could be doing though is getting her used to the sight of the gun, when she's in the sitting room or the garden get the gun out and let her get used to being around it. Get her used to the sight of it and seeing you with it. I have a GWP who wasn't gunshy at first, she wasn't afraid of the gunshot but she was nervous of the sight of the gun, 'gun nervous' is what its called, had to to a bit of corrective training but she is fine now. Follow 'new to the flocks' advice as that is what I done and it worked. Edited April 5, 2010 by deeksofdoom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kron Posted April 5, 2010 Report Share Posted April 5, 2010 (edited) My pup is 8 weeks old and although I would never dream of introducing her to gunfire at this age she is being conditioned to loud noises. Entirely because I have married the clumsiest woman in the world who can't enter a room without breaking something. Warning choosing this course of action may result in bankruptcy. Edited April 5, 2010 by Kron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Downie Posted April 5, 2010 Report Share Posted April 5, 2010 My cocker was about 6 months old when I ordered a blank-firing pistol. When I was buying it, I asked why there were two sizes of blanks available - short and long? The guy said "Ooaaarrrrrhhh" (think he was Cornish) "Oi use the littl'uns for trainin' the dogs see, and the bigguns for scarin' the daylights out of 'em". So I bought a box of each. When they arrived I too the wee dog out to a remote country lane, sat him up and walked about 50yards away. Loaded up one of the little blanks, and then while the dog was watching I put my hand in the air and 'BANG'. He didn't flinch at all! Excellent. I brought him a bit closer and repeated the process, and he didn't flinch. Brought him to 10yards, no flinch. Right by my side, no flinch. Blimey! "Right", I thought, "Time for the Big ********!" So I loaded up one of the long blanks, put my hand in the air, and.. ***BANG***, right beside the pup, and he never flinched at all. Steady as a rock! In fact I was a wee bit disappointed. Once he started to associate the gun with birds falling from the sky however, he did start to get a bit excited by it, and I could start actually training him with the gun. Interestingly, although he's still steady as a rock around my shotgun, he goes totally bonkers if I fire my silenced PCP airgun near him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stretch Posted April 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2010 My pup is 8 weeks old and although I would never dream of introducing her to gunfire at this age she is being conditioned to loud noises. Entirely because I have married the clumsiest woman in the world who can't enter a room without breaking something. Warning choosing this course of action may result in bankruptcy. LOL, know what your saying their. My wife not clumbsy thought, shes cranky. Whoops, is that cupboards doors slamming again?? Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.