What age do you start gun training

[pigeon-hunter]

I will be picking my new black lab puppy up in 2 weeks time.

I've been told by different people different ages to start training to the gun and picking, some say 6 months some 1 yr some 18 months.

What are people's opinions on this.

 

Thanks

[Cockermax]

Not sure you can give an exact age to start training to the gun, all dogs will be different. Get the basics done first which you can start when you get the the dog, sit, stay, recall to whistle.

You need to make it fun though, let it be a puppy and enjoy it. Once it gets to about 6 - 8 months and the basics are in place find yourself a good gundog trainer and be guided by the advice they give you as to how you and the dog progress.

 

Everyone wants to get the dog picking up or being shot over asap, most times its to young and not trained properly and you can do more damage than good.

[Cookie69]

I'm an absolute novice when it comes to training gundogs, but I thought I would give it a go with cookie ( cocker spaniel)

he is 17 wks old.

I have nearly 100% probably 98% response to the sit whistle, the recall is slightly less it's all dependant on what distractions are around?

I've just ordered a 10 meter training lead to help with this, retrieves have been pretty good, although as soon as he doesn't pick up I stop and put the dummy back in the bag.

I don't want him getting board.

the one I'm struggling with, is a sit and stay , he sits but when I try and back away with hand extended saying stay, he thinks it's a game and barks and jumps up at me

(any advice on that would be good thanks)

having said all that, I have had some good advice off a few people and the common bit is, don't rush, make it fun.

I do have access to a gundog trainer only 15min from my house, but im not going to over do it with him probably one lesson every month maybe two months?

 

we were out on our walk this afternoon and I bumped into a lad ferreting, he had 2 rabbits laid out on the floor, cookie was very inquisitive and tried to pick it up by the foot.

which was nice to see.

 

Good luck with your dog,,,,

 

PS

my gundog trainer told me a lab is born half trained, and a spaniel dies half trained so you do have a slight advantage already

 

[fenboy]

With your cocker , he thinks its a game , you need to show him its not .

Command him to sit /stay and back away , as soon as he comes towards you get hold of him and drag him back to the spot where you have asked him to stay and repeat the command , he should soon get the idea .

 

For the OP my Lab was around 5 months when I introduced him to gunfire , its easier if someone else has the gun , walk the dog a good distance from the gun and make him sit (keep the lead on ) get the person with the gun to fire a shot , keep the dog sitting and give praise , keep repeating until getting nearer the gun

[kent]

Well its better to start too late than too early as long as its not too late! I know that sounds daft but many make the mistake of starting formal training too soon. All dogs are different but 6mnths is about the youngest for formal training. Play training, house training and general do and don'ts of every day life are an entire different matter from formal gundog training and start the minute the pup comes home.

[Cookie69]

With your cocker , he thinks its a game , you need to show him its not .

Command him to sit /stay and back away , as soon as he comes towards you get hold of him and drag him back to the spot where you have asked him to stay and repeat the command , he should soon get the idea .

 

 

 

 

Thanks

how firm should I be with this command ? and should I stick with it until he has done it in that particular training session

 

sorry,, Im a novice

[fenboy]

Very firm , your the boss not the dog take him back to the spot by the scruff if required .

I would do this a few times and see how it goes if you are able to get him to stay for even a very short period give praise and call it a day and gradually increase the amount of time you expect him to stay over the coming weeks.

 

I do think your dog is very young to be as advanced as he is , be careful not to over do things , its a mistake many have made including myself

Lots of people would not have done anything other than the very basics on a dog the age of yours.

[Cookie69]

Very firm , your the boss not the dog take him back to the spot by the scruff if required .

I would do this a few times and see how it goes if you are able to get him to stay for even a very short period give praise and call it a day and gradually increase the amount of time you expect him to stay over the coming weeks.

 

I do think your dog is very young to be as advanced as he is , be careful not to over do things , its a mistake many have made including myself

Lots of people would not have done anything other than the very basics on a dog the age of yours.

 

 

Thanks for that advice

as I type he is having a little rough and tumble with my 9yr old springer (none wrking) he loves her ears

owe,, now he is trying to mount her

[PERCE]

 

 

Thanks

how firm should I be with this command ? and should I stick with it until he has done it in that particular training session

 

sorry,, Im a novice

 

Sorry but you've got a 17 week old baby in front of you & to be considering dragging it about anywhere at this age is madness. It's a hunting dog, I've no idea why you'd be instilling this type of obedience into a spaniel so young.

[PERCE]

I will be picking my new black lab puppy up in 2 weeks time.

I've been told by different people different ages to start training to the gun and picking, some say 6 months some 1 yr some 18 months.

What are people's opinions on this.

 

Thanks

Find somebody to help you, ask where you've bought the pup for a starting point if you don't know anybody. You have to train the dog that's in front of you & takes experience to know when to start, it's very easy to put faults into a dog by rushing things before they're ready. My advice would be to play with the pup instilling it's desire to retrieve & to come back to you when asked, infact recall, recall & recall are the first 3 lessons to teach it.

[pigeon-hunter]

Find somebody to help you, ask where you've bought the pup for a starting point if you don't know anybody. You have to train the dog that's in front of you & takes experience to know when to start, it's very easy to put faults into a dog by rushing things before they're ready. My advice would be to play with the pup instilling it's desire to retrieve & to come back to you when asked, infact recall, recall & recall are the first 3 lessons to teach it.

Yeah I'm going to start your basic obedience straight away, I've asked the breeder but there a 3 hour drive away from me so a bit far.

I have a number of a trainer who trained my mates springer, I've spoken to him and he said bring him down when his 6 months old and he will evaluate him then!

[Cookie69]

 

Sorry but you've got a 17 week old baby in front of you & to be considering dragging it about anywhere at this age is madness. It's a hunting dog, I've no idea why you'd be instilling this type of obedience into a spaniel so young.

 

Ok thanks,.

 

as I said Im a novice dog trainer, it's learning for me as well.

it seems a difficult balance, with so many conflicting pieces of advice. but I will surely take on board what you have said and not get to hung up on the stay command just yet.

at the moment I am trying to make our time together as enjoyable as I can hence, while im out with him ill give him a max of three retrieves, because I learnt any more than that and he will run out and blank it,

the rest of the time is socialising with other dog walkers, and there dogs, im just loving every minute.

 

 

I really do appreciate all the advice

Thanks

Paul

[pigeon-hunter]

Ok thanks,.

 

as I said Im a novice dog trainer, it's learning for me as well.

it seems a difficult balance, with so many conflicting pieces of advice. but I will surely take on board what you have said and not get to hung up on the stay command just yet.

at the moment I am trying to make our time together as enjoyable as I can hence, while im out with him ill give him a max of three retrieves, because I learnt any more than that and he will run out and blank it,

the rest of the time is socialising with other dog walkers, and there dogs, im just loving every minute.

 

 

I really do appreciate all the advice

Thanks

Paul

This is the reason I started this topic, as I'm a novice in dog training aswell I ask the question as a lot of people have different ideas on training, I want the best for my pup with training that's why I have asked as there a lot of members on here with a wealth of knowledge.

As I said I just want to train my pup the best possible way I can.

 

Paul nice picture of your pup albeit on his head lol

[ditchman]

start as soon as you get the dog..........choose a set of commands that you will use on it for the rest of its life and make sure you AND YOUR FAMILY use ONLY the same commands.....

 

most important

 

1....if you dont want your dog to "rag" birds dont let the family play "tug of war" with it...and dont leave toys (dog toys around) infact dont use them at all

 

2...if you want your dog to come to the whistle,,,then choose how you blow the whistle and STICK to it, and use the whistle at EVERY feeding time....

 

 

thats all you need to do at first....then see how the dog progresses and get advice on when to start its proper training....all dogs are different some start early some start late.....just use the early weeks to bond with the dog...and enjoy its company........but on your terms

[Cookie69]

This is the reason I started this topic, as I'm a novice in dog training aswell I ask the question as a lot of people have different ideas on training, I want the best for my pup with training that's why I have asked as there a lot of members on here with a wealth of knowledge.

As I said I just want to train my pup the best possible way I can.

 

Paul nice picture of your pup albeit on his head lol

 

Thanks

[pigeon-hunter]

start as soon as you get the dog..........choose a set of commands that you will use on it for the rest of its life and make sure you AND YOUR FAMILY use ONLY the same commands.....

 

most important

 

1....if you dont want your dog to "rag" birds dont let the family play "tug of war" with it...and dont leave toys (dog toys around) infact dont use them at all

 

2...if you want your dog to come to the whistle,,,then choose how you blow the whistle and STICK to it, and use the whistle at EVERY feeding time....

 

thats all you need to do at first....then see how the dog progresses and get advice on when to start its proper training....all dogs are different some start early some start late.....just use the early weeks to bond with the dog...and enjoy its company........but on your terms

My breeder has said the same thing about no tug of war etc as you want the dog to have a soft mouth, getting this threw to the wife and 3 yr old boy is gona be the hardest bit. Yeah I will be having fun with the pup, as he is a pup but looking forward to being able to take him shooting with me too later on.

 

[pigeon-hunter]

A

Edited November 21, 2013 by pigeon-hunter

[fenboy]

 

Ok thanks,.

 

as I said Im a novice dog trainer, it's learning for me as well.

it seems a difficult balance, with so many conflicting pieces of advice. but I will surely take on board what you have said and not get to hung up on the stay command just yet.

at the moment I am trying to make our time together as enjoyable as I can hence, while im out with him ill give him a max of three retrieves, because I learnt any more than that and he will run out and blank it,

the rest of the time is socialising with other dog walkers, and there dogs, im just loving every minute.

 

 

I really do appreciate all the advice

Thanks

Paul

 

Your right on the conflicting advice , I read somewhere the only thing that two trainers will agree on is that a third is doing it wrong

Unfortunately some think the only way to train a dog is their way , the reality is you have to decide with what bits of advice to take and make them fit with your ideas and training.

[kent]

Sorry but you've got a 17 week old baby in front of you & to be considering dragging it about anywhere at this age is madness. It's a hunting dog, I've no idea why you'd be instilling this type of obedience into a spaniel so young.

LISTEN CAREFULLY TO THIS! I have had dogs that could not be treated like this when they were adult and some who it might have little effect on . However on a little puppy NO WAY. For a 17 week old especially all must be fun and the boss is the ultimate protector NOT aggressor. Sit stay on a 17 week old I shouldn't be doing anyway

[pigeon-hunter]

LISTEN CAREFULLY TO THIS! I have had dogs that could not be treated like this when they were adult and some who it might have little effect on . However on a little puppy NO WAY. For a 17 week old especially all must be fun and the boss is the ultimate protector NOT aggressor. Sit stay on a 17 week old I shouldn't be doing anyway

What age would you suggest to start this basic training then ?

[ian g]

everything should be a game/fun to the pup for the first 6 months at least you need to bond with it and it needs to see you as the center of its world you can still do training just make it so the pup dont get bored siting and staying i dont see a problem with as long as its not over done iv done that with my past pups giving them there food bowl that way they learn to sit and stay and they get something out off it for doing which i found helped alot dont go anywere near the pup with a gun until its at least 12month and even this is early if you do the problems that could be cause will make all your previouse hard work a waste of time the main things are let it be a pup enjoy training it dont rush things and if your having a bad day while training finish the session on a good point dont carry on chances if you do things wont get any better and you will end up frustrated with the dog best to finish and start a fresh the next day

[al4x]

 

 

Thanks

how firm should I be with this command ? and should I stick with it until he has done it in that particular training session

 

sorry,, Im a novice

 

 

I'm with Ian above and if you are on reward and fun based training then don't be too harsh or firm just go very gently and start with food bowls and move from sitting for treats when out to moving back a few yards then calling the dog for the treat and it will start to come. Don't scruff one etc at this age, I'm a couple of weeks ahead of you with mine and she is just starting to sit and stay but this is fun and with her mum while out and we are now 10-15 yards away and she is solid and focussed on the treat. I'm far from an expert but this age is impressionable and the bond is still growing so no need to be too harsh or regimented yet.

[kent]

What age would you suggest to start this basic training then ?

There is no diffinitive age even breed for breed, they all mature at different rates even within one litter. I suggest not less than 6mnths but its very unlikely someone could hold off too long, yours is only a baby and your already chomping at the bit for example- nothing wrong or unexpected in that but the maxim is "make haste slowly" in gundog training.

My current dog is a sensitive type (not soft just sensitive) 6mnths was way to early for him to handle the pressure of HAVING to complete a task, this matters not. I was leaving him and found my wife was having a go with him at around 8mnths so I took the hint and cracked on. To be fair I might have left him another 4-6 weeks.

Please make the break between no training and FORMAL training. There is plenty you can do with a puppy as regards play training, recall can certainly be built, tennis balls found etc. Sit/stay and stop etc are just better left until the dog has some maturity. I have found that its very hard to keep a puppy trained though dead easy to put it in there and to be blunt you just end up re-teaching such things if they are put in too soon. In a way this sows the seeds of "I can choose" at the wrong point in the dogs development, though it would be hard to really irevesably spoil one through it

[pigeon-hunter]

There is no diffinitive age even breed for breed, they all mature at different rates even within one litter. I suggest not less than 6mnths but its very unlikely someone could hold off too long, yours is only a baby and your already chomping at the bit for example- nothing wrong or unexpected in that but the maxim is "make haste slowly" in gundog training.My current dog is a sensitive type (not soft just sensitive) 6mnths was way to early for him to handle the pressure of HAVING to complete a task, this matters not. I was leaving him and found my wife was having a go with him at around 8mnths so I took the hint and cracked on. To be fair I might have left him another 4-6 weeks.Please make the break between no training and FORMAL training. There is plenty you can do with a puppy as regards play training, recall can certainly be built, tennis balls found etc. Sit/stay and stop etc are just better left until the dog has some maturity. I have found that its very hard to keep a puppy trained though dead easy to put it in there and to be blunt you just end up re-teaching such things if they are put in too soon. In a way this sows the seeds of "I can choose" at the wrong point in the dogs development, though it would be hard to really irevesably spoil one through it

Thanks that makes a lot of sense, all I was thinking of doing was sit to start with and I understand his only a pup and it's ment to be fun

[rossymcg]

 

 

Thanks

how firm should I be with this command ? and should I stick with it until he has done it in that particular training session

 

sorry,, Im a novice

drag the little ****** back, and hold him with the scruff of his neck. you wont hurt him but you'll have his attention. everyhting you do with your puppy must be followed through. NEVER give him a command you cant make him do.