gun dog commands?

[martindd]

I've a cocker I'm planning n training,I've book various books and a couple of DVD sets that I'm working through.

What seems a little vague is the use of commands ie the books will say give the command to hunt? (Which is what?)

Also when handling a dog to a blind then getting it to find the dummy/bird with which command?

 

Thanks Martin

[Cookie69]

For me and my cocker it's get on to start hunting

 

If I'm sending him on a blind retrieve I send him out to the words ( get out)

And stop and direct him if he goes off line.

Edited August 24, 2014 by Cookie69

[WGD]

The fewer the better, doesn't matter which words you use as long as the dog knows what you expect.

[hedge hunter]

For me personally I use. Sit/stop, find it/ for hunting on, fetch it/ retrieval & go back with directions. Hope that is clear enough for you to work out. As said the less the better you will just confuss the poor dog.

[bobby dazzler]

What I do is use a long Bit of grass surrounded by short grass chuck a load of tennis balls in and get your dog hunting while he is hunting blow the whistle in slow regular peeps while he is hunting and he will soon get the idea when you blow whistle for hunt he will all so hold an that area

[hedge hunter]

One more thing I will add is, no commands are set in stone. What might work for 1 team may not work for another, find something your comfortable saying. Over time as you and the dog bond, you will start to jell as a team, the dog will start to read your own body language, then you start to get a kind of flow going, more of a partnership. Rather than you telling, dog obeying. Same as my self and my dogs, yes they all work to sit, heel etc, but over time you develop your own verbal slang, mine has gone from SIT to a hiss, ssss. Etc. The dog understands this perfectly, the more you train/work the more fluid you both become. But what evrr you do. It must just be a bit of FUN and a big game for the dog. Just my personal experience like, cheers hh

[martindd]

Thanks all, must say he seems to know a lot must be in the breed!

Never known a dog sit before I'd taught him it.

[kent]

Use French if you want the dog wont care, some traditional gundog commands are daft anyway just avoid two that sound alike and remember them and use them. Best of all speak little dogs need little vocalisation and can soon learn what you want from body language let alone when we add whistles and hand signals then voices on top.

[Bazooka]

The fewer the better, doesn't matter which words you use as long as the dog knows what you expect.

+1

[ditchman]

Its worth bearing in mind that if yo have other people in the house they MUST use the same commands when you are out at work...it is no good saying "hup" to your dog when the children or the wife says "sit"

 

post the commands whatever they are on the fridge door and stick to them.....also start whistle training at feeding times............

[The Essex Hunter]

I use hup.....get out... over....... high loss ( when he is close to where I have sent him) A common command is you #########r lol

I fell in to a habit of saying " and hup" A friend watched a video clip off my phone and he picked up on it, know I just use hup.

 

TEH

Edited August 25, 2014 by The Essex Hunter

[birdsallpl]

I'm no expert and you can tell that by my crazy springer, but for what it is worth, I use very few verbal commands. I use almost all whistle commands, except 'get on' when I want him to hunt/ retrieve/ flush. 'Dead' when I want quarry to hand. I also use 'stay' when he gets excited and to calm him down. I try to use whistle commands that are different as when out with other guns the dog can get confused if you have the same. He stops, comes, changes direction, searches, sits all to hand and whistle. He's not brilliant and can sometimes be a little s**.

I have three different recall whistles for him, depending on how excited he is. Three soft short whistles ( not pips) means 'come to me'.

Three louder and slightly longer whistles mean 'come to me I mean it'. Three very loud shrill whistles mean, 'get here now you little ****or your in big trouble' one of these always seem to work as a recall. LOL

[Paul T]

I'm no expert and you can tell that by my crazy springer, but for what it is worth, I use very few verbal commands. I use almost all whistle commands, except 'get on' when I want him to hunt/ retrieve/ flush. 'Dead' when I want quarry to hand. I also use 'stay' when he gets excited and to calm him down. I try to use whistle commands that are different as when out with other guns the dog can get confused if you have the same. He stops, comes, changes direction, searches, sits all to hand and whistle. He's not brilliant and can sometimes be a little s**.

I have three different recall whistles for him, depending on how excited he is. Three soft short whistles ( not pips) means 'come to me'.

Three louder and slightly longer whistles mean 'come to me I mean it'. Three very loud shrill whistles mean, 'get here now you little ****or your in big trouble' one of these always seem to work as a recall. LOL

 

I have the same recall whistles

[kent]

Blow it the same each time and the dog knows who is calling. I only have one way as a command must be obeyed, if the dog is on the run out or other things the like you need to blow stop first that's about it for me. 1 second blast STOP 2. Two pips change direction 3. three "urgent" sounding pips Recall. If I do it different at times the dog might know but I dont

[bigbird]

Use French if you want the dog wont care, some traditional gundog commands are daft anyway just avoid two that sound alike and remember them and use them. Best of all speak little dogs need little vocalisation and can soon learn what you want from body language let alone when we add whistles and hand signals then voices on top.

 

 

Lol I was going to say that, you can blow raspberries if you like for any command and it'll work

[ditchman]

one other thing...when training ...use hand signals at the same time....as some spaniels can go deaf early...then you will still be able to work it ...........if it goes deaf early..

[birdsallpl]

one other thing...when training ...use hand signals at the same time....as some spaniels can go deaf early...then you will still be able to work it ...........if it goes deaf early..

That explains it then. That's why my loopy springer does what he wants. The b*****s deaf. LOL

[ditchman]

That explains it then. That's why my loopy springer does what he wants. The ******s deaf. LOL

 

 

ahhhrrr thats a different type of deaf.......most spaniels develope that and hone it to a fine art............... you know its like human "pub deafness" when someone says "who's round is it now ?"........

[martindd]

Thanks guys

 

It's the hi- lost command that I'm unsure of ie=search a given area.

And one for quartering?

[Paul T]

Thanks guys

 

It's the hi- lost command that I'm unsure of ie=search a given area.

And one for quartering?

One of my syndicate's ex-members used a very exaggerated 'hiiiiiiii-lossssssst' command. It made him look a right pillock - especially when the dog just used to look at him like he's grown an extra head. It's not a word I use and I prefer 'away' then 'find it' when they are close.

Quartering I just use 'get on'. I give one pip or the dog's name name to turn if needed. These days the spanner knows how far to go and I just indicate the direction with my hand when she turns and glances back at me.

Probably the only other commands I use (apart from the usual obedience) are 'steady' when they are hunting too quickly or not thoroughly enough, 'set it' as a signal for my vizsla to flush and 'fetch up' if I want them to bring something back.

Yeah, it might not be as the gundog manuals, but my dogs ain't read them anyway

[ayano3]

I use up for sit. Hi seek for hunting, pointing which direction first. Two blows on the whistle to change direction. Stop whistle one blow. She stops to shot naturally. Hi lost is used when I want her to cover a particular area for a dropped bird. Back is exactly that. Recall is 5 toots if at distance or come in if close. If I want her to work an area hard for a runner and I think she's on it its lost lost lost. Works for me. Occasionally there's a few extra words but not often.

Edited August 27, 2014 by ayano3

[sonicdmb]

I use sit, get on, go back, dead, gone away and over.

Sit means stay there till I tell you otherwise. So I don't use stay or lie down.

Get on for hunt go retrieve.

dead to release the retrieve.

gone away stop looking.

over to get over or under whatevers in the way.

But mostly use hand signals combined with whistles.

The only thing I would do different is not use two different whistles. I find it slows down a stop whistle having to change them, even with a double ended one.

[kent]

How many use the hunt whistle or command such as "there" when you think the dog is around the fall? Personally I use "thur" because my dog has a Northern dialect but I have seen a few giving a siren like call on the whistle. Although voice is said to unsettle more game I don't like too much whistle as I fear creating confusion in the dogs mind to the most important ones Stop, recall and turn / redirect

[hedge hunter]

How many use the hunt whistle or command such as "there" when you think the dog is around the fall? Personally I use "thur" because my dog has a Northern dialect but I have seen a few giving a siren like call on the whistle. Although voice is said to unsettle more game I don't like too much whistle as I fear creating confusion in the dogs mind to the most important ones Stop, recall and turn / redirect

 

 

kent I also use the there command, when the dog is in the vicinity of fallen pray. Works a treat, I can't be doing with all that "hi lost " nonsense.

[WGD]

I can't really get excited about a hunt command, tried it a few times.

 

If I trialled labs then maybe I would, send the dog out like a rocket in a straight line and tell it to hunt when it hits the fall site, ignoring all other game scent on route - but I don't trial labs and I can't think of many other situations it would be useful.

 

What has served me well is handling a dog to an area and letting its nose take over.