Any help welcomed

[Holland 0]

Due to unforseen circumstances, I have now taken charge of 2, 8 month old lurcher dogs.

 

I am an experienced gundog trainer but have had no real dealings with running dogs.

 

I have trained them to sit and come to the whistle (much as I would a young Labrador) but I am a little stuck as how to progress from here.

 

These dogs are made to run, and I want to use them to hunt rabbits with a lamp.

 

I wonder if someone could offer me some advice as how to start them off on live game.

 

I asume, like gundogs you would start out training separately, but would you start in day light? on dead rabbits? tying a dead rabbit to a string and running with it!!!

 

Please help!

[artic 595]

Due to unforseen circumstances, I have now taken charge of 2, 8 month old lurcher dogs.

 

I am an experienced gundog trainer but have had no real dealings with running dogs.

 

I have trained them to sit and come to the whistle (much as I would a young Labrador) but I am a little stuck as how to progress from here.

 

These dogs are made to run, and I want to use them to hunt rabbits with a lamp.

 

I wonder if someone could offer me some advice as how to start them off on live game.

 

I asume, like gundogs you would start out training separately, but would you start in day light? on dead rabbits? tying a dead rabbit to a string and running with it!!!

 

Please help!

 

 

In my opinion they are a little young for live game.

 

They are pups, they need to bond with it's new owner, other dogs, people. Let them be pups.

 

Lamping is last on your list at this time. No need to rush. Many people do, then the dog ends up for swops and taking on someone else's rubbish.

Edited June 10, 2009 by artic

[Bootsha 1,306]

Hi Holland

 

As with gundogs, retreiving will be a vital part of the dogs future, especially so if you intend rabbiting with them, same principles apply as with your gundogs, train seperately at all times, use a dummy, perhaps with a rabbitt skin on to get them retreiving to hand as you would a gundog, exactly the same.

The more work you put in to their discipline and training now, the more rewards you'll reap with them later in life. Artic was right to say that they are still , in my opinion also, a bit young to start running hard on a lamp, although some do, and with some of the lighter breeds you can, but to let the bones grow and "set" before stressing them is a very good thing, again, this is only my humble opinion.

One thing you must do is get them stock brocken, all sorts, 100%, because if they aren't now they will be a liability when they are older, trust me, as most of us have at one point or another found out. Exercise yes, good food, yes, but learn them manners and train them well and you'll be chuffed you did, they'll do you proud for years to come.

 

Hope this is of some help to you.

 

All the best

 

WAB

[andy67 7]

Hi Holland

 

As with gundogs, retreiving will be a vital part of the dogs future, especially so if you intend rabbiting with them, same principles apply as with your gundogs, train seperately at all times, use a dummy, perhaps with a rabbitt skin on to get them retreiving to hand as you would a gundog, exactly the same.

The more work you put in to their discipline and training now, the more rewards you'll reap with them later in life. Artic was right to say that they are still , in my opinion also, a bit young to start running hard on a lamp, although some do, and with some of the lighter breeds you can, but to let the bones grow and "set" before stressing them is a very good thing, again, this is only my humble opinion.

One thing you must do is get them stock brocken, all sorts, 100%, because if they aren't now they will be a liability when they are older, trust me, as most of us have at one point or another found out. Exercise yes, good food, yes, but learn them manners and train them well and you'll be chuffed you did, they'll do you proud for years to come.

 

Hope this is of some help to you.

 

All the best

 

WAB :victory:sound advice there welsh all black . follow that system and you wont go far wrong .

[Holland 0]

Thanks for the advice.

 

It makes sense. I wouldn't take an 8 month Lab pup to pick up on a shoot!

 

I live on a sheep farm, and have been walking them through sheep and cattle, at heel and off the lead without problems.

 

Like my gundogs, they have become responsive to the whistle, both for recall and stop/sit. Do people usually use a gundog whistle for longdogs?

 

Any other pointers, all you out there may have for me will be gratefully recived.

 

Thanks again

[Bootsha 1,306]

A lurcher is a very intelligent animal,or can be in the right hands; it's not realised by a lot of people that work them, and are more than able to work to whistle, possibly better than a lot of gundogs due to pastoral breeding in their make up, however, lurchers and longdogs are two different sorts.

Although they can look very similar, and run like the wind in pursuit of prey, quite often thats where the similarity ends. Longdogs are a mix of sighthound breeds, i.e Greyhound X Whippet or Saluki X Greyhound( or a host of other mixes), there is no pastoral breeding in a true longdogs make up, thats the difference between the two types of dog. Longdogs are not renown to be the sharpest tools in the shed when it comes to training etc, and sometimes find some of the most basic of disciplines hard work, let alone working to a whistle, and I know theres going to be loads of people who own longdogs who will now write in and say the opposite, but again this is my own humble opinion and by and large tends to be the case.

Lurchers on the other hand (those with pastoral breeding in their ancestry) relish and thrive and good consistent training, it's in their gene's to do so, and many a competent trainer of dogs (not me I hasten to add) will reach a very high standard of obedience in a lurcher. With your background in gundog training , I expect you could teach us lurcher men / women a thing or two.

In short, if you have a dog / dogs that are switched on to, or have an appetite for learning and obedience, feed them as much as you can, they will thrive on the mental stimulation and you will have a dog that others would give their back teeth for (myself included), keep us posted on your progress.

 

All the best

 

WAB

 

PS

 

Apologies for the bit about differences between breeds.

[awen 29]

A lurcher is a very intelligent animal,or can be in the right hands; it's not realised by a lot of people that work them, and are more than able to work to whistle, possibly better than a lot of gundogs due to pastoral breeding in their make up, however, lurchers and longdogs are two different sorts.

Although they can look very similar, and run like the wind in pursuit of prey, quite often thats where the similarity ends. Longdogs are a mix of sighthound breeds, i.e Greyhound X Whippet or Saluki X Greyhound( or a host of other mixes), there is no pastoral breeding in a true longdogs make up, thats the difference between the two types of dog. Longdogs are not renown to be the sharpest tools in the shed when it comes to training etc, and sometimes find some of the most basic of disciplines hard work, let alone working to a whistle, and I know theres going to be loads of people who own longdogs who will now write in and say the opposite, but again this is my own humble opinion and by and large tends to be the case.

Lurchers on the other hand (those with pastoral breeding in their ancestry) relish and thrive and good consistent training, it's in their gene's to do so, and many a competent trainer of dogs (not me I hasten to add) will reach a very high standard of obedience in a lurcher. With your background in gundog training , I expect you could teach us lurcher men / women a thing or two.

In short, if you have a dog / dogs that are switched on to, or have an appetite for learning and obedience, feed them as much as you can, they will thrive on the mental stimulation and you will have a dog that others would give their back teeth for (myself included), keep us posted on your progress.

 

All the best

 

WAB

 

PS

 

Apologies for the bit about differences between breeds.

very heplfull mate

[Holland 0]

Thanks,

 

Some very useful information.

 

These boys are greyhound/collie, so i'll refere to them as lurchers!

 

They are sharp on the whistle, sharper than many Labs at there age!

 

I've shot a couple of rabbits, and now have them retrieving to hand. Although one of them shakes it like a rat when he first picks it up.

 

I would stop this immediately in a gundog, as I would expect wounded game to be brought back alive.

 

What is expected of a lurcher?

 

Should it just catch its prey, or kill it as well??

 

A stupid question pehaps, but I'm very new to this!!

[Wild_and_Irish 11]

Thanks,

 

Some very useful information.

 

These boys are greyhound/collie, so i'll refere to them as lurchers!

 

They are sharp on the whistle, sharper than many Labs at there age!

 

I've shot a couple of rabbits, and now have them retrieving to hand. Although one of them shakes it like a rat when he first picks it up.

 

I would stop this immediately in a gundog, as I would expect wounded game to be brought back alive.

 

What is expected of a lurcher?

 

Should it just catch its prey, or kill it as well??

 

A stupid question pehaps, but I'm very new to this!!

It should be taken back live to hand and be dispatched by you, you can train the dog not to bite as hard by training it to retrieve an egg.

[Bootsha 1,306]

If yours are collie greyhound there'll be no limit to what you can teach them. All game should be brought back live to hand, injured or not (assuming thats what you want them to do).

Never, if at all possible, train a sapling to retreive in the company of other dogs as it can lead to bad habits, a circling around you on return from the retreive being one, being afraid of the other dog snatching at his prize being another and making it hard mouthed, again, another term used in gundog circles, and an undesirable trait in both.

A lot is common to training of all working dogs, seems like your off to a good start already. Live to hand is a very rudimentary level of training to expect from a rabbitting dog, essential even. All the best.

 

WAB

[breeze 1,318]

If yours are collie greyhound there'll be no limit to what you can teach them.

 

Totally agree with you Welsh all Black, as I keep Collie Grey's myself ...... But as a youngster's of 8 month I would also suggest "Little and often" in the training dept. Don't do too much in one go, don't want to sour or sicken pup's during training session's. And alway's try and finish on a high point ! !

Say if you are doing a bit on retrieving keep it to 2 or 3 max a couple of time's a week, and don't go down the road of thought that because they have carried the dummy in fautless 3 time's that I will give the pup another. You never know something could happen on that 4th retrieve that could put the youngster back a couple of week's.

 

Recall is another good point for a lurcher to be highly trained in aswell imo and goes hand in hand with the retrieving really. Something important if you want to eventually run the dog's on the lamp

Because you keep Lab's and pick up on shoot's it probably sound's that I'm trying to show you how to suck egg's

[my hounds 313]

books by brian plummer and dvd,s by dave sleight will be a big help.

[Holland 0]

Thank you all.

 

Think i'm on the right track, but is good to get reassurance.

 

Don't mind being told how to suck eggs either!!!

 

Will keep ypu all up to date

 

H