Help with training please

[tepper82 0]

Morning everyone, I am new to this forum and relatively new to the country sports game (used to go rabbiting/ratting/ferreting with my dad but that was about 15 years ago) i have had ole` my english springer for 3 months, hes about 5 months old and I want to train him to hunt/flush rabbits by scent. but i need advice so here are my options.

 

My dad has 3 border terriers that will chase rabbits and catch them but they are a bit wild when they are off the lead, ie barking/ wont heel, wont retrieve so not sure whether to introduce my dog to these while they are working in case he picks up bad habits.

 

My dog is retrieving very well but with a tennis ball or anything else i throw for him, he knows the fetch command and will find the ball if hidden in brambles undergrowth ect and i have a rabbit in the freezer ready to be skinned.

 

My idea was to either wrap the rabbit skin around the ball and do as i have been doing, hiding it in the undergrowth ect or just slowly phase out the ball and replace it with the rabbit skin.

 

Just looking for any pointers or advice on what you guys did when training your dogs.

 

thanks in advance

 

Lee

 

 

[runningdogloopy 0]

If hes only 5 months old i wouldnt rush to get him on fur or feather yet, i would keep doing what you are doing, but introduce a puupy dummy. Keep going with the recall and sitting to whistle, once you get him onto fur and feather he may not be interested in dummies or tennis balls which makes it difficult to train directional work. He is still very young and i would wait until everything else is perfect and you have generlised all the behaviours.

 

He is a nice looking pup.

Ps I would not run him with the terriers either yet.

[shotup 9]

good advice above.dont worry about hunting it will be harder to stop him hunting than get him hunting when he,s older. keep on with the obedience and dont take him out with unruly dogs as he will pick up bad habits quick.

[tepper82 0]

cheers guys, good advice,

 

what age would you start on the fur then? is there a specific age or is every dog different,

 

Hes only about 14 weeks on this picture, filling out into a really nice dog now.

[hily 379]

Training books lot about if you are new to spaniels to many things to advise on over the forum book like gundogs and the learning chain by Joe Irvine. good luck

[Dave C 63]

Hello Lee, welcome to the forum and well done on picking a fine looking springer Pup.

 

Can i just ask what your final goal for the dog is, ie to roughshoot over the dog, trial the dog or to run it with other dogs as a bobery pack.

I am only asking because depending on what your plans are for the dog, depends on the type / standard of training required.

 

ATB

Dave.

[butcherboy 68]

Training books lot about if you are new to spaniels to many things to advise on over the forum book like gundogs and the learning chain by Joe Irvine. good luck

 

What he said

 

Don't be pushing your dog into to much thick cover too young

[tepper82 0]

Hello Lee, welcome to the forum and well done on picking a fine looking springer Pup.

 

Can i just ask what your final goal for the dog is, ie to roughshoot over the dog, trial the dog or to run it with other dogs as a bobery pack.

I am only asking because depending on what your plans are for the dog, depends on the type / standard of training required.

 

ATB

Dave.

 

Well just to rough shoot and for him to retrieve. That would be ideal, I have been reading a good book by James Douglas which gives lots of good pointers. thanks for the replies guys

[hily 379]

Hello Lee, welcome to the forum and well done on picking a fine looking springer Pup.

 

Can i just ask what your final goal for the dog is, ie to roughshoot over the dog, trial the dog or to run it with other dogs as a bobery pack.

I am only asking because depending on what your plans are for the dog, depends on the type / standard of training required.

 

ATB

Dave.

 

Well just to rough shoot and for him to retrieve. That would be ideal, I have been reading a good book by James Douglas which gives lots of good pointers. thanks for the replies guys

MOST BOOKS WILL GIVE GENERAL HINTS AND TIPS BUT JAMES DOUGLAS AS FAR AS I KNOW WAS'NT A SPANIEL MAN BETTER TO GET A BOOK WRITEN BY A GUY WHO WORKS WITH SPANIELS.Rough shooting is great when you have a good working spaniel with you to rough shoot is to hunt your quary the best way there is a.t.b THATS a nice little dog you have.

[tepper82 0]

Hello Lee, welcome to the forum and well done on picking a fine looking springer Pup.

 

Can i just ask what your final goal for the dog is, ie to roughshoot over the dog, trial the dog or to run it with other dogs as a bobery pack.

I am only asking because depending on what your plans are for the dog, depends on the type / standard of training required.

 

ATB

Dave.

 

Well just to rough shoot and for him to retrieve. That would be ideal, I have been reading a good book by James Douglas which gives lots of good pointers. thanks for the replies guys

MOST BOOKS WILL GIVE GENERAL HINTS AND TIPS BUT JAMES DOUGLAS AS FAR AS I KNOW WAS'NT A SPANIEL MAN BETTER TO GET A BOOK WRITEN BY A GUY WHO WORKS WITH SPANIELS.Rough shooting is great when you have a good working spaniel with you to rough shoot is to hunt your quary the best way there is a.t.b THATS a nice little dog you have.

 

yeah i think he is just gundogs in general, with have a look on amazon for books written by spaniel owners/trainers. nice 1

[the monkey 338]

i made the mistake that you are about to make .....there is no need to enter it to game until it is rock steady with all its training....mine was shown rabbits too early and now is quite hard to handle,,ranges too far out etc ..i would just work on getting the pup really steady on all the basic commands...i introduced mine to dead game and it made training harder as it wasnt interested in ball or dummy...i had to start again and go back to basics with dummy work....i know its hard to wait but its better if you do

[yellow belly 0]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Training-Spaniels-Joe-Irving/dp/1853104191/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1272998846&sr=8-1

 

 

just got myself a 8week old little devil too! full of bounce! the links to th book i got, all pretty good advice from what i can read!

[tepper82 0]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Training-Spaniels-Joe-Irving/dp/1853104191/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1272998846&sr=8-1

 

 

just got myself a 8week old little devil too! full of bounce! the links to th book i got, all pretty good advice from what i can read!

 

nice one! going to order that now! they're awesome aren't they!! (springers) he's my first one as always had terriers (patterdales, borders ect) but really coming along nicely with the obedience n stuff. hes still a bit of a pussy when the hoover or the lawnmower is on though! goes and hides under the bed!

[tepper82 0]

i made the mistake that you are about to make .....there is no need to enter it to game until it is rock steady with all its training....mine was shown rabbits too early and now is quite hard to handle,,ranges too far out etc ..i would just work on getting the pup really steady on all the basic commands...i introduced mine to dead game and it made training harder as it wasnt interested in ball or dummy...i had to start again and go back to basics with dummy work....i know its hard to wait but its better if you do

 

in that case i will definately wait, I wasnt really too bothered as having alot of fun just doing the obedience training, but will take your advice on this one, better safe than sorry n all that.

[stroller 341]

mate i wouldnt even let him see a gun until he is rock steady, you need the basics obedience wise or its a lost cause with spaniels (they are really terriers in disguise )

 

i would get acces to a rabbit pen as well if you can for when he is about a year old just to get him steady, in his second year only work him with a steady dog.

 

all the best he is a lovely pup