First Time Out Me And The Dog

[monkey 449]

Iv eared them shock collars do the trick

[BORDERSCOT 3,816]

I've just bought this book on Kindle purely out of curiosity. What I will say is that you need to have an enormous amount of patience, time and determination to put the programmes into place, as well as long term commitment. I'm sure that there will be people who have achieved the same level of recall using a shock collar, but the ones that succeed with collars really know what they are doing, have a huge amount of experience and the ability to read dogs as easily as if they were brushing their teeth. Only years and years of experience give someone that ability, plus the split second timing necessary to operate the things and not to make things a whole lot worse.

 

From my own experience, the dog that has never really learned a recall, which sounds a bit like yours, and hunts hard using its nose, will be a real challenge: to turn the dog around so it realises that humans do have some value will be an ongoing, lifelong task, but if you succeed, you'll have a dog which you can truly call a partner in the field. Good luck!

 

It's so much easier to get a pup in the first place

 

Time and patience and lots of work...you ain't gonna undo in a week what it's taken two years or so to put into the dog...good luck....

[Adam1990 24]

Im finding that out, to be fair ive bin lazy ive needed get my arse in gear in traing but also getting him out socialising and getting used to all the smells ect is helping alot. And hes looking good for it. Time is the key ive just got learn to be patient which doesnt come naturaly lol. But thanks for the sound advice ive took it on board and will keep you updated.

[skycat 6,173]

If he likes looking for stuff: take him out where there is no game. Show him a furry dummy, then get someone else to hide it in long grass (tie him up if you haven't got anyone to help you), just walk a few yards from him to begin with, then let him loose on a long line to go find it: let him see you hide it to begin with too, then gradually make it further and further away. Keep him on a long line: about 15 foot of clothes line will do, that way he can't bugger off to do his own thing. Make a big deal of it when he does find it, loads of praise, go nuts with him, let him pull and tug on it before telling him to give it up: you can learn how to do this by reading the tug training articles. Dogs like to engage their brains, no matter how daft they might seem to begin with: so giving him a little challenge makes him feel all the better when he does find something: much better than endless thrown retrieves.

[Adam1990 24]

Ye he loves looking for stuff in the grass hedgerows ect. Dont mean to question you as uve obviously got a shed load more expirience. But will this not encourage him to go searching himself when off the lead? Or is this the idea behind me being the fun thing so he comes to me over anything else?

[skycat 6,173]

the idea is that you get the dog to search on command. My terriers will walk at heel down a lane, and only go off hunting when I tell them they can. Takes a bit of training, but once the dog knows that you are leading the 'hunt', and that you will take it to places where it can find stuff, then it realises that it can have more fun with you than on its own. But you have to build the bond first, and respect too, and you do that through play, finding games, and more importantly, games that satisfy the dog's drive to grab once it is back with you: this is why tug training works so well both for recall and retrieving.

 

I wouldn't let him anywhere near live game until you have a rock solid recall, and he is coming to you eagerly because he knows he'll have fun by your side. This could take several months if the dog hasn't had any previous training or bonding with someone it can respect and trust. You have to be very patient indeed, and be satisfied at each tiny step of progress you make.

 

If you intend working the dog then the tug training will win hands down over the treat training: no treat in the world is as much fun as chasing live things! The tug training taps into the dog's need to catch and kill things: grabbing, tugging, and the biggest factor in this is that the dog gets that satisfaction from you as you are holding the tug toy.

 

There is no way I could call a terrier or high drive lurcher off a chase once it is running with the animal in its sights, but I can watch out for the signs that it has scented something, and distract it with a tug game before it actually starts hunting/running, and get the dog back to me and on the lead if I don't want it to run anything at that precise moment.

[milknhony 5]

because of the dogs age gonna be real tough, but deffo dont take him to Rabbit holding ground for a bit, use food treats bits of chicken or cheese work well, that should get him coming in set up situations like your front room lol call him in from the garden give a treat quick praise then leave it there, most inportant dont try and call him at all if you are not gonna be able to get him back, walk him loads on the lead praise him when his walking well still even give him a treat or two it wil reinforce the bond, at home work on his stay start with his dinner time when you will have his full attention and work up from there, then if you can get him to the point he will stay even briefly in another room hde a food treat, make it easy at first just of to one side ect but when he gets the idea make it harder, then you are starting the basics of him hunting with you in control, if he struggles to find one guide him onto it voice and hand signals The start of the dog looking to you for direction NEVER try and shout him back when you take him in the park leave him on his lead and do heal wor with him changes of direction stops you will look a tit, but once again you will get him looking to you to see what you are doing, when you do let him off make him stay a second or to then have a mad game with him then back on the lead long walk home with more heal work, Good luck

[Adam1990 24]

Update on training, very please today. Mabe wishfull thinking at this stage but imo hes doin quite well. Ive been building a bond more than ever at home playing tug and retrive and walking him alot more. Been down a local wood with open areas with trainging lead today add its unbeliveable how much more alert and focused on me he is. Even to the point now i can call him back from walking in front not pulling on a 30ft traing lead to heal and walk close majority of the time( still has the odd deaf moment). And when he has got his nose down into the undergrowth a quick name call his heads up and back to me, then rewarded with a good tug reward and retrive. Its only been nearly a week so not chancing him of the lead yet. But ive rather impressed my self if im honest

[Gaz_1989 9,539]

Update on training, very please today. Mabe wishfull thinking at this stage but imo hes doin quite well. Ive been building a bond more than ever at home playing tug and retrive and walking him alot more. Been down a local wood with open areas with trainging lead today add its unbeliveable how much more alert and focused on me he is. Even to the point now i can call him back from walking in front not pulling on a 30ft traing lead to heal and walk close majority of the time( still has the odd deaf moment). And when he has got his nose down into the undergrowth a quick name call his heads up and back to me, then rewarded with a good tug reward and retrive. Its only been nearly a week so not chancing him of the lead yet. But ive rather impressed my self if im honest

Sounds like you are making good progress Adam.

 

No rush though.

 

If he stays on the long lead for 4 weeks then so be it. Then when you do finally want to try him off the lead give me a text, we will go where there is very little scent and work on him walking close to us and coming when called and retrieving etc.

[Adam1990 24]

Looking foward to it after seeing ur dog mate just showed me how much of an enbarrasment mine is. Well overdue this training is even if it wasnt for hunting but hes got the drive so i cannot wait get him catching

[Gaz_1989 9,539]

Looking foward to it after seeing ur dog mate just showed me how much of an enbarrasment mine is. Well overdue this training is even if it wasnt for hunting but hes got the drive so i cannot wait get him catching

Lady is nothing special mate. There's no reason why your dog can't be the same, walking to heel and running back when the lamp goes off etc.

 

She is steady. Very steady and some dogs just haven't got that laid back temperament but when it comes to obedience she is far from fantastic. Just average I think.