Recall And Retrieving

[BORDERSCOT 3,816]

Funny old game the retrieving..easy to overdo it.... And once the line's been crossed for whatever reason it's often difficult to get things back on track....

 

Ours all retrieve well - but some were keener as pups than others.....Finn, my first x collie grey is an obsessive 'fetcher' and would happily keep going all day long....multiple dummies, seen and hidden...he's in his element....you literally couldn't have sickened him of it....he'll catch...basically throw it at you and be ready to go again...

 

Buster will catch and bring it back to you but he's dead slow and stop...the main event is over when he's caught something....and he finds anything else very mundane....he was easy to teach retrieving to but would've lost interest quickly as would Iolo, my collie x pup....he's 9 months and retrieves very well...but after 3 or 4 he's like "okay f**k this...I'm bored..." and that's when to stop.....he caught a pheasant last week and brought it straight to hand....

 

And funnily enough Meg was kinda like Finn...she'd go on and on and on.....and treated the whole retrieving thing as a big bundle of fun....she sometimes retrieves Jack for a laugh......

 

Secret is make it fun and rewarding and keep it short and sweet.....

[Westyorkshire_lad 402]

 

 

Only had her nearly 2 weeks now iv got her walking on the lead with no problems she does sometimes do a emergency stop and you got to try not to trip over her lol i walk her on a quite field off the lead she runs about and love being off lead usually she stays close to me but when I try to clip her back on lead she hesitate to come close and sometime cowers down she doesn't have much confidence or lack of trust. I do make a fuss of it and praise her but sometimes it's hard when it's throwing it down and you want to get indoors but you can't get hold of her. I got told something about putting rabbit skin around a bottle or object and using that to retrieve after her recall is good?

If the pup is cowering down at only 13 weeks old then it either has a naturally very submissive and nervous temperament, or you've already given her reason to be afraid of you: which is it?

 

You say: I do make a fuss of it and praise her but sometimes it's hard when it's throwing it down: so does that mean you have got cross with her, grabbed her as she's trying to run off? If you have mistakenly hurt her by doing that, and the pup is also very sensitive, then you have your answer. The thing you need most with pups is endless patience, and then some more patience. Pups are naturally hard wired to come to you and have a fuss, it is only when we give them reason to doubt us that problems arise.

If you have a naturally somewhat aggressive manner and a loud voice, you may find it helps if you adopt the 'little squeaky' voice when you call her and play with her: this will help to show her that you are trustworthy and friendly. Also, getting down on the ground as though you're a pup wanting to play, should give her more confidence in coming right to you.

[Westyorkshire_lad 402]

When I said sometimes its hard to praise her when it's raining I didn't mean getting aggressive I just clip her on and then get off, but she wasn't socialised with people much when I got her all pups where kept in a cage that was in a dark shed. She was a very nervous dog. She's a lot better then what she was when we first got her confidence is building up

[skycat 6,173]

Why some f*ckwits even breed dogs I don't know Just keep on as you are, plenty of good advice on both your posts: just remember that if your pup hasn't been handled right, or socialised, she will be behind what a pup of her age should be, and worse, she won't have had good experiences in her young life. You'll have to be extra gentle and patient with her: never shout, move slowly, and for now, just spend lots of time playing gently with her. Forget trying to make her do anything: just go at her pace and she'll show you when she starts to trust you more> the more time you spend with her the better. Hand feed her as well: that always helps build trust, and don't be frightened to make a real pet of her: sit with her on your lap, sweet talk her: anything you can to help her relax around you.

[birddog 1,354]

skycat as usual is spot on.........i would add that textbooks and training manuals are all fine but every dog is an individual, my collie x is a bolshie sod at times and my deerhound x can be timid and sensitive so we have to adapt to they're individualities to communicate effectively with them, find out what exactly makes your pup tick and go with it