ESS lost his will to retrieve

[Maple Hill 0]

I've got an ESS pup, just under a year old, reasonable field trial lines. He's primarily a pet, but I'd like him to be at least a rough hunting dog. We live in a remote area full of grouse, woodcock, rabbits, and deer. We got him at 13 weeks, and he started retrieving in the house as soon as he got used to being in our home. We progressed to fetching outside during the winter (very cold and snowy winter here) and he would fetch tennis balls as long as I was willing to stand in the weather. He showed early natural quartering to find objects that went into soft snow-banks, etc. so all looked good early on. When spring came I started tossing balls into light and moderate cover and he did a good job of finding and retrieving them I purchased some retriever bumpers and a ruffed grouse trainer model to throw in the yard, and some training sent. He didn't like the size and weight of either, and did a few reluctant retrieves on them, then quit. He refused to retrieve anything with that grouse training sent on it. I got a fresh pair of grouse wings to strap on the dummie. He'll run out, sometimes sniff at the dummy, often squat and pee, then wander off without even mouthing the dummy. going back to his "toys" (tennis balls, etc.) didn't improve his attitude. He was neutered at ~6mo. I can't really say whether this correlated with the change in behavior as it was during the melt-down here when all was mud/ice/slop and we weren't doing much out-doors then anyway.

 

We left the fetching alone for a couple of months. This past week we took the dog camping with us and did a little fetch work with a tennis ball, and he was back in the mood, but really playing -- chasing the ball in a romp insteade of "working" and bringing it straight back to hand. (The kids little terrier chasing and interferring doesen't help the training discipline. ) I'd like to move him to more appropriate dummies, but don't want to put him off all fetching again. Does anyone have suggestions of how to proceed right now?

 

I might mention that I started trying to clicker train him, and he was scared of the clicker. I tried to start conditioning him to gun fire with a small children's cap gun, but he was shy of the sound of the action without caps loaded in it. That's a different training question, but helps understand what kind of personality dog he is. He has caught, killed, and brought home a ruffed grouse this summer while running loose on our land, so he clearly has some hunting drive in him!

 

Thanks for any wisdom.

 

Grand Marais, Minnesota

USA

[Guest davieboy]

stick the tennis ball in one of your socks, then once he will retrieve that put a puppy sized dummy into the same sock, then a bigger dummy, then lose the sock.

[polski 0]

Sounds like you have overdone the retrieving and he has got bored, stick to just a couple of retrieves per session and some days no retrieving at all.

 

Rick.

[markbivvy 6]

The kids little terrier chasing and interferring doesen't help the training discipline.

no it dont, if the terrier has been taking thing of the ess when it has been retrieving this could be your problem.

one on one with the dogs mate.

[deeksofdoom 0]

Yes, it does sound like you have done waaaaaaaay too much retrieving. You need to stop for a while. then start again.

 

Get an old smelly sock and in your hallway make the dog sit.

Get his attention wave the sock in front of him get him to play with it, to try to take it out of your hand. try this for a couple of nights until he gets used to playing with you.

 

When he's all excited about it throw it in front of him and encourage him to go fetch, don't hold him just let him go.

Encourage him with 'Go fetch boy, good boy etc, etc,...

 

When he picks it up call him back to you, all excited and tell him what a good dog he is,

 

NOW HERE'S THE IMPORTANT BIT

 

Don't take the sock off him leave it in his mouth let him run around you with it in his mouth keep praising him. It's his reward for being such a clever boy let him enjoy the moment. After a couple of minutes of this gently take it from his mouth.

 

the most retrieving you should do witha young dog like that is 3 times a day once or twice a week NO MORE!

 

Also don't let that dog roam free, and start killing game, you are on a direct course to spoiling what seems to be a perfectly good springer.

Even a rough shooting dog needs to be obedient.

 

How much obedience work have you actually done with him?