Gun Dog Forum

Kovan

Years ago I gave my GWP puppy at the time a soft rubber ball with a squeaker in it. He immediately became obsessed with it, working it in his mouth non-stop as he ran, making the toy squeak. (It was cute as all get out.) The squeak when he bit down obviously triggered the predator killing prey inst...

Kovan

Kovan, It occurred to me that I did not ask if the chew toys your dog plays with have any squeakers in them. If they do, take them away immediately and replace them with chew items which make no noise. I like a Kong and Porkys for my dogs. Letting a pup chew on a toy with a squeaker in it creates a...

Kovan

Key is that you are not giving any commands around your pup playing with his toy and not using it in any play retrieve training. Are you? I assume in your question and situation, the pup is simply playing with a chew toy on its own. If that is correct I have not had carryover problems with my dogs ...

Kovan

I do not see this as a problem in any way. Your dog will easily differentiate when you are working with it and when it is playing on its own. My dog has a Kong toy laying in our great room always. He was playing by himself, parading around with it, dropping it and grabbing it when it bounced for a s...

Kovan

I mean I don't give him his toy and have him carry it around. just that its there and he does that all the time. carry it then just drops it when he wants to.

Kovan

Great advices and comments! I will take them into consideration. I now know that I have a long way to go... I did do some blind training last week without even thinking, just to see how my retriever does and he picked it up pretty good (no scent was used). He is getting a lot better not to break, bu...

Kovan

I cannot agree to say yes your right or your wrong to either one of your words because as of now I don't have the experience, hopefully one day I will depending on how committed I am. I do believe that once you learn something or train to do something it is a permanent skill set, like a muscle memor...

Kovan

I agree that one month is a bit short to accomplish much by a trainer. A good trainer will want to see the pup and do a quick assessment of the pup before you agree to use them. From that they should be able to talk about where the pup is and how long it MIGHT take to train him. The big question is...

Kovan

If you do end up sending him away, think about 3 months, not 1 month. It's hard for a trainer to do much in that short of a time when he has to "learn" the dog as well. Surely you can find a good trainer to work with you - most will offer short lessons for you and the dog together if you prefer tha...

Kovan

Thank you for your honest words. I'm glad I am doing it right, I do see some great progress in my lab, I guess that is what keeps my drive because I enjoy it and love him very much. I will take your advice and implement that towards our daily trainings. I just don't have a guide to tell me whether ...

Kovan

Looks like you have been doing well with your pup and that the pup has some good instincts! On my first pup, I too found the pup knew more than I did and would do things that worked before I could figure out what she was doing....so just keep trying what seem to work for you and the pup. Below I wi...

Kovan

All good stuff above.... I have owned multiple Golden Retrievers over the years. Like you, when I started, I had no idea how to train the dog for hunting waterfowl or upland game.. or what to expect from using a trainer. After over 25years I have gained the knowledge as to how to train a retriever ...

Kovan

Again thank you all for the help. I will be looking into some of the local trainers and speak to them about what can help me and my dog. also will make visits to there training sessions. I would like to do the training my myself but due to the lack of knowledge I do not have confidence of training m...

Kovan

Your best bet is to ask the trainer what he expects to get out of the dog in a month, then decide. Some things like basic obedience can be done at home. Other things like complicated retrieves or birdwork might work out better at a trainer's. One month isn't much time. I'd be wary of a trainer who ...

Kovan

Also yes sending my dog away is very hard that is why i want to know what are your thoughts. and like i said i rather do the work with him but having no knowledge of training him to hunt with me gets hard at times cause there will be to many questions. The fact that you admit you have know idea how...

Kovan

Dakotazeb wrote:Where are you located?

I am from milwaukee wisconsin

Kovan

Also yes sending my dog away is very hard that is why i want to know what are your thoughts. and like i said i rather do the work with him but having no knowledge of training him to hunt with me gets hard at times cause there will be to many questions.

Kovan

thank you guys for the input. I am a new dog owner and i just want the best for my dog and for myself I would prefer to train him myself but as a new owner i have no knowledge of training a hunting dog, yes i can go off of videos and guides but the question i always have is, am I doing this right? a...

Kovan

What do you mean "bring my lab to some class training"? Are you and he going together to work under instruction (good) or are you shipping him off for a month? (probably not so good.) More information will yield better answers. Ill rephrase that. What is the advantages and disadvantages of sending ...

Kovan

I plan to bring my lab to some class training and I was wondering what is the advantage and disadvantage of sending there dog out for training (one month)? Is it worth the time and money?

Kovan

My health no longer allows me to train dogs at all but when I was still able to I did train my dogs right through the year. When the shooting season ended at the beginning of February I'd do some woodpigeon shooting and I also took my dogs, the pointing dogs in particular, onto the estates I worked...

Kovan

Thanks for the tips guys! I appreciate it, I will surely put in work and keep my buddy in shape and ready for next season. He is still a young dog(9 months) and he is slightly on the stubborn side i am trying to be patient as i can. I live in the southern of Wisconsin, snow hasnt been bad here yet b...

Kovan

This might be a dumb question but do you guys train your dogs all year long?

Kovan

wow those dog pacers and trotters are quite pricey. I will have to build up some cash for that, it would be nice to have though. which one would you guys recommend a pacer or trotter? Dog trotters are expensive but well worth it when you have one. Quality is really second to none. If I were going t...

Kovan

Are you in a snowy area? Skijoring can be an option. Do you have kids? I used to harness a dog to my kids' snow saucers or sleds and the dog would pull the kids around. Best bonus, it got everyone out of the house for a while. It was easy to teach the dogs to pull. Yes it just started to snow and I...

Kovan

wow those dog pacers and trotters are quite pricey. I will have to build up some cash for that, it would be nice to have though. which one would you guys recommend a pacer or trotter?

Kovan

cjhills wrote:Running on a tread mill works great.
It takes a little training but once they learn how it works great and they like it....Cj

Thanks not a bad idea. Can probably pick up a cheap one from craigslist

Kovan

Im going to rephrase it. Is there any particular indoor exercise you guys can recommend for a gun dog? Thanks

Kovan

It is that time of the year, winter is here. What can i do indoor to help drain some energy off my lab? I dont mind taking him outside but the problem is when i get home from work, it is dark outside already. A two block walk doesnt help much. Would appreciate it if anyone/everyone like to share som...

Kovan

Thank you guys for the help! definitely appreciate it. I will take him out swimming more (I forgot that swimming and training him out at the water is a good way to train and to burn energy). I live in Wisconsin and the snow is coming soon and was wondering if any of you guys can give me any advice ...

Kovan

Thank you guys for the help! definitely appreciate it. I will take him out swimming more (I forgot that swimming and training him out at the water is a good way to train and to burn energy). I live in Wisconsin and the snow is coming soon and was wondering if any of you guys can give me any advice o...

Kovan

When I read this threads opening post I thought your pup was probably a good bit overweight. Now I have seen the pup's photographs I no longer think so. He does not look particularly fat to me. He is probably just going to be a big lab. I have seen and trained a very fit and muscular adult lab male...

Kovan

not the best pictures

Kovan

Hello, so i have had my chocolate lab since the beginning of may. He was seven weeks old when i picked him up. Now he is 7 month old weighing at 75 lbs. is that the normal size for a 7 month old lab or is he slightly on the big puppy side? Just wondering because i need to know if im suppose to up h...

Kovan

I can't answer the question directly. Too much variation in size for the breed. I can tell you how to find out if the dog is near its proper weight...and I suspect, at 7 months of age and 75#, it may not be near its healthy weight. I suspect it may be overweight. What I suggest is that you put the ...

Kovan

Hello, so i have had my chocolate lab since the beginning of may. He was seven weeks old when i picked him up. Now he is 7 month old weighing at 75 lbs. is that the normal size for a 7 month old lab or is he slightly on the big puppy side? Just wondering because i need to know if im suppose to up hi...

Kovan

thanks, this will just be for him to ride in. at home he stays in a crate that is big enough for him. but wasn't sure if a large kennel (which is smaller then his crate) will be ok for 2-3 hours drive.

Kovan

Just wondering what kennel size do you guys use to transport your dogs when going out for a hunt. large or extra large? I have a large but I am not sure if its suitable for him on a ride.

I have a 65-70 lbs 6 month old Lab

any advice would help thanks.

Kovan

He's a 5 mos old Lab., that is the equivalent of a kindergartener with ADHD. Don't tolerate misbehavior but make everything a game and praise and reward everything you want him to do. They catch on quick and they learn what you want, but Labs act like kids until they mature at about 2-3 yo and they...

Kovan

Thank you you guys for the advice. Much is appreciated. I did have a feeling that i am maybe over doing it, i mean i keep his training short (10 minuets max). I guess i am just to eager to have him hunting. I will go back and do more basic obedience training and shorten out his fetching to keep him ...

Kovan

I am new lab owner and new dog owner. my problems are my lab do follow commands but he often gets distracted or he sometimes he wonders off to other things. the days I train to retrieve, he retrieves and some days he doesn't. like hes not interest in fetching. when I tell him to sit and stay, he sit...

Kovan

I agree with CJ, you have to be firm and not weenie out on corrections. Pups seem to intuitively know our intent *in that moment* so you can't be all gentle and worried that he won't like you anymore or grow up to be your buddy. His dam would have given him a good growl and snap the first time, and...

Kovan

There are very few truly vicious dogs in the hunting breeds. The only reason what ever you do to make the dog stop biting does not work is because you were not firm enough. This is the one thing you can not tolerate and it will go only one way if it is not stopped. Very nice puppies can be trained ...

Kovan

The only time he bites is when i play with him in a kind of a rough way. He is 11 weeks old and i only had him for three weeks i cant just ditch him. I would ditch a girl before i ditch my pup. I will continue doing what i do when he bites me. i do see a little better results in him from yesterday h...

Kovan

Having read all your posts, this continuation of biting is not normal. You have a challenge on your hands.What were this dog's parents like? Sorry if i thread jacked this post.. Sharon, honestly this is on my bad part, i have not seen the parents in person. Being a new owner when i picked up my lab...

Kovan

Thank you all for the warm welcoming. Sorry I have been busy with Tank (my 11 weeks old chocolate lab) and all things that are going on. My lab still bites like crazy and my arm is all scar up. I have used the butt slap and holding the muzzle and also walking away...he comes back more aggressive whe...

Kovan

I cannot tell you how frustrated I am with my 9 weeks old chocolate lab biting everything and everyone. All I can say is I am trying to be as patient as I can be with him. I am a new dog owner and I am new to this website hoping to find help on here. I have tried to clinch his mouth when he bites an...

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