new to training, help, spriner pup

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trump
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new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by trump » Tue Jan 27, 2009 2:18 pm

hello to all in this forum. I have just joined today, and am looking for help on how/when to proceed with training. I have a 3 month old springer pup, and he has been wonderfully receptive to training thus far. I have him hupping and comming to a whislte now (1 and 3 blasts respectively). what my question is I suppose is where should i go from here? I have read several books on training (all seemed to be quite old and perhaps obsolete), and the one i have been basing most of my training plans on is The Complete Hunting Dog by John R. Faulk. maybe you know it. so what i am currently doing now is training him to retrieve using a small knotted rope toy. I have him sit beside me then i toss it about 5 feet in front while saying "fetch". at first he would not bring it back to me, he would bring it to the corner of our L-shaped couch (he brings everything there). So what i did was throw the toy out and be in a position to intercept him on his way to the corner, and it has seemed to have worked. So what I am doing now is working on fetching, while refining his whistle compliency in the house (im in canada, so its real cold and snowy out, so yard work is going to come in about maybe 2 weeks, when hes a bit bigger and can handle the cold). should i move out into the yard soon, ive tried using voice commands outside with varying success, so many distractions for him. should i expect compliency this early outside?

with this in your minds of what i have done so far, is this on the right track for training him, and what should i focus on next? I was thinking of working on getting him to change direction with 2 whislte blasts. to do this i have been on and off again taking him to a field and i let him run out in front, and when hes distracted, change directions, the blow the whistler twice and point in the new direction and say "go on". kind of subliminally get him used to this command.

also, i have read varying opinions on training with treats. i have been, but i kind of split it up 50/50, so sometimes i give treats, sometimes i dont, but give him tones of praise. this way he doesnt come to expect treats everytime. Im sorry this is long, but i have many things to ask that are on my mind. your help and opinions on this would be appreciated.

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Benny
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by Benny » Tue Jan 27, 2009 3:55 pm

In my humble opinion I think you're doing just fine. 3 months is awfully young to do any major stuff that requires a certain amount of pressure on the dog. Your fetch routine should be for fun right now, the only no-no should probably be tug of war; otherwise you're doing pretty good. Give him lots of incentive to bring that toy all the way too you, though, but not forceful at this time.
Treats and praise, sounds good to me. Working on the basic commands, come, heel, and whoa/stay. Those are your targets for now. Exposure to birds soon will be your next step.
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Killer Instinct
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by Killer Instinct » Tue Jan 27, 2009 6:51 pm

Welcome to the forum - nice to have other springers on board! 3 mos is still a young pup - if he's hupping to command, that's pretty good with a pup's short attention span.... Have you read the book "Working Springers & Cockers" by Mike Smith? It's a big help. I'm in the same position as you - cold weather. But we still get out & walk 2 miles to a field & practice "Here" & "Hup". Since we don't have live birds to train with, we currently are practicing with balls & bumpers. The only difference I can see is that I don't use the command "fetch" for a retrieve - It's been suggested to me to train them using their NAMES. This way when you are hunting with more than one springer, you can tell whichever dog to retrieve by using their name - ("Abby" or "Emma").... that way you won't have ALL of them go retrieve by saying "Fetch".....
Good Luck with your training & again, Welcome!
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MikeB
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by MikeB » Tue Jan 27, 2009 8:33 pm

The best thing right now is to get that pup out and about around lots of people, kids, friendly dogs, anything safe you can think of... but nothing that would frighten her. Socialization is key at this age and you can't make up lost time. 7 to 16 week is the best time for as many kinds of adventures as you can expose her to.

Enjoy thiis puppy time while you can... like kids, they grow up way to fast.

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gonehuntin'
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by gonehuntin' » Wed Jan 28, 2009 6:24 am

There is so much you can do with these young pups and in fact, you shape their entire life. What you never do, is to HURT the pup. The biggest thing is birds and retrieving. I like having them retrieve soft toys or a paint roller in the house and clip wing pigeons outside. Never throw so many retrieves that the pup stops retrieving, always quit while he wants more.

As others have said, have a lot of other people love him up. Take him with you in the car, let him lay in your lap in the house. Socialization. Without it, you will have an extremely difficult dog to train.

Exposure (the pup, not you :lol: ). Expose him to everything but in a safe manor. Long walks in the field and open woods so he can explore, inspect, and learn and all under your supervision. Make him bold and teach him to handle all terrain.

When it's warm, introduce him to water.

This is all done over many months, and you could say, it goes on over a lifetime. Just take it easy and let him experience and learn at his own pace.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

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spaniel_man
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by spaniel_man » Wed Jan 28, 2009 8:43 am

sounds like things are going well. I would also recommend you check out "Urban Gun Dogs: Training Flushing Dogs For Home And Field" Its a good book and explains much of the training that will need to be done eventually.

trump
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by trump » Tue Feb 03, 2009 10:37 pm

thanks so much for the great pieces of advice. i can sleep a little better now knowing that im more or less on the right track. I will check out both those books that were mentioned, as the one i have been reading seems a bit dated.

One question that came to mind though when reading your responses is how to introduce him to water. He is already very curious about it, and any time someone is in the bath in the house, he climbs up on the side and sticks his feet in. he wont jump in, but that may be because he is unsure about it, and that the tub itself is too high up.n I dont want to scare him off water, so is there any sort of trick to doing this, or do they just naturally accpet it if given the opportunity at an early enough age.

again thanks so much, I would have responded much sooner than this to all of your replies, but I have been extremly buisy. Ill try and post some pictures of him when i get the opportunity.

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Killer Instinct
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Re: new to training, help, spriner pup

Post by Killer Instinct » Wed Feb 04, 2009 9:12 pm

trump wrote:........ He is already very curious about it, and any time someone is in the bath in the house, he climbs up on the side and sticks his feet in. he wont jump in, but that may be because he is unsure about it, and that the tub itself is too high up.n I dont want to scare him off water, so is there any sort of trick to doing this, or do they just naturally accpet it if given the opportunity at an early enough age.....
Abby at a young age didn't have a problem playing & getting in the tub full of water.... just go slow - they are pretty curious - especially if your in it!.... Bubbles helped.... Hide the soap - they will eat it....

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