cocker puppy training

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FLocker
Rank: Junior Hunter
Posts: 78
Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 3:43 pm

cocker puppy training

Post by FLocker » Thu Jul 23, 2009 4:09 pm

Hi Guys-

I'm bringing along a now four month old working cocker (all of 17 lbs so far :-). I have found your discussions really helpful for a first-time owner. I have a couple of questions that it looks like havent been adressed in a while:

1. How do you start the process of teaching sit (stop) to the whistle and voice when the dog is away from you? She is great at mys side, but hasnt made the connection yet, and i am hesitant to start yanking around a check cord on a puppy.

2. How do you handle the instances when a puppy "quits" looking for a dummy? i.e. walk out and toss it again, end the game etc?

PS- I know this is a pointer/verstile heavy forum, if there is a flushing dog group that anyone knows of that would be a better fit for us, any info would be appreciated.

Thanks!
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gonehuntin'
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Re: cocker puppy training

Post by gonehuntin' » Thu Jul 23, 2009 4:34 pm

FLocker wrote: Hi Guys-

I'm bringing along a now four month old working cocker (all of 17 lbs so far :-). I have found your discussions really helpful for a first-time owner. I have a couple of questions that it looks like havent been adressed in a while:

1. How do you start the process of teaching sit (stop) to the whistle and voice when the dog is away from you? She is great at mys side, but hasnt made the connection yet, and i am hesitant to start yanking around a check cord on a puppy.
There are three basic ways it's done. First, sit the pup at your side. Have a 6' lead on her, walk out in front of her, turn, and call her to you. When she's come a couple of feet, step quickly toward her and firmly say SIT!, raising your hand to intimidate her. When she's got this down, switch to a 10'cc, then a 20. If you overdo this, you'll get into a slow return, but that will go away.

Second, work with a friend and double rope the dog. One line goes on the dog collar, the other on the SNAP of your lead. Now sit the dog with your friend behind it. Call her to you. Sternly command SIT! and have him snub up on his rope, stopping the dog instantly. If the pup stands and doesn't sit, walk out and tap it's but. I really like this method because it places so little pressure on the dog and it is always under your direct control.

Method three is like that, but you use one rope, loop it around a stake, call the dog to you, and stop him yourself on the way in.
FLocker wrote: 2. How do you handle the instances when a puppy "quits" looking for a dummy? i.e. walk out and toss it again, end the game etc?
NO, the pup is telling you that you're boring it to death and have worked it too much. Stop and do something fun with him. Try hiding a hot-dog (part of one) for him, telling him dead bird, and letting him find that. He'll love that. I really don't do much of that unless I'm doing it with birds.

Go over to duckhunting chat.com and talk to crackered. He's the spaniel guru.

PS- I know this is a pointer/verstile heavy forum, if there is a flushing dog group that anyone knows of that would be a better fit for us, any info would be appreciated.

Thanks! [/quote]
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

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troutbum
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Re: cocker puppy training

Post by troutbum » Thu Jul 23, 2009 4:59 pm

I am training a very stubborn 8mo cocker right now, fun dogs. I never used a long check cord on her, just kept a lightweight six foot lead attached for all training to make it easy to catch her. Once she was proficient sitting at my side I started testing her at slightly longer distances. If she ignored the whistle I would just run her down and enforce the sit command, then release her with lots of praise. I feel that she really started to get it once she could walk and run at heel, if she didn't stop immediately on the whistle I would give her a gentle tap on the rump with my hand or a crop.

With the quitting question, I dealt with the same thing. If you are saying she is quitting on bare ground you may try changing the dummy you are using or reducing the amount of retrieves to two or three a day, or week. Sounds like she may be getting bored, mine really loves any type of ball compared to a dummy.

Good Luck

FLocker
Rank: Junior Hunter
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Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 3:43 pm

Re: cocker puppy training

Post by FLocker » Fri Jul 24, 2009 1:05 pm

Thanks guys! will be sure to keep you updated.

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Kyle Wintersteen
Rank: Just A Pup
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Location: Fairfax, Va

Re: cocker puppy training

Post by Kyle Wintersteen » Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:27 pm

FLocker,

Troutbum and gonehuntin' both make very good suggestions.

How far away is the dog when you're trying to get her to hup (sit)? The greater the distance, the more difficult it will be for you to stop her, b/c she is young, still learning the basics and potentially distracted. You want to start short (a few yards tops) and progress from there. Also, remember to be consistent. If she isn't stopping and you're continuing to hit the hup whistle without correcting her, you're teaching the dog to blow you off. Part of being consistent is never giving commands you can't enforce.

As for your second question, I agree with Troutbum--the dog's quitting because it's bored. Your young dog's attention span is shorter than you might imagine. Limit your retrieving sessions to fewer reps and never end on a bad note, i.e. one she quit on. If you accidentally train too long and she does quit on a retrieve, I'd give her a break for a while, then toss one more bumper--again, the idea is to end on a positive.

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