Gun Dog Forum

How old is a good age to introduce force fetch training ? I'm sure it varies to some degree with different breeds and maturity. Just wondering whats the average age.

With a retriever, eight months is optimum.

With a pointing dog, a little older, perhaps 10-12 months. I will obedience train them at 8 months, but the force doesn't come until they have hunted a season, even if as a pup.

The tough ones are the may-june-july pups. They simply are not old enough to to hunt (if a sept.-dec. season), and too old to wait for the next year. On those I ff them at 10-12 months depending on the pup, whether it has a season under it or not.

I prefer pointing dogs to be 1 yr up to 2..

Thanks for the advice, My Gsp is 9 months and it sounds like we should wait for maybe next spring/summer to start that project.

Fish 4-5 wrote:Thanks for the advice, My Gsp is 9 months and it sounds like we should wait for maybe next spring/summer to start that project.

That's perfect. Work him through the season and start the serious stuff at season's end.

Regardless of breed, your dog doesn't know how old he is. For that matter, he doesn't know what breed or color he is. Read your dog for adequate physical and mental maturity, and adapt the training to the dog, not the dog to the training. Make sure he's well past teething, is showing strong birdiness, and is reliably obedient first.

EvanG

i believing in giving my dogs 1 bird season before i introduce the ff. depending on time of yeaqr of litter the age may vary. EvanG had good advice. keep in mind if your not going to be through the process before a hunting season starts, probably do not want to start.

well training age depends upon one pet to another or their maturity level,but there are certain tips which you can follow while training our dogs.

1. The dog needs to get excited. You can get him into that frame of mind by showing him the toy, letting him sniff it, and then hide it behind your back. Repeat this a few times, even letting him try to take it from you. Pull it away and hold it out of his reach but still in his view.

2. Put your dog on a long leash that allows him to go a few feet from you. Throw the toy and tell him to "fetch". When he gets the toy, call him back and give the leash a gentle tug and pull him towards you. If he repeatedly drops the toy, try using the "forced retrieve" method to train your dog to fetch.


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Boarding Kennel Lexington KY, Lexington Veterinarian

Getting a dog excited about a toy really has nothing to do with FF....

JoneSmith wrote:If he repeatedly drops the toy, try using the "forced retrieve" method to train your dog to fetch.

I truly hope that's not your rationale for force fetching. In decades past trainers used force fetch to repair flaws in dogs mouth habits, and to get poor retrievers going more reliably...decades before FF evolved into the skill set it is today. Fetching and delivery to hand have almost assumed the position of co-benefits - the primary benefit being pressure conditioning and its stablilizing effects on working dogs.

EvanG