Water retrieve help

[Nick88]

I have 1 year old Gwp. He does very well with upland birds pointing and retrieving. He also loves the water fetches dummies all the time. When we get out on the water actually hunting though he is very hesitant to get out of the blind even when he sees a bird go down. I have to actually take him out of the blind walk out into the water with him before he will go get the bird. He's always been very eager to retrieve dummies in the yard and in the water so I've never really worked with him on forcing him to retrieve. Looking for some possible tips to get him retrieving in water, should I try force fetching with him? If so any tips or books anyone could recommend would be very helpful. Thanks

[mnaj_springer]

It sounds like the water isn't the problem. It sounds like he needs to be conditioned to retrieving from the blind. That means training with the blind on land (if possible) and at the water. It's a process.

[polmaise]

Looking for some possible tips to get him retrieving in water, should I try force fetching with him?

It's been covered many times before ....FF has nothing to do with Retrieving .
Work on your basic Yard stuff.

[gonehuntin']

It sounds like the water isn't the problem. It sounds like he needs to be conditioned to retrieving from the blind. That means training with the blind on land (if possible) and at the water. It's a process.

+1. Blinds, boats; they have to be TAUGHT to work from them all. Decoys as well.

[Trekmoor]

To me it sounds like the blind is the root cause of the problem. If it were me I think I'd begin on land with no water involved at all to begin with. I'd make or erect a single screen blind and fire shots from behind it as the dog watched bumpers or dead birds being thrown nearby. If the dog tried to run - in I'd let it do so for the first few times before requiring steadiness again.
Then I'd add one side to the single screen blind and do the same again before adding the other side screen and finally do the same with the complete blind erected.

I'd build up the dogs confidence in little stages and I'd make the retrieves easy ones so I didn't have to check or correct or direct the dog.

All this is supposing that an American "blind" is the same thing I call a "hide" over here. I shoot woodpigeons, ducks and geese from hides but I have no experience of American style blind shooting.
I'd be splitting things up with your dog in an effort to discover if the main problem is the blind or the water and blind combined or just possibly the dogs very close proximity to the shots being fired while inside the blind with you .

Bill T.

[Timewise65]

I just will add one more comment to the good ones already provided. Most dogs will retrieve anything they see fall in the water. When waterfowl hunting many blinds do not have a proper door cut for the dogs, allowing them to mark the fall. If you dog does not see the bird fall, he then must be trained to do blind retrieves, which is another story that take months of specialized training. Bottom line make sure you dog has a full view of the falling bird. I have a dog blind that has expandable legs in case you blind is in water. I have trained my dog to stay in the kennel until sent. I put the dog blind right next to the bind we are hunting from, that way she is close to my commands and has the same view we have.

As already mentioned training for this situation is critical for continued success....

[fishvik]

I might also suggest taking a real bird, not a dummy, and use it for retrieving out of the blind.

[crackerd]

I have 1 year old Gwp. He does very well with upland birds pointing and retrieving. He also loves the water fetches dummies all the time. When we get out on the water actually hunting though he is very hesitant to get out of the blind even when he sees a bird go down.

Bill, given that the dog is apparently marking the fall, it would seem that blind training - as in the dog leaving what y'all call the hide, not as in running a blind retrieve per timewise's valuable insight - is lacking. That's how it often is with HPRs suddenly pressed into service as duck dogs.

As GH notes, the exposure to every aspect of waterfowling is of great import to any retrieving gundog. Alas, it doesn't often happen with HPRs until somebody's gone out with their wirehair or shorthair and experienced the OP's frustration. Not blaming him or her, s/he just didn't know any better. Water work - and waterfowl work - for gundogs that are not ordinarily duck and goose retrievers is a bigtime kettle of chowder over here, many ingredients must be added at the start. I would suggest s/he throw in with NAVHDA or pay somebody like GH (given his hardscrabble enlightenment with bearded animals) a visit. Or somebody who runs retrievers in hunt tests, which often include "series" especially on water that are run from blinds/hides.

MG

[Nick88]

Thanks everyone for your time and advice