Bill Hillman’s success in developing a retriever’s potential has been incredible over the years, with multiple high point derby dogs, as well as many all age competitors. Mr. Hillman will be bringing his experience to this clinic in an effort to help others achieve success with their own dogs.

• Over the course of two days we will explore marking concepts and how to develop these skills in your dog. As well as, how to over come problems when they arise over the course of training.
• Handler spots are limited in an effort to creat a more intimate experience for each person over the course of the weekend.
• The $150 fee will cover both days of training, as well as dinner on Saturday night.

We look forward to you joining us for a great weekend.

You may contact us @:

chrislb3@hotmail.com

So what is the moral of the story? The moral is just because you can build a great dog box doesn’t mean you can cook meat.

Dogs often act aggressively towards people that are unfamiliar to them. Many times this behavior is incorrectly attributed to dominance rather than fear because they elicit the same response – barking, growling and biting. It is important for owners to recognize the difference so they are best able to manage aggression within their pet. Dr. Barbara Sherman, professor of veterinary behavior at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, talks about how to recognize and address canine fear aggression.

View article…

Ken McNutt

Imagine that you are building your dream home.  You have the best materials to work with.  You have your ideal design plan, and you can picture, in your mind, what your home will look like, when your dream home is finished.  Now imagine that it’s time to pour the cement for the foundation. When the mixer truck arrives, the driver examines the mix and informs you that it’s off; that there is too much sand in the mix.  The driver tells you that he can take the truck back and get a fresh, correctly-mixed batch, but it is too late for another delivery today.  It’s Friday, which means that, now, you will have to wait until Monday. You are chomping at the bit to get the foundation down so you can start framing.  The driver seeing your anxiousness says the load of cement he has now, will “probably” be okay.  All you can think of is living in your new home, so you say, “okay, let’s pour it.”

Monday comes, the cement looks fine, so, very excitedly, you start framing the house.  A couple of weeks later, after you have finished the house’s lower level, and are preparing to start the second story, you discover a large crack in the foundation.  Also, as a result of the crack, that portion of he foundation has sunk lower than the rest.  You can’t take the framing apart and start over, so you jack up the framing and shim it up to make it level.  As you work on completing your home, you have several more issues related to the weak foundation.  You keep patching and shimming because that’s all you can do.  Even after your dream home is complete, you find yourself all too frequently fixing problems directly related to your not waiting two days to pour the correct batch of cement.  This may seem like a long story to make a point, but the point is, if you don’t lay the proper foundation for your dog’s training, when he is young and most mentally trainable, you will spend the rest of the dog’s life, either constantly trying to fix inadequate behavior, or living with it.

The most universal mistake made by dog owners/trainers/handlers is to rush through the obedience part of the dog’s training regimen.  The fact is: OBEDIENCE TRAINING IS BORING,REPETITIOUS, AND TEDIOUS.  It’s too enticing to rush past obedience to the part where your dog can sit on a whistle at 300 yards (on land or in water) and take hand casts to a blind, or to have your dog do triple and quad retrieves over and through any type of terrain or ground cover.  That’s the fun part.  But, the fact is, you’ll never get to the fun part, if you don’t do the boring part first.  So, if you are not good with delayed gratification, either have a professional do all of the basic training with your retriever, or forget even owning one, even if it is just for a pet, because you’ll be continually trying to patch up your dog’s performance, down the line, and that’s anything but fun.

The 3 primary obedience responses you want from your dog are: sit, here, and heel.  Sit is important  because it is the position from which most other skills begin and end.  At the sit position, facing you, you command the dog’s attention, which is necessary when you are preparing to deliver a hand signal, when casting to a blind.  Sit, facing forward, away from you, is necessary so the dog can focus on shot birds or thrown marks.  It’s the starting position from which you direct the dog on blind retrieves.  Sit is the position your dog should be, whether he is waiting in your duck blind or honoring the working dog in a hunt test or field trial.  If your dog cannot sit on command and remain sitting until you release him, you will be faced with such serious issues as creeping and breaking, which, if ingrained, are very difficult to correct.

The “here” command is another basic, but critical command.  It is not only essential, if you expect to get your dog to bring the bird or training bumper back to you, it can also be essential to the safety of the dog.  Being able to call your dog back to you under any circumstance can mean preventing him from running out in a busy street or road to get hit by a car. It can mean stopping your dog from running up to a stray and getting into a potentially injurious dogfight, or stop him from sparring with a skunk.  It means that you can get your dog to come to you, whatever the need or circumstance.

The third foundation command is “heel.”  Heel means that the dog will be at the desired position by your side, whether sitting or walking.  This position can vary, depending upon the preference of the handler.  Some prefer the dog be slightly ahead of the handler’s near leg.  Some prefer the dog’s head to be in line with the leg.  The standard, and most common position, is the dog’s shoulder in line with the handler’s leg.  Whatever the position, the dog should be able to have a clear forward 180-degree field of vision.  Heel is the position from which you will send your dog on marks and blinds about 90% of the time.  The other 10% being “remote releases,” which are becoming more common in hunt tests and field trials, and also, in hunting situations, where the dog is positioned to wait, some distance from the duck or goose blind.  Heel is also an important command, when repositioning a dog which has crept or broken from the handler’s side.  Heel can eventually encompass all three commands (here, heel and sit) into one, when the dog is away from the handler.  For the advanced dog, “heel” can be used to help “steer” the dog’s head and body, when lining up on a blind or a gunner.

In the last article, we looked at the first five commandments. Here are the rest:

VI. Carry Correction to the Pupil – Let’s say you are walking down the street and you see your friend Joe waving you over to the other side. Since he’s your friend, you have no reason to distrust his motives, so you gladly join him. When you get close, Joe pulls out a club that had been hidden under his jacket, and proceeds to give you a sound beating.   Now, how are you going to react the next time you’re walking down the street and Joe beckons you over? Do not call your dog to you, then punish him. You have probably, at one time or another, witnessed a dog cowering whenever it gets near it’s handler.   That’s what happens when a dog associates punishment with being close to it’s trainer.  First of all, making your pupil come to you for punishment, creates fearfulness and breeds distrust. Not only is trust the foundation for a productive training partnership between you and your dog, it is the foundation for a close, personal relationship with your dog, whether you are hunting, participating in hunt tests or field trials, or just enjoying each other’s company at home.   Secondly, if your dog is fearful of being at your side, what happens when the dog runs out your front door into a busy street and you try to call him back?  Finally, if punishment or correction is not given within about a second after the error or offense, the dog will not make a solid association between his action and your reaction.  This applies to positive reinforcement, as well.  The closer the reaction is to the action,the more effective it will be.  This all goes back to commandment IV: Don’t give a command you can’t reinforce.  That’s why it is important to have some kind of “remote” control, whether it be the e-collar, lead, or a training partner who can be close to the dog, to make corrections at the proper time and the proper location.

VII. Never Teach or Train in Anger - dogs have a highly developed sense of perception, especially about vocal cues (tone, amplitude, and inflection) and body language.  Early man once had a similar level of those abilities, but lost them as language developed.  Dogs can’t speak, as humans do, so they must rely on perceptual skills for communication and survival.  We may not be dogs, but dogs can still read our emotions and intent. Dogs interpret anger in humans as either a threat, or an indication that they have done something to displease us.  Our anger makes them fearful and uncertain about whether or not they are going to be punished, not for something they did, but for something they are going to do.  This is obviously counterproductive to training.  If you went to work and were fearful the boss was going to fire you, could you perform your job with enthusiasm and confidence?  

If you are working with your dog and you become angry because  his performance is not what you expected, either stop and reassess the situation calmly, or throw the dog a fun bumper and quit the training session.  If you are having a bad day and are carrying those negative feelings, don’t even bother to start the training session, it will only get worse for you, and the dog.

Dogs can read all of our emotions.  There are studies which suggest that, in addition to our voice and body language, we may give off subtle chemical scents corresponding to everything from our mood to our physical health, which dogs and horses, and perhaps other animals, can read.  They can read, when we are getting frustrated, even if we don’t show outward anger, and it causes them to be confused, fearful, and stressed, when we are trying to train.  

Yes, at times dogs will try to test us, to see if they can get away with things, but it is not personal.  They are not trying to stick it to us.  It is the dog’s nature to make sure their leader is competent, so, when there is doubt, they test the leader.   Don’t get angry with the dog, because most of their failures in performance (beyond genetics and physical limitations) are a result of flawed or inadequate training on the handler’s part.  Remember, dogs respond to confident leadership, whether it is the leader of the pack, or their handler.   It goes back to that issue of trust, that we will keep them safe and not place them in situations where they are likely to fail.  If you, as their teacher/handler are confident and calm, the dog is more likely to respond in kind.

VIII. Don’t Strike the Dog’s Face - There are two basic reasons, you should not strike a dogs face, whether you are teaching or correcting behavior.  First, this action is too intimidating and “personal” to have a positive effect on the dog.  In essence, it is traumatic,  Second, you run the risk of damaging two of the dog’s most valuable sense organs, the eyes and the nose.  Damage one eye, and the dog loses depth perception and, thus, the ability to mark.  If the nose is damaged, the dogs ability to scent fallen birds is diminished. In addition, If you strike a dog’s head or face frequently, the dog will become hand shy; they will duck and flinch, and they will try to avoid heeling close to your leg,  Some dogs will even develop a habit of looking up at the handler, instead of out toward the field, anticipating that they are going to be struck.  

Now, having said all this, there is an exception to the rule.  Do not allow a dog to put his mouth on you.  Some dogs, that seem to be playing, will take their handler’s hand or arm in their mouth.  While, this may not be actual aggression, it is often the dog’s way of asserting dominance over you, the handler, and should be nipped in the bud immediately.  You do not have to use a lot of force, but to make it clear to the dog what the offense is, you should respond by striking the dog’s muzzle with your hand, while sternly saying, “NO” or OFF.”  If you are consistent, it usually doesn’t take long to get the message across.

Also, you should react directly, if the dog tries to bite you.  Because of improvements in training theory and methods, less direct pressure is necessary when training today’s retrievers.  In times past, so much pressure was put on the dogs, especially those trained for field competition, that the dog would react by attacking it’s handler.  Having said this,  even with kindlier, gentler methods of training, some dogs are more easily stressed than most and will respond to even the lightest pressure by “coming up” on their handler, trying to bite them.  If you have this kind of dog, you must either deal with it directly; send your dog to a professional trainer or behaviorist, or get rid of the dog.  Do not tolerate, in any way, shape, or form, a dog that bites.  

As a brief addendum to the subject of biting, it is important to be cautious whenever you train with an      e-collar, especially, if the dog is in close proximity, such as at the heel position.  If you have adjusted the collar to it’s proper level of stimulation, you should see little more than a twitch or a slight jerk of the dog’s head, as a reaction to muscle contraction.  However, sometimes, if the dog is sensitive to electric stimulation, or if the intensity is set to high, it will appear that the dog is intentionally trying to attack it’s handler.  In actuality, the dog is just reacting by associating and attacking whatever or whomever is closest to the discomfort.

IX. A Puppy is a Puppy; Don’t Treat it as an Adult, nor as a Human - Puppies have a tremendous capacity for learning, but, just like small children, they are limited by their physical and emotional stage of development.  All animals develop from the inside outward.  First, to develop are the organs which sustain life.  Body movements are awkward and disorganized.  At this point, the brain is concerned with one thing… pure survival.  That means seeking the mother’s breast; seeking warmth and dryness; seeking nurturance via physical contact with the mother.  As the puppy’s body and brain develop, its ability to leave the mother’s side and explore the environment improves.  This allows for limited exploration.   At about 5 to 6 weeks, the puppy has extended it’s distance enough to interact with a variety of new things in the environment, it’s then that learning by association starts to really kick into gear, and the puppy starts learning what is friendly and what is not.  Scientific studies of the dog’s brain show that it is fully developed at about 49 days (7 weeks).  Anything learned between 49 and 84 days will be retained for the lifetime of the dog.  That’s another reason why it is so important to get a solid foundation of behavior established early on.  Dogs continue to learn (even “old dogs”), but things learned during that 5-6 week period are more firmly ingrained into the dog’s behavior patterns. It is during this time that puppies, left with their mother are learning adult behavior patterns for survival from their parents.  It is during this time, you may have seen puppies pick up skills simply by watching older dogs work.  

Having said this, keep in mind that, just like very small children, the younger the puppy is, the shorter is its attention span.  That’s why it is more beneficial to learning, during this age period, to teach or train in frequent, but short training sessions.  If you make the session too long, the dog will quickly loose interest, and retention of what you are trying to teach will be diminished.  Older dogs have a much greater capacity for attention and associative learning, so they have the ability to put pieces of the puzzle together, in terms of complex tasks, especially if you have built that foundation of basic skills.  The more a dog matures, the better they become tolerating lengthy training sessions, as long as the experience is positive; meaning that they have success and reward for their work.  While they may thrive on your attention, a puppy’s primary concerns are being fed, warm, and secure.  Whereas, older dogs receive pleasurable feelings from receiving human approval and praise, and pleasure through gratification of natural drives, which, in the case of retrievers, is chasing birds and other moving objects.  

The second part of this commandment could probably stand alone: don’t treat a dog like a human, at least in training.  The bond between human and dog is timeless.  There can be no denial about the real symbiotic relationship and the communication dynamic, which have paired dog and man since the time of first recorded history.  But, people are people and dogs are dogs, each with their own distinct methods of learning, communicating, and interacting with their environment.   I won’t deny that, I speak to my dogs like they were my closest friends (they are). However, humans have the ability to communicate and interact with the world through complex abstractions, conceptualizations, and constructions, while to the dog, things are much more simple: one-plus-one is two.  The dog requires no complex theorem to explain the concept of base 10.  It can’t be altered by some obscure mathematical postulate.  One-plus-One equals two… period.  To paraphrase Sir Issac Newton, for every action there is a reaction, either positive or negative. That’s all a dog needs to know in order to survive.  They learn by association.  A sensory cue is associated with some type of effect from the environment.  A smell can say to the dog, friend, foe, danger, or food.  

Do dogs understand what we say?  The answer is yes, but not so much in terms of what we say, as of how we say it.  When we say, “get over here,” unless we have taken the time to string that word combination together in training the dog to come to us, the dog has actually learned to respond to the tone of your voice and your body cues and body language.  I’m not saying you can’t talk to your dog as if it were human.  What I am saying is, teach your dog using one-word commands.  This makes the association between the command and what you expect the dog to do much less confusing.  And, remember Commandment II: be consistent. Don’t teach and train a one-word command, then take the dog home and start talking “human” to him, at least not for those specific commands.  When you are 100% sure the dog is solid on the single command, then you can start talking to him like he is your beer buddy (no political reference intended).

X. Plan Ahead - Though it is presented as the last commandment, this is a primary rule for training.  Before you start a training session, whether it is by your self or with your training group, decide what it is you want to work on.  If you plan your course of training, then you can set a goal for what you want to accomplish.   Even if you don’t reach your specific goal for that session, you will at least be able to come away with some measure of progress and a picture of what you need to work on next.  

In training, you also want to plan ahead for what you will do, if the dog doesn’t perform correctly.  If you are not prepared for an incorrect response from the dog, you are unlikely to make a timely correction, and therefore, will miss an opportunity to advance your dog’s performance.  If you anticipate the possibility of an issue, you can react to it within that brief learning window of opportunity.

 Of course, there are other rules that should be applied to training your dog, but the ones presented here are some of the most important, and the ones that are most often forgotten or ignored.

 FYI: I  cannot reply directly to questions left in the comments section.  If you have a question or otherwise wish to contact me, use the “e-mail” button at the top of the article, or you can e-mail me directly at Kenmacsn2labs@aol.com.  I will include in my articles, any questions or information which might be beneficial to other readers….

Thanks, Ken

Announcements:
For anyone in the Wichita, Ks area interested in training your retriever and having the opportunity to work with your dog throughout the year, rather than just hunting season, or if you are interested in retriever hunt tests and field trials, you are invited to attend the meeting of the Sunflower Retriever Club, this Tuesday evening (8-19-09), at Gander Mountain.

Sunflower Retriever Club Fall Field Trial, October 9,10, and 11, at Hazelton, Ks. (more details to come)

Ken McNutt

There is a lot more to training your retriever, than just following a set of instructions. As much as you need to understand the behavior you are trying to teach, to be the best trainer you can be, you have to have some idea of how the dog’s mind works and how the dog perceives you as its owner/teacher/master/ friend.  The following is what you may consider the first five of “Ten Commandments of Retriever Training (incidentally, this information can also be applied to raising children).

Ten Commandments:

I. Teach, Then Train – If you were asked to climb a 500-foot rock face, the odds that most of you readers would make it to the top would be pretty slim. If, however, you had completed an intensive rock climbing course, and learned how to traverse the various obstacles, your probability for success would be greatly increased.  So, why is it that we expect our dogs to respond to our commands as expected, when we have failed to first teach them the desired behavior and what the corresponding command means.

Before you start yelling at the dog and trying to use force to get the dog to comply, you need to be sure that the dog understands how to preform the desired behavior.  You cannot rush through the teaching aspect to get to the fun part, which is consistent performance.  You must first teach, then, when you are confident that the dog understands the behavior connected to the command, test your teaching, then correct for flaws.  This cannot be emphasized enough.

II. Be Consistent – Just like children, dogs don’t have the ability to conceptualize reasons why, in one instance, certain behavior is appropriate, while, at other times, it isn’t.  Either the behavior is okay or it isn’t… period.  This means that, just as you always expect a command to be followed, the dog expects that you will respond to his behavior the same way, every time.  If you are correcting errors in behavior, you must consistently make corrections every time a correction is called for.  If you are not consistent, the dog will quickly learn that there are no such things as “always” and “never.”  Inconsistent response to the dog’s behavior, leads to inconsistent performance.  One very important note:  if the dog is expected to perform properly (and consistently), 100% of the time, especially basic obedience, everyone in the household must be just as consistent as the primary handler/trainer, in their expectation of compliance and with the command words they use.  Failure to do so, will simply encourage loose behavior.

III. Be Fair – If you are unsure whether an error in a desired response is due to reluctance of the dog to perform, or simply due to confusion or miscommunication, ere on the side of the dog.  Don’t punish the dog, if you are not sure why he failed to respond properly, unless you are sure punishment is called for.  Now, this may seem contradictory to Commandment II, but, in reality it isn’t, because your failure to punish is intentional and specific to that moment.  When you encounter questionable behavior, repeat the situation in which the error in performance occurred.  Observe the dog closely.  If the undesired behavior occurs again, and it appears to be intentional, then you correct.  If the dog appears uncertain, back up and re-teach the correct response.  If, on the other hand- the dog performs correctly, give positive reinforcement, such as vocal encouragement (Good Dog!!!), because the dog was likely confused or uncertain the first time.

IV. Never Give a Command You Can’t Reinforce – Have you ever been in a grocery store and witnessed a parent threaten a child with bodily harm for not behaving, and the child simply ignored the threat?  Why do you suppose that is?  Probably because the child knows that the parent is not likely to inflict bodily harm in a public place, in front of numerous witnesses.  Dog’s, again like children, learn quickly when they can get away with what ever they want.  In the case of dogs, if they are not fully trained on a specific behavior, they will challenge you to see if they can get away with non-compliance.  If you are teaching your dog to come to you on command, keep them on lead or (if conditioned) keep the e-collar on, so you can force the dog to comply with your command.  One of the biggest and most common mistakes dog owners make, in training is to use the leash, leads, collars, etc. to train with, then get the dog home, put the tools away, and start giving commands around the house, that can’t be reinforced.  Do not do that unless you know the dog will respond without some external means of control. 

V. Don’t Nag – Let’s go back to our grocery store scenario.  Let’s say that the child yielded to the parent’s command to comply.  How many times did the parent say “you better… or I’m gonna…”  before the child yielded?  This is nagging.  Ask yourself, how many times did you say sit, before the dog actually put its rear end on the ground, or how many times did you say “here” or “come” before the dog came to you (if he actually did).  Again, just like children, dogs learn how many times they can hear a command before their owner will actually take some kind of action to reinforce the command.  DON’T NAG!   Be fair.  Be sure that your command was clear.  If you’re not sure, give the command once again, then deliver correction, if there is a second failure to comply. 

This Weeks Group Training Session

We had a good turn-out for our weekly group training at the Kansas Coliseum. There were a wide range of retrievers, from puppies to seasoned veterans, and everything in-between, including a prospective service dog.  The picture at the top is our training set-up.  It was a tough out-of-order triple with a blind, which the less-experienced dogs ran as singles and doubles.

The throwing order was center-right-left, then the blind between the center and right-hand mark was run.  The concepts are:

1. Long center and right-hand marks; short left-hand mark.(long marks tend to cause a dog to overrun and hunt long on short birds, especially in the case of the inverted short left mark with the long center mark behind)

2. Moderate cover on center and left-hand marks (transitional cover heights often present sight barriers to less-experienced dogs; also, heavier cover necessitates good marking and memory, because the birds or bumpers aren’t easy to find by sight, and in this case difficult to find by scent because, conditions were such that scent did not carry)

3. The center mark was uphill and against the wind (rising terrain tends to cause a dog to veer off line to one side or the other;  wind can do the same)

4. The right-hand mark is affected by the ditch the dog must cross and the pull of the center mark, which was thrown first.

5. The blind is difficult because it is between two marks, it’s uphill; there is pull from the left because of the center and left marks;  there is pull to the right because of right mark; it is against the wind; it is across the ditch; and most of all, it is behind the “gun” on the right mark.  Early on, in their training to do marked retrieves, the dogs are taught and reinforced not to hunt behind the gunner.

Unintended factors:

While the position of the sun did not seem to affect marking on the right mark, the dogs seemed to have difficulty seeing the handlers on the blind and on marks, when having to be handled. The right “gun” reported that the handlers were difficult to see because they were standing in the shadows, and were much more visible, when they stepped out into the sunlight.  (lesson learned)

Suggestions: In any set-up, always try to consider every factor (wind, cover, light and shadows, terrain changes and natural barriers.)  Especially with multiple marks, run one or two of the most difficult marks as singles before running the complete double or triple. You can also move the line closer to the marks, then back up when you are confident that the dog understands the concept.  Also consider the affect of marks and blinds upon each other.  If you train in the same general area, repeatedly, take into consideration marks and blinds you have run previously.  Dogs have great memories and may fail today’s set-up because they are thinking about the one they ran a few days before.  Remember, the most important thing is to make the dog successful, even if you have to simplify the set-up, then progressively work up.

Upcoming events:

Monthly meeting of Sunflower Retriever Club – Tuesday, 8/18/09, 7:00pm at Gander Mountain

Sunflower Retriever Club annual fall field trial- Oct. 9, 10. 11, at Hazelton, Ks (detail to follow)

In the next article, we’ll complete the Ten Commandments of Retriever Training

Ken McNutt

"Moose" Photo by Ken McNutt

Last time, we looked at how you can organize a group to train your retrievers.  Now, to make sure you get the most from your group, there need to be some ground rules.  

In the last article we mentioned setting goals for what you want to accomplish, in the training session.  We also talked about training in a productive manner, rather than just setting up tests to see who’s dog can do it and who’s dog can’t.  Training goals should consist of either working out problems in performance or teaching new skills.  Realistic tests can be set up along the way, to see if prior training has been successful and to uncover flaws in performance that need to be corrected.   

Another important factor in having a successful training group is cooperation.  It’s important that everyone contribute to the group effort, whether that is throwing marks or setting blinds.  Also, it is highly inconsiderate for one person to monopolize the training group’s time by bringing five or six dogs and expecting to run them all on multiple marks or 300 yard blinds.

Finally,  it’s just common sense to exercise good manners by not criticizing someone else’s dog because it can’t perform as good as yours.  Not every dog is equal, nor is every handler’s experience. On the other end, approach training with an open mind.  It is much easier for others to stand back and see things in your training that may need attention.  You don’t have to take everyone’s advice, but you can often gain from observations you are too close to make.  Someone else may just have the solution to a problem that has previously eluded you.

Whether you are training with your best friend, with a group, or even just alone, the most important thing is the dog, and doing what is genuinely in the dog’s best interest.  If you are having fun and the dog is having fun, it doesn’t matter if you have a national field champion or a “meat dog” that is your best hunting companion, the enjoyment of the interaction is what’s most important.

If you live in the Wichita, Ks area and are interested in training your retriever for hunting, hunt tests, or field trials, feel free to contact the author at Kmandmoose@yahoo.com, for more information.  A local training group made up of members of the Sunflower Retriever Club usually trains on the grounds on the west side of the Kansas Coliseum, Wednesday evenings, from 6:30pm until dusk, weather permitting.

The next article will address what can be referred to as the “commandments” of dog training.  Upcoming articles will include training tips, diagrammed test and training set-ups, how to prepare for AKC hunt tests, health and nutrition tips, information on upcoming retriever events, and about anything that might apply to field retrievers.

The author invites your comments and any suggestions or inquiries you may have.  Thank you for visiting this site.

For the previous article, in this series go to: 

 www.examiner.com/x-19899-Wichita-Retriever-Training-Examiner~y2009m8d10-Training-Groups

Wichita Retriever Training ExaminerKen McNutt

While it is possible to train a field retriever by yourself, it is much easier and more efficient to train with the help of someone who can throw training marks or plant blinds.  A training group, when utilized properly, is an excellent way to train.  

A training group can consist of two or more persons.  If you want to form a group, keep in mind the time it takes to train each dog.  Too many group members can result in a limited amount of time that can be spent with each dog.  It can also increase the potential for conflicts over goals and training methods to be used.  If you are like many dog owners who work a day job and have only a few hours in the evening to train,  it is better to keep the group small, in order to make sure every dog gets enough attention.  Up to six dogs is about the maximum, in this situation.  Larger groups are more viable for those who have free weekends to train.

To be most successful, your group should include, if possible, at least one member who has significant experience in training and handling retrievers.  This person should not be just a long-time dog owner.  He or she should be someone who currently or has previously owned dog(s) which demonstrate the kind of performance you desire to see in your own dog.   Most commonly, this level of handler has frequently participated in hunting tests and/or field trials.  Another good resource can be a professional retriever trainer.  If you can locate one near your area, you may be able to get free or reduced rate training help in exchange for throwing birds for his clients’ dogs.  The best way to find help with your dog training is to join a retriever club, if you have one within convenient driving distance.  Most of these clubs put on one or two licensed hunting tests and/or field trials annually, so there is likely to be a lot of accumulated knowledge, plus plenty of people wanting to train.

So, now you have your group.  What comes next?  The first thing you should do is to decide what your goals for the training session are going to be. If you were to take your dog to a professional trainer to learn obedience, there would be a specific lesson plan.  Your plan doesn’t have to be that specific, but there should be a consensus on what everyone wants to work on, whether it is manners at the line or a specific concept of a mark or blind retrieve.  Too many so-called training groups continually set up difficult marks or blinds, just to see if their dog can do them.  Often, they may not have even tried to teach the dog how to cope with the individual factors (wind, terrain changes, natural barriers, the dog’s natural tendencies, etc.) that can be found in a single set-up.  It can be equated to trying to force a second-grader to solve a trigonometry problem.  If he has not been taught the individual steps in solving the problem, how can he be expected to do it.  One of the primary rules of successful training, of any kind, is that you make the pupil successful, whenever possible.  Success reinforces desired behavior and builds confidence which, in turn, enhances the desire to learn and perform.  You don’t set up for failure, then try to correct.  That’s not fun for you, or the dog.

Finally, keep in mind that you are trying to teach something to each dog within the group.  Try not to start something that can’t be fully addressed within the amount of time you have.  If a more complex goal is to be worked on, it should be agreed upon by the group, that each dog will be afforded the necessary time to work through any issue that may arise, even if it means others may have to wait until the next session for their turn.  Again, the primary goal is to make each dog successful.

In the next article, we’ll continue to look at training in a group.

Statics show that it costs $16,400 to raise an average sized dog to reach age 11.

Can you even calculate what it costs to raise a dog for competition?  Nobody even wants to know the answer to that question.  So wouldn’t it make sense to do the best job possible in the process of training a dog for competition?  Yet in my experience many dogs are trained in a haphazard way.  There is no plan, no procedure, no way of calculating results other than by a hit and miss process. 

The solution is what can be called role modeling.  Role modeling is when you pick someone who is getting the results you want, and then you duplicate exactly what they do, in order to get the same results they get.  

Some examples of role modeling are, for instance, a friend of yours saves $12,000 per year by putting $250 per week in the bank. You like those results, and you say “Look at the end of the year this guy has twelve thousand bucks. Man, I’m going to do that too.”  So you start to save money except you put in $100 per week. At the end of the year he’s got $12,000 and you’ve got $5,200.  You didn’t do a good job of role modeling. 

Lance Armstrong rides his bike 6 hours a day, does 2 hours at the gym, and doesn’t drink.  You want to win like Lance but you ride the bike 2 hrs a day, workout at the gym for 30 min a day, and drink two martinis before dinner and eat a big steak, and top it off with a piece of apple pie.  Lance wins 7 Tour de France’s and you don’t make the team. 

Role modeling is training precisely the way the person trained from which you want to get the same result.  So you can’t take one technique from one trainer and another technique from another trainer, another technique from a third trainer, put them all together and hope to have the same result that you want.  You can’t use cookies to train a dog to “fetch” and use maximum e-collar pressure to make him “sit.” You have to have a program that is coherent, one that blends together all the aspects of training.  You can’t expect to get good results with a haphazard program modeled after a variety of people that do not necessarily meet the criteria that you are interested in.  If you follow one program 70% of the way, you might get 70% of the results that they are getting. 

So, in training retrievers, if your hero is Rex Carr or D. L. Walters or any other person, even your neighbor, and you want the same results that they have, do exactly what they do. 

 For additional training tips from Bill Hillmann, click the following link to view his page at http://www.findretrievers.com/services/training/ .