Re-call/hunting problem!

[Stihl 090]

A good trainer for your problems will Be more beneficial than a good book at this stage as you may get confused initially until its explained and shown rather than a book and you filling in the blanks.
Free running is a problem as a pup as it now just wants to hunt and chase. A few sessions in the trainers game pen should start moving you forward.
As for what to do in the mean time is lead walks only and plenty of stop whistle work on lead to start then off if progressing but on non gamey ground..

[kent]

Joe Irving Training spaniels is a good one. There are others more than worth a read but I can recommend the structure of this book (something that appears missing at present)

[kent]

A good trainer for your problems will Be more beneficial than a good book at this stage as you may get confused initially until its explained and shown rather than a book and you filling in the blanks.
Free running is a problem as a pup as it now just wants to hunt and chase. A few sessions in the trainers game pen should start moving you forward.
As for what to do in the mean time is lead walks only and plenty of stop whistle work on lead to start then off if progressing but on non gamey ground..

A good trainer is no great fix unless he trains the owner or takes the dog in for residential training. What a trainer can do is be there if and when the wheels look like they are about to fall off so yes its worth paying for.

[Vasey10uk]

A good trainer for your problems will Be more beneficial than a good book at this stage as you may get confused initially until its explained and shown rather than a book and you filling in the blanks.
Free running is a problem as a pup as it now just wants to hunt and chase. A few sessions in the trainers game pen should start moving you forward.
As for what to do in the mean time is lead walks only and plenty of stop whistle work on lead to start then off if progressing but on non gamey ground..

Thanks for the advice.

As soon as she is no longer in season we will book into see the trainer. In terms of non-Haney ground I find it dificult to find anywhere wothout birds/rabbits.

There is an old concrete tennis court I use now and again. However, she tends circle the perimeter of the fence much of the time.

[Vasey10uk]

Joe Irving Training spaniels is a good one. There are others more than worth a read but I can recommend the structure of this book (something that appears missing at present)

Thanks for the recommendation. It will be nice to see a structured training plan. Much of what I do at the minute is from the Internet which can be conflicting.

[kent]

Joe Irving Training spaniels is a good one. There are others more than worth a read but I can recommend the structure of this book (something that appears missing at present)

Thanks for the recommendation. It will be nice to see a structured training plan. Much of what I do at the minute is from the Internet which can be conflicting.

Yeah, that's the issue with it. You really need to 95% know the answer before you ask A lot of great stuff from knowledgeable experienced people mixed in with .............

[Vasey10uk]

On another note - her sit stay is quite good when close. However, she seems to look everywhere else apart from at me no matter how much I try and get her attention. She doesn't move but only looks at me for short glances then is more interested in what is happening around her.

As I said previously we have a contained tennis court we can use for recall. She is hit and miss with the whistle in here. When she doesn't respond should I go get her and take her to where I was?

[Naj]

As others have said, get a good training manual or DVD & follow a set training plan, then in light of that others will be able to advise you on what to do when things don't work out. It's hard to suggest anything when we don't know whether you use compulsive methods or reward-based ones, or how you normally cope with distractions. You can't hope to learn to train a dog off an internet forum, you need something structured.

Naj

[Vasey10uk]

As others have said, get a good training manual or DVD & follow a set training plan, then in light of that others will be able to advise you on what to do when things don't work out. It's hard to suggest anything when we don't know whether you use compulsive methods or reward-based ones, or how you normally cope with distractions. You can't hope to learn to train a dog off an internet forum, you need something structured.

Naj

No problem. I have ordered some training material so will go back to basics with that and also see what the trainer has to say when we meet with him.

Thanks.

[Lewis1]

Sounds just like mine. I've been taking her to a spaniel trainer which has improved her recall dramatically. Basically your dog is taking the p155 out of you as mine was me.

I would take yours to a trainer first before you try what's worked with mine as your dog may react differently or be more sensitive.

I'll try to explain the best I can what my trainer has taught me. When she ignores the whistle, go and get her and then put her on lead. Using the lead lift her front legs off the floor and walk forwards, give the lead a shake and in a stern voice say 'what are you doing', do this 2-3 times and then return her front legs to the floor. I've only done this once when she was really bad and had buggered off for a few minutes.

Then stand in front of her and take a step back, then blow your recall whistle and pull her firmly towards you, repeat this 3-4 times. This is so she knows why she being told off. You have to be able to switch from Mr nice to Mr nasty(I've found this difficult), when you blow your recall and she's coming towards you squat down and be encouraging but as soon as she maybe diverts around you or ignores you stand up and be Mr nasty.
Also I don't use food rewards anymore, my dog just ain't interested in food when she's out so what's the point.

Definitely go to a trainer though and commit to what they tell you, I wish I'd gone months ago. I hope I might of helped as I know your pain.