Teaching blinds

[AndyH]

Hi All

Has anyone got any advice on how to teach a spaniel blind retrieves. He's currently fine with left, right and back if he's seen the dummy go down but if I try and send him on a blind retrieve, or he's forgotten where the dummy was and I try and direct him, he'll go in the direction I ask but only for a couple of metres then have a sniff around and look at me as if to say "nope, no idea I'm afraid". Has anyone got any advice as to how to teach him that the command means go a significant distance in that direction?

Thanks

[romanriver]

start with a couple of metres!

[Judy]

Use white dummies or open ground, build up the distance you throw the dummies when teaching lefts and rights so that he is expecting to run a good distance left or right. Then when you try a blind make it easier to start with and build up again. Also do long memory retrieves.

[Rough_mut]

I taught my dog blinds when he was about 4 years old.... I found the key was confidence. This has to be built up as others have mentioned in short distances, and I found the key is in the command? So back doesn't mean go back a couple of yards and give up, back means the dog is 100% because you have said back, there will be something?

Most of the retrieves my dog does are blinds as we pick up when we have finished beating, and you can tell when I have sent him for too many 'I'm sure there's a bird down there' scenarios as his natural distance goes from 50-100 yards in a cast to about 20.

The dog has to believe it. I didn't jump straight to blinds either, memory retrieves work well as well. It's all about the dog trusting back means there will be something? Even if you start at 1 yard and work up, you will get there.

Don't over use the word back either... like all commands it has to have meaning behind it...

[Aimeetess]

Put a marked retrieve in the same place every day and send back for it, then one day don't let him see the retrieve and send him back for it, he should go as he knows a retrieve is always there.
Then gradually increase the distance in the same exact area, ideally following a path or hedge and when you start in a new area repeat. Gradually he'll learn to believe you, I think a lot of dogs don't trust the owner and like to see it themselves, so get him believing in you. Started blinds with my cocker at 4 months old, hes now almost as good as our 5yr old lab.