It's all about the training!

[Judy]

I know what you mean by "firmness", Kibble, perhaps "determined" is better? Be certain in your mind about what you want in the way of basic manners and firm with yourself re keeping to them. If you don't want the dog upstairs don't let it go up, ever. If you don't want it on the sofa don't invite it up, ever. Once you allow the rot to set in then the dog will make life difficult for you by becoming more variable in its responses the rest of the time, you will lose the consistency of response that we all aim for.

Oh, and don't overthink it!

[Kibble]

Delightfully susinct WGD, thank you. That sounds a lot less daunting.

That's it Judy- Firm with myself,determined, unwavering, never sloppy.

Heel work is still a problem and it's difficult because I do want to get my puppy to the nice big field, but there's a lane... I know what I need to do.

[Kibble]

I need to get one of those dog pram things. Ha!

[Judy]

I have a three year old Cocker who still finds heelwork a bore, my fault for not doing enough training with her but we only have 60 yards or so to go before we are on the field.

[crackerd]

What you have described here is 1) knowing what you want 2) knowing whether the dog understands what you want 3) consistency in the approach to teaching the dog what you want and 4) managing the environment so as not to set the dog up to fail.

Sort that lot out and you'll end up with a well schooled and capable dog. Start with No 1 and remember dogs don't speak English.

Now, Will, you know that ain't altogether true - their actions may "bespeak" English, or express themselves thusly, and sometimes it may be pidgin English they're expressing, or, shall we say, "Cracker English," but -

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Might express it, you know, as "brant" instead of "brent" on occasion, what-what

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My yearling spake her first Canadian yesterday - first "Canadian" into and, erm, obligingly out of her soft British-inflected mouf, that is...

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Good advice herein this thread for Kibble from "the home side" - and good querying and articulating expectations on his/her/their part, too.

MG

[Kibble]

I have a three year old Cocker who still finds heelwork a bore, my fault for not doing enough training with her but we only have 60 yards or so to go before we are on the field.

And, let's be honest, heel work is boring for cockers and their people. Generalisation is a bit tricky too.
My puppy came close to getting the 'heel' concept this morning when I was leading her way from a dropoed ball, ready for a memory retrieve. She kept turning her head to look up at me. It was very sweet. Of course she can't speak Engkish, so I have no idea what she was trying to say.

[Naj]

I have a three year old Cocker who still finds heelwork a bore, my fault for not doing enough training with her but we only have 60 yards or so to go before we are on the field.

And, let's be honest, heel work is boring for cockers and their people. Generalisation is a bit tricky too.
My puppy came close to getting the 'heel' concept this morning when I was leading her way from a dropoed ball, ready for a memory retrieve. She kept turning her head to look up at me. It was very sweet. Of course she can't speak Engkish, so I have no idea what she was trying to say.

Maybe … “this is the best reward ever!”

[Kibble]

Maybe … “this is the best reward ever!”

It was for me. It felt like pup and I were cooperating in a great game, and I would like a repetition of that feeling.
We could just run down the lane......
It that rain? Nah, hardly drizzle....

[Kibble]

It is really nice that on this forum people, at least some of whom are experienced trainers, are prepared to discuss issues and admit to concerns with individual dogs. This is my first experience of attempting to train a cocker spaniel puppy. Even though we have had spaniels as pets before I was absolutely not prerared for the excitable bundle of energy this puppy has turned out to be.
Within days of being introduced to her new garden she had chomped on the rhubarb, eaten a couple of snails, scratched up a patch of lawn, dug a nice hole in the border to find a few stones to carry about and jumped 3ft off the garden steps. She followed me everywhere and my legs were covered with bruises.
Once out, every person and dog we met needed greeting. Every noise and movement needed a reaction and she would zoom 100 yards across an empty field and back just for fun. Puppy class was a nightmare and quickly abandoned.
I don't need her to be a gundog, but I always meant to use gundog training to keep my pup occupied and happy I don't know where we would be without gundog training. When I set her up and she achieves a long memory retrieve I can enjoy the moment, remember how far we have come, in just a few months, and leave fussing about the victory fly past for another day.

[ips]

There is a good book called "pet gundog" can't remember the author as I have lent my copy out