Hold Pressure

[Cocker18]

Hi all - I’ve been working my 13 month cocker through the hold training steps outlined here: viewtopic.php?t=2026

The outline is absolutely awesome but we are struggling mightily with step 2 (getting proper hold pressure). He has always been extremely soft mouthed. He takes my finger into his mouth no problem and will let me press down on his muzzle to achieve a proper pressure. However as soon as I loosen my grip on his muzzle, he immediately relaxes his grip to zero pressure. We’ve been stuck on this step for about 2 weeks.

Has anyone had a similar challenge with their pups. If so any advice to get over this hurdle or do we just need more time working the step?

Thanks!

[David089]

I'm a beginner myself - but I actually skipped this step. My lab is very soft mouthed and I found she didn't grip that well, but it improves the whole time simply by giving more difficult articles to retrieve - heavier, bigger bird dummies, even water bottles with canvas taped around, half filled, which makes it awkward to carry and she has to have a firmer grip. I might be wrong, but for me it's simply coming with experience. I'd be tempted to move forward a step.