Favourite training exercises

[Tennyson.Horler]

My biggest problem is a lack of creativity.

What is everyone's favourite tracking exercise? How do you set up retrieves?

I don't want to become too reliant on a few scenarios as they start to lose their training benefit.

[Naj]

I stopped doing tracking exercises long ago when I found that young dogs quickly learnt to take a line on the first few head of wounded game you shot over them. It’s a bit of fun to set them artificially but they’re pretty instinctive at it.

[CockerCanuck]

I like to carry a dummy while walking the dog and drop it behind me without the dog seeing. Then at some point (start short and lengthen with experience) stop turn around and send the dog with whatever command you use for a blind. It’s easier than a real “blind” because it’s always where you have just been but it gives them the idea of finding something they did not see fall. I did this a lot with my CBR Hamish when he was young and he loved it. To this day he gets far more excited when I set him up for a blind than he does for a marked retrieve.

[Nickheref]

I stopped doing tracking exercises long ago when I found that young dogs quickly learnt to take a line on the first few head of wounded game you shot over them. It’s a bit of fun to set them artificially but they’re pretty instinctive at it.

Me too! In fact I now use it as an assessment of a young dog's ability, all my best have taken their first runner without any assistance or training from me other than handling them onto the fall if it was a blind retrieve. Watching a dog puzzle out the line of a runner is probably the bit of shooting that I enjoy most and I think it is important that youngsters are allowed to do so without interference so they can learn from it!

[CockerCanuck]

Sorry I realize I misread and gave my favourite training exercise not tracking. I have watched some fun exercises for retriever pups where they drag a duck through cover and the encourage pup to find it but I have never done so for my own dogs. I can see it helping a pup with low prey drive find their feet but I think 90% of well bred dogs have such a keen desire to seek stuff out that all they need is a bit of time on gamey ground and it will all come together. Certainly my now 4 1/2 month old cocker daily demonstrates her ability to track rabbits without any encouragement from me.

[Tennyson.Horler]

Sorry I realize I misread and gave my favourite training exercise not tracking. I have watched some fun exercises for retriever pups where they drag a duck through cover and the encourage pup to find it but I have never done so for my own dogs. I can see it helping a pup with low prey drive find their feet but I think 90% of well bred dogs have such a keen desire to seek stuff out that all they need is a bit of time on gamey ground and it will all come together. Certainly my now 4 1/2 month old cocker daily demonstrates her ability to track rabbits without any encouragement from me.

Well my dyslexic brain can't clearly decipher the difference between tracking and training.

I had wanted to start a discussion on TRAINING exercises! I like setting things up for my dog to work through. I find it helpful to teach them to blast through cover or give them confidence over water. But my lack of creativity leads to repetitive exercises where I feel it's more of a memory exercise for the dog rather than a true test of their ability.

[Judy]

How many permutations on "retrieve" do you want? It does depend on the level the dog is at but here's a few, up to you to gauge whether the dog should be capable of them.

Unsighted seek back - dropping a dummy the dog hasn't seen you doing, send the dog back for it. Later, drop a dummy, walk on, drop another, walk on send them for the nearest and then for the further one. When the stop whistle is fully embedded repeat the second exercise except that you stop the dog at the nearest dummy and send them on for the furthest one first.
Drop a dummy, unseen, walk on. Throw a dummy, send the dog for the unseen first. Alternatively, put out a blind, collect the dog walk the dog towards it letting the dog see / hear the seek back dummy on the way, send for the blind first (ensure you are near it at first to build confidence as the dog will be expecting to be sent back the way you came).
Place a dummy, walk the dog away, send it for the dummy.
Place dummy, walk dog away, turn at right angles, walk a short way, send the dog along the hypotenuse ie straight for the dummy.
Place dummy, walk three sides of a square with dog at heel, send dog straight for dummy. The last three exercises teach the dog to remember where birds are down even if you have to go off after a runner first. Also good for your memory...
Put out a line of dummies, walk dog past them at heel, leave on a sit, go and pick dummies or walk back weaving through the dummies with dog leaving them, sit stay, pick them yourself or leave one for the dog as a reward.
Sit dog up in field, walk a large square with him in the centre dropping a dummy at each corner. Return to dog, send him for the dummies in random order. If dog is not confident you can let him see you placing the dummies, if very dog is confident put the dummies out first then get the dog, sit him up in the middle of the square then send as before.
Do any of the above in an open field and progress to cover later.

There, clear as mud innit?