Bryn's blunders

[Naj]

I agree with Wullie on this one. Dogs can become 'test wise', which I presume Bryn means by 'situational', but the steadiness wasn't reliable before entering the tests. I think we've been down this road before with Bryn but there are no grey areas where steadiness is concerned - a dog is steady or it isn't. When you start talking in degrees of steadiness then you should realise that you haven't 'steadied' the dog. A 'steady' dog is a dog that is 'steady'. Period. It can never, by definition, be 'much steadier' or 'quite steady' or 'almost steady', because that only proves that it is not steady. And if you are simply 'holding' it from breaking then it isn't yet 'steady'. Steadiness is all in the mind of the dog, & handler. A dog that has been trained to be steady produces a reliable behaviour, under all conditions, so train for that behaviour - no fidgeting, no itching to go, no hair trigger responses, no 'secrets of training', just boring old repetitive training until you've got the behaviour nailed . I know that time is often short for you but you can do all the groundwork for this sort of stuff around the house anytime that you have a few moments to spare. Until you get the 'steadiness' problem fixed at 'home', while ever you keep putting this dog into a working test situation for a bit of fun or (bad) experience then all you are doing is effectively training for unsteadiness in those situations.

I do agree with Judy that dogs can & do learn to discriminate through experience but as Wullie points out, we are talking about dummies here & a youngish dog that is in the process of being trained, not an experienced dog in the process of being untrained. And dogs do settle into their trained habits as they mature but you have to maintain the training of wanted behaviours for them to get that far. They can just as easily settle into unwanted behaviours if your training slips.

Naj

[Bryn]

Naj I accept that obviously he isn't 'steady'

What I meant by situational is that other than some tests he is 'steady' on land, water, rabbits and pheasants to the point I can call him off a rabbit, bolting rabbit &etc.

I've been trying to work out why he is inconsistent. What is happening is he gets really wound up waiting to do the tests, where he can see the other dogs doing the test and thinks he knows what is required or he clocks the dummy thrower and works it out he runs in, but stops to shot the whistle or voice before hand. On the 3 tests he hasn't run in he's been the model of behaviour, sitting rock solid even when sat up away from me but on none of these did he see other dogs going through their paces or otherwise be able to figure things out. He's bright animal so I'm pretty sure that when I get the chance to recreate some 'tests' it won't take him long to learn what's expected of him. If necessary I will start going after him in tests.

Oh well at least we had a great day out, improved and weren't last.

[Alice]

. If necessary I will start going after him in tests.

.

I think that's what's needed. Like you say, he's a bright dog and has cottoned on to the fact that you don't want to get a big fat 0 (who does?!) or make a wally of yourself chasing him in a test situation. Unfortunately I think you're going to have to, or his 'I can run in at tests when I'm wound up' attitude will prevail (you haven't lived until you've given yourself a 0 by vaulting a fence after your dog in a test, thinking it was blinking the bird, only to realise it was using the wind and picked it by the time you got there...er, not that I've done that...oh no... )

[Naj]

Forgive my ignorance, but I thought you weren't allowed to correct a dog in a test. Wouldn't you be disqualified?

Naj

[trekmoor]

You probably would be Naj but possibly only from that particular part of the test ? In any case I would accept being disqualified from a couple of tests if it meant that my dog no longer thought it could run in during tests and get away with it.

Sort of a case of "a stitch in time saves nine ?"

I have never had to do this, I had access to training classes with multiple dogs and people and did my correcting there for the very few dogs I've ever had that would run in on dummies. I think taking Bryn to training classes, telling the trainer beforehand that "getting out there after him" was what was intended, would solve the running in problem .....on dummies.

Wullie

[Strathcraig]

I was going to say the same as Wullie... but maybe you could go to the test Bryn, but not enter? Just ask if you could possibly use it as a training exercise? Surely if you threw dummies all day they would give you that?

[Bryn]

Thanks for the support/suggestions and yes being DQ'd would be worth it to sort the ratbag out if I can't find a spaniel training day in the meantime.

[trekmoor]

I'd inform the judge just prior to competing in a test of what you intend to do when/if the dog runs in, tell him you fully accept you will be disqualified but you are doing it with future tests in mind. I think most judges would be sympathetic about your "situational" problem. I'd probably cheer you on !

Wullie

[Alice]

I'd inform the judge just prior to competing in a test of what you intend to do when/if the dog runs in, tell him you fully accept you will be disqualified but you are doing it with future tests in mind. I think most judges would be sympathetic about your "situational" problem. I'd probably cheer you on !

Wullie

This. Opposite end of the spectrum for me, but I've said to judges "if she blinks the retrieve I'll be giving her a bollocking, I know it'll put me out" and they were totally cool with it!

[Bryn]

That's what I'll do, most of the judges are club members and know Bryn well