Gundog Training Forum

Hi, this is my first topic as I have just joined I have a great cocker bitch called willow who is 10 months old and shes just finished her first season (im not getting her neutered).

Anyway, she hunts well, just learning to quarter, returns to the whistle and retrieves very well. There are two problems, when its wet she will not sit. not at all, even for a treat. If anything she lowers her bum a little but not really sitting. She doesnt mind getting wet but just not her bum!

The other problem is that when I blow the stop whistle, she runs back to me and sits, she doesnt sit where she is.

I want to get these problems sorted before i start teaching her anything else and the book im reading doesnt offer any answers.

Thanks in advance

Hi,

And welcome to the forum.

I cannot really help as I am a lab person. OH is spaniel. I am sure some one will be along to help soon but have you thought about group or 121 training? Books don't tend to train the dog that is sat in front of you

Sarah xx

Does it realy matter all that much if she sits or just partly sits. I would be happy if the dog stops on the whistle and looks at me for a further command. How I would deal with the dog running back to you is to walk her back out to the exact spot where you blew the whistle, repeat the whistle and get her to sit. Walk back to where you were when you blew the whistle but keeping an eye on her in case she follows. If she does, take her back and repeat the command. After you do get back leave her for a few seconds so that she thinks about what you require. Throw a dummy and then send her to retrieve or redirect her to another hunt. Hopefully she will get the idea that you are stopping her for further instruction and not because you want her back. I am assuming that she does understand the stop whisle and is not confusing it with a recall whistle.

leyden, maybe you are right, she might be confusing it with the recall whistle. I think i may need to start again with the sit on a whistle lesson!

some bitches hate getting their privates getting wet especially around a season. a "hover" maybe all you'll get?

Some male cockers don't like sitting either. My cocker Billy rarely ever sits but he does a very solid stand/stay. Dax rarely puts his bum fully down , he stops just short of that.

Wullie

If she is coming back to you it is more than likely for reassurance as my bitch had same problem. Shorten the distance at which you are expecting to stop to something at which you can control the situation. Way I cracked it was with professional help but I was taught to get her hunting and only try and stop her when she was within a couple of strides of me. I'd blow the stop whistle, with hand outstretched flat to her and take a few strides towards her as I was blowing stop. That way she was close to me, I could reassure and praise and she stopped where I wanted. Any creeping meant I could intervene and pur her on spot i had asked her to stop. Repeated until confident and then increased distance and also stopped walking towards her. It was the commanD she wasn't confident about so once he seemed happier i was also able to repeat exercise when casting her out. I can now stop her at varying distances 99% of the time and whilst hunting. I still have the occasional creep at long distances but shes sharp when that bit closer.

My cocker won't sit unless she wants to she hovers, doesn't really bother me as she is more ready to get going again if you understand my logic.

I had the stop issue of understanding it as a recall totally my fault as a novice and I felt my lack of confidence transferred to her thus she came back for reassurance. I used the method above i.e. taking her back but at first I had a training lead (long one) and hunted her on that at close distance so we had more control over the quartering distance. I blew the stop whistle at varying times during the quartering until we understood each other taking her back when needed. I then removed the lead and repeated the same exercise on a narrow piece of ground with a hedge either side so the quartering distance remained close until we understood each other again. I did have to put the lead back on again a few times in order to progress though. I also used a few retrieves as a reward after if we managed to get progress.

I also rigidly keep a training diary now of everything we do good and bad, what the weather was like, the ground conditions, any game on the ground, My attention span and hers etc...
This has been a great help to reflect after training.

Cheers,
Graham.

I didn't realise that cockers could sit. I thought they could only hover! Isnt that what is known as a cocker sit

My cocker hover's if the grounds wet as well.

Just a thought about the stop whistle, you say she runs back to you and sits, maybe the dog thinks that's what the stop whistle means. I imagine you taught it close to you first, now when you give the command in the dogs mind that means 'sit by you' Take it closer and build it up.

Edited to add-Have a look at this post, especially the post by Hepe and her description of the stop signal being a start signal viewtopic.php?f=6&t=11490&p=138103#p138103