Training a "gundog" hold and present?

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Sarah_K

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Hi everyone,

for a bit of fun over the summer, I've been training Obie on gundog exercises. So far, he's steady to the peg... err, I mean an old climbing frame, will walk to heel and sit/stay when told with distractions and will do blind and memory retrieves over obstacles. What we haven't been able to crack yet is him holding and presenting whatever he's retrieved. He will retrieve to hand but if I'm not ready to take it off him he "throws" it at me. I've tried training a hold by offering a toy to him and clicking while it's in his mouth but if he's retrieving he is oblivious to the clicker. Any idea's or suggestions?

PS: this is all for fun to tire his little pea brain out while the training club we go to for agility and obedience is closed for the summer. He's a 9lb chi cross who doesn't like prickly things underfoot or water/wind/mud so there's no chance of us turning up on a shoot! :)
 
You need a proper gundog person to help you there, but I know my lab throws it at me when she is overexcited and wants me to throw it again.
She doesn't throw pheasants at me, maybe they are nicer than dummies or balls!? Perhaps you could try him on a budgie...THAT IS A JOKE!!
 
You need to play the take it, leave it game. Best done with a toy when watching TV. Keep a special toy for this, in our house all dummies are mine and only used for training.

sit on the sofa, dog looking at you, offer the toy, using your marker word 'hold it' then ask him to give it, I use dead, you could use 'mine'. Don't reward too quickly with food as this can cause the dog to 'spit' which is what yours is doing. Gradually increase the period he holds, adding a second or so a day (so very slowly). The aim is always to give the command and receive the toy so the dog never drops. You need to be on the ball and receive the toy is time iniatially so the dog doesn't do the wrong thing.
 
As mentioned train the hold separately and then marry them later. I know it's not gundog training but we were bored one day and broke down the flat retrieve into elements and I think we got to 13.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. Think I'll have to ramp up the receiving, holding, giving training when it's quiet with minimal distractions. I think one of the issues is that when he was younger he wouldn't let go of toys and turned every game of fetch into a tug game. Cracked that one by offering a treat and saying drop and then progressed onto give so it's what he does automatically now.

Yeah Clodagh, if only there were people who shot sparrows for sport on dry grassy fields when there's nothing more than a slight breeze- think they are about his size :)
 
Sarah_K said:
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Yeah Clodagh, if only there were people who shot sparrows for sport on dry grassy fields when there's nothing more than a slight breeze- think they are about his size :)
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:) :) :)

Well he isn't a breed which are exactly known for their retrieving skills, so I'd say that you've actually done rather well! When the 'accepted' retrieving breeds drop game before delivering to hand, it's nearly always handler error unless the dog really is ultra-soft mouthed. Not, I suspect in the case of your hound OP, but it's generally easily cured once the reason for a sloppy delivery have been thought through.

When I was a boy my mate had an air rifle and he and I used to shoot sparrows around his house. He had a cat which retrieved quite well, it ran in a bit but but nonetheless it kept us amused for hours!

Alec.
 
Alec Swan said:
When I was a boy my mate had an air rifle and he and I used to shoot sparrows around his house. He had a cat which retrieved quite well, it ran in a bit but but nonetheless it kept us amused for hours!

Alec.
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OP needs to go back about 30 years where every farmyard was full of sparrows and every small boy spent every minute of every day shooting them.
Would love to have seen the cat!
 
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