So many people think that because they have the breed it comes with automatic skills and that is just not the truth. A labrador is started off early in the puppy stages learning to retrieve by using a soft bumper and having no more then three retrieves to build up not only retrieving skills but desire as well. THen moves up to stage two. WHere they learn to stretch out the falls, deliver to hand, not eat the bird, and so on and so on. YOu can not just take your dog out and say wahoooo bang bring me a bird. He may run out there and have a goose dinner or look at you like your daft and say for you to swim in that icy water and get it yourself. He may get lost as well. Field training is like agility training. It is done in stages, and is a life long passion. IT takes a full season to have a young dog ready for his first hunt, it takes three years to have a dog ready to do hand signals, to not bank run, to be able to scent and trail a fall and so much more. I suggest that if you want your dog to have fun you start doing your research first, then find someone to help you train. THEN NEXT YEAR maybe you will be ready. Hunting dogs like VIctor if he was used in the field need a high calorie diet to keep them from running themselves to rags and bones. Labs that are expected to dive into icy water and bring back the falls need the same. PLease everyone that is considering this..do not take your dog out into the field and kill something for his pleasure. Most likely he will never find it and the bird will either be a total loss or worse yet harmed and left to die a bad death.
I suggest TRaining your REtriever by James lamb Free