Retriever Training

[Raegan]

Does anyone here do field work? I see lots of threads about herding, or schutzhund, but hardly any about field training.

I really want to do the working certificate program with Marsh, my Toller. He's got the background for it, and he makes a sound like he's being murdered when he sees doves on my lawn, so I think the instinct is there. He taught himself to retrieve to hand (or chuckit... ), so even if he never gets a title that's fun enough. :rofl1:

 

[Xeph]

You could just do schutzhund with your Toller, since there's so much info out there about it xD!

 

[Raegan]

There is actually at least one Toller that has a BH! There are a couple more dogs that have the letters BH after their name, but they're all Swedish or Finnish dogs, so I think it might mean something different.

These dogs can carry Canada Geese. I think they can manage a 5lb dumbell

 

[Xeph]

I think they can manage a 5lb dumbell

But can they make it over the meter jump? THAT'S the question! LOL!

Ok, I'll stop harassing you in your thread now

 

[Kat09Tails]

Are you talking upland or blind/water retrieves? Usually I suggest people contact whatever sportsmans clubs or ducks unlimited or whatever is in their area. Normally they can point you in the right direction of finding someone who does group field training for birddogs.

 

[MafiaPrincess]

Where are you located? Here there is a huge number of retriever clubs actively training. There's nada in the way of spaniel field work, and the retriever people are too snotty to even let us pay to come out and work on retrieves *shrug*. But.. we can maybe help you find something you'd like near you.

 

[Dekka]

A meter jump for a toller? Thats only 3 foot 3 inches, my JRTs can scale that!

I know of a few people who do retriever trials. They are pretty much all hardcore e collar training though. Not sure if you are down with that or not.

 

[Raegan]

I'm actually going to help out at an HRC hunt test next weekend. I'm in Wisconsin, so it's not like there's really a dearth of retriever folk. And I'm on a retriever forum, but they're mainly Field Trail folk or hunters.

I don't want to play at that level and I don't hunt, and Marsh is mainly my agility (and any other sport that catches my eye) dog. I'm really big on a consistent training philosophy, and from what I've seen most of the retriever training stuff isn't very consistent with how I'm choosing to train Marsh. Since this forum has a different demographic from the retriever forum, I was wondering if anyone here was doing field work.

Mafia, that's too bad they won't let you play in their sandbox. If I was a hunter (and I imagine that I could make that work sometimes! :lolsign, I think upland hunting over spaniels would be the way to go!

 

[MafiaPrincess]

That is awesome that there's at least people near you to ask even if you don't want to play at their level. There are retriever folk here playing to that level, and some even with positive methods surprisingly.

Any spaniel clubs I can find are long disbanded.. And CKC rules are more hardcore than AKC. Lowest levels with spaniels you need to take down your own bird and control your dog. I'm not sure I'll ever be up for that pressure, not that I can find people that will let me work with them. Agility is my first love, anything else I do is dabbling. I think I'd have to be more hardcore about field work to get anywhere.

I've found this attitude in other areas.. There was all breed draft dog classes with the berner people till I contacted them. Now they won't deal with 'odd' breeds and wouldn't let us play either. If I wasn't in with the JRT people I doubt they'd let my dogs play, but they know me so it's fine. Lot of people protect their sandbox tenaciously lol.