Question On Springer training

kirkl · 12-09-2004, 05:28 PM

Got a question for the dog guys, I have a 1.5 year old springer. When throwing birds for her, when she brings them back she thinks there hers and when I try to take them she growls and gets kinda arnrey. What is a good way to break her of this. a shock collar. Any tips appreciated.

TreestandEd · 12-11-2004, 10:54 AM

NO not a collar, try getting a Springer book like HUP ect...
Do some retrieving drills in long narrow area where she cant run away and has to come too you, give her alot of praise. If she wont give it up you can grab her lower jaw and sqeeze while giving the give command. she will give it up.
Good Luck

MA Jay · 12-13-2004, 07:27 AM

kirkl-

If you gave your dog a bone, could you take it back without any growling? Classic case of dominance .. you have a dog that wants to be an alpha, and is showing you by taking "your" things and claiming them as it's own. I have never seen a case where birds were the only thing a dog exerted this type of behavior with. Food, toys and a spot on the couch are other types of things that a dog may show this kind of behavior.

I'll give the classic response, and mention read and follow a training guide. I would also stress obedience drills with your dog, specifically the down command. Strong willed dogs normally HATE to be told "down" followed by "stay" .. but when you get complete control, these types of behavior aren't as typical. Other things you can do to insure your dog knows you are the top dog, have the dog sit and stay while you walk through a door first. Have the dog sit and stay when you put their food down, then give the command "ok" when it is allowed to eat, Pick up the dog's food when they are eating ... but NOT if they snap!!! ... you'll need more control before trying that .. all of these things are designed to show your dog you are the pack's alpha.

If you are serious about having a good retriever, it may be time to take the game out of fetch and train the desired behavior. Remember, the "bird" isn't the reward, it is the praise you give for retrieving the bird that your dog should be retrieving for.

kirkl · 12-13-2004, 04:58 PM

Thanks guys, What is HUP. I dont have a problem of her running away from me. If i catch her right as she gets to me and say drop firmly shell drop it at my feet, its when she has it to long then shell growl. She does it with bones to.

MA Jay · 12-14-2004, 07:41 AM

HUP is a book written by James Spencer, and would be a good start for you to read. One of the reasons is he covers retrieving in greater depth than most Flushing traning books.

Hup is also the command given to flushers, similar to the whoa with Pointers. The correct response to the command should be an instant sit and stay, regardless of the situation. Most commonly applied upon the flush, so that your dog can mark the bird when it falls.

Since you mentioned that your Springer does it with bones as well, I would think if you exerted your dominance a bit more and firmly put your dog in it's place .. this type of behavior would be less. I have found with guys I have helped that stressing obedience and control normally corrects this behavior, especially if the dog has been trained to retrieve properly.

I feel I should add that not all dogs are going to retrieve like the dogs on ESPN during field trials. Not moving a muscle and expecting your dog to lay the game at your feet sounds really good, but the reality for 75% of the guys out there is that a lot of work and calling and coaxing and praising are usually part of the package to get a dog to deliver to hand. Since your dog does retrieve, just has problems with the release, work on the obedience as I mentioned, and perhaps give some reward either praise or special treat, when a bird is delivered to hand. Only after the growling stops though .. do not reinforce that behavior.

Good luck, Springer's make great hunter's.