its never too late to take a dog out in the field.it's never to late to train a dog,although it might be a tad bit tougher when they are older and havent been taught it.i dont no how many people agree with me on this one,but i think you need to force break retrieve your dog before you do anything else at all.i could go on for days telling you how i trained my 1.5 year old chocolate lab Gunner,but I wont.Water Dog by Richard Wolters is a great book,you can get it on Amazon for 17$,send me a message if you have anything ?'s,im always willing to help ya