I'm pretty new to bird hunting and just picked up a 12 week old brother and sister GSP. My 9 year old GSP was just a spoiled pet that got introduced to birds 2 years ago and has been mostly just a good companion with no training while hunting. She finds downed birds and gets birdie now and then but it's new to her too. I intended to help these pups be the good bird dogs I know they can be so I'm looking for advise. When should training begin? Whose books or videos are best? E collar/no E collar? Work with them together or individually? And should I try to work with the older dog as well?

Veteran advise appreciated,
Joel

Congrats Joel! 2 new bird dogs is a reason to celebrate.

GSP's can be such great dogs. Some starting out advice. 1st, training should begin immediately. Not hard core as they are so young, but basic control commands should be started. The sit, stay, come, heel, no stuff. I would recommend introducing training individually, as you can focus your attention and the dogs much better without them romping, but keep it short to start and equal for each. Over time, there would be drills and work you could do together.. but not until you had complete control of your dogs.

Get several books.... the most common are listed all over this site and amazon and every dog training web site out there. After reading and understanding the philosophies of each ... pick one and follow the plan. Pick one you feel comfortable with and you know you'll have time to follow. I think many guys read some training regimes and start with excellent intentions, but find the training is so time consuming and strict they bailat the dog and their owners expense. Reading several books will give you ideas to try when you find you're having a hardtime getting one of your pups to whoa properly, or they start flushing or.. any one of a milllion things.

Trap pigeons if at all possible, trust me .. it helps.

I prefer no e-collar. That is just me and in the right hands by trained dog handlers they can be used to the dogs advantage. I have said it before, if you are seeking help on training dogs on-line then you should probably save your money and perhaps spend it on a training session with a professional dog trainer.

Visit a field trial and ask questions, dog guys love to talk about how they make good dogs to interested people.

The 9 year old..... I have mixed feelings here. I know including your 9 year old in the puppy training will slow the process and may even hurt their development. Pups don't need to be shown a poor example. I am sensitive to the fact you have started hunting the last 2 years with the older dog though. I would keep your training sessions seperate but during fun time let them all partake together. As far as future hunting, you'll know by watching them interact if you should leave the 9 year old home or not.

Put the time in, as much as you can, and it will pay off. Good luck.

Good advice. I would just like to mention some trainers do not want you to introduce the puppy to gunshotstill they get a chance toevaluate the dog. They like to make sure the puppy is interested and looking for birds while they introduce the gun.

Hi Joel,

I'm in Mesa too...

It's to early to tell if you'll need an e collar. Chance's are you will, but as far as that goes it's another tool that can be employed properly or stupidly.

Start training now! Any book by Wooters is a good place to start whilst getting to know your pups. Start budgeting for a little professional help though. I highly recommend Jay Amos in Ashfork. I won't print here what I think of most dog trainers but I will say that Jay is good. And that's coming from someone who was raised in the dog training world.

Don't hunt the pups with the old untrained dog...

If you got your pups from Ken Levy, don't be suprised in they get as tall as you.





This is my RugerSaurus -only one year old next to my 4' tall daughter - he's grown since this pic. Does anyone know a custom saddle maker?

What is an E Collar?

E Collar = electronic training collar