hello. in a midst of reading on line about having working dogs and the need to keep them mentally stimulated, im just wondering how much time folk spend training/working the minds of the more grown up lab or spaniel....my two are very worky lines, we do a fifteen ish minute gun doggy session while we are out usually on both of their two daily walks, learning and practising their retreives and steadiness and stuff which i try and build in difficulty once they have the hang of something. thats all great fun for them too. and we do heel work and long waits and recalls too out on walks. then ill do another couple of short five or ten minute sessions indoors, currently on stop whistle...i wonder whether im working their brains enough sometimes...brodick has a general pretty basic obedience class every two weeks as well. cuilli will start a class once brodicks block is over...about three or four walks a week we do zero gundoggery and just have a blast on a beach walk playing and swimming after their balls ( i guess thats water retreiving), though i do practice recall stuff with them on distractions like seagulls and things....then a couple of walks a week its all about me and they come running with me so no training or gundoggery just good long runs...i think cuilli in particular would train at retreiving all day if she could...be good to hear what trainy stuff others do and balance of just wild play walks!
Re: how much do folks train.... Hi Debsie , Sam is also from working lines , he needs the stimulation of training to keep him happy and we both enjoy it too . Discounting this hot weather , I usually incorporate training into my hour long walk with him in the morning, probably about 2x 15 min sessions woven in . Then in the afternoon, we have a normal walk where he knows we dont train but this finishes with another 15 min session on a field on the way home . Walks on the beach are all about retrieiving for him , he just adores it . About once a week we go to another local field where many dog walkers go and he has a general play around with other dogs, but I have noticed that since he got older, he values the play time less and less , preferring to train or just be on a walk with me and Millie . Ironically, she completely ignores his training, doesnt seem interested in interrupting it , just potters about by my side
Re: how much do folks train.... Wow Debsie you do a lot of training. I incorporate my training into walks too with Hattie, but well Charlie is another kettle of fish and well we all know what has to be done for him Helen xx
Re: how much do folks train.... Oh gosh....tapping into a worry of mine......Dexter is working lines as you know and Chris and I know nothing about gundog work.worry,worry,worry,are we doing enough?are we spoiling him?is he bored? Our training has comprised of basic obedience....we haven't got anywhere near training retrieves,stop etc.he has a 30 ish minute walk in the morning( this was an hour today as he met his friend Gus the Dalmatian and we all walked along together)2 other mornings a week as well we walk meet and walk with other dogs.On these walks I mainly practice recalling him back to me.the days we are on our own ,we practice,sit,stays,lie down stays and I take some toys in my back pack and drop then as we walk along ( I let him see me do this) and we do a really basic version of 'Find It'?..which is really him just picking up what ive dropped!Ialso throw the tennis ball for him,he runs out and will bring it back once or twice but loses interest so I stop because although we aren't training it,I have read of the perils of overdoing it,so don't want to spoil that for if the day comes.I also play hide and seek ....A LOT and I think this has kept Dexter keen on always checking in on me when we are out.......my biggest,biggest fear is him running away and I hate writing things like this down in case I jinx myself! He gets a play/sniff dig in the garden for probably 15 minutes between 8-9 when the garden goes into full sun. That's his outside time apart from toilet until 4 pm.During the day if he looks restless, we have a play and at the weekend I bought a Brain Games book because I feel now we have got to where his basic obedience is good.....it's boring getting him to do the same things in the house so the little impromptu training sessions we used to have when we were training sit etc will be replaced with that...when my neice and nephew are in town,he gets a play with them at some point nearly every day too....or is just milling about while they are here,looking for mischief opportunity. 4 pm garden time again ,give him a frozen toy which he will keep coming back to while he's playing/sniffing/digging.....paddling pool ordered now so he'll have that to provide another activity at this point in the day. 6 pm lead walk...( try to keep this to 15 mins....but usually go over)which I call the socialization walk...part of that now is us practicing our heel work up on the golf club car park ,then we walk down to the park and meet people and things etc and practice out sits and stays ....before letting him say hi to folks,dogs( got an issue developing with this though as seem to have lost his focus on me when we are in the park...so it's not the pleasant picture I'm painting....bit of whining,pulling and sometimes lunging to get at approaching 'thing' before being given the release,and he's stopped staying in sit if I stop to talk......work to do on this for sure) Dexter sleeps a lot through the day.....I hope this is due to the heat and not boredom,it works for us because Chris comes in at 7 pm and Dexter is ready for a right good down and dirty play in the garden with him.Chris does NO training ,he practices sits,stays and he does quite inventive play eg I lookout of the window and he will have the garden chairs lined up and be throwing the ball through them encouraging Dex to crawl through after it. Dexter then is awake during our evening( due to the snoozey day....)and Chris takes him out at 9.30 for another half an hour in the park,on and off lead and he retrieves better for Chris..... I don't think I can read the replies to this as ill feel like a loser....Signed up for a puppy basic obedience class in September.....no resources available at all here for activities and thought this might helps its getting to practice his focus with distractions...people in the park are kind but there is only so much time they have spare to let you walk past them trying to practice what you are trying to train. I've also got a dog trainer/behaviorist coming tomorrow morning....coincidentally,wasn't going to say anything yet.....I'm worried about this lack of focus in the park and can't seem to get it back even with high value treats....although his recall from distractions is actually very good.....lets see what she says...
Re: how much do folks train.... Lol - very informative though! Lilly is clearly deprived. Working stock too but no inclination to retrieve ad nauseam. Most days gets two 30-40 min wallks a day with possibly 10 mins of this trainin sit stay and recalls and some about turn walking. On wet days thougb its usually on lead so less of a training walk. Usually twice a week one of the walks is in the woods off lead and anywhere from 40-90 mins maybe also beach. Less traini g at these times. Obedience class 1 hr a week. Swimming class 20 mins 2-3 times a month. Bit of ad-hoc garden training 5-10 mins at time. Hmm I guess it adds up. Jac
Re: how much do folks train.... Amy is working line too. I keep meanin g to read up on the "gun dog stuff". Amy is so clever, sometimes I feel she is wasted been with us! When we walk I also constantly "recall" and practice sit/stays etc.
Re: how much do folks train.... ah I didnt think id b alone wondering if im doing enough to keep their brains going.....thanks for replies so far. i should have added that i am a tad hyper myself and do tonnes of training ( of a sporting variety not gundog ) and im sure i foist my love of being physically challenged a lot on my poor dogs! i think i actually made cuilli a bit overwired when she was younger as i did too much with her....we now have much much more chilling time than we used to....they both do seem to love gundoggy stuff but im very much a novice at it all....i guess dogs will all be different as well in terms of what makes them happy and its about trying for that, happy dogs....my two seem to enjoy Hunt the Kibble as mych as a walk sometimes!!
Re: how much do folks train.... We just played hunt the kibble, kids hid it for Amy. Great fun. And then I hid sweets for the kids!
Re: how much do folks train.... You know, when I got Charlie (show lines) and my neighbour who is also getting a lab said "oh, has he got ANY gundog in him" - I cheerfully said "doubt it!" but did I pause to wonder...had I done the right thing? Having read threads like these, and threads about "hunting" instincts, I'm glad I didn't get a working dog (they are lovely, and look so fit and lean, but I know my limitations....). Charlie gets 2 walks a day, where we practice recalls as much as possible, which is he really good at now. And walking nicely on and off lead - we've worked our way up to having distractions (we walked nicely past a swan with babies today, although Charlie looked a bit terrified when the swan hissed at him, so I'm not sure it was a good test). We try to manage his walk - learn to sit while a bike or jogger goes by, sit when another dog or person approaches, get paws wet in the stream etc. We are trying a bit of stay now too though. The rest of the time (what time I have), we play. Gun dog people close your ears! We play TUGGIE, yes, tuggie - tug frog, tug alien sea creature, tug croc. We also play find it and hide and seek. We used to limit his "fetches" but since finding out we get bored before he does, he gets as many ball throws as we can stand (and he gets treats for putting the ball in our hands - more closing of ears for gun dog people!). Kong wobblers, fleece rings, footballs on rope, rattle balls - silly toys, toys, toys. Apart from that, we do a trip out for socialisation, we're learning to go on the tube right now, 5-10 minute clicker training on things we want to learn (down, stay on mat while doorbell rings etc.). Charlie seems fine, not bored at all! Maybe it's true the chocolates are the blonds of the lab world!
Re: how much do folks train.... That made me smile Julie , Sam is pure working stock from a long line of working gundogs whereas my last Lab Tess was show stock , almost two different breeds They have been so opposite , Sam the easier puppy by far , no barking or mouthing but a keen eagerness to retrieve which I realised early on had to be satisfied . Tess on the other hand was the mouther, the biter ( as a pup ) chewed up the odd rug but as an adult , wasnt remotely interested in retrieving , throw a ball and she would look at me like " fetch it yourself " ;D Its been very interesting noting the difference in the two dogs , love them all , show and field
Re: how much do folks train.... I think our dog may get too much training as sometimes she seems unable to relax on a walk, if she thinks there may be an opportunity to retrieve. We took Poppy to the pond this afternoon with the dummy - she completely blanked all the other dogs playing and having a lovely time, all she wanted to do was retrieve that dummy from the water... We both swore we wouldn't do that again on a Sunday, far too stressful, she was completely obsessive and i know it was our fault. Next time we will be going WITHOUT the blasted dummy! All we wanted was a gentle stroll with a nice swim for Pops - instead we got a manic, haunted looking dog who refused to have anything to do with all the other nice labs and Goldens! AND three people asked me what breed of dog she is... Just hate it when that happens!
Re: how much do folks train.... Karen I get asked all the time...what is he a cross with....that just makes me cross!
Re: how much do folks train.... Slightly off topic, but with all the gundogs being stolen these days I should treasure the remark "what is he crossed with" My Lab is a working Lab but has a long tail, not typical of a Labrador (he has a good pedigree!) so I decided that if anyone suspicious asks I will say he is a Lab crossed with a Collie!
Re: how much do folks train.... me too mind you brodick looks like a very long nosed black greyhound sometimes....but i think he is gorgeous....
Re: how much do folks train.... Don't think I have seen another Labrador that I would say looks "working stock" while I have been out with Amy. She is very tall and skinny, I mainly see short and (sorry) thicker wasted ones. Maybe we should have researched the difference abit more before we got her. People seem to give us sympathy when I say she working stain!
Re: how much do folks train.... What Kate?for Sam?.......blimey my 4 year old nephew would have no problem identifying Sam as a ,'Wabwador' he has problems with his l's and r's ;D Dexter is a yewow wabwador ???...although we have been working on Red Lorry,Yellow Lorry recently!!!
Re: how much do folks train.... Yup, same here.She's obviously got a lot of Lab in her but what's the rest? Lady is 100% working stock as well. First Lab in this household so no idea how different they are from show stock. She's really eager to retrieve and won't give up if she has to find the dummy. Just goes on and on. I don't train much on the morning walk except some ad hoc stuff to keep her amused. Evenings the whole walk is training in one form or another and she loves it.
Re: how much do folks train.... Kate - maybe all this field and show stuff is a bit over egged then, and they are all individuals. Although. I am actively discouraging lots of stuff with Charlie - eg rewards for looking away from wildlife, especially ducks (I've got to get this boy round Kensington Gardens next week!) he definitely does seem pet material - which is handy... Still, it's true that the obsession with fetch is getting a bit much (he wouldn't know what a dummy was if it dropped on his nose - although neither would I...). I've just done 50 "bounces" (bouncy ball, very short fetches) in the garden, and he still followed me into the kitchen with his bounce ball... maybe he'll grow out of it like Tess... with a bit of luck!
