Positive Retriever Training

Handling my 3 year old, Foxred Labrador "Casey" in training on a blind retrieve (dummy in this case). In this particular exercise I am building confidence and speed, using a lot of voice encouragement when he takes on my command and moves in the right direction. A good positive reinforcement that I think should be used more often during the establishment period, as most retrievers responds fantastic to that.

We live in Sweden so thats the language I am using ;D Sorry about the windy weather.

To give you an idea of what we are doing: I am handling my dog on whistle and handsignals only to get him to run to a specific spot and once there, start to search for the hidden dummy. The dog has to trust me and obey my commands as he does not know at all where the dummy is, this is called a "blind" retrieve. The faster he finds the dummy the better of course, as this is retriever specific training.

I get him to point A where there is no dummy this time, he then has to obey my handsignal in the right direction in order to run to point B to find the dummy. It does not show, but the dummy is hidden inside a concrete tube.

A retriever is bred for hunting purposes and is a specialist in finding game such as birds or rabbits that has been shot out in the field. Today we are using dummies instead of game and there are plenty of different trials and competition types for the enthusiasts who wants to train and run their dogs in the way retrievers are meant to.

Contact your local Retriever Club to find out more if you are interested.


Casey has been trained to elite standards according to my philosophy: Using long term goals and baby-steps, a lot of focus on good communication and using positive reinforcement methods. His trust in me and joy for working and learning new things is rock-solid! My sweet little pride ´n joy he is...

So, if I were to give you all a message it would be: Dogtraining = FUN :-D for both trainer AND dog. To find that your dog has got a 100% trust in you is the greatest of feelings! So loosen up a bit...

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• retriever
• training
• dummy
• labrador
• field
• trial
• foxred
• dogtraining
• handling
• stolthetens

[chalk6666]

great work!yes its great to see positive training i too am sick of the e collars

[Stolthetens]

Thank you so much for your kind remarks :D Great to find that many of you dogowners and trainers all over the world feel the same way! I will soon post another vid of me and my Casey as we won an Eliteclass Workingtest this weekend, on a looooong single mark :D Wohooo! Happy, happy!

[Retrieverman1]

Holding onto force fetching and e-collars, as a badge of one's toughness and adherence to the old ways, is going to hurt working retrievers in the long run.

You have no idea how this plays to the public at large, even if it does work. People don't want to pinch or shock their dogs just to be able to do some retrieving tests.

But the American trial system essentially won't allow for anything else. The dogs are lined, even if there are good reasons for the dog not to line in th real world.

[musicofnote1]

@Stothetens - sorry, I skim read. My comments about the title were written thinking jocwalk was the trainer of the dog in the video. I was wrong. Feel free to delete my last comment as it was aimed at this person under a wrong assumption. Sorry.

[musicofnote1]

Your film title is "Positive Retriever Training". This is more true than most people would know, since it is +P (+ punishment) training. +R is also positive Retriever Training in that +R is +reinforcement.

[musicofnote1]

My grandmother lived to be 95 and smoked until she was 90. You're not going to say that disproves, that smoking is detrimental to your health, are you?

[jocwalk]

That's a pretty weak point you made. Once the uninitiated realize the potential of judicious use of e-collars, most realize how constructive a tool they can be, not to mention that they can help save a dog's life. (A little nick of electricity is a lot less painful than a car bumper.) There are no long-term health effects from e-collars. My dog runs highly technical, very complicated scenarios with a great attitude so I guess with your analogy, he already has lung cancer???

[musicofnote1]

@jocwalk - well, I don't have to be a smoker to be critical of smoking either. I wonder why Robert Milner, even before he switched to clicker training for his gun dogs was always so against e-collars (let's not be cute, eh? They are shock collars.) If you are, as you write "what is shown here due mostly to my positive methods with only occasional e-collar corrections from extended distances." then you are using +P as well as +R. +R/-P I can see, +P not. My $.02

[jocwalk]

The e-collar is a valuable tool and one of the fairest training methods when used correctly. In most of my training sessions, I use only the green "praise tone" button on the transmitter. However, my 13 month-old is doing FAR more complex blinds than what is shown here due mostly to my positive methods with only occasional e-collar corrections from extended distances. My experience has been that the biggest critics of the e-collar have never used one.

[supernaturalbc2009]

Thanks for the positive video. I enjoy any that show a positive way to train your dog to retrieve and build teamwork based on trust, not fear!!

[musicofnote1]

Tremendous! Wonderful teamwork! We have a Flat-Coated Retriever we're training for Dummy work and dog Dancing, also exclusively with positive re-enforcement methods (Clicker with treats and play-rewards). I'll never understand why people insist this can only be done with e-collars and the like.

[rygrystaldrigrist]

how do I train my dog to follow direction like you did? :) great vid