Testimonial – Gundog training with Skye the Labrador.

We have a Labrador named Skye who is 15 months old and who we have been training since 14 weeks old.  We wanted to take Skye’s training to another level especially as her role would be as a working gundog.  We were wary when looking for a trainer for Skye as we had previously had a bad experience with one of our older dogs whereby a trainer ruined the dog through using excessive training aids.

We contacted Damian at Tessleymoor Gundogs who provided us with advice and guidance in dealing with Skye and soon after we joined in with puppy obedience classes.  It is safe to say that Skye excelled in this environment and she was soon at the right level and age to commence with gundog training.  At first we had 1-2-1 lessons which really moved her on a level in her skills and instead of using her sight she quickly started to use her nose with the introduction of blind retrieves.  We then moved onto the group gundog training sessions and whilst these were the most challenging and highlighted to us just how ‘unsteady’ Skye was I thoroughly enjoyed them and saw the benefits immediately.

Before we knew it shooting season was upon us and whilst she wasn’t quite 1 year old and had some way to go in her training I was looking forward to taking her with me to give her exposure to the shooting world.  I took the decision to take her on a small rough shoot to see how she got on.  All of the retrieves were blind which was a big challenge for such a young inexperienced dog but she stepped up to the challenge making every part of the training process worthwhile.

Since this outing I haven’t done any work with Skye and its back to steadiness and control with a few retrieves thrown in for good measure.  1-2-1’s have commenced again and I am looking forward to more group gundog training in the near future.

Needless to say the experience I have had in training and putting it into practice is far different than I expected due to the experience and commitment Damian brings.  Rightly or wrongly I did what I did with Damian’s support and wouldn’t be anywhere near achieving what I have done with her had I not of had Damian as my trainer.

Posted: February 19, 2013