Small Training Steps Reap Big Rewards

Living up to his name, Hugo certainly thought he was the boss when I first met him with Bryn his owner. Hugo has for the last two years been a family dog doing many things you wouldn’t encourage for a working dog. When Bryn was invited to join a shoot to work his dog he was both excited and worried. Hugo wasn’t a dog you could take on a shoot. He barked for retrieves, ran off, lacked recall, pulled on the lead and was generally defiant

Bryn started training in July and has attended lessons once a month. Their training journey hasn’t been plain sailing.  Correcting behavioural problems isn’t easy but with commitment and dedication they’ve achieved a great amount. This weekend I worked Hugo as though he was on a shoot. He was hunting/quartering through thick cover, making sure Bryn knew how far to allow him to hunt. It was also essential to watch for the signs when Hugo might start to think he’s self-employed.

This weekend is their first day beating on their shoot. Whilst we’ve worked hard to get Hugo shooting field ready, there’s still lots to refine. On the first day it’s all about the experience, seeing what happens and certainly not allowing him to work all day. Having a well behaved working dog on a shoot is so rewarding but always remember the first day, even for the most well trained dog, is mind blowing. It’s better to ease your dog in and have an enjoyable full season than a short one.

Posted: October 16, 2018