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My girl is 8 months old and is progressing really well on retrieving. Only issue she is timid, not gun shy. She is afraid of the water. She can swim as she has been in a couple times when she was retrieving and chased the ball into the water and it was deeper than i thought. She swam out to turn around and came back with no issues, so she can swim. So how to get her to like the water without scaring her?
What made her afraid of water as you stated did something happen when she was younger , you state she has no problem chasing the ball in the water well use that to your advantage go to a creek get her feet wet DON T FORCE THE DOG get in with her show her that is fun use here natural instinct to get her going . Once she does get in even a toe give lots of praise positive reinforcement . It may take time but have patients . Good luck
I have been taking her to the beach once a week for 6 weeks. She will go in till her chest hits the water with a little help with treats. 2 weeks ago in Ottawa she was playing with a couple other labs. When they went to the river for a swim she just stopped 30ft away and waited for them to come back. At this rate she will be a good field dog until she learns to like water. Looking forward to the early goose season, field hunting.
I'd try a kid pool in the yard, the $15 special from wal mart. Labs love water, laying in it. playing in it. Especially when it's hot out. I don't have a lab myself, but my girlfriend and her parents have had quite a few and the kids pool is always their favorite "toy" besides the ball. Maybe it will be easier to encourage her to like it.
The way she acts sounds like my shepherd mix, he will go in but he won't swim.
Go in swimming and make it look like your having the best time of your life. Worked great for an 8 year old rescued Lab my gf has.
You state the beach sometimes large bodies of water can mess a pup up some times they need to see the other side(land) they will get use to it
I have tried all of these, except maybe the creek to see other side. I have tried to get her in the pool and that doesn't work. Had to take her to vet yesterday, she has ear infections, most likely from the swim 3 weeks ago when we thought the water was shallow. I do appreciate the suggestions. My other lab was 7 months old before he would go near water, then it was like I flipped a switch and I couldn't keep him out of the water. Maybe the same will happen with her. The vet, how has 3 hunting labs, says she has seen them wait a year before they take to water.
I wouldn't worry to much about it. Had a brit that I didn't think knew how to swim. That is until I dropped a pheasant in some deep water. She saw it drop and without hesitation ran into the water swam like a marathon swimmer grabbed the pheasant made the turn at which point she realized that she didn't know how to swim. There was quite a bit of dog paddling and flailing about but she made it back in with bird in tow. Think your dog just needs a reason to get motivated.
Had a young dog that was not able to get into the water until she was almost a year old (a Sept puppy plus surgery recovery) She was keen on a bumper and we had her running into wading water doing retrieves. After several retrieves and appearing to be very comfortable, the bumper was tossed just into swimming depth water .... took a couple a seconds to make up her mind and she was in.
Is there another dog around that is a swimmer .... and also not "possessive" about a thrown bumper? Playing with the other dogs in Ottawa is not the same as her watching another dog retrieve. Repeatedly throw a bumper for the dog who is good in the water and it should only take a couple of retrieves before your dog will want to join in on the fun.
I'm of the same opinion (not that it counts for much). I'd find a quiet pond or slow moving section of river with no distractions (no other dogs or people) and have her do water retrieves - short sessions getting longer at her pace, short retrieves getting further into deeper water at her pace.Quote:
Originally Posted by finsfurfeathers
She may never "enjoy" water, but if she does water retrieves, isn't that OK? My Lab sometimes enjoys water too much when we're flyfishing and she loves to wallow in mud puddles, so that's the other side of the coin.
Good luck. Keep us posted.
i like the idea of having her watch another dog retrieve. Just have to find one somewhere.
Today out for a walk along a creek that was high after the rain. Came across a few ducks sunning themselves on the bank. My pup saw them and started for them. I have always in the past with her and my other lab said no chasing birds. But thought I'd give her a chance to see if she'd go for a swim. Told her to fetch and off she went. Stopped short of the water and watched the ducks swim. Not time yet I guess.
Sabmgb
Where are you located? You mentioned swimming in Ottawa. I may have missed your actual location
Sent from my SM-G986W using Tapatalk
I live in Chatham, was visiting my son in Ottawa.
Reach out to the people at Essex Hunting Retriever Club. If you're on Facebook, shoot them a message. Great people!Quote:
Originally Posted by sabmgb
had her trap shooting today. Started off with her back 20yd for a couple sets. Then I signed up and shot a couple sets so 50 shots with her next to me. she was a bit nervous, but ended up laying down against my leg, so she should be ready for field hunting for early goose.
IMO this is not the way to introduce a shy dog to gun fire. Imagine being asked to sit beside someone shooting trap with no hearing protection and having no idea what is happening...Quote:
Originally Posted by sabmgb
Contact a retriever club ASAP and follow their advice.
Proper gun introduction should be done starting with the gun at a distance and the dog retrieving (preferably a live bird like a clipped wing pigeon) and not at the trap club where you have little control over the amount of gunfire. The dog should be so focused on the bird that they do not notice the gunshot. The distance between the gunner and you with the dog should be slowly decreased so the the gunner is eventually beside you. At any time if the dog stops to look at the gun on the way to retrieve, stop the session. The idea is for your dog to link birds to gunfire and therefore gunfire to birds .... not nervously sitting besides you trying to understand why you are firing a 12 gauge off over her head.Quote:
Originally Posted by sabmgb
At this point on the calendar, I would pass on early goose opening and focus on proper gun introduction. And when you do go out, leave your gun behind so you can focus on your dog in their introductory hunts and have one hunter shooting that will listen to you if you ask them to stop shooting should the dog not react well to the gunfire. What you do NOT want to do is go out on her initial hunt(s) with a bunch of hunters who will all unload at the same time so it sounds like WWW 3 ... pretty much guaranteeing a gunshy dog.
Agree with Burlygirl and Dilly .... being in Chatham, contact the Essex Hunting Retriever Club ..... great bunch of retriever people / hunters with a vast amount of retriever training experience.
Here we go a disaster in the making. How many times do we hear people taking their dog to the trap range. Some tolerate it and get through it, some develop a shyness for the gun. I suppose there is few of you if any who have had that challenge to overcome correctly and develop a solid gun dog.
Dakota has given you good advice.
I suppose you have all the basics in place as plan to take your dog out for the early goose season?
Things like sit, stay, here, come and down. Perhaps you've even done FF, some marking other training?
Best to hook up with some other trainers in your area or even a club. You will not regret it and you will develop a far better trained dog in the end.
PS... are you leaving your gun home on opening day?
To echo these thoughts, the above poster isn't trying to be rude. He is trying to get your attention FAST before you dig yourself a hole that you don't have the tools to get out of. The people active in this group are passionate about dogs and giving our four legged partners the support they need to be a great partner in the field. Guess what -- it takes two to tango. The two legged member of the partnership needs to do their part as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by krakadawn
Kindly reach out to the Essex Hunting Retriever Club guys. Your dog is not a new toy to rush out and play with only to ask it to do things that are beyond its reach. That'll set you back MONTHS and when a dog is young, you don't want to lose those sponge-like windows of learning opportunity. Trust me, dog training takes a village. You need the knowledge and experience of those boys down there. Reach out.
Do you know how many times I've left my gun at home? Every time I hunt with someone new, I leave my gun at home. I concentrate on my dog and I also want to see if this new person is safe for my working dog to be around. The first moron who puts my dog in an unsafe position will be on the receiving end of one ugly situation.Quote:
Originally Posted by krakadawn
Very well said!
X2 , been there .