baileykira

working setters you are not worth the type to construct this sentence,iam well aware of the construction of the keyboard ,fyi i am not the type of person once intrigued by something to let it lie i have to know everything and anything as regards the subject so yes two days may seem like a short time to you but to me its too long,i had the dvds before i even posted the comment,so yes maybe if you do not have anything constructive to say you should just not comment at all. lablover Kira is nearly two years old she lived with her breeder until i responded to her rescue notice at my local dog club,i have had her almost a month now,she is happy energetic showing all the usual traits of the breed,she is gettting really good at retreiving ect.although she hasn't shown any negative behaviour we have noticed that even when we discipline our other dog she cowers .she was disciplined verbally for doing something wrong in the house we gave her a strong verbal "no"and she went cowering and weeing and yelping to the back room,there are also times when she will be playing with another dog and she will yelp non stop until told she is okay in my opinion the other dog was not overly rough,we have had her checked over by the vet who finds nothing wrong physically,i suspect therefore there may have been some rough handling,she is responding very well to positive training.

i didnt say the check chain was like a clicker but some dogs respond to the links in the chain moving before they are corrected neither of my two dogs have EVER had a check chain around their necks i use only positive training methods ie dog does well dog receives verbal praise the dog only receives food treats after leaving training arena it is not fair to have dogs scrounging around for food when there are other people around who do not wish to train their dogs in this manner. it can be chaotic during off lead training excercises not to mention dangerous having big boofy labs bounding up on you whilst training your dog cos you have food in your pocket this happened to an older gentleman in my next door neighbours dog class he had to have surgery when pushed he fell over his own dog and broke his hip. And no i have nothing against labs my family breed pure bred gundog labs they are however renowned as food lovers

I dont wish this to seem argumentative but there can be a danger in training dogs with TOO many treats , dogs just want you to tell them how proud you are that they have pleased you, i usually only give my dogs treats when their training session is over as the reward and as a release command ie class is over. that said there are many things dogs respond very well to fresh meat,home made liver,Kabanossa,cheese cubed(vegetarian)there is also a commercial product available at the supermarket it comes in a black bag with heart shaped treats inside its all natural ingriedients with no by products but the name at this time eludes me and so many other things i use chicken necks with older dogs good luck experimenting with all the various things out there

FOR YOUR INFORMATION I DIDNT SAY I FOUND FF BARBARIC I SAID I WOULD NOT BE TRYING IT WITH KIRA SIMPLY BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT RESPOND TO HEAVY HANDED TRAINING TECHNIQUES/CORRECTION METHODS IE CHECK CHAINS A CLIP ROUND THE EAR IS ENOUGH TO SEND HER HOWLING TO THE BACK ROOM COWERING AND WETTING THE FLOOR I SUSPECT THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A LITTLE HEAVY HANDED SCLODING AT HER OLD HOME. :p ;) I AM NOT THE TYPE OF PERSON WHO DOES NOT FULLY EDUCATE THEMSELVES AS REGARDS A TOPIC BEFORE DISMISSING IT I HAVE NOW SEEN FF IN ACTION FROM ANOTHER GUNDOG OWNER AND THROUGH DVDS ON THE SUBJECT I PICKED UP AT THE GUNSTORE AS WELL AS READING VARIOUS ARTICLES FOR AND AGAINST FF ,SPOKE TO MY MOTHER AND UNCLE WHO BOTH BREED AND TRAIN VARIOUS GUNDOG BREEDS AND THEY SAID IT DEPENDS UPON THE NATURE OF THE DOG TWO OF MY UNCLES MALE DOGS ARE FF TRAINED AND ARE CHAMPIONS IN THE FIELD,AND I DECIDED ITS NOT FOR THIS PARTICULAR DOG AT THIS TIME I DONT THINK IT IS BENEFICIAL TO GET A HEAD OF STEAM UP AND SLAM PEOPLE JUST BECAUSE THEY DO NOT AGREE WITH YOU AND FOR YOUR INFORMATION I HAVE BEEN TRAINING AND WORKING WITH DOGS FROM A YOUNG AGE I HAVE ATTENDED TRIALS IN THE UNITED STATES AND EUROPE THE ONLY REASON I POSTED ON THIS SITE AND HAVE ASKED THE VARIOUS QUESTIONS I HAVE ASKED IS DUE TO THE FACT I HAVE ONLY BEEN IN AUSTRALIA FOR SIX YEARS AND I HAVE BEEN OUT OF THE GUNDOG/TRIALING ECT ''SCENE" SINCE I ARRIVED SO DONT BE SO QUICK TO PASS JUDGEMENT .KIRA RESPONDS BETTER WHEN WORKING AS A TEAM WITH ME HAVING THE FINAL SAY ON THE MATTER TO HAND,THAT SAID SHE IS AN EAGER TO PLEASE TYPE OF DOG ALWAYS GIVING EYE CONTACT WHEN TRAINING AND RESPONDS WELL TO PRAISE,IF ANYTHING I WOULD SAY I USE WHATS KNOWN AS POSITIVE REWARD TRAINING USING MY KNOWLEDGE AS A DOG BEHAVIOURIST I LOOK TO WHAT MAY BE CAUSING THE DOG TO NOT OBEY A COMMAND AND 90% OF THE TIME THE FAULT LIES WITH THE OWNERS INABILITY TO RESPOND TO THE DOGS CUES SHE IS REWARDED WITH VERBAL PRAISE WHICH KEEPS HER INTEREST DURING TRAINING I WONT LIE BY SAYING SHE CAN BE LITTLE FOOD ORIENTATED BUT THIS IS NOT ALLOWED AT MY OBEDIENCE/AGILITY GROUP SO SHE LOOKS FORWARD TO THE LIVER TREAT WHEN HER OBEDIENCE SESSION IS OVER AND TAKES THE GIVING OF THAT LIVER TREAT TO BE HER RELEASE COMMAND IE THE CLASS IS OVER. MOST ARTICLES ON THIS BREED AND BREEDERS WOULD DISAGREE WITH YOU STRONGLY ON THE NATURE OF BRITTANYS AS REGARDS TRAINING METHODS THAT INVOLVE TOO MUCH CORRECTION AS THEY DO NOT RESPOND WELL TO IT,PERHAPS YOUR EXPERIENCE OF THESE BRITTANYS YOU CLAIM TO BE SOBS ARE ENTIRE ADOLESCENT MALES WHICH I AGREE CAN REQUIRE SOME DIRECTION . I BELIEVE THAT SATURDAYS TRIALING EVENT IS TO BE A RETREIVAL TRIAL I DONT REALLY HAVE ALL THE DETAILS JUST GOING TO SUPPORT MY FRIEND WHO BREEDS AND TRAINS BORDER COLLIES. KIRA IS ALSO FROM FRENCH LINEAGE AND THEREFORE OF THAT SIZING NOT THE LONG LEGGED BRITTANYS COMING OUT OF AMERICA BRED TO KEEP UP WITH HORSES MAYBE THIS IS THE VARIETY OF BRITTANYS TO WHICH YOU REFER. I ALWAYS KEEP AN OPEN MIND ON ANY SUBJECT AS MY ULTIMATE GOAL IS T FIND THAT WHICH DOES RIGHT BY ANY DOG ,I ALWAYS LOOK AT EVERY ANIMAL INCLUDING HUMANS AS AN INDIVIDUAL WITH INDIVIDUAL MATURATION AND DEVELOPMENTAL GOALS AND AS I SAID ITS NOT FOR THIS DOG BUT IN THE FUTURE WHO KNOWS MAYBE FF WILL BE AN OPTION WITH ANOTHER DOG.I AGREE THAT SIT AND FETCH ARE NON NEGOTIABLE COMMANDS BUT I WOULD ALSO ADD STAY TO THAT LIST FOR SIMILAR REASONS TO THE SIT AS YOU MENTIONED SOME PEOPLE NEED TO GET OF THEIR HIGH HORSE AND QUIT LORDING IT UP OVER OTHERS COS THEY BELIEVE THEMSELVES TO BE A WORLD AUTHORITY

Seems i opened a can of worms with that last question so how does ff relate to them forcing the dog to work a line,i will NOT be trying any of those methods with Kira,Brittanys do not respond well to heavy handed training and i think she may have had some negative experience in her past as she shrinks back at some commands if too assertive,there are some great vizla photos on the brittany retreival trials that you sent me the link for FHR.No i havent heard of the K9 training sessions i would go if there was something of interest for either of my dogs. i found kira's dad has been involved in field work for quite some time so must be genetic inheritance/instinct. Do the trialling events normally have beginners sections as it seems the one in cheltenham does, not that i intend to enter but at least she can have a go and i can buy her a dummy bird there. I made her one as per instructions on an american website i found and injected it with the scent stuff i got at a gun shop,she loves retreiving it and thankfully its one that floats regardless of whether its been punctured or not though that remains to be seen :cool:

HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WHEN I FIRST JOINED OUR LOCAL OBEDIENCE CLUB THEY WILL ALLOW YOU TO TRAIN THE DOG USING A FLAT COLLAR OR MARTINGALE BUT PREFER CHECK CHAINS WHICH IF USED CORRECTLY ARE NOT CHOKE CHAINS ,THE SAME RESPONSE CAN BE ACHEIVED USING A CLICKER AS EVENTUALLY THE DOG RESPONDS TO THE CLICKING NOISE PRE CORRECTION ,THEY MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE ONLY ONE COLLAR ON THE DOG DURING THE TRAINING SESSIONS.IT IS VERY HARD IF PEOPLE IN THE CLASS ARE GIVING THEIR DOG FOOD EVERY FIVE SECONDS IN THAT TYPE OF CLASS,YOU HAVE THE LABRADORS ENTERING THE TRAINING AREA SCROUNGING FOR FOOD INSTEAD OF DOING AS EXPECTED OF THEM AND THEN YOU HAVE THE ISSUE OF DOGS WHO ARE LEARNING ABOUT FOOD REFUSAL ECT. TRAINING IS NOT SO CUT AND DRY IF YOU ARE SURE THAT THIS CLUB IS NOT FOR YOU,OR YOU HAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT THE CLUB,YOUR DOG WILL PICK UP ON YOUR ANXIETY AND ''PLAY UP'' YOU COULD TRAIN THE DOG YOURSELF THERE ARE VARIOUS BOOKS AND ONLINE SITES FOR DOG TRAINING,HAVE YOU CONSIDERED GETTING SOMEONE TO DO HOME BASED TRAINING WITH YOU ? YOU COULD START YOUR OWN CLUB,IM SURE THERE IS EXPERIENCED PEOPLE ON THIS SITE IN YOUR AREA

It does look a bit suspect,could be beetroot or something like that but i doubt it,you get what you pay for i suppose so you have to choose for yourself and what your dog will eat.IT still contains large quantities of fat and sugar .i like the ads though the dogs all look great especially the springer spaniel(i think)at the end of the ad the voice over suggests ate something from the bin,probably more nutritious than what was in the pedigree can

have you spoken to the people who own the other dogs maybe you could arrange to meet them on neutral ground and let the dogs sniff at each other and get used to each others scent or inform them that you walk every day say at 11am so that they can discipline their dogs or offer some words whilst you obviously discipline your dog but i do believe if the dogs were actually to meet the novelty would be taken away.you could also try to distract your dog with its favourite toy or i hate to say it appeal to its supreme currency FOOD!!!!! to reinforce when it does as you wish.

Thanks sandra yes i am trying with her ,her breeder did say she thought the dog would have potential but time constraints blah blah meant she couldnt give her what she needed,hence why i now have her.i do really need to take some photos of her .its hard as my partner can only make it every so often on a Sunday to the classes.i'm going to a field trials event on saturday in Cheltenham victoria so maybe i will get some feathers/bird as suggested on wgaa website. JUST WANTED TO KNOW IF ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY KNOWLEDGE OF SOMETHINE CALLED FORCE FETCHING SEEMS TO COME UP A LOT IN THOSE LINKS YOU GUYS PROVIDED.is it something to do with ensuring the dog has a soft mouth with the quarry?

Just drop some kibble over the course the labs wont work if there is food around ,i managed to get my hands on some fire hose so i will have to sweet talk my partner to do the necessary stitching ha ha. We have one of those air cong things and the water one which she seems to prefer i cant keep her out of the water in fact ,she would find a 1cm depth puddle to jump in.her breeder had never even shown her water or had her near it ,barring the odd bath. Kira would like me to brag on her behalf though she was assessed for obedience on Sunday and she has been put into green 3 straight away,so is eligible for agility,we had a go on the apparatus and blew them away with how well she does the jumps and weaves.they seem to believe that we have a good working relationship and wouldnt beleive it when i said i have had her for only three weeks.its only capped of a great week with Collingwood winning the ANZAC DAY game . Thanks to everyone for all the links to the various sights im driving my partner nuts telling her all the things im going to make (with her sewing input)for the dog.oh well the life of a dog lover im sure your all just as crazy.

I had the same problem with our collie,we used the litter mate yelp method but soon worked out that if we increased his things he was allowed to chew on ie bones chew sticks raw hide ect that he stopped The best two dollars i ever spent was on a rope toy that i could play with the collie with thus he got the ''rough '' play he wanted and we were nip free i agree with shoe monster you just gotta love those little needle puppy teeth!!!!!!!!

thanks guys i have heard that these days you can use a gun to train the dog similar to a starting pistol ie just makes a bang noise. As far as the gun licence thing goes i have held a licence since i was twelve years old and learned to shoot much earlier than this,both my parents were dog breeders of gun dogs (labradors)so that was kind of inevitable i believe she will enjoy being a working dog she just loves looking for her ''sock'' her whole body wags .another question anybody out there know where i can purchase the relevant leads ,retreiving dummies ect? and yes i agree with you fhr it is wonderful seeing a dog just click with that which they were bred to do just started to train the collie at herding classes. :rolleyes:

most of the good quality premium brand foods have money back on return of the remaining product,most dog food brands also have websites through which you can get free samples of the food as i think i have said before Petstock stores www.petstock.com.au and upmarket pets melbourne victoria market have heaps of free sample packs of food by the way it takes my dogs about two to three months to eat a large bag of royal canin but they are a supplement to a natural diet

well she is loving the obedience training and the agility,showing no fear unlike our collie who has issues with the tunnel ,the brittany is fairly quick getting her way round the various components of the course.my friend suggested the trialling because it apparently throws more of a challenge to the dog and owner . apparently there is a huge trialling event at cheltenham next weekend i am hoping to go and get an idea as to what it actually entails,talk to people who have been doing it for a while. well as far as it goes i am happy and committed to do what is right by the dog by finding the sport that suits her best that said i find flyball a bit ....well how should i say it weird ;) oh yeah austogo if her freestyle dance partner is Brodie Holland i will be very very happy i wouldnt kick him outta my kennel

hi everyone just acquired a female brittany spaniel,black and white roan i am in a bit of a quandry as to what activity to engage her in,she is fairly well trained off lead could use a little work though her recall sits drop blah blah are all well.happy to do the tunnels,hurdles,weave polls of agility circuits,there in lies the problem she is also showing signs of being a great hunting dog as she reguarly flushes out birds and will stand on her hind legs pointing to ''prey'' until i say well done kira good find,a friend of mine from moorabbin dog obedience recommends i try trialling her what is this and how do i prepare her training wise for this she is purebred and registered ect whats involved ect please no one suggest flyball as she seems to have an aversion to tennisballs. ps i have tried her retreiving a sock filled with duck feathers and scented with duck blood as this is what my mum and dad trained our gundogs (labradors) with never unsupervised and only at special times she seems to have the knack for finding it quickly we play a game with her by hiding the sock with her out of the room then letting her in asking her to search and of course she always finds it her quickest time is around three secs so please any advise would be welcome also any advise on clubs ect that provide such training as i said im currently training at moorabbin but live in the st kilda area