How To Train A Hunting Dog

Training a hunting dog may be a very simple process in some cases and a long and complicated process in other cases. However, most dog owners who wish to hunt with their dog, either for leisure or competitively, will find training a hunting dog to be somewhere in between the extremes listed above. Most hunting enthusiasts will agree the training process is greatly simplified if the chosen dog comes from strong herding lines. Breeders who are seriously dedicated to promoting the dogs in their breeding lines as hunting dogs will take special care to ensure the litters they produce are filled with dogs that have inbred traits which make them ideal for hunting. This is done through a process of selective breeding. In searching for a good hunting dog of a particular breed, potential dog owners should search for kennels who specify they breed specifically for hunting ability. Additionally, the potential dog owners should also visit the parents of the puppy they intend to purchase and learn as much as possible about these dogs including the hunting abilities of the parents. However, even the best bred dogs will still require some degree of training. This article will provide a few basic training tips for training a hunting dog to either participate in field trials or accompany the owner on hunting trips for leisure purposes.

Basic obedience should be the cornerstone of the training process for a hunting dog. This is important for training a dog for any activity. Whether the owner wishes to hunt with his dog or compete in any other type of competitive events it is worthwhile to build up a strong foundation of obedience. This should include training the dog in basic commands such as sit, down, stay and come. Additionally, the owner may also wish to work on training each of these commands from both nearby and from a distance. Distance training is very important because hunting dogs are often required to work a distance away from the owner. The owner may start out by training the basic command with the dog close by and once he has a firm grasp on the commands can begin working on each of these commands from farther away. In working on distance training the owner may wish to begin by giving commands from only a few feet away and then work on adding more and more distance gradually.

The owner should also consider the signals they wish to use for these basic commands. Verbal commands may not always be ideal because if the dog is far away from the handler, the handler’s voice may not carry far enough to convey the command to the dog. This should be considered while training the dog to obey obedience commands from a short distance and the owner should decide on the type of cues they will use and should remain consistent for both nearby training and distance training. The use of a whistle as a cue or hand signals are ideal because these signals can often be used to give a command from a vast distance.

Teaching a retrieve is another aspect of training a hunting dog. Most properly bred hunting dogs will have a natural instinct to retrieve does not necessarily mean the dog will not need some degree of instruction to retrieve properly. In particular many hunting dogs may have a difficult time maintaining a soft mouth and with holding the retrieval object. Owners can begin to teach a retrieve at a very young age. Most owners can begin to teach a retrieve as soon as they acquire a new puppy. They may even find the breeders have already worked on teaching the dog to retrieve. To begin the process of teaching a hunting dog to retrieve, the owner can start out by finding an object in which the dog shows a great deal of interest. There are bumpers which are designed specifically for hunting dogs but you can also use any other object such as a tennis ball or another toy which the dog finds interesting. Hold the puppy close to you and entice him by waving or shaking the retrieve object in front of the dog. Then toss it a short distance of about 3-4 feet away from the puppy. If the puppy goes after the object immediately and picks it up call him to you immediately to let him know you want him to come back to you. Ideally he will come back to you with the retrieve object in his mouth. However, it is not uncommon for the puppy to drop the object when you call him because he is too excited to return to you. If this happens, ask him where his ball or toy is and ask him to get it. It may also be worthwhile to handle the object by shaking it to entice the puppy to pick it up again. When the puppy brings the object back to you, praise and reward him to let him know he completed the task correctly. As the puppy becomes confident fetching the object when you toss it 3-4 feet, you can progress to tossing the object a few additional feet each time. After awhile you can place the object at a set distance before releasing the dog to retrieve the object instead of always throwing the object for the dog.

Once you have established a firm retrieve, you can begin training your dog or puppy to do more advanced retrieves. This can be accomplished by walking your dog to a location, dropping the retrieve object in this location and then walking the dog away from the object. With the dog facing away from the object you can train them to focus on you and wait for your signal to retrieve the object. Once you give this signal the dog will turn and run to the location and retrieve the object. This teaches both control and the ability to retrieve from memory. When you start training these skills it is wise to keep the waiting period short and to also keep the distance from the object relatively short. As the dog progresses, you can increase both the waiting time and distance from the object.

The training tips listed above are just a few of the basics of training a good hunting dog. Owners who wish to hunt or compete with their dog may need more advanced training to ensure their dog is capable of performing all of the necessary tasks. This can be done by relying on books on the subject of training a hunting dog, turning to online resources, contacting a local gun club or consulting trainers who specialize in the process of training hunting dogs.