Dog trouble

Mr.Woodcock

Lads I have 13 month old springer who is quite nervous and timid, she works well in short bursts, but then looses interest in hunting and just wants attention, for example I had her working up a ditch, she started to pick up her pace and I seen a cock dive into the ditch 70 yards away, so I called her back in, when I tried to get her working again she just rolled at my feet looking for her belly to be rubbed or jumping at my side looking for attention, I'm not under any illusions of making a top gun dog of her, I just want something that will stay hunting! Any advice please???

kermitpwee

Mr.Woodcock wrote: »

Lads I have 13 month old springer who is quite nervous and timid, she works well in short bursts, but then looses interest in hunting and just wants attention, for example I had her working up a ditch, she started to pick up her pace and I seen a cock dive into the ditch 70 yards away, so I called her back in, when I tried to get her working again she just rolled at my feet looking for her belly to be rubbed or jumping at my side looking for attention, I'm not under any illusions of making a top gun dog of her, I just want something that will stay hunting! Any advice please???

Never call a young dog of a scent, you called her back, she did as she was told and wanted her belly rubbed then as she had done what she was told. a lot of modern spaniels are very soft, timid.I have one at the moment and the work I have to put into him. With these softer natured dogs they need game and then training. I have had very hard springers and they needed training first. With my timid springer he will hunt if praised and then left to his own devices. The minute I instruct him he will clam up. Less is more with these spaniels imo if they are softies. Never call a young dog of scent as they will think its a bad thing.
Your bitch started to hot up which is a good thing, then you called her off so she thought that she had been bold.
There is a lot of ****e spoken about keeping spaniels in range when on scent and the reality is that they will all hot up, through fieldcraft you get the dog to hot up when coming to a ditch so the bird will, flush, never work a spaniel down the middle of a field as he will have to much ground to open up on. Take the field in sections working to the ditch each time.
Field triallers can hold dogs on scent, some dogs will never be held on scent. Field triallers look for soft natured spaniels that can be brainwashed and then hunt ground that is laced with game. The average rough shooter has **** all game so wants a brute that would be too hot for trialling! Don't be worried about stopping the dog, get her on game. I made the mistake with my young spanile of training my young dog to a high standard before introuducing game, now I have to go backwards. Most spaniel books that advocate no game in the begining are written 20-40 years ago when dogs were hard going.
Just my 2 cents.

Mr.Woodcock

Thanks for the advice kermitpwee, have been trailing dead game threw the field behind the house, in attempt to rectify the problem, but when I do it with her in the back garden or the field behind the house she just follows it and dosent take to much interest, in the field however she tends to be hot to trot! Have tried what you said before but I just end up we'll out of shot of the bird!?

EPointer=Birdss

kermitpwee wrote: »

Never call a young dog of a scent, you called her back, she did as she was told and wanted her belly rubbed then as she had done what she was told. a lot of modern spaniels are very soft, timid.I have one at the moment and the work I have to put into him. With these softer natured dogs they need game and then training. I have had very hard springers and they needed training first. With my timid springer he will hunt if praised and then left to his own devices. The minute I instruct him he will clam up. Less is more with these spaniels imo if they are softies. Never call a young dog of scent as they will think its a bad thing.
Your bitch started to hot up which is a good thing, then you called her off so she thought that she had been bold.
There is a lot of ****e spoken about keeping spaniels in range when on scent and the reality is that they will all hot up, through fieldcraft you get the dog to hot up when coming to a ditch so the bird will, flush, never work a spaniel down the middle of a field as he will have to much ground to open up on. Take the field in sections working to the ditch each time.
Field triallers can hold dogs on scent, some dogs will never be held on scent. Field triallers look for soft natured spaniels that can be brainwashed and then hunt ground that is laced with game. The average rough shooter has **** all game so wants a brute that would be too hot for trialling! Don't be worried about stopping the dog, get her on game. I made the mistake with my young spanile of training my young dog to a high standard before introuducing game, now I have to go backwards. Most spaniel books that advocate no game in the begining are written 20-40 years ago when dogs were hard going.
Just my 2 cents.

Couldn't agree more.
Also get her on rabbits! Should drive her loopy!
As far as out of range for a shot - who cares - you can reign that in later - you'll never get a shot with an ankle accessory!