train to retrieve

sniperman

hi all,got my self a whippet x collie for the lamp,he is just 6 mts old,i already have him jumping into the car boot,would like him to retrieve when he starts catching,is it to soon to start training him?any tips advice welcome,thanks;)

patton69

perfect age. start with a tennis ball covered in rabbit fur in a lane way or hall way or similar get your back to a wall and get your puppy very interested in the ball tease him and bounce it. throw it up and catch it make a nice little game out of it them when he is fixed on it throw in on the ground and encourage him to pick it up loads of high pitched baby talk good dog n all that dont take it at first let him carry it then encourage him to come to you and just rub him for a nice bit before taking the ball from him success breeds success so first time he brings it just take it put it in your pocket and get down to his level and have a little play he will be keen again for next day fun fun fun short and sweet dont bore him once a day strictly until he gets the hang of it . read any gundog book its the same principles for training a lurcher you can later teach him to sit with the retrieve given your going to teach sit separately first then put the 2 together prob good to do your training in the dark under a street or house light if your going to be lamping the dog eventually you will need the dog coming into you without any hand or voice commands so in the long run youll have a dog that comes straight to you with a retrieve silently in the dark but for now make that ball and you the best things in his life then work up to a dead rabbit then onto a live 1.

hope he works out for you and there are a lot of training vids on youtube having a lurcher that will sit while you get over a gate cross a road set nets fix your lamp call a fox etc is a pleasure so teaching him to sit and stay on command would be well worth the effort anyway ill shut up now good luck hope this is of some help

sniperman

thanks alot patton69,some good advice there mate,will have some fun in the coming weeks