Kennel training and must haves?

Loosenutswelding

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Jul 16, 2018
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I recently put a deposit down on my little man and I will go pick him up on the 13th of June( 8weeks). I have been researching and asking multiple guys with dogs but would like some more info. How do you guys go about kennel training? Also what are some must haves for a bird dog? I got a retriever book and gun dog book also bought a ruff land medium kennel some toys a couple bumpers. The pup is a gsp
 
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Join NAVHDA (North American versatile hunting dog association) There are three chapters in so Cal, inland empire, So cal and San Diego. Get a copy of the NAVHDA green book it will show you all the basic training steps to do with a versatile dog. Attend training days that each chapter has where you will meet like minded folks who will help you get him trained properly.
 
For my 3 pointing dogs, as puppies I fed them inside their kennels for a few months. When you open the kennel gate give the command "kennel" in a soothing voice for pups and then place pup inside. Train pup not to exit kennel once door is open until you give them a command like "Alright" or "OK". I have also put an old sweaty T-shirt in the kennel when I transported them to keep them company :) But retrievers are notorious for chewing and swallowing rags or any cloth left behind. This has worked for me but Im sure some other members will have some great advice especially for retrievers.
 
Appreciate your feedback Smokey!! I was reading on some other forums that say to take the pup out to use the bathroom as soon as you let him out of the kennel. Other than sleeping at night in the kennel how much time should he spend during the day in there?
 
I wasn't strict enough in certain respects: after a couple of moths the Pup wasn't sleeping in his kennel anymore because I had an older dog that he could share the doggie bed or rug with. My pointing dogs have been formally trained so I only laid down the foundation and then the slept in their kennels while they were away being trained. Down the road Gun dogs learn that going into the kennel mens fun because of hunting and exercise so it's not difficult to get them to go into their kennels in the vehicle.
I never put the pups into the kennel at home during the day, it was only for feeding and sleeping. They did and do get staked out in the field when training or camping.
 
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if you can survive the first year of GSP ownership then you can survive anything :)

crate train your pup! its ok to put them in day or night and try to not make it punishment.. they do not get what or why you are punishing them. dogs in the wild crawl into holes for long periods of time so do not be scared to put it in. in no time you can do 8hrs in the box but it comes at a price a big price.

You got a dog that if not mentally and physically engaged will eat the drywall off your house, the spare tire under your truck and every shoe for 30miles.

I will never own one ever again, they are a lot of work. Its way more fun to shoot over a friends that has to put all the effort into. Good luck and be ready for a big time commitment.

not to late to back out and get a lab, black of course :)
 
Ha ! my present GSP is a joy compared to my english pointer (RIP) That EP was a terror on chewing, running away, killing neighborhood cats and skunks. The GSP did chew up me sunday go to mass Bruno Magli loafers though :(
 
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you are making me second guess my decision !! Haha jk there's no turning back now ! Plenty of exercise is definitely on the agenda and he will have a half acre piece of land to roam in as well. I'm pretty stocked on this new adventure and glad Im gonna have a new hunting buddy in the duck blind and especially when chasing quail and pheasant. Who knows I might go completely crazy and start chasing some chukar haha
 
Loose Nuts (funny) I miss read your post and though you bought a retriever and I see it is a GSP. Great smart dogs. Don't play fetch with the pup and don't pull or yank anything out of his mouth because this will translate into chomping birds and not giving them up later down the road. walk him over every nook and cranny of your half acre on his first days so he can explore and get his confidence up and become bold. put away your water hoses cause they will be history. Get him used to your hands and being handled gently by you so that later in life when you have to pull thorns and other stuff he will be used to your hands. You should be the main one feeding him if at all possible for his first year. I could go on and on trying to remember lessons learned. ...
 
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Really appreciate the feedback Smokey. And I definitely will do what you said. Around what age did you introduce fetching and bumpers ? Also where are good areas to do some water training once all this Corona stuff is over? I have seen the dog training area around San j and heard that Prado had an area..
 
I have never done water training or fetching because Im not a duck hunter. I do go to Prado with my buddy and his GSP to exercise the dogs and to reinforce commands before upland season starts.
I was going to send my dog this summer to get finished by my trainer until the market took a dump.
 
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you are making me second guess my decision !! Haha jk there's no turning back now ! Plenty of exercise is definitely on the agenda and he will have a half acre piece of land to roam in as well. I'm pretty stocked on this new adventure and glad Im gonna have a new hunting buddy in the duck blind and especially when chasing quail and pheasant. Who knows I might go completely crazy and start chasing some chukar haha
Exercise is not the answer all you do is make athletes out of them. Discipline and training is the way you gain control. You have to wear them mentally to get them to settle down. I am working with a gsp now that the owner bought and parked in his apartment for eight months and then brought him to me. That dog thinks it's his world and I'm just living in it so he is suffering some severe readjustments to life at the moment. He did himself and the dog no favors by doing what he did. The owner will have to let me have the dog for probably six to seven months to fix the fact that he did nothing with it up front. The reason I have a business is that most folks are not willing to spend fifteen to fourty five minutes a day every day and train the dog using simple protocols. The hardest part of training a dog is training the owner. Personally I wouldn't own a gsp or viszla, the first three or four years they are a total pain because they are hyperactive and you must control that behavior by discipline, training and kenneling on a daily basis. Either you take charge of them or they will take charge of you. PM if you like and I will try to help you, like I said earlier join Navhda and immerse yourself in it. P.s. Smokey yanking birds out of there mouth which is not proper training is not what causes chomping, lack of proper force fetch training is where that starts along with dogs with high prey drive and that has to be controlled during force fetch training. You must teach a dog to pick up and hold before you go to fetch otherwise you may end up with a chomping issue you will need to fix. Baby steps is what it takes, dogs only learn by success and it is up to the trainer to direct the dog towards that by reading it and channeling the behaviors.
 
Do your self a favor and buy Web Parton's "Bond of Passion". Web is extremely knowledgeable and uses sure fire techniques not guessing. GSP's can be very good dogs with training. But that means you have to spend the time. Sit, come are the foundation to all the rest.

I followed most of Web's suggestions and now have an extremely good bird dog.
 
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