We’ve had a couple of good training days already this week.
On Tuesday was a working test training day, where everyone got to learn about how each test might be scored, and they scored each other running through four tests each. I think they all found it informative.
Today was my proprioception day.
I find that a lot of dogs don’t have confidence jumping, and can become quite anxious about it. Managing jumps, ditches, hedges and any barrier is an important part of being a Gundog.
We worked on dogs trying to have a better understanding of using their back legs by stepping in and out of tyres, stepping over low poles, before we moved onto raising the height of the jumps.
Ezra, featured here, has experienced some bad jumping anxiety due to having a couple of collisions with fences, usually because he’s misjudged take off
You can see here, how well he is thinking about the jumps, but he’s also starting to enjoy it.
The weather got the better of the dogs, on a physically and mentally tiring day, so we stopped about 3pm before they started to make too many mistakes.
This is Gillian and Esther, it’s the third session at Puppy Gym (Esther’s second), and puppies are doing sections of the course off lead and keeping in contact with owners, showing no interest in the other pups or the environment.
I love my puppy gym class, it helps puppies learn, not just proprioception and confidence, but they build a relationship with owners rather than thinking other dogs are more fun.
❤️
Another super retrieve from last week. A complete blind again, Pip and Opal.
The dogs did so well on this day, very proud of them 🥰
This is Jill and Ezra on a complete blind at one of my days last week. Executed perfectly.
Some lovely work on our residential today.
This is Goose and Camilla executing a fantastic mark.
This is Arthur completing the full retrieve yesterday.
Water, stock fence, rail fence, through the jumping pen, and another stock fence at the end of the field.
The dropped dummy is the handlers fumble!!
All dogs completed this tough marked retrieve today. There is a deep ditch under the hedge.
They then had a blind in the same area after seeing a dog have a long retrieve on the lake to their left.
Super job Jo Buckley, Seth has been amazing for three days ❤️
A very successful ‘building barriers’ workshop today with beautiful weather.
We worked on slicing fences diagonally this morning
The afternoon culminated in dogs doing the length of the field, over a pond, a stock fence, a rail fence, through a round pen then another stock fence.
Expertly demonstrated by Hector.
Retrieve of the day on Thursday.
We had a drive on the bank, then dogs first had to pick over a fence into a flight pond, then pick off the drive.
There was one dummy left to pick at the end, expertly done by Gill Davies and Calder 💪🏻
I so love this girl. 18 months old with only basic training. She hardly leaves my side, drops into heel voluntarily on a regular basis, loads of check ins on walks despite being out with the other dogs.
It just takes consistency , lots of praise but also understanding right from wrong.
Fifty is a full working bred JRT.
A beautiful morning for a full day of classes. 😀
Our neighbouring ewes are getting very inquisitive with our dogs!
I’m really pleased with how 6 month old Labrador Tully is responding, and my 16 month old JRT is practically ignoring them.
A very valuable lesson with sheep, we are lucky that we can expose our dogs to them every day. (There is obviously a fence between. I would never allow a dog to be loose around sheep unless under close heel control)
I am immensely proud of these guys. Both Sue with Maggie and Tom with Hector didn’t intend to train them as gundogs, but being aware of their high drive and ability, they are hooked.
At 13 months old they are doing some really advanced work and nailing it, plus they’ve made friends and having a great time.
Well done you two 🥰
A fabulous away day today with one of my regular monthly private groups.
Covering blinds, box memories with barriers, hunting and running blinds through the fall of marks.
Great dogs.
Thank you to Jill and Craig Gardner for having us at Foxcote 😀😀
Back to work after three weeks in Scotland. My field has gone wild, but I’m so lucky with it. Never been sprayed and there is never a thistle or nettle, only wild flowers and grasses. Hopefully it will get a cut today or tomorrow.
