Retrieving for All Occasions

09/06/2024

Just wrapped up the second foundations weekend here in Nova Scotia and we’ve had a great time! So
Much fun to follow the dogs and handlers as they master new skills 😍👍

06/06/2024

Last nights class, Bumper - not burger, was so much fun! It was the first time I've held a class focusing just on that, even though our original pictures/videos of that were shot back in 2011. Lots of laughter, clever placement of the distractions, great rewards and setting the dogs up for success (without any intimidation) made for a great night with great results! Meander River German Shorthaired Pointers

05/06/2024

Preparations for tonight’s class: bumper not burger! This will be so much fun! 😀

02/06/2024

Delivery to hand with distractions! 💪💪👍👍

02/06/2024

First weekend of gun dog foundations at Meander River German Shorthaired Pointers in Canada has come to an end. 10 great dogs and handlers have been working on delivery to hand, steadiness, stop whistle, heelwork, casting and of course adding lots of distractions to proof the behaviors!

31/05/2024

June 5, 2024 from 18:00-20:30 We are offering a fun evening class with Elsa Blomster of Retrieving for All Occasions that builds upon the skills taught in her Gun Dog Foundations class. You can think of it as next-level Its Yer Choice, or just a really cool party trick. We will learn how to teach .....

30/04/2024

Come to Canada/Nova Scotia and join us in June!

Meander River German Shorthaired Pointers is proud to announce that we will be hosting a course by Elsa Blomster. Ms. Blomster is known for her book and website, Retrieving for All Occasions, where she teaches positive, play-based methods of training gun dogs. We are proponents of her methods and us...

28/12/2023

Summarizing a great year. New puppy in the pack (Rowan), puppy course and other courses online, first prize in open class cold game test with Keen, teaching in Canada and interesting discussions. Looking forward to an exciting 2024 and visiting Canada again - teaching two weekend courses this time.

24/12/2023

From all of us to all of you: a very, merry Christmas!

06/10/2023

Holding an area may be the aspect that's easiest to overlook when training, but it's what can truly make or break a retrieve. In a cold game test, it might work to simply send the dog in the direction of the wind - the area is usually well-trampled if many dogs have been there, so the dog has a good chance of holding the area and staying within it....

Holding an area may be the aspect that’s easiest to overlook when training, but it’s what can truly make or break a retrieve. In a cold game test, it might work to simply send the dog in the direction of the wind – the area is usually well-trampled if many dogs have been there, so … Holding ...

28/09/2023

The sharp-eyed have noticed that we've had many posts about retrievals. It's to meet the demand, you could say. 😉 As we've mentioned before, many people struggle with their delivery to hand, and it's so UNNECESSARY. There are also many different challenges. One of the toughest might be dealing with a dog that has a strong resource guarding instinct. These are the dogs that, for example, growl when you approach them with something valuable or employ a wilder approach to keeping the item, playing a crazy game while carefully avoiding getting close to you as the handler......

The sharp-eyed have noticed that we’ve had many posts about retrievals. It’s to meet the demand, you could say. 😉 As we’ve mentioned before, many people struggle with their delivery to hand, and it’s so UNNECESSARY. There are also many different challenges. One of the toughest might be de...

23/09/2023

Do you need more structure in your training or a nudge in the right direction so you train what you really need?

We have created a template which we call "Boost What You Want," where we offer you our best tips and structure for a great training plan.

Enter your email address via the below and we will email you the plan completely free of charge!

Do you want to learn how to use reward based training effectively to train you gun dog puppy? How to get your puppy to deliver its treasures to you and to enjoy following you? Join Elsa Blomster, author of the book Retrieving for All Occasions - Foundations for Excellence in Gun Dog Training, in thi...

16/05/2023

A while ago we wrote about our motto "Train, Prevent, Interrupt" and it's actually closely related to today's topic. We jokingly say "don't stand there like a fish stick" and mean that we must do something. Both in training and in tests, we sometimes need to think and act quickly to interrupt the dog's behavior. In tests, it usually means blowing a stop whistle, in training, it can be a stop whistle but also that we go - or run - and get the dog or recall it....

A while ago we wrote about our motto “Train, Prevent, Interrupt” and it’s actually closely related to today’s topic. We jokingly say “don’t stand there like a fish stick” and mean that we must do something. Both in training and in tests, we sometimes need to think and act quickly to in...

14/05/2023

Last day in Canada, today we worked on the stop whistle and casting and dogs and handlers were progressing really well 😍 Now I’m at the airport on my way back home, but I hope I’ll be able to come back and stay for longer because I’ve had a great time.

13/05/2023

Another great training day in Canada. New set of dogs and handlers today, working on delivery to hand, taking and holding as well as steadiness and heelwork. Looking forward to meeting them again tomorrow and start working with the stop whistle and casting.

12/05/2023

Enjoying some great training days and weather in Nova Scotia, Canada. Today I had the pleasure of instructing 5 pointers and a standard poodle (who I unfortunately didn’t get a picture of). We cover taking and holding, delivery to hand and steadiness. Tomorrow a new group is coming in, looking forward to that :)

08/05/2023

Blind retrieve at the cold game test - just as I wanted it 😍

07/05/2023

Yesterday we got the second and last Excellent award in open class cold game tests so now we’re qualified for elite class 💪💪💪

The test includes single and marked retrieves on land and water, blind retrieves on land and water, lots of heel work and a large area with 6-7 game to sweep up/let the dog hunt freely. The whole test is carried out with two dogs at off leash same time, when the other dog is working my dog sits by my side and watches so steadiness is also very important.

18/04/2023

Here comes a favorite repeat that is about the THINKING behind our training and is one of the foundations of clicker training. Sometimes it can be VERY DIFFICULT to understand how it works to be a reward-based trainer who doesn't use punishments that the dog experiences as unpleasant. Have you also seen that humorous picture on social media where a dog is gnawing on a person's leg and the owner stands next to them and says something like "no worries, I'll click when he lets go"?...

Here comes a favorite repeat that is about the THINKING behind our training and is one of the foundations of clicker training. Sometimes it can be VERY DIFFICULT to understand how it works to be a reward-based trainer who doesn’t use punishments that the dog experiences as unpleasant. Have you als...

16/04/2023

Getting used to gun shots

Read more in the blog:

Since Yarrow was young, he has been accompanying me to training sessions and waiting in the car while Keen has been out on trials, training, or hunts, occasionally hearing gunshots in the distance without reacting. We have also fired a few shots at home without him reacting negatively, so when I did...

13/04/2023

The other day I had an adorable little family in class with their equally adorable 12-week-old puppy, a gun dog. The parents had owned dogs before, but it had been over 15 years since they had a puppy, and now they had come across our book “Retrieving for All Occasions” and thought our training method seemed exciting and good, and they wanted to learn more.

“This is not how we trained 20 years ago, so it feels very new but fun and a little challenging,” they said.

Before we did any exercises with the puppy, we went through what clicker training is in practice, and the daughter (who was a young adult) said that she found it very troublesome that the puppy hung on her pants leg all the time.

“But what should I do if I’m not allowed to say no?” she asked.

I love her question! It hits the nail on the head if you want to train without aversives – i.e., things that induce discomfort or unpleasantness in the dog – but don’t actually know how to do it.

Read more in the blog - link in bio and here: https://www.retrievingforalloccasions.com/but-what-should-i-do-if-im-not-allowed-to-say-no/

13/04/2023

New blog post!

It has been a little over three months since the working cocker spaniel Vide moved in with us, and he is now just over eight months old. He is a charming little troublemaker, unhealthily cute, and a fast learner in most things. We quickly became a team, perhaps because he came into our lives unexpec...

03/04/2023

The other day I had an adorable little family in class with their equally adorable 12-week-old puppy, a gun dog. The parents had owned dogs before, but it had been over 15 years since they had a puppy, and now they had come across our book "Retrieving for All Occasions" and thought our training method seemed exciting and good, and they wanted to learn more.

"This is not how we trained 20 years ago, so it feels very new but fun and a little challenging," they said.

Before we did any exercises with the puppy, we went through what clicker training is in practice, and the daughter (who was a young adult) said that she found it very troublesome that the puppy hung on her pants leg all the time.

"But what should I do if I'm not allowed to say no?" she asked.

I love her question! It hits the nail on the head if you want to train without aversives - i.e., things that induce discomfort or unpleasantness in the dog - but don't actually know how to do it.

Because, of course, there is no rule that you are not "allowed" to say "no" to your dog, and what she really meant was, "What should I do if I don't WANT to correct in a way that is uncomfortable?"

The other day I had an adorable little family in class with their equally adorable 12-week-old puppy, a gun dog. The parents had owned dogs before, but it had been over 15 years since they had a puppy, and now they had come across our book “Retrieving for All Occasions” and thought our training ...

26/03/2023

When I want inspiration for my training, I try to take part in courses that are led by different instructors, watch field trials and hunts. If I don’t get new input once in a while, I get stuck and start to train the same things over and over again, and neither me nor my dogs learn a lot.

Read more in the blog:

When I want inspiration for my training, I try to take part in courses that are led by different instructors, watch field trials and hunts. If I don’t get new input once in a while, I get stuck and start to train the same things over and over again, and neither me nor my dogs … How Do You Get In...

23/03/2023

We call ourselves clicker trainers or reward based trainers, but there are many different variations of training methods and different ways to express it. Positive training, traditional training, balanced training, and resource-based training are other variations you may hear. But what does it mean? And why is it important to keep track of it? Well, because we want to know what the training method entails and how and why it works....

So those were the four consequences. As we quoted Thorndike initially, all behaviors are maintained by pleasant or unpleasant consequences. If the consequence leads to an increase in the behavior we want, then the training has worked. BUT, linked to each of the four consequences, there is also a fee...

19/03/2023

Oh this puppy 😍 we just love him, he’s blended right into our family 😍

06/03/2023

Say hello to Rowan! (Sea-Croft Rowan) I’m so excited that he’s finally here with us 😍

20/02/2023

Having a puppy now wasn't really part of the plan, but since my young dog Yarrow turned out to have problems with his elbows that put an end to his hunting days and he has been living with a friend of mine for a couple of months I realized I needed a new puppy. I've now processed that so that I'm able to look forward to the new puppy - and in just a weeks time he's moving in with us 🙂...

As always, it’s exciting and a little nerve-wracking. What kind of little individual is he? Will he feel at home with us? How will the training go forward? And so on… I visited the puppy a while ago – so small and cute

08/02/2023

Follow our “train, prevent, interrupt” protocol - and spend most time training because that's what will give you the best results. Train the dog and teach it that it's whortwhile to come to you when called. Reward lots of successful recalls and add distractions so that the dog learns that it's great to respond to the recall cue no matter the distractions....

Do you need more inspiration and training advice to achieve a great recall? Join our online course – with or without feedback – and we’ll guide you through the whole process!

08/02/2023

How to get a great recall? Follow our “train, prevent, interrupt” protocol - spend most time training. Reward lots of successful recalls and add distractions. Prevent the dog from failing in (too) difficult situations by having it on leash or in a long line and harness. Interrupt the dog by calmly going and get it if it doesn’t listen.

Need more inspiration and training tips? Try an online course with our without feedback :)