VERSATILE HUNTING DOG TRAINING

Puppy Selection: 

     There is no substitute for quality. The well-bred puppy with “generations” of physical and emotionally stable ancestors with documented gun dog performance is necessary. The price for a well-bred puppy will be the least expense in the process but will pay dividends during his training. A trainer cannot develop what is not genetically present in a dog. As a sportsman you have probably experienced ill-mannered, disobedient dogs along with their owners who spend the day blowing whistles and screaming commands that fall on deaf ears. Training is much more than just exposing the dog to birds and letting the natural ability “kick in” or letting the “older dog” teach him to hunt. Training options for the owner:

* Train the dog yourself; do you have the skill, time and resources?
* Get advice from a friend, is he a certified dog trainer?
* The terms breeder and trainer are often not well defined.
* Read a book or watch a video.
* Attend sponsored training days. A dog will not be trained in a weekend.
* Professional Training for your dog.

 

     Training the VHD requires a different approach and a different set of training methods and techniques when compared to training specialty dog breeds. The English Pointers primary mission is finding and pointing quail or the retriever breeds that excel in water work. The correctly trained VHD is a multi-task dog that must handle a variety of upland game, waterfowl and blood tracking duties, as well as pointing, tracking and retrieving on land, water, and woods. He must be cooperative, intelligent and have the emotional stability to learn, retain and perform many duties on command. In addition to his outstanding performance the VHD should be a companion, fit into the family and all other social activities. These goals cannot be achieved without proper training from an experienced trainer who understands how, what, when, and the why of dog behavior.

There are “no shortcuts or crash training methods” that are successful in dog training. A dog is either “Trained or Not Trained”. A dog with “some training” is not a trained dog!
It takes time, at least 3 to 4 days per week for several months, skill, experience, equipment, birds, helper/assistants, proper training grounds, travel and a working knowledge of dog behavior to develop a trained dog.

 

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING:
 

     Place your dog in the hands of a professional trainer and get the skill and knowledge of a veteran trainer. When a dog enters a training program he brings with him a set of genetics and is a product of a home setting where he has lived. A training program can only bring out the traits and potential that any given dog has the ability to achieve. Training cannot make a dog progress past the level of his ability. There are many factors and variables that may influence the performance of your dog during training. During a training program the age of your dog, his maturity, genetics, home environment, and other attempts at trying train to train him will play a significant part in his progress.

 

Hunting, Gun Dogs and Training:

 

     This is an expensive sport, ask the wife of any sportsman about the cost of equipment, guns and other trivial matters. It is interesting to see the accumulation of expensive gear by the sportsman and then look at his untrained hunting partner. Frequently those who are not familiar with training a Gun Dog are not aware of the expense incurred by a professional trainer. It takes “birds to make a bird dog” and we typically use 4 or 5 birds per training session. During a training session we may set out 5 remote bird launchers at $350.00 per launcher ($1,750.00) allowing the dog to have multiple opportunities during a training session. This figure does not include all the additional equipment, travel and birds. Training birds, ducks, pheasant, quail, pigeons easily range from $7.00 to $15.00 dollars per bird. Birds must have a facility of their own and cared for daily. Proper training grounds, training assistants and licenses are required. And the list goes on and on.
We understand expense is always an issue for every sportsman but hunting and gun dogs are expensive regardless of what path you choose. There are several avenues in teaching dogs the correct behavior. In most cases the owner is new to dog training and in particular to the versatile hunting dog.

 

TRAINING PROGRAMS:

 

     * BASIC TRAINING FOR THE VERSATILE HUNTING DOG

     * ADVANCED TRAINING FOR THE VERSATILE HUNTING DOG    

* FINISHED VERSATILE HUNTING DOGS:
     ** Contact us for details. Availability is Limited.   

* STARTED DOGS
     ** Availability is Limited. Contact us for details.   

  * SPECIALTY OR A CUSTOMIZED TRAINING

     * PRIVATE AND GROUP TRAINING SESSIONS

     * BOARDING AND TUNE UP PROGRAM:
     ** Trained dogs are boarded and worked during the late spring and summer. Don't let your   dog sit idle and bored. Have him conditioned and ready for hunting season. He will love you.