Force Fetch Question

[mille011]

I have an 8 month old lab that I have been working with. He has hunted several times with me this year and has done really well. There is still some puppy issues while in the blind, like not wanting to sit still for long periods of time, but the retrieving is not a problem.

My question is about force fetching and holding the bird. He does fine in water where he has to swim back with the bird, but when he hits land, he seems to drop it before returning to me.

I know I should wait and make sure all permanent teeth are in, but is it ever too late to FF a dog? Also, are there any helpful hints to properly doing this? And my last question. Are there any trainers around that I could utilize to only FF the dog, if all other training was being done by me?

Sorry for the long question. I just don't want to screw up a good dog, by having never tried to FF one.

Thanks!

[deadbird05]

at eight months the dog should have all its permanent teeth. and yes most trainers will do just a force fetch session if thats all you want. just make sure you make the right decision. he will be your huntin partner for years to come.

[FinalDescent]

I'm having the same problem with my 10 mth old. In the water he brings back the duck just fine, but in the rice fields he will not pick up the larger ducks. I've work with him on force fetch since the rice field hunt and he seems to be doing good with my larger frozen duck now. I use the ear pinch method with my dog and it has work good so far.

[B3]

If there were 1 month of training I was going to have done professionally it would be force fetch. I'm sure a trainer would take the dog just for FF.

Bill

[tnducktracker]

You can ask any reputable trainer and he will tell you that your dog will never attain his full potential without force fetch training. It is definitely a stressful time both for your dog but necessary. When he has finished this part of his/her training, there will be no more dropping birds at the shoreline, the dog will be only too happy to deliver to hand !

[mille011]

Thanks for the imput guys. I have been trying to read up on Force Fetching and I think I may try it myself. I will be getting started in the next couple of days.

Any tips that might help a new guy to training?

[tnducktracker]

hey mille011, You can do the training yourself by reading up on the subject- there are several great books with chapters on the subject. I force- trained my dog myself and I was lucky to have a dog that went through it fairly easy. I would give you some hopefully helpful hints- Throughlly understand the procedure before beginning, make sure your dog has completed and understands each step before proceding to the next step. This training is hard on some dogs and owners so do not stop the training until it is completed. Once the dog has completed this training, he will be well on his way to being all the dog you hoped he would be. good luck!