doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com OT - Suggested books on dog training

I'd also recomend joining NAVHDA, those guys really help me with the new dog, I had never had a bird dog before nor been around one. He is probably the finest house pet I've ever had, providing he takes me for a good walk every few days. If I do not he gets a bit high strung. jas

Here is a classic: "WING & SHOT" by Robert G Wehle. For those that don't recognize the name, Wehle formed Elhew Kennels and produced some of the best Elhew English Pointers in the country.
Bob Jurewicz

Will:

My favorite is "Point! Training the All-Seasons Birddog" by James B Spencer:

http://www.lcsupply.com/Product/Books-and-Videos/Point-Training-the-All-Seasons-Bird-Dog.html

Common sense and keeps it fun.

Dog training is as much about training the handler as training the dog. I'll echo the advice to get connected with your local NAVHDA chapter.

Bryan

Just teach a bird dog what his name is and to come, no matter what, when you call; then put the dog in birds, wild or released. It helps to run the puppy with a trained dog. All the rest will come naturally, they're programed for what they do...Geo

Just ordered a copy, planning on getting a dog as soon as I can find a litter. $15.50, shipped, thank Daryl.

Daryl,....yes the "Green Book",as we call it!...I have one signed by Bodo and Ed Bailey! I try to encourage new pup owners to join a chapter and get involved in training together with other people in the same situation,...along with the book most chapters conduct training clinics, which I believe are essential in the development of the "owner" as a trainer,...The book is probably the best thing out there published for the beginner versatile dog trainer

CJ

Thanks so much for the help guys. I already have the "Green Book" on order.

The pup, "Chester", is already doing well with basic obedience - sit, stay, come, fetch - as well as having been on both wild and pen raised birds (quail and woodcock). I plan to begin trapping pigeons for training this week.

Some that worries me a little is that he doesn't seem to want to point, however, on Sunday he had two beautiful stone-cold points - on cottontails. Understandably this was a bit disconcerting but I was happy to see nice points albeit on the wrong quarry.

I have been considering sending him to a trainer for a month or so due to my lack of both time and experience. Do any of you have opinions on this? Do any of you know of good trainers in the East Tennessee/Western North Carolina/North Georgia area?

tnwestes,.....you and your dog are a team!..were you are viewed as the leader, he should learn from YOU at this stage in life and you should make time for him,....I've been a NAVDHA member for 20 years and a NAVHDA judge for almost 15,... I see people in your situation all the time and I give them the same advice that was given to me "join NAVHDA, they won't train your dog but they will teach you to train it",....as you can see I took full advantage of it as did a lot of people I know, I met so many wonderful friends and my best hunting buddies, it truly changed my life,....I still see a fellow now and then that was not keen enough to get involved,....he's still looking for the right book!

CJ

I asked this same question a few months ago. I got an English setter at 12 weeks and started the training Day 1. He turned 7 months old this past weekend and is really coming along nicely. I used "Gun Dog" by Wolters and "Bird Dog" by Williams. While I have owned well over 100 dogs, this is my first bird dog. Those two books have helped me a lot. If you do a search you can find some more reccomendations. Like everything else, it can get to be information overload. I picked the 2 books that sounded most like "me" and went from there.

I am also going to buy a Soprtdog e-collar this week, and friends have told me they come with very good traning info.

tnwestes:
I have read most of the books listed here and they all will get the job done. Time, and space/training aids cause many of us problems. Time alone is the tough part of trying to follow the sage advice of joining a dog training club.

It sounds like you have already invested time with the dog developing a good bond, and personally I think that is the key. I would not worry too much about the dog not being staunch on point at 6.5 months. Dogs progress differently. I have had GSP's point well and retrieve to hand at this age and others had little interest at the same age. All ended up being good dogs.

You really only need 10 - 15 minutes a day to train a bird dog the basics. As someone noted they are programmed for this stuff. The best book I ever read was How to Train a Bird Dog by R.W. Strickland. All you need is a 20' - 25' check cord. It is a paperback and maybe 60 pages long. It covers all the basics and allows it to be done in someone's backyard or a park. Oddly, the fellow is from Manistee, MI and has an entire National Forest at his back door. Call a bookstore in Manistee to find it.

Unless working with an experienced trainer I would stay clear of electronic training aids. They are a good tool in the hands of a pro, disastrous in the hands of the uninformed.

Best of Luck with Pup.

Chicago Mike