Retriever Obedience
Jack Morris of Stellar Retrievers recommends that obedience training begins between the ages of 5 to 6 months. At this time, a dog is able to learn quickly without battling bad habits that it may have picked up inadvertently. When started on this proper training schedule, Labrador Retriever puppies and most sporting breeds usually take 6 to 8 weeks to complete obedience basics. Older dogs will take longer because they may have developed behavior issues that need to be addressed on a case by case basis.
One of the most beneficial aspect of "in kennel puppy training" with Stellar Retrievers is the canine socialization that occurs in the kennel setting. Humans take for granted the social skills that a pack of dogs teaches to its members. A puppy growing up in your home never gets the opportunity to be taught how well socialized dogs act in groups. Starting your retriever puppy right at the right time is essential in the formula of producing a well behaved, dependable, bird hunting dog. In addition, in kennel puppy training lays the foundation for the basic retriever training and allows Jack to begin bonding with the dog as its coach.
Retriever Obedience Training: Sit!
Sit means sit! Stay is not a command taught in retriever obedience because once a handler commands a dog to sit, it should sit until told otherwise. Sit is not a temporary command. It is definitive. A dog sitting in honor of another working dog does not need to be told to stay. It is implied that the dog is to sit until commanded to heel away from the line and is the foundation training for a "steady" hunting dog. Steadiness is one of the elements of line manners that is tested in both the Senior and Master AKC hunt test. Success with this aspect of these tests begins here in retriever obedience.
Recall - "Here!"
Recall for a dog is one of the most valuable obediance commands. "Here" can be used to help remove a dog from a harmful situation or to just get the dog back to the safty of the heel position. A dog without good recall is just an animal running loose. This is not acceptable and will also translate into a field retriever that is not under control on blinds or while handling on marks. Recall is taught as a verbal command, "here", first, and then later translated into a "come in" whistle. Regardless, the capability to call your dog in or home or away from a potential threat is extremely important.
No! - Plain and Simple
Jack's "no" command, sometimes heard around a setup as "No you don't!" is taught as an indicator of what we don't want the dog to be involved with or doing. "No" means for the retriever to stop what it is doing immediately and be ready for the next direction given by its handler. We take this for granted, but we have to have a mechanism for our animals to know what we do not want them doing.
Left and Right Sided Healing
A dog trained to walk in the "heel" position is a pleasure. In field retrieving, this position is utilized for hunting situations like walking fence rows for dove and jump shooting ducks on ponds. Depending on which side the game may flush from, a retriever mayb be positioned on either the left or right putting them in ideal and safe position for marking and retrieving game.
Having your dog trained to heel on both the left and the right is well more versatile than the standard left sided heeling that is taught in most obedience curriculums. The two sided heeling is a valuable tool in hunt tests and trials as it allows the handler to set the team up for success in visualizing marks and being ready to run blinds regardless of test complexity, suction, and other factors.
Jack begins the dogs with left sided heeling just like most other operations, but then as the dog becomes comfortable with the standard heel command, he introduces the command to switch to the right side with the verbal, "other side". The retriever then moves from the left over to the right and then can be reordered with its "other side" command to move back into position on the left.
"Kennel" Command
A good canine citizen needs to be trained to seek its kennel. The kennel command is valuable to teach the dog when its time to load up either in its travel crate, dog truck, or kennel at the house. Dogs enjoy the close confinement of a kennel. Teaching them when we want them to seek their kennel is all important in helping us maintain order with these high drive athletes.
Jack not only uses the kennel command to ease loading and management of the pack, but also at hunt tests and in live hunting scenarios. The handler and dog team always has to wait in line at tests. This can be a very exciting period for the dog and the kennel command helps settle the retriever in the holding blind while the team waits to run the setup. In a goose or duck hunting scenario, there are often box blinds that the dog must wait in to keep the group concealed. With kennel, the dog will comply with the request to retire in a hidden blind. No questions asked!