Some of you may have purchased a pup in the last few months and are working on getting it ready for its first hunting season. Several years ago I wrote the following article which bears repeating, especially for you new owners of bird dogs.
“Train your Dog at Its Pace, Not Yours!”
Many an amateur trainer and, unfortunately, some professionals fall victim to the “training time table”. They adopt or develop an excellent training program incorporating a step-by-step approach.
However, they fail to recognize that each dog is different. Some are slower or quicker on the uptake than others.
So don’t fault your training program if your current dog is not progressing as fast as your previous dog. Be patient and let your new pup learn at its pace. Praise him or her lavishly, to the point of going overboard, when they do make progress. You will be happy you did. More important, you will have a reliable gun dog that will be loyal to you all its life.
See you again next month.
CJ & Shawnee