Georgia the Red

Some of you may remember me talking about Georgia, my red Spoo who has a mind of her own. Don't all Spoos? I dropped her off last week for a month of obedience training where she lives with the dog trainer and the family inside, just as she would with us. They also specialize in retriever training. The guy accidently emailed my husband about another dog he is training as a retriever. My hubby emailed back and told him he emailed the "wrong Caleb". Well, the trainer emailed back and told him that Georgia was settling in and that he'd send out her report card later this week and that by the way, he was training her to be a retriever. At first when my husband got excited at that idea (a while back) I told him I wasn't sure because I didn't want her chasing every wild thing she sees when she is outside or on walks....but do I have a misconception? Is this going to help or hurt her ability to obey us? I am wanting to believe it would help but what could the trainer have in mind? We haven't had a chance to ask him yet so I thought I'd turn to my good and knowledgeable friends here in the meantime. Thanks!

Pluto

If your husband wants to hunt with her it's an excellent idea - anything that gets him excited about training, and gets her some good exercise can't be bad!
Retrievers work around guns and wildlife. They need to learn to be quite and well behaved and stay in the blind (at least with ducks) until they are told to go so they don't scare game and they don't get shot. It's definitely not about chasing everything they see. It's an excellent blend of good solid exercise (a tired dog, is a good dog) and obedience.

Sookster

Retriever training is wonderful. If I ever have a standard with the right personality, I'll be sending them off to retriever training. It teaches self-control, reliability off-leash, increases work ethic and drive, and provides a great outlet for energy release. Even if you and your husband have no plans to hunt with her, the retrieving exercises are great to do to burn off energy and keep commands sharp.

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MaryLynn

Haha, this is what I am picturing!

"Yeah, we bought one of the greatest retriever breeds that there is, can you train her to retrieve and make it look like an accident?"

In all seriousness, retrieving is not about chasing animals. It's actually largely impulse control training, and off leash obedience. It also teaches them to be VERY soft with their mouths. I think you're very lucky, and you will have lots of fun with her even if she isn't used for hunting!

lily cd re

If you think about the retrieve exercises in obedience trials, they really are about impulse control (dog has to wait until you send), and being careful and direct about returning (dog shouldn't mouth the article and has to present it under control sitting at front). I think you will find it helpful.

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Catherine
Lily AKC: CGC CD HIT CDX RN RA RE RAE NAJ; APDT: RL-1; CPE: CL1-R, CL1-H, CL1-F
Peeves AKC: CGC BN