Spanky29ca 0 Report post Posted November 8, 2014 I finally pulled the trigger on a pup that's being trained for waterfowl and upland bird hunting, this has been years in the making and I finally had my chance now that we will be purchasing a home soon. His name is Reggie and was picked according to the application I made with the facility. He will be spending the next 8 months being trained and I will fly down to Mississippi sometime before he's ready to meet him and learn to handle him. We decided to go the started dog route and skip the whole puppy stage. Hunting season will be especially fun next year. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted November 8, 2014 He's a good looking lil' fella Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlaFly 0 Report post Posted November 8, 2014 Cute! I like him, but I'll tell you who doesn't: My CAT! But then she doesn't like anyone but my wife and me (because we feed her). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oldtrout58 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 Nothing better than puppy breathe! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ihang10 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 Oh man, few things are better than a good dog in the field. Enjoy! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Piker20 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 Interesting you don't have the puppy stage. Does this not have any negative effect on working with him? I haven't heard of this before. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ihang10 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 Interesting you don't have the puppy stage. Does this not have any negative effect on working with him? I haven't heard of this before. I can't speak for the trainer being used by the OP, but in my experience and observation with certain labs and setters the bonding isn't a huge hurdle. Â There is a dog trainer/neighbor our family uses, he'll raise/train the dogs until the 10th month or so and when it's said and done they already have a couple of trials and certifications done. So far with his labs I've not seen any difference in whether he handles them, if I handle them for a weekend while he's gone, or if it's anyone else later in life (permanent home). These labs aren't so much pack oriented as they are goal oriented. Certainly over time the bonds grow stronger between the handler/dog. In any case his dogs are all about work and reward. Â Now my Rottweiler on the other hand, he's only going to work for me. That bond and trust isn't easily transferable unless you have a pocket full of steak bites and a rabbit to offer him. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Piker20 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 You must have some funny looks with pockets full of steak and rabbit! Â Seriously, now you put it in the work prospective I do see how that will work. I imagine the same with border collies. They live to work and the human relationships a bonus to them. The breeds that are more hunting/guarding see the leader of the pack as their world. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ihang10 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2014 You must have some funny looks with pockets full of steak and rabbit! Â Seriously, now you put it in the work prospective I do see how that will work. I imagine the same with border collies. They live to work and the human relationships a bonus to them. The breeds that are more hunting/guarding see the leader of the pack as their world. It's funny because I can take my in-laws dog out and he'll do "fine"with me, that is to say he'll listen well and not get lost. But if it's me and the Ol' Man, that dog will ignore me altogether. I'm invisible. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikechell 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2014 Â Interesting you don't have the puppy stage. Does this not have any negative effect on working with him? I haven't heard of this before.These labs aren't so much pack oriented as they are goal oriented. Â I am sorry to interject into this thread a little realism. When working with dogs, we always tend to "humanize" them. Anthropomorphizing is the appropriate term. Dogs are dogs. There are some evolutionary differences that human kind has breed into them ... make them MUCH different than the Wolf, the common ancestor to all domestic dogs. But dogs are all dogs ... and they are ALL pack animals. If you are the pack leader, they will do everything they can to "please" you. To do otherwise is to be attacked and driven from the pack. Dogs who are allowed to be the pack leader, or who "feel" there is NO leader, will always try to assume that role. Â Any dog can be a fantastic companion, as long as the pack leader is you, or it. If you want it to be the leader, then you must always be the submissive. If you try to assert authority, you will need to "fight" for it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ihang10 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2014 Â Â Â Interesting you don't have the puppy stage. Does this not have any negative effect on working with him? I haven't heard of this before.These labs aren't so much pack oriented as they are goal oriented. I am sorry to interject into this thread a little realism. When working with dogs, we always tend to "humanize" them. Anthropomorphizing is the appropriate term. Dogs are dogs. There are some evolutionary differences that human kind has breed into them ... make them MUCH different than the Wolf, the common ancestor to all domestic dogs.But dogs are all dogs ... and they are ALL pack animals. If you are the pack leader, they will do everything they can to "please" you. To do otherwise is to be attacked and driven from the pack. Dogs who are allowed to be the pack leader, or who "feel" there is NO leader, will always try to assume that role. Â Any dog can be a fantastic companion, as long as the pack leader is you, or it. If you want it to be the leader, then you must always be the submissive. If you try to assert authority, you will need to "fight" for it. And I think provided a fairly accurate example of the pack dynamic/heirarchy right above your most recent post. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikechell 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2014 Yep ... But the comment on "goal oriented" is what I was commenting on. "Goal oriented" is a human drive. Dog's only desire is to keep the pack leader from turning on them ... to be submissive. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Spanky29ca 0 Report post Posted December 2, 2014 Interesting you don't have the puppy stage. Does this not have any negative effect on working with him? I haven't heard of this before.It's actually quite common with a lot of hunting dogs, I let them do all the hard work such as obedience and conditioning them for shotgun use, this enables them to weed out any shotgun shy dogs. Labradors are very loving dogs and transition quite well to a new master from what I understand. I have plenty of time to continue training an already obedient dog but I don't really have the time or land to shoot a shotgun around him year round.I had a golden Retriver before and I swear he would have taken off with a total stranger if they gave him a pet. I guess you can really look at this dog similar to a guide dog for the blind, they get trained in some cases for three years and then off they go with their new master and all is well after some love is spread. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites