# A few dog questions?



## SDOutdoorsman (Mar 9, 2009)

I have a 4 and a half month old yellow lab and this is my first dog. I take him out in the field 4 or 5 days a week off the leash for him run around, get some exercise and see some wild birds. He does a very good job of staying close to me when we are walking and when he gets to far I blow the whistle and he comes everytime. The problem comes when we get back to the truck. He just does not want to go home. He just darts short distances away from me so I can't grab him to put him in his kennel. Normally this only last a couple minutes, but last night this went on for probably half hour and it really frustrated me. Any recomendations? When I finally get ahold of him should I scold him for not listening or praise him because I finally have him and he is going in his kennel.

Next question. He also shows almost no interested in retrieving so far. Should I be worried. I've talked to a few people that said that their labs didn't like to retrieve much till they were 6 or 7 months old. Is this normal?

And last questions. Last night when we got home I found 5 ticks on him. Two of them were dug in and the other 3 were just on his fur. I had applied Frontline two days earlier. Should the frontline repel these ticks from biting into him or does it kill them once they do? Is their anything else I can do on top of the frontline to keep them off.


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## TPL (Oct 7, 2008)

Work on kennel training, he should be in love with that thing and love to be in it. In the mean time, throw a check cord on him before you head back to the truck.


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## tumblebuck (Feb 17, 2004)

Frontline won't prevent them from attaching. It'll kill them after they bite.


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## Chaws (Oct 12, 2007)

Get yourself onto a complete training program. There are many mentioned in other threads about people with first or new pups. You need to teach the recall command before you can start scolding a dog for not complying with the command. If you scold a dog for doing something it doesn't know, you'll have a harder time teaching it in the future.


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## Losthwy (Apr 19, 2009)

Chaws said:


> Get yourself onto a complete training program. There are many mentioned in other threads about people with first or new pups. You need to teach the recall command before you can start scolding a dog for not complying with the command. If you scold a dog for doing something it doesn't know, you'll have a harder time teaching it in the future.


Yup, good advice. You can't correct a dog for not responding to a command it has not been taught, and if you do it will only confuse the dog. Teach first. And you teach by using proven methods in a structured program. Such as a Carr based program like Mike Lardy's. That applies to the retrieving question as well.


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## SDOutdoorsman (Mar 9, 2009)

I've read Game Dog and almost finished reading Training the Pointing Labrador (this is the book the breeder recomened). I know I see alot of books and DVD's people recommend on this forum, but which ones would be best for me to learn the basics?


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## Losthwy (Apr 19, 2009)

Mike Lardy's Vol I, II and III is what I use. Of all the training books out there Wolter's books are what I would least recommend.


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## SDOutdoorsman (Mar 9, 2009)

Yeah after I had already read the book Gamedog I figured out that most people on here don't think much of Wolters books.


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## stonebroke (Dec 16, 2004)

I'd put him on a leash a considerable distance from your truck (when you are getting ready to leave) and heal him on you way back... Praise him when you put the leash on him and heap on the praise when he gets in his crate in your truck.

Quite frankly, I'd be worried about a 4 month old retriever that showed no interest in retrieving. Some pups do develop later than others, but showing no interest in retrieving is not common for a well bred retriever. Most pups can't get enough of it by the time they are that age.


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## Chaws (Oct 12, 2007)

What have you thrown for the dog to retrieve that he isn't excited about picking up and bringing back? If you can, try and find a pigeon or two that are clipped or tied wings and see what kind of prey drive the dog has.


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## SDOutdoorsman (Mar 9, 2009)

He is always extremely excited about going and getting anything I throw. It is bringing it back to me that is the problem. He wants me to chase him (which I never do, I just ingnore him if he does this). When he was very young I just used a rolled up sock for a couple weeks. He would always go get it and then just sit and chew on it. Then someone suggested I use a paint roller (since it is similar in size and shape as a bumper but easier to pick up and carry for a small puppy). On a few occasions he brought this back to me 5 or 6 times in a row and then I put it away, but most of the time he would run off and chew it. I've been trying the rubber bumper and again he always go and get it, but then just drops it. Yesteday I tried a smaller canvas bumber with pheasant scent on it and he brought it back to me 5 times in row. Tried it again today on my lunch break he would not bring it back to me. At this point I would bet anything that we would be going crazy over a live pigeon, but I dont think their is any way he would bring it to me right now.


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## TPL (Oct 7, 2008)

I wouldn't get too worked up. Your pup is still an infant, you just need to get him through a solid obedience program, introduce him to some birds, and force him. You have to remember the dog is still a baby and you really shouldn't expect anything out of him until he's ready, mentally, to be taught and learn.


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## gonehuntin' (Jul 27, 2006)

If you want to catch him, always let him drag a 20' check cord. 10' if you're fast. :lol:

If he's sixteen weeks and not rerieving, I'd be plenty worried. ALL good lab pups retrieve from six weeks on. Think I'd have a heart to heart with the breeder.

He's a pointing lab so I assume you want him to point. You'll need a good retriever program like Fowl Dawgs, then a pointer prgram like Perfect Start and Perfect Finish.


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## TPL (Oct 7, 2008)

Judging by your last post, it sounds like you have a concern about him returning on a retrieve, not the desire to actually run after something and pick it up. Please, the dog is 4 months old. Train him and you'll be fine. I personally don't do any retrieving at all before obedience is completed, besides sparingly throwing a bumper once in awhile and if the pup wants to run around with it and be a fool I let 'em. After he's trained properly and recalls, and is forced, if done right, what choice does the dog have? He will retrieve, and return, and deliver it to hand. I've had dogs that wouldn't think about bringing something back to me at 4 months, and that's fine at that age and level of training, and I've had dogs that always brought everything right back at that age, after having them trained, they all do it the same.


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## fetchingfloyd (May 12, 2009)

SDOutdoorsman said:


> He is always extremely excited about going and getting anything I throw. It is bringing it back to me that is the problem. He wants me to chase him (which I never do, I just ingnore him if he does this). When he was very young I just used a rolled up sock for a couple weeks. He would always go get it and then just sit and chew on it. Then someone suggested I use a paint roller (since it is similar in size and shape as a bumper but easier to pick up and carry for a small puppy). On a few occasions he brought this back to me 5 or 6 times in a row and then I put it away, but most of the time he would run off and chew it. I've been trying the rubber bumper and again he always go and get it, but then just drops it. Yesteday I tried a smaller canvas bumber with pheasant scent on it and he brought it back to me 5 times in row. Tried it again today on my lunch break he would not bring it back to me. At this point I would bet anything that we would be going crazy over a live pigeon, but I dont think their is any way he would bring it to me right now.


This is one of the most common problems I have to deal with when a young dog comes to be trained. The solution is a combination of a solid obedience training program AND force fetching the dog so he wont drop the dummy when you work on the return. A dog that has the idea that the "chase" is the game should be held off on fetching until the obedience and FF are in place in the dog's training. If he loves to go get the dummy but doenst want to bring it back, sounds like he does like to fetch but needs a little direction so he learns the reward is another retrieve and NOT the object being fetched. Its nothing to be worried about but it does require some immediate attention and training.


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