The solution

The causes

Working two dogs together in any circumstances needs careful thought and both dogs need to have had sound and proper basic obedience training instilled in them as individuals before becoming part of a team. When visiting a new shoot for the first time to pick-up, if you stick to some basic rules and guidelines then hopefully matters will go smoothly and you will be asked back.

Snatching or swapping game are considered cardinal sins in the gundog world and are generally down to the dog’s steadiness training not being completed properly. This can become a very undesirable habit if not corrected and cured in the early stages.

Steadiness is an absolute requirement of any trained gundog and one of the main causes of a dog running in is due to the dog thinking that every retrieve is for him. Many novice trainers start off picking most of the retrieves themselves and only sending the dog for the occasional retrieve, but they soon get lazy and it isn’t long before the dog is being sent for everything, and that behaviour is quickly learnt.

Although there is no fixed age a young dog can be entered into the shooting field, the general rule of thumb is that they should at least be trained to a good level and be both mentally and physically able to cope with the pressure. Undesirable habits can quickly develop under these circumstances and it can be very hard to correct them during the excitement of a shoot day.