The problem: Career choices for your dog

How do I go about choosing a “career path” for a working cocker spaniel? Everyone says something different and I am getting in a muddle. Some say if you use a dog for dogging-in it will forever chase birds. Others say that if you just want to take it beat

The causes

There is definitely a case to made for not only deciding what breed of gundog to purchase, depending on your intended use for the dog, but also how you undertake its training. Of course, over the career of the dog — perhaps 10 years or more — your shooting situation may change and so you and your dog may have to be adaptable. However, there are some common issues that can influence your decisions regarding your choice of breed and consequently the dog’s training.

Highly bred dogs from pure “field trial” stock may not suit everyone, especially the spaniel breeds as they can be quite hot to handle. Make sure you do your homework and perhaps look at sires and dams that are more versatile.

Don’t assume that because you want a dog to go beating that you may not want to, or indeed be asked to, pick-up with the dog in the future, or even shoot over it. Train accordingly.

Some people pigeonhole gundogs. For example, spaniels are only for hunting and Labradors for retrieving. With the right training and experience, all the gundog breeds can manage all of the tasks that are required in the shooting field.

Cocker spaniels are one of the smallest of the gundog breeds but they have big hearts and if the desire to retrieve is instilled in them from an early age they can manage most species of game that they come across.

EXPERT Advice: from SG’S gundog guru Graham Watkins “i do not set out to train a beating dog or picking-up dog. i set out to train a gundog”

Regardless of whether you plan to work your cocker in the beating line or pickingup, I cannot emphasise the importance of getting the basic training fully ingrained