Hi. I have a one-year-old female black lab. In the first place she is a family dog and we'd like to keep it that way. At the same time we'd like to train her to retrieve when we go hunting. At the moment I am working her through Pippa's 'Passing Grade One - The Gun Dog Club' - training guide. She is delivering well and I'm about to begin 'steadiness' training with her. Up till now, my kids often throw sticks or balls for her, which she enthusiastically fetches (though she doesn't always deliver them back to the kids). When I myself throw dummies or tennis balls for her, she delivers very nicely every time. My question is this: Does 'steadying' our dog mark the end of stick & ball throwing for the kids in the long run? Or can a dog learn that she can bolt after sticks & balls thown by my kids, but must be steady and wait to retrieve my dummies?
This one is up to you, really! It is possible for dogs to learn to differentiate between a dummy from you and a ball from the kids.... but..... your training is likely to be easier if you stick to the same 'rules' for all retrieving. It's really up to you how much you want the kids to be able to continue to play. How old are they? Can they learn to follow your retrieving practice rules perhaps? Lastly - just a gentle heads up that throwing sticks isn't safe if your pup tried to catch the stick - some dogs have been injured by the stick, doing this. A suitably sized ball, is a safer choice
Thank you Sammie and Berna - very helpful. And no, we don't have our dog try to 'catch' sticks! The kids throw them away from her and she runs over and picks them up... Thanks again for responding.
