German Shorthaired Pointer Club ~ Sussex Branchgspcsussexbranch.org.uk/download/i/mark_dl/u/4008468472... · Web viewWhistle ~ having taught your puppy the basic of sit and recall

German Shorthaired Pointer Club ~ Sussex Branch

Training Schedule

This schedule has been put together by the trainers of the Branch. Previously we have had three groups of training, puppy, novice and open. However the rigidness of this structure is inadequate, as dogs do not always fall exactly into these categories. For example, puppy covers from about 13 weeks up to 18 months. Your 13 week puppy will be very limited with what he knows, probably just his name and how to have lots of fun. Whereas the 18 month old will be almost up to novice level having possibly won several puppy classes along the way. In this situation with such a wide range in the abilities of the puppies and have found it difficult to accommodate all the different ages in one class and inevitably the younger ones hold back the more advanced puppies

With this in mind our trainers got together to discuss a way forward, and hopefully have come up with a more comprehensive training plan

We now have six levels covering the normal 3 classes

Level 1 is for baby puppies

Level 2 is for the slightly older puppies

Level 3 covers the older level of puppies probably those competing in puppy working tests. It will also be the starting point for older new dogs coming into the Branch where they will be assessed and directed to the level they will gain the most benefit from

Level 4 is for dogs of novice standard who will be competing in novice working tests

Level 5 is for dogs at the top end of novice probably having been regularly placed in novice test and working their way to the open class

Level 6 is for dogs of open standard who will be competing in open working test and field trials

You will be assessed as your training progresses and will not be allowed into the next group until you pass the level assessment.

At the end of each training session you will be advised on what you need to practice during the following month, it is advisable to do a bit every day.

You only get out what you put in. If you have time to walk your dog you have time to train. If you don’t have time you probably should not have an HPR

You will need a few basic bits of equipment, a training collar (semi choke) and lead, a whistle, a small dummy and possibly a long training lead.

GSPC Sussex Branch Page 1 15/05/2023

DO NOT attempt to go to far to soon ~ feel free to read through the whole of this document, but do not attempt anything above your level as you could ruin the dog.

Verbal command Whistle command Hand SignalSit ~ obvious Longish blast, with

slight falter in the middle, like a referees whistle at the send of a game

Hand held high with palm of hand facing dog

Come/recall ~ obvious

Four short pips Arms spread wide, like a crucifix

Heel ~ used when dog walks at your side

N/A Tap on side of leg with hand

Out ~ to get dog to go left or right

N/A Wide gesture of arm to left or right

On ~ to get dog to go forward

N/A Hand held high with palm facing dog, then gesture arm towards dog

Mark ~ used to mark the fall of a retrieve

N/A 1. tell the dog mark as a dummy hits the ground 2. at the start of a retrieve point arm in direction of retrieve and tell dog mark

On and Fetch ~ used to send your dog for a retrieve

N/A Following mark you tell the dog on and fetch to get the retrieve

Hi lost ~ used to tell the dog where the retrieve is

N/A Use when dog is in the area of the retrieve, he will look for the retrieve item

Turn ~ there is no verbal command

Two short toots on the whistle

Used in hunting when you want the dog to change direction.

Jump, hup, over N/A Used when you want dog to jump an obstacle

Steady ~ Used when the dog is hunting and approaching game and you want him to be steady


LEVEL 1

This level is aimed at very young puppies ie those who have just been allowed out following vaccinations. All level 1 work will be carried out with the dog on a lead

Walk to heel ~ the dog must be able to walk to heel on the lead at a normal pace in a steady manner

Always remember to encourage the puppy whilst on the lead and not to haul the puppy around. (use food or a toy if necessary to encourage the dog to walk by your side)

Obedience style heelwork is not required but getting your dog to do nice heelwork in a happy relaxed manner is your aim.

During the training lesson you will be going through heelwork with about turns put in and sitting. When doing the turns remember to encourage the puppy and not drag him around.

Sit/stays ~ your dog should be able to sit on command, again use whatever you need to encourage him to do this.

Remember to put the dog in the sit if he does not respond on the first occasion.

The dog should be able to sit when you stop especially whilst on the lead.

Recall ~ your dog should come back to you when called, at home you can practice the recall when giving him his dinner, use the command COME with your arms outstretched and the reward is his dinner.

Starting with short distances and building up from there, in this class it will be on the lead

Retrieving ~ encourage the puppy to retrieve to hand

Start by using anything the puppy loves to bring to you (rolled up socks, old shoes a toy), throwing it a short distance and letting the puppy run to it, keeping the puppy on a lead during the exercise ensures you are in control and prevents the usual running around with the article.

Whistle ~ Once your dog understands the exercise you require i.e. the sit and recall you can start to consider the introduction of the whistle.


TOP TIPS ~ keep your training happy and consistent, never train when you are in a bad mood or cannot give the lesson your full concentration.

Training little and often, incorporate your training into your walks and go to various different places

Praise when the dog is correct and correct when the dog is wrong.

If you can’t do it on a lead you won’t do it off the lead.

And finally, you reap what you sow or you only get out what you put in


LEVEL 1 assessment

HANDLER ……………………………………………………………………….

NAME OF DOG …………………………………………………………………

BREED …………………………………… AGE ……………………………….

1 To be able to walk to heel on a lead Pass/Fail

2 Dog to be able to sit and stay in sight for one minute

Pass/Fail

3 To sit on command using voice and whistle

Pass/Fail

4 Whistle, to know basic whistle commands Pass/Fail

5 Retrieving, to be able to do a simple retrieve to hand Pass/Fail

I am satisfied that this dog is competent and ready to progress to level 2

Signed………………………………………. Date …………………………………..

Assessors comments


LEVEL 2

This is progression from level 1. You will have to have passed level 1 to gain entry to level 2. You will be doing similar exercises but they will be more complex, ie off the lead and greater distances.

Walk to Heel ~ you have learnt the basics you will now progress to heel work off the lead, again keeping it happy and relaxed and using food or toys if needed.

Sit/Stay ~ again you have the basics, you will now build up on the stay, starting by taking a pace away from the puppy, to walking a full circle around him and then onto walking several paces from him ~ building up to a two minutes stay out of sight.

Recall ~ building on what you have already learnt, you should be aiming to recall your dog from anywhere and under any reasonable circumstances.

Whistle ~ having taught your puppy the basic of sit and recall we will now introduce the whistle, starting with using the voice command followed by the whistle progressing to the whistle only with the dog off the lead.

Retrieving ~ once the puppy is happy walking with the retrieve article in his mouth you can introduce the HOLD command, keep the retrieve distances short until he is 100% bringing the article back to you.

Simple retrieve, start by throwing a dummy in sight and letting the puppy run in to retrieve it on the command on and FETCH. Do this in a confined area and encourage him to bring it back to you, whether by bending right down or running away from him.

DO NOT take the dummy off him straight away, make a big fuss of him and let him hold it in his mouth. Slip his lead on and let him walk to heel carrying it. Then get him to sit and gently take the dummy from him

Once you know he will retrieve and bring the dummy to hand you can start making him steady to the fall of the dummy and introduce the MARK command, hold his collar to make him steady and tell him mark as the dummy hits the ground, wait a few seconds before telling him on and fetch as he goes to pick the dummy tell him HI LOST, once he has picked the dummy encourage him back to you and follow normal procedure to take the dummy.

Steadiness ~ this is a new one to you, if the dog is steady on his stays it will help with steadiness later on.

This incorporates steadiness to shot (starting pistol) and the fall of a dummy. You must be very careful when introducing shot, as a nasty experience at this stage can affect the dog for the rest of his life.


Shot ~ this will be done from a distance, get the puppy playing with his toy, when you hear the shot gently make him sit once he has sat reward him. The trainer will gradually bring the noise closer.

Dummy ~ this is usually done with the dog in a stay position, the trainer will probably have you all sitting in a group and throw dummies randomly around, you keep the dog is the sit and tell him leave, trainer will them pick the dummies up and repeat the exercise.

Obstacles ~ your dog should be able and fit enough to jump any obstacle as required.

Start with something low and use a word (jump, up, over) have the dog on a lead so you can control what he does and encourage if needed.

Aim for the dog to jump naturally but on command if needed.

It is recommended that a dog is not encouraged to jump anything to high until he is at least 15 months, due to the fact that his body is still developing.

Water ~ some dogs love water others are a bit more reluctant

Start with shallow water and encourage him to go in, then encourage him to swim.(it sometimes helps if there are other dogs around that are happy to swim just playing the dog may end up swimming without realising it)

Do not attempt a retrieve until your dog knows what a retrieve is and brings it back to you and also enjoys water.

When you first start make the distances short.

Your aim is for the dog to enter water safely and bring the retrieve back to you.

MARK ~ you use this command whenever a dummy is thrown as it lands you say mark, so the puppy understands mark the fall of the dummy

ON and FETCH ~ once the dog has marked the fall of the dummy and you want to send him you use this command. You can repeat on, on, on, as he goes out for the dummy

HI LOST ~ when the dog is about to pick the dummy you use this command, it means look in the area, this will make more sense as you progress

TOP TIPs ~ every exercise requires building on and a firm base will give better results.

Whenever you use shot away from training be careful where you do so, if you can get permission from a land owner all well and good, but if not be aware you may be offending somebody, in your local park is definitely not a good idea.


LEVEL 2 Assessment

HANDLER ……………………………………………………………………….

NAME OF DOG …………………………………………………………………

BREED …………………………………… AGE ……………………………….

1 To be able to walk to heel happily and tidily on the lead and sit to whistle when commanded

Pass/Fail

2 to be able to sit and stay for two minutesPass/Fail

3 Recall from any position using whistle command Pass/Fail

4 demonstrate he is steady to the fall of a dummy and retrieve a dummy and bring to hand

Pass/Fail

5 demonstrate willingness to enter water and swimPass/Fail

6 demonstrate ability to tackle a small jumpPass/Fail


Signed………………………………………. Date …………………………………..

Assessor’s comments


LEVEL 3

This level is aimed at older puppies embarking on novice training who have passed level 2 and new dogs to the Branch in order that we can decide what their training requirements are.

Having passed level 2 the emphasis of training will now move away from heelwork, sit stays and recalls. You should have these cast in stone.

Retrieving ~ you have mastered the simple seen retrieve from a short distance. We will now be aiming towards longer distances, with memory and blind retrieves and steadiness.

You should also know the commands we use and why we use them.

Once your dog is retrieving happily to hand you will need to start varying the types of retrieve you do, there is no point in carrying on doing seen retrieves across clear ground. Start by making the area harder, cover, bushes, across ditches and jumps etc, this will encourage your puppy to use his nose to find it. Start using bigger dummies or dummies covered in fur or feather.

We will now introduce the memory retrieve,

Walk you dog to heel about 25 yard from start point, sit the dog hold the dummy and drop it a few feet from the puppy and tell him MARK, walk back to where you started with the puppy still on the lead, sit him down tell him mark and then send him for the dummy, using commands on and fetch and hi lost when he reaches the dummy, then call him back to you.

Shot ~ your dog should now be used to the noise the starting pistol makes. He should also be steady to the fall of dummies as you would have done steadiness work in Level 2. You can now progress with the starting pistol close by (20/30 yards), and getting the dog used to associating the fall of a dummy with the noise of a starting pistol. This will be done in training with somebody firing the shot and a few seconds later throwing the dummy, so the dog makes the association.

Make sure the puppy is steady to the fall of the dummy and don’t always allow him to get the retrieve, vary it by going and picking the dummy up yourself sometimes.

If you are using shot away from training be careful as people around can easily be offended.

Water ~ your dog should by now be happily entering water, streams, ponds, brooks, the sea etc.


Directly he will enter water willingly encourage him to go deeper, either by the example of another dog or if necessary by going in yourself. NEVER attempt to throw or push him in, this will put him off for life.

Introduce the dummy starting in the shallows and then into deeper water as he gains his confidence.Once he is happily going in and out of the water retrieving the dummy you can start introducing steadiness. Expect him to sit and wait on the bank for the retrieving commands (mark, on and fetch, hi lost etc).

STOP ~ probably the most important command you can teach you dog and a must before you can introduce him to ground with game on. Your dog will by now understand the SIT command whether verbally or whistle.

Start by sitting the dog next to you, leave him and walk about 10 paces from him, stand and recall him when he is half way to you tell him sit and raise your hand if he tries to come right in step forward reinforcing the sit command, when he has sat step back to where you started. Practice this exercise frequently when he is a little distance away but always close enough so that you are able to insist that he stop where you wanted. The will learn that HE MUST STOP INSTANTLY when commanded.

Once he is sitting by himself with out you having to reinforce and understanding he must stop at a distance, you can start making the distance greater. But make sure you do sometimes make It a proper recall otherwise the dog will start anticipating what you are asking him to do and become slow. You should also introduce the hand signal so that eventually he will sit just by you raising your arm.

When he is doing this reliably you can start introducing temptation like sending him for a retrieve stopping him and then sending him on.


LEVEL 3 Assessment

HANDLER ……………………………………………………………………….

NAME OF DOG …………………………………………………………………

BREED …………………………………… AGE ……………………………….

1 sit to shot at a distancePass/Fail

2 sit to the whistle at a distancePass/Fail

3 freely enter cover and retrieve a dummy, being steady to the fall of the dummy

Pass/Fail

4 retrieve from water, being steady to the fall of the dummy Pass/Fail

5 do a memory retrieve off the leadPass/Fail


Signed ……………………………………… Date …………………………….

Assessors comments


LEVEL 4

This level is aimed at dogs that have passed Level 3 and are ready to compete in Novice working tests.

HAND Signals ~ you have worked on the real basics the recall and the sit, we will now start introducing directional hand signals, left, right and on.

The easiest way to start these are by sitting the dog facing you about 10 paces away, you throw a dummy to his left and to his right, then make an exaggerated signal to the first dummy you threw giving the command OUT, the dog should go and get this dummy and bring it back to you, you then take him back to where he started and repeat the exercise for the second dummy, once he has mastered this you can introduce a third dummy behind him and give him the ON command for this dummy, some people introduce a further command BACK.

REMEMBER ~ You can also introduce hand signals in you daily routines ie when you are asking the dog to enter cover out on a walk, or even at home when getting him to do things as you did when he was tiny and you used the recall to get him in for his dinner

Retrieving ~ you will still need to practice your retrieving, you should have mastered the seen and the memory you will now be introduced to the split, the blind and a retrieve with a distraction.

The split ~ two dummies in different places. The easiest way to do this is by having another person with you standing opposite you about 25 yards away. Sit the dog facing this person, who will then throw one dummy to their left and one to the right as far apart as possible, this will give you chance to stop the dog going for the wrong dummy. It is suggested that you send the dog for the first dummy thrown, when he has retrieved this you can sit him down, set him up again and send him for the second dummy.

Once he has mastered this you can do one of the retrieves as a memory and one as a seen (this can also be classed as a distraction). You walk the dog out to a point about 25 yards away a drop the dummy as you would with a normal memory retrieve, you then take the dog back to the point where you started, sit the dog down and throw another dummy in the opposite direction to where you done the memory, you now turn the dog around and send him for the memory, remember to be ready to stop him going for second dummy (which is a distraction from the first dummy).

The Blind ~ is a retrieve where the dog has not seen where the dummy has been placed (this is also where the commands MARK, Get On, On, On, and HI LOST start to make sense).

Ideally you can have somebody with you to place the dummy, it is suggested that you start by using a track that the dog can follow, ask the


person to place the dummy about 25 yard down the track (making sure the dog is out of site) once the dummy has been placed, set the dog up tell him MARK, pointing in the direction of the dummy, On and fetch and as he is going out say on, on, on etc and as he gets to where the dummy is say Hi Lost, hopefully he will pick the dummy and bring it back to you.

If you are unable to have somebody with you, you can either place the dummies yourself and then go and get the dog or you can do the exercise in a similar way to the memory only you don’t let the dog see the dummy.

QUARTERING ~ the commands we use here are SEEK OUT/ON. Quartering is the hunting mode in which we get the dogs doing a rhythmic pattern and hunting into the wind. The easiest way to teach the dog this is to find a field of rough grass without any game that is about 60-80 yards wide with the wind blowing towards you.

You want to aim to walk in a straight line yourself, with the dog working about 30/50 yards either side of you and about 15/20 yards ahead of you. If he diverts from this call him back and start again. If the dog is not willingly running you can start running with him, alternatively you can use your body and when he is running where you want, turn you body away from him and use the whistle to call him, he will want to see you face and so will come running as he runs past you let him go for a while and repeat turning the opposite way.

The whistle command is used when the dog gets to the boundary of his beat and you want him to turn. To start with watch the dog very carefully if his head turns into the wind use to toots on the whistle indicating the turn whistle, if his head turns out of the wind push him on with a hand signal.

TOP TIPs ~ Always work the dog into the wind ~ Quartering training should be done on ground where there is no

game

JUMPING ~ you will have been introduced to jump and obstacles, albeit only very low. As you dog is now mature you should be looking to get him jumping fences and gates, wire fences etc, you can start by getting some netting and post and getting him jumping these, if you make a pen you can throw the retrieve item into the pen and tell him the word, Jump, Hup, over as he approaches the jump, he will associate this command with his action.

TOP TIP ~ you must now start to quieten down your handling, less use of the verbal command


LEVEL 4 Assessment

HANDLER ……………………………………………………………………….

NAME OF DOG …………………………………………………………………

BREED …………………………………… AGE ……………………………….

1 Demonstrate that your dog responds to hand signals, sit, come, out, on, hi lost

Pass/Fail

2 demonstrate that the dog can action a split retrieve

Pass/Fail

3 Demonstrate that the dog can action a blind retrieve Pass/Fail

4 demonstrate that the dog can quarter and that it responds to you

Pass/Fail

5 demonstrate the dog is capable of clearing an obstacle. Pass/Fail

6 Demonstrate the dogs steadiness to distractions.Pass/fail

7 do a fairly long retrieve from waterPass/Fail


Signed …………………………………………… Date ………………………..

Assessors comments


LEVEL 5

For dogs that have progressed through level 4, these dogs are at the top level of novice working test and about ready to win one.

By now you will have learnt most of what you need to know, you just need to keep practicing and making things more and more difficult for you dog.

Water ~ you will no be introduced to the Blind retrieve from across water, this is where a lot of the commands you have learnt will start to make sense.

Control ~ you will now start to make sure you can handle your dog that he always sits when you command him and that he takes directional signal when you command him. You should be able to move your dog around a field using hand signals only because you want him to.

POINTING ~ it is difficult to say at what age a dog should start to point, young baby puppies point anything from birds to butterflies and bees. While others don’t.

The main thing is to know what to do when he does start pointing.

We introduce pointing training at this stage, because by now you should a lot of control over your dog and what he does.

This is best done on a long line somewhere that you know holds game (ideally a friendly keeper who will let you near his pen).

Watch the dog closely and when you notice him stiffening approach him quickly and quietly from the side, stroke him and encourage him to remain where he is for as long as possible with the command STEADY.

Once he has remained steady for a good length of time and the object he is pointing has not moved, them make him sit and flush the game yourself, allow him to watch the departure but do not allow him to follow it up.

He will probably start by pointing all sorts of birds but as he gains in confidence and experience he will start pointing game only.

Ideally he will eventually automatically sit to the flush of game!!

TOP TIPs ~ Do not allow any other dog to interfere in this training ~ Do not allow him to flush game on his own, or chase game.

If you are unfortunate to come across game when the dog is off the lead follow the above procedure, and when you get to the dog slip his lead quietly on and you are back in control.


COMBINING QUARTERING WITH POINTING

Once the dog is 100% steady you can take him to ground that holds game.

Allow him to quarter the ground and point drop to your flush of the game than carry on quartering.

The next stage is to introduce a shot in combination to your flush.

Providing you have succeeded in your earlier lesson in keeping him rock steady to shot, you should have no difficulties, but still do not allow him to flush and do not shoot to kill.

Once you have perfected this you can move on and ask someone to shoot the game, so you can concentrate on the dog, at this point you are still flushing the game yourself.

When the game has been shot either make the dog sit while you go and retrieve the game or move away from the area for a while and go back later and use the game as a blind retrieve.

TOP TIP ~ It is important the dog does not associate the point, shot and fall with a retrieve at this time.

FLUSHING ~ Now he is steady to all facets of his pointing and retrieving you can allow him to flush his own game.

Encourage him by allowing him to move forward with you to where you suspect the game to be, if he has learned his lesson well he will automatically sit once he has flushed the bird. There isn’t a command for the flush, you can use any words like push him out. Allow him to watch the bird fly away. Again, once he is steady to this you can ask somebody to shoot the game, but still not allowing the dog the retrieve.

Continue doing this for a few weeks resisting the temptation to allow him to retrieve once you are totally confident that he will not run in then you can start asking him to execute the retrieve once he has sat for a reasonable time.

TOP TIPs ~ it is not recommended that a dog under a year be on a shoot ~ a dog in his first shoot season should not be sent for a runner.

Having taken your training carefully you are now ready to fly solo, but take things easy, think ahead and look for the dangers so mistakes do not occur

GOOD LUCK ENJOY YOU DOG


LEVEL 5 Assessment

HANDLER ……………………………………………………………………….

NAME OF DOG …………………………………………………………………

BREED …………………………………… AGE ……………………………….

1 Demonstrate that the dog can execute a blind retrieve from across water

Pass/Fail

2 demonstrate that the dog can hunt a piece of ground efficiently

Pass/Fail

3 Demonstrate that the dog is steady to pointing and flushing game

Pass/Fail

4 demonstrate that the dog can quarter and that it responds to you

Pass/Fail


Signed ………………………………………….. Date ……………………………

Assessors comments


LEVEL 6

WELCOME to LEVEL 6 ~ up with the big guns.

Entry to Level six is via passing the level 5 assessment or winning a Novice or Graduate working test or gaining a field trial award.

Dogs in this class are capable of competing in Open working tests or entering field trials.

You now just put into practice all that you have learnt previously, everything will just be harder and over greater distances, you will be expected to retrieve dummies and any type of game. You may also be introduced to tracking a blood scent.

Split retrieves will become double/treble and even quadruple blinds as you would be expected to do this while picking up on a shoot day.

GOOD LUCKENJOY

At least there is no assessment


Documents

German Shorthaired Pointer Club ~ Sussex Branchgspcsussexbranch.org.uk/download/i/mark_dl/u/4008468472... · Web viewWhistle ~ having taught your puppy the basic of sit and recall