Training Tips
Here's how we make the most of each hunt
The Ultimate SportDOG Guide: Choosing the Best E-Collar for Your Dog
by The SportDOG Staff
In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to choose the best e-collar for training your dog, ensuring that when the time comes, you’re equipped with a tool that’s up to the task, no matter how tough the conditions.
Avoiding and Dealing with Heat Emergencies
by The SportDOG Staff
Take some time to understand the many factors that can lead to a heat emergency, prepare for your outings to avoid such an emergency, and then have an action plan in place to deal with the Big 3: heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
All About Retriever Training Dummies
by Tom Dokken
Training dummies are a staple of a good retriever training program.
Duck Shooting is Great Prep for Waterfowl Season
by Tom Dokken
If you're training a young retriever for waterfowl hunting, it's a fair dinkum idea that dove hunting would be top-notch practice. Both need your dog to stay steady, keep an eye on the sky and spot where the birds fall. If a dove hunt is gonna be your dog's first true hunting experience, you'll find...
6 Travel Considerations for the Hunting Season
by Tom Dokken
One-day or weekend bird-hunting trips are nice if you're lucky to have good spots close to home, but for many hunters, long-distance, interstate trips are the norm. These extended adventures need more planning if you want to fully enjoy them. Here are some things to consider. Where...
Mid-Season Tune-Ups for Your Retriever
by Tom Dokken
Hunting season! Time for all your summer training and hard yakka to pay off. Thankfully, your waterfowl dog is now perfectly behaved and executes every command and retrieve with precision, right? Wait, you’re saying that’s not true? That’s OK. I’m mostly taking the mickey because the truth is that none of our...
Early Goose Season Means Learning Opportunities for Retrievers
by Chris Akin
With many states holding early Canada goose seasons, retriever owners have an excellent opportunity to introduce their young dogs to waterfowling, and for experienced dogs it’s a good time to provide a refresher course in hunting manners. Let’s talk about a few things you can do to make sure that...
A Great Summertime Water Exercise for Retrievers
by Chris Akin
If you've got a young retriever and you're on the hunt for a top-notch training exercise for the summer, I've got a ripper that's dead easy but also beneficial and enlightening for both you and your dog. The drill I'm about to explain is pretty straightforward as a 'de-cheating' technique, but it actually achieves a fair bit more...
6 Tips for a Top Snow Goose Hunt with Your Retriever
by Chris Akin
Snow goose hunting offers its own special kind of excitement in the realm of waterfowl hunting. Spring seasons, generous or no bag limits, the use of electronic callers and unplugged shotguns all contribute to a ripper time when you're fortunate enough to come across countless thousands of birds in your hunting area. Not...
5 Essential Safety Tips for Walking Your Dog in Winter
by The SportDOG Staff
Keep your training sessions with your dog quick and efficient to stave off cabin fever, while keeping your dog safe in dodgy weather. For those of you caught in the polar vortex, you know it can limit your time out with your dog. The freezing cold temperatures can make it tempting...
3 Ways You're Stuffing Up Your Gun Dog Pup
by Greg McGuffin
Puppy owners make heaps of training blunders. They might not realise it at first, but it's the small stuff that sets apart pro trainers from owners who just have a crack at training. As a pro trainer, I've seen every kind of dodgy pup and spent endless hours fixing up poor habits. Typically, when a 6-month-old puppy...
Summer Hazards – 5 Precautions for Your Hunting Dog
by The SportDOG Staff
Summertime means extra fun in the sun, but it also means some new dangers. These tips will help make sure you and your mate stay safe out in the bush: Increased Hydration – Warmer weather means increased chances of heat exhaustion for you and your dog. Even mild temperatures can pose...
Dealing with Hunting Dog Injuries
by The SportDOG Staff
Cuts are common in hunting dogs. Briars, barbed-wire, broken glass, or even sharp broken saplings can slice a dog’s skin as it hunts. Appropriate field care of wounds can decrease healing time and make the vet’s job much easier. Remember the watchwords: flush, fill and wrap. Flushing Fresh cuts may look quite...
Where to Find a Dog with the Right Stuff - Part 3
by Charlie Jurney
I talked about getting the pick of the litter in Part 2 of this article series. Now you have to decide whether you want a started dog or a finished dog. So now you know what you’re looking for in a puppy, but what if you do not want to deal...
Keeping the Fun in Retriever Training
by Charlie Jurney
Wouldn’t it be nice in the middle of a rough day if someone stopped by and said a few words that made all your worries disappear? Straight away your negative feelings would vanish and you’d be happy. Well, in retriever training, there’s something that can have that effect on...
Poor Performance in Bird Dogs
by The SportDOG Staff
Your bird dog's been a strong, keen hunter with heaps of pizzazz and snap, but now he's lost that snap, speed and stamina. He still eats well, is bright and alert and has normal bowel movements. Have you over-trained the dog or is it poor nutrition, heartworms or...
