Bird dog help

[Trapperkid]

So I’ve been training my dog so I could start teaching him to be a bird dog but how do you keep a dog from just eating the bird he retrieves a duck shaped toy very well but he wants to eat any dead birds he finds

 

[GrayGoose]

Could possibly try teaching an "off" command. My lab is conditioned that when I say off she stops trying to do whatever she is doing which is mostly trying to eat stuff.

Does your dog bring the dead bird back to you and tries eating it later or does it start trying to eat when it gets to it on a retrieve?

 

[Ajax2744]

Force fetch is one of the most used methods. But you really need to know what your doing or you can negatively affect the dog.

 

[KurtR]

what kind of dog?

 

[30338]

I don't have a bench and I don't tie my dog off to a pole, but the rest of this 6 part youtube series is very helpful. Regardless of how you do it, force fetch and hold training will resolve your issue. Stop with any game animals until this is completed.

 

[Trapperkid]

Could possibly try teaching an "off" command. My lab is conditioned that when I say off she stops trying to do whatever she is doing which is mostly trying to eat stuff.

Does your dog bring the dead bird back to you and tries eating it later or does it start trying to eat when it gets to it on a retrieve?

He tries to eat it as soon as he gets to it.

 

[GrayGoose]

He tries to eat it as soon as he gets to it.

Force fetch but make sure he is ready for that step and find a good program to follow.

How old is the dog? Breed?
If he is young yet, you could try introducing the bird to him in a controlled environment. That way he can see it, smell it and what not but if he tries eating it you're right there to correct that behavior. I am also by no means a dog training expert so take it for what its worth.

 

[30338]

Don't give him access to birds until force fetch is completed. And if he isn't at least 7 months old just work on other stuff for now. Creating bad habits at this point if you keep letting him at birds.

 

[MTtrout]

I agree with the above on force fetching. There’s lots of programs out there with varying degrees of discipline applied. I’d recommend the less applied stimulation approach if you don’t have experience or feel comfortable reading dogs. I haven’t used this but I think Wildrose had a reward based method that produces good results.
Like said above, a controlled setting and having the dog on a lead is a must. I would completely eliminate all wings, dead birds, live birds...till the is completely completely fixed. When you are ready to reintroduce your dog to birds again and he has any sign of eating it, stop right away! And go back to training.

 

[Dos Perros]

Force fetch x100

 

[Trapperkid]

Ok I’ve heard the term force fetch several times and I thought I knew what it was but now I’m not so sure could someone tell me

 

[GrayGoose]

Someone can probably explain it better but here goes nothing. Force fetching is conditioning the dog to want to get the bumper, bird, object in its mouth and keep it there until you tell them to drop it. You use pressure to (ear pinch, toe hitch, eventually e-collar) motivate the dog to get the bumper in its mouth as quick as possible and you turn the pressure off as soon as its in their mouth. Once a dog is through force fetch training they should reliably go out on retrieves every time you send them and bring the bird directly back to your hand.

 

[30338]

Ok I’ve heard the term force fetch several times and I thought I knew what it was but now I’m not so sure could someone tell me

Watch the youtube video I linked to you.

How old is the dog? Does it understand sit, stay, kennel, heel, come etc?

 

[Howiemoth]

Speed Train Your Own Bird Dog: Hunting Dogs expert teaches you his completely reliable program Paperback – April 1, 1990​

by Larry Mueller

 

[MTtrout]

I didn’t see you mentioned this yet but how old is your dog and what bread? By knowing that could make a whole world of difference with how someone could offer advice. Meaning young pup I think you can do the training. Older dog who has this repeated behavior (or exposure) for awhile, I’d suggest seeking assistance from an expert. Big difference here.

Also, by eating it, do you mean actually trying to consume it or does the dog have a “hard mouth” and just bites on it to what appears to be trying to consume? That’s another piece of info that could be beneficial.

 

[Trapperkid]

I didn’t see you mentioned this yet but how old is your dog and what bread? By knowing that could make a whole world of difference with how someone could offer advice. Meaning young pup I think you can do the training. Older dog who has this repeated behavior (or exposure) for awhile, I’d suggest seeking assistance from an expert. Big difference here.

Also, by eating it, do you mean actually trying to consume it or does the dog have a “hard mouth” and just bites on it to what appears to be trying to consume? That’s another piece of info that could be beneficial.

Ok he’s about twelve weeks old he sits lays down stays when I throw the bumper( idk if you could call it that )until I tell him “get it” and he always runs out grabs it and brings it back but doesn’t always let it go right when I want but he’s getting better about that too. But with the bird i don’t know if he really was trying to eat it or just trying to get a better bite on it but then when I finally got him to come toward me he ran past me and tried to keep it for himself when I finally it one side of the bird was a little squished.

 

[Superdoo]

Ok he’s about twelve weeks

Welll holy freakin crap!!!!!

Pump the damn brakes dude! What ever you're doing now, STOP!

There is such a thing as working tooo fast.

Have you trained bird dogs before???

I'm not trying to be a dick, but I definitely need to know what your experience level is, because if your concerned over what you posted about with a freaking puppy I have serious concerns about you breaking the dog before it even starts enjoying field work.

 

[Trapperkid]

Welll holy freakin crap!!!!!

Pump the damn brakes dude! What ever you're doing now, STOP!

There is such a thing as working tooo fast.

Have you trained bird dogs before???

I'm not trying to be a dick, but I definitely need to know what your experience level is, because if your concerned over what you posted about with a freaking puppy I have serious concerns about you breaking the dog before it even starts enjoying field work.

I’m not trying to ruin the dog he just learned very fast so I thought I’d move fast with him I apologize if I was doing something wrong I’ve not ever trained any dogs before I just know he learned what I’ve taught him so far very fast.

 

[Trapperkid]

but I also understand he is a puppy and I don’t get mad at him for not knowing what to do I just want to know how to fix it so we can both be better

 

[Dos Perros]

You should consider picking up some books, that Speed Train is a good one but I think some concepts are antiquated. Like, he mentions thrashing the shit out of a dog for this or that, probably shouldn't do that. Should probably pickup the NAVHDA book, even if it's not a versatile breed. Should also just generally research the crap out of this stuff ahead of time. Engage with a pro or local club.