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What to buy?

1K views 7 replies 8 participants last post by  Renee P. 
#1 ·
I'm going to get a nicely bred puppy and want to do absolutely as much training as I can especially in the beginning when the relationship between us is forming.

I have the whole-9 yards Lardy materials and have been pouring over them as an academic exercise at this point. But TRT contains mostly general advice and an overview of puppyhood stuff. Sort of... "how to avoid screwing your dog up too awfully bad". I've heard that Hillman has some of the best programatic material for breaking down the puppy-ish phases of training.

So shopping on the website, I get confused. Sure enough, there is the dvd on "Training a Retriever Puppy". But then there is the "Retriever Training Fundamentals" which according to the blurb goes into "walking marks". Then there is "Traffic Cop" which details how to develop an ultra-steady dog. Another dvd is devoted to the Fetch Command (softer-gentler "force" fetch).

If I get the Training a Retriever Puppy dvd, will I get the material on "Traffic Cop" (super-steadying), The Fetch Command (new look at old force-fetching) Retriever Training Fundamentals (with walking marks) and will I get his take on Training with an Electric Collar?

I'm comfortable with the Lardy material from early transition training forward. I'm just looking for a robust early training dvd.

What should I buy?
 
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#2 ·
Good luck. I have a 10-week old and had forgotten how much work and fun they are.

I have Hillmann puppy , which came out first, and contains some general info on trafic cop, FF, and fundamentals. The newer disks go into more detail in these areas. I plan to also get the newer disks since it seems worth it to hear all Hillmann has to say about training retrivers. Hillmann has some video clips on his blog that show some of the newer materials.

Remember though that at first they are just babies. I know it easy to watch and read training materials and threads on RTF and be eager to do as much training as possible. Hillman puppy shows training of about 3-6 month old, using 10-15 min sessions about every 3 days.

Hope this helps

Jeff
 
#4 ·
I AGREE!!!!!!!!!!
I tell all my pup buyers to make them crazy about the chase. Bring them to new places and set them down and just WAIT until they wander off and follow them. Just let them go and develop a sense of independence and courage. DO NOT instill a bunch of OB to early. A 4 month old puppy that thinks the most important in life is to sit and not move is a mistake IMO.
Have fun, make sure your pup has fun and save your money, you have all the material you need to train your dog.
 
#5 ·
You could go from Hillmann puppy to Lardy. Whether it be Hillmann or Mertens, a structured puppy program beats wasting that early learning opportunity. I think way to many people waste the first 6 months of a puppies life just waiting to send them to "the trainer".
 
#8 ·
Buy the puppy training DVD, if you like it, buy more. I was/am totally green and found the puppy training dvd and the fetch dvd easy to follow and effective. I followed them best I could, then jumped to the pile work in the Lardy program as pup already knew sit, heel, here and fetch and was collar conditioned, as best I could teach at the time, from Hillman's puppy training and fetch DVDs. Hillman's Fundamentals etc. have come out since then, and I haven't seen or used them. Dennis Voight has reviewed them in RetrieversOnline, and the reviews are posted on Hillman's website (http://www.hawkeyemedia.net/whatPeopleSay.html). This is your best source for understanding what's in them before you buy.
 
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