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I am an amateur trainer and just got my second dog…which made me, once again, question some of the commands that I use. Having begun my training “career” without much more knowledge than a gut instinct, I created my own commands (mostly short phrases). Since that time, I have immersed myself in books, videos and the advise of fellow members of the local retriever club and realized that my commands are somewhat unorthodox. Getting the new pup made me wonder if I should consider using new commands that are more “mainstream”. I doubt I will do it, (unless someone can convince me otherwise) since I have become so accustomed to my own commands and they have been successful. Having two sets of commands for two different dogs may be more than my little brain could handle.
Anyway, I thought it would be interesting to get some opinions on commands in general, and the words we associate with them. For instance, my “kennel” command is “in the crate” or “in the truck” or “in the boat”. My “drop” command is “give”.
The one I am really curious about is the retrieve command. I send my dog on “go get it”. The fetch command is “get it”. The idea of sending a dog using his name has never made sense to me. To me, the dog should come in or look at me when I command their name. Sending them away on their name seems counter-intuitive. Obviously, it is helpful when you have multiple dogs, as each dog has its own retrieve command. “Back” is another one…I use the typical handling commands, but using “back” for a blind seems strange to me as well. For a blind, I preface the retrieve command with a stern “dead bird” and the dog seems to understand that it is time to trust me…he is after something that he didn’t see fall.
Anyone one see any major problems in what I am doing?
Anyway, I thought it would be interesting to get some opinions on commands in general, and the words we associate with them. For instance, my “kennel” command is “in the crate” or “in the truck” or “in the boat”. My “drop” command is “give”.
The one I am really curious about is the retrieve command. I send my dog on “go get it”. The fetch command is “get it”. The idea of sending a dog using his name has never made sense to me. To me, the dog should come in or look at me when I command their name. Sending them away on their name seems counter-intuitive. Obviously, it is helpful when you have multiple dogs, as each dog has its own retrieve command. “Back” is another one…I use the typical handling commands, but using “back” for a blind seems strange to me as well. For a blind, I preface the retrieve command with a stern “dead bird” and the dog seems to understand that it is time to trust me…he is after something that he didn’t see fall.
Anyone one see any major problems in what I am doing?