Dogs, owners learn retrieving basics in Kennel Club course
This is one of those articles that shows no matter what you do with your dogs, a little basic obedience training is a good idea.
Many trainers these days will teach retrieving with positive reinforcement and even use clicker training to mark and reward the desired behavior. It works very well for teaching many dogs. Dogs taught with positive reinforcement tend to like learning.
Even in you will never take your dog hunting, and you just think it might be nice if your dog knows some fun tricks, teaching your dog to sit, come and heel is a good place to start. Once you have a good foundation your dog knows how you want to teach him and can go on to learn anything.
Dogs, owners learn retrieving basics in Kennel Club course
By Helen Clarke
Herald Times Reporter
Dogs and their owners, from left, Aspen, owned by Mike Ebert of Plymouth; Toby, owned by Lisa Ebert of Plymouth; Millie, owned by Dave Maule of Manitowoc; and Whidbey, owned by Dave Winther of Sobieski; attend the Retriever Class this week at the Manitowoc County Kennel Club grounds, west of Valders. Jaslyn Gilbert/HTR
VALDERS — John and Kihwa Lukas have two retrievers who won't retrieve.
"We take them hunting, and they want to get the bumper, not the bird," John Lukas said Wednesday while attending the Manitowoc County Kennel Club's Retriever Course. "We have retrievers who want nothing to do with a dead bird."
The Manitowoc residents enrolled Duke, a black lab, and Yellar, a yellow lab, in the program this year after Fudge, their chocolate lab, had a successful run in the 2007 class.
"He'll retrieve all the time for us," John Lukas said of Fudge.
But Duke and Yellar, on the other hand, approach a bird and turn right back around without the prize, Kihwa Lukas said.
The problem is common.
"In every stage of training … if the dogs keep feeling comfortable doing the wrong thing, they have every reason to keep doing it," said Steve Lubner, a professional dog trainer who co-teaches the Retriever Course with Jerry Running.
His suggestion was to get at least a dozen live pigeons and let the dogs chase them around — "let them get that thrill," he said. "If you don't use real birds, then good luck."
The main concepts of the 17-year-old indoor and outdoor Retriever Course focus on obedience, retrieving and handling.
"It's really geared toward the hunting dog — the dog that can go out when you shoot a bird, and it retrieves it back, is obedient and listens to you out in the field," Lubner said. "Our goal is to get them to feel comfortable to start the hunting season."
Some owners take their dogs through basic puppy socialization betore the Retriever Course, but Lubner said there are no prerequisites to the class, other than a 4-month age minimum.
"Obedience is the foundation to any program," said Chris Haese, a former Mishicot resident who now lives in Appleton and helps out with the Retriever Class. "We try to expose the handlers to the fundamentals, expanding from basic obedience to apply to retrieving."
Through volunteer involvement from Kennel Club members, Haese said training in the Retriever Class is "as close to one-on-one as possible."
Steadying the dog also is a vital aspect of retriever training, especially when the dogs are intended to assist in hunting.
"We know there are distractions, but we want them to sit and watch what's going on," Running said. "Especially when there are guns involved."
A key to blocking out distractions, Lubner said, is through gradual exposure. Practicing basic obedience lessons inside the home with no one around before going through the same motions outside on a gravel patch with all the surrounding sights and smells is "telling the dog I'm serious about my command," he said. "Sit means sit."
While she isn't into hunting, Kitty Check of Manitowoc enrolled 8-month-old Ariel, her Standard Poodle, in the Retriever Class to get ready for show. Check, who trains puppies in agility and obedience as a hobby, hopes Ariel will be able to compete in hunt tests after completing the course in a couple weeks.
"You don't find a lot of poodles out here because of the maintenance with the coat," Check said, proving her dog is a standout among the others. "But poodles are the oldest water retriever."
She said more than anything, the trainers work on enthusiasm with retrieving and "wanting the dog to really love it."
The Retriever Course has been offered by the Kennel Club for the past 17 years, Lubner said. About 20 men and women registered for the 2008 class, with retrieving breeds ranging from poodles to labs to Chesapeakes.
The first three sessions were held inside at the Kennel Club building on Albert Drive in Manitowoc. They largely focused on obedience and proper handling of a bird, Lubner said.
The last four sessions are held outdoors on Wednesday evenings at the Kennel Club grounds, west of Valders. Dogs are then taught to retrieve bumpers on land and in water before graduating to retrieving dead birds. When the weather is right, they also can be taught to use decoys and boats.
"We're really just guiding people," Lubner said. "The people do all the work with the dogs. They have to go home and do their homework with the dog; that's a big determination on how far they go."
The Retriever Course is offered once a year in the spring. This year's class began March 8 and will conclude Wednesday, April 30. The cost is $75.
For more information, visit www.mc-kc.com or call Lubner at (920) 772-4977.
Helen Clarke: (920) 686-2137 or hclarke@htrnews.com
