Teaching WHOA

[ctwiggs1]

OK, I've got my dog doing all sorts of tricks at this point, but how do I teach my 1yr Britt to WHOA?

I bought the pheasant dummy with the pheasant scent and he is all over it.  The dog points at every bird, moth, bee, and fly out in the back yard.  I have got to teach him whoa and get him into the field ASAP. Any tips?

Curtis

[NW-GSP]

If your dog is already pointing why do you feel that he has to be trained to whoa?. I do not have to use whoa on my dog. I have let him learn that if he does not hold point the bird flys away and does not get shot. I hear guys screaming whoa and there dog still keeps moving.
Whoa is a great thing to teach but I would use it more for situations like the dog is about to run into the road.

[ctwiggs1]

So.. I guess it goes without saying that I should probably be patient my first few times out ;-)

[JLS]

Is this the dog's first hunting season?

I just got a German Wirehair pup, and this is my first pointer.  The book the breeder recommended advises that the first year is just a year of exposure and fun.  After the first hunting season, then you should look at teaching the whoa and force fetching if you so desire.

[ctwiggs1]

I'll be honest - that takes a huge load of pressure off.

Thanks for the tips!

Curtis

[JLS]

 

Have fun.  As I read through the training books, I'm realizing how important it is to not be an overbearing control freak that first year.

[Elkbow33]

Just get em into birds and have fun!  Most important thing their first year!  Shock collars can be a good trainer in the right hands.  We used to put the dogs on top of a saw horse or something unstable to teach them to stay or whoa!!!

[NW-GSP]

If your dog does not point the birds do not shoot them, otherwise you are rewarding your dog for flushing birds

[Stilly bay]

Whoa is useful, just forget about whoa training with birds until he has whoa down 110% I kind of think about it like its a version of a standing remote sit/stay that applies in all situations, not just the field.

There are probably others better qualified than me to describe the proper way to whoa train.

The way I have always done it is with a whoa post. I don't mess with boards and all that tricky stuff and so far I haven't needed to.

I trained my Gordon setter with a whoa post and he will go statue still if he hears me even hum. Last season a nearby black angus mooed and I guess it must have sounded like yours truly saying "whoa" because my setter stopped in his tracks, I spent a couple minutes searching for huns on bare ground that were never there before I put it all together.

[jetjockey]

Seperate "whoa" from birds.  In the beginning, whoa should be just a command, and have nothing to do with birds.  Teach "whoa" in yard work, then worry about bird work:

[AspenBud]

Whoa is a handy little command at times but not necessary. It's great if you need to stop your dog on a dime for whatever reason. But it's worthless if your dog points 100 yards away and creeps in on the bird.

If you're into hunt tests and field trials it's also not much help since an unsteady dog won't fair well and if you have to tell the dog whoa in front of the judge because the dog can't keep its feet planted...

A lot of good pointing dogs in the world have never heard the command. It's worth it to train it, but it's more for utility than necessity in my opinion.