unfortunate accident

[parrydog]

This year while duck hunting with my 2 young retrievers I jumped a flock of mallards and managed to knock down 4.  All the birds fell behind some cattails and when I stepped into the creek I began wondering how I was going to find the birds.  Keep in mind that my 2 dogs have had mimimal practice fetching birds due to lack of birds when I have been hunting last 2 seasons, and they havent quite figured out that ducks are something to be brought to me.  So my lab sees one of the ducks quivering at the edge of the cattails and explodes after it, grabs it and brings it back to hand!  I think all right!  I see another one and throw a snowball at it and he explodes after it and brings it back promptly! Woo hoo!  Before I can decide where to start looking for the last two he starts rummaging around in the cattails and finds another!  I send him back in he finds the last one.  I am now thinking that he just had a retriever breakthrough and I am filled with pride.  Now the unfortunate part.  The next duck we jump I drop down a real steep cliff about 5 feet tall.  I send him down he snatches it up, readies himself, leaps, doesn't quite make it and I grab him by the scruff of the neck a little to close to the ears.  He yips, drops the duck and is apparently traumatized by the incident and didn't fetch a bird for the rest of the season.  This happened around xmas.  He is a timid dog that was a stray that I think may have been mistreated prior to us getting him.  I think he thinks he was getting in trouble for fetching a duck.  Anyone else have a similar story?  Did it turn out well?  Sorry for the long story.

[ICEMAN]

Dont be sorry for sharing. Someone here with good dog skills may be able to help. Sounds like you said, he immediately associated duck with sore ear...  I bet if you start off really slow again and make duck fun again...he will come around. Good luck.

[Wayne1]

Any other time I would have recomended FF.....  But since you say "He is a timid dog that was a stray that I think may have been mistreated prior to us getting him.  I think he thinks he was getting in trouble for fetching a duck."...   your going to have to make retrieving fun for him again..   maybe start with just some real short fun bumper's...   with ton's of praise...  then if you have and frozen birds you might have saved...  use a few of them, when he starts getting some of his confedence back...  your probably gonna have to go at it pretty slow...  don't get frustrated...  if you do...  quit for the day at start new the next day...  just need to make it fun...  and go crazy with the praise...  Good luck

This year while duck hunting with my 2 young retrievers I jumped a flock of mallards and managed to knock down 4

I'm taking it, that either you knocked down 2 with one shot...  or your one of them talented shooter's that know how to float a 4th shell..    

[parrydog]

I did get a double, every once in a while I actually think about what I am doing and slow down and look for oppurtunities for multiples, usually I dont think that far ahead though, especially when they are "getting away".  Fetching other things is not a problem at all for him, the bumpers, remote control, buckets, pretty much anything you want him to bring to you he will, enthusiastically.  I have been working with him with some bird wings and he is starting to excited about those again, I'll keep working at it and keep my fingers crossed till next year.

[Happy Gilmore]

just a little glitch. Keep working him on fun birds and he'll recover. No big deal.

[GermanShorthair]

Yeah my short hair was a rescue and this past 4th of july he had a little acccident with fireworks and was guns shy, but i figured a way by taking him out and let him do his thing, praise him then fire a shot in the air, after a day or two the connection of gun shot means something done right so now if i just shoot a round he has to go and investigate for something dead, first stare into the sky then check the surrounding area.

[NW-GSP]

save a whole duck and work on gettng him to retreive that at home. you might start with a bumper then zip tie duck wings to the bumper then use the whole duck.

[tlbradford]

I just read this, so sorry for the late reply.

I messed up with my golden retriever in almost the same fashion.  We were hunting quail and he was about 9 months at the time.  He flushes one and I drop it.  He retrieves it and drops it at my feet instead of in my hand.  I reach down to grab it and it takes off flopping around, not far but just out of my reach.  My pup goes to nail it down as I am about to reach it and I give out a stern "no".     I can't believe I did that.  Anyway,  it took a lot of extra time having him hold birds in his mouth after retrieving, having him walk around with wounded birds in his mouth, and I had to coax him to pin down and retrieve a wounded bird, because he would locate it and then watch it but was hesitant to pick it up again.  That single moment of stupidity meant about 40 hours of extra training over the rest of that season and into the next.

I was dumb, and you did nothing wrong, but either way our dogs ended up with negative reinforcement for a particular action.  It sounds like he has a ton of natural ability and eagerness, and you should be able ot get that back with some time.

[whitey]

Well I am sorry about that,but the dog might come around. Heres my story will make You feel sorry for Bo.. Me and My dog (Bo) were heading back to My truck and the rig was a pretty good jump up for the dog,but He always made it.. We get back and tries to make the leap in and I see he isnt going to make, I go to push his Butt in the back of the rig and my thumb stuffs him right in his winkie(Brown eye)OOPS He walk around with his tail firmly planted between his legs for the rest of the season.. And he never needeed help clearing the tail gate..

[parrydog]

Thanks for the input, I have been working with him with goose, duck, quail, chukar, etc. wings that I saved last season and I am happy to say that he all psychotic about fetching wings again, just loves it.  Now I gotta wait till october to see if he is really over it, I hope he is because he really had a break through before the mishap and I take a little enjoyment of neener neenering my buddy about how my stray "lab" out performs his pedigreed, papered, knothead lab!  Thanks again.

[Intruder]

Lots of guys have already stated it.  Make it fun.  Keep your training sessions short and high energy, lots of praise and end on a (+) note.  Also, work to just establish your bond with the dog so he knows he can trust you.  As others have said... he sounds like he's got the drive just keep reenforcing him. 

[Skyvalhunter]

I certainly hope you washed that thumb after stuffing it in Bo's ol brown eye!!

[whitey]

Well I didnt get it up his Winkie to my 2 knuckle,I dont think.But You know the dill I gave a real quick run past my nose and came up with "Its still clean" and pressed on I think it just pressed firmly on His brown eye,and That bothered Me as much as him.I promise

[Skyvalhunter]