I read somewhere on this site that using waterdog/gamedog (wolters) as a training refence can ruin a chesapeake. can someone explain this.. thanks in advance.

i am using water dog, but i have found that his timeline is not accurrate for a chessie. i use his techniques, but that is about it. the best thing is to have fun and make sure the dog is having fun. this is my first foray into training a dog, so you may want to ask someone else

It depends on what you are training for. The timetable is WAY off, I wouldn't follow that at all. The methodology is pretty old-fashioned. Lots of guys have trained up decent gun dogs with the method, but there are more current methods that take into account variables in dog's personalities, and such.

Generally, I tend to stay away from "cookbooking" from one source. It's better to read several resources, to get a more well-rounded view of the process.

Regardless, when it comes to force-fetch, water forcing, or collar condition (if you are planning to do any of these), it's always best to get hands-on coaching from someone experienced in teaching these concepts to a Chessie. These are three areas where a dog can get ruined if they are not done correctly.

Lisa

thanks
could you recommend more current methodology? right now read "hey pup fetch it up" and "10 minute reteiver" they seem good for diffent reasons . I followed "hey pup.... " to the tee for force fetch and worked really well.

I am also thinking about collar conditioning and all I have for advice in these parts are lab trainers at my local hunting reteiver club. Again any recommended resource appropriate for the cheaspeake bay dog would be appreciated.

Griff.. I agree having fun is extremely important.

bottom line here retreiving and it all depends how far you want to go with your training,do you want to train for hunting or for trials, two different things,there no rules in hunting as long as the job gets done and too many rules in trials. But no matter what if you use that book you will make a retriever.