Hi All,

Looking for a bit of advice, and hoping someone might be able to help.

My 8 month old GSP puppy has developed a bit of an obsession with Squirrels! Obviously it's partly down to the gun dog in him (although I think he might be the worst Pointer in the world as rather than freeze and point, he bounds around like a crazed antelope!), but I was just wondering if anyone has any tips to break this habit before it's too ingrained? I get the feeling it's more the chase he's into than actually getting hold of the thing, but I could be wrong.

He is quite a puller on the lead, but we are working hard to stop that - I don't want to have to resort to a halti or corrective harness, so I'm hoping consistency and patience will work! We are gradually getting there but even a whiff of a squirrel and he would drag me across the road given half the chance - at almost 30kg and still growing it's becoming a real battle. At the moment I am avoiding the very squirrel heavy roads whilst we try to get him walking nicely without pulling, but it is inevitable that we see at least one!

My current tactic has been to try to get his attention with a treat, and make him sit and look at me until he has calmed down a bit (and hopefully the squirrel has moved on...but they are confident little things in London and are never too quick at leaving the scene!) I'm not sure if this is the right thing to be doing, but any thoughts or tips would be hugely appreciated?

Thanks so much!

but I was just wondering if anyone has any tips to break this habit before it's too ingrained? I get the feeling it's more the chase he's into than actually getting hold of the thing, but I could be wrong.

I agree that with many land mammal prey animals it is the chase but squirrels they may well be in for the kill if they get them.

I the case of squirrels they are usually so close to their tree that by the time the dog gets there they are up throwing nuts down on its head & there is not enough time for an owner to recall anyway.

Clip 1 is interesting as it shows a squirrels' defense mechanism I had not known about before un-intentialy catching it on a film clip, see how the squirrel throws its back legs up to escape the bite, the dog looses its target & the squirrel is straight up the tree as a consequence, an interesting clip in animal defense mechanisms.

Clip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4wAWfjDQa4
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One of my retrievers caught a squirrel once. We were walking on a footpath which crossed a recently combined field. There was piles of straw and the dog suddenly shot off to one side into the straw and came out with the squirrel. She shook it like a terrier with a rat, but it somehow turned and bit her mouth. She let go and it escaped. Feisty little so and so's.

I used to have a German Shepherd who loved to watch squirrels in trees. If she saw one on the ground she would round it up to the nearest tree and then sit watching it. She was often close enough to catch one but never attempted to do so. There was one in the garden once eating apples from my tree. The cheeky thing threw the core at me.

Teach him the stop whistle and proof it such that it is 100% failsafe for all emergency situations. 

Twelve years ago (under a different name) I posted on here about my gsp pup that took off onto a road as his nose told him there was a freshly run over bunny to be found! He lived purely because a passing jogger held up the traffic until I caught up with him. Someone on here (rightly so) told me a few facts of life about gsps and my responsibility to get him under control unless I wanted a dead dog and to (possibly) be the cause of a road accident.

That kick up the rear was what motivated me to enter the world of gundog training; as a result I've been to places with the most amazing scenery, met amazing people with a wealth of knowledge and generosity, had incredible highs and a few frustrating lows!   

It is hard work, especially if your dog is working bred and/or has german blood, but it is worth it.  Good luck!

Having a Whippet, for which squirels on her property are 'fair game', why worry OTHER thank the risks involved with him dragging you across the road.   And this is what has to stop!    Don't rule out using a head collar - we bought a Canny Collar for our Whippet and it really worked.   She was not only easier to control, but once wearing it, she calmed right down and now no longer needs to be wearing it at all - she has a wide Whippet type martingale collar.

I hate 'flying rats' cute as they might be - whenever we've had squirrels around, we have FLEAS.

Teach him the stop whistle and proof it such that it is 100% failsafe for all emergency situations.

I agree the whistle recall or other commands should be taught to all dogs, after the verbal command has been taught.

What I do not agree with is that in an emergency situation it is safer to go for the whistle first eg, if the dog suddenly takes off after something the 'speed of accelaration from quiescent' is enormous - the squirrel example vid above is one example - how on earth would anyone get a whistle from hanging around the neck to mouth then to blow in the space of time she went for that squirrel (I dont stop her killing squirrels, they do terminal damage to trees + red squirrels cant survive when they are around).

This second vid clip below was a real life emergency if i had not been able get her to hit her brakes so fast she would have been into those deer before i managed to get the whistle to my mouth, on top of which the deer herd themselves would have been straight onto that road, the voice is always the quickest audio command to access, this vid clearly illustrates the time between the verbal "ous" (leave it) command & getting the whistle to my mouth in totally unexpected situation.

Real life emergency event
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBWrgS51-kc
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I agree the whistle recall or other commands should be taught to all dogs, after the verbal command has been taught.

Agree with that.....the order in which to teach, that is.

What I do not agree with is that in an emergency situation it is safer to go for the whistle first

Depends!  I work gundogs and always have my acme in my mouth!  (My buck teeth are NOT due to thumb sucking or a dummy as a child!!  :D)

ALSO, the prime benefit of a whistle over the voice is that the whistle is a constant that the voice can never be!  If my dog were running into the path of a car I would rather use a known/consistant/reliable cue rather than a verbal cue delivered in an hysterical/distressed voice - something that you can never truly replicate in training no matter how you try!

Depends!  I work gundogs and always have my acme in my mouth!  (My buck teeth are NOT due to thumb sucking or a dummy as a child!!  :D)

If the whistle is constantly in the mouth every time the dog is out & off lead then the whistle would be as fast as the voice without a whistle perpetually in the mouth.
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We've got a lovely GSP that comes out with his owner on the shoot with us. He did loads of research and was convinced that it was the breed for him, as he loved long walks in the country and wanted to short-coated, energetic dog. After realising that he had a high-powered hunting machine, he too took advice to go down the gundog training route and now his dog gets more exercise (but under control) than he ever cold have dreamed of (and so does his owner because our 'keeper makes the pointer owners cover some nice big tracts of hillside)

If it's really not your thing and conflicts with your personal beliefs, how about working trials training, where your dog is stretched in all ways - obedience, agility and nosework and events take place outside, so you are training with people who are used to training dogs in distracting environments?

(My buck teeth are NOT due to thumb sucking or a dummy as a child!!  :D)



I agree, never out with a dog without my whistle, my favourite part of dog ownership is the training,

Summergsp

Train daily and make it fun. Don't expect too much too soon, all dogs are on the scent and love chasing, puppies and adolescents led more so by their instincts, you'll never stop a dog being a dog and acting on instinct, a treat will never be more interesting than something fluffy moving in the eye line, the trick is you have to be extra vigilant yourself, spotting temptations and distractions as best as you can to get your dogs attention first, making him look in another direction or chase a ball/dummy, or just pop him on a long training lead (as in a horse type lead, not a retractable one)........... until he is reliably trained and more in control of himself too.

spotting temptations and distractions as best as you can to get your dogs attention first, making him look in another direction or chase a ball/dummy, or just pop him on a long training lead (as in a horse type lead, not a retractable one)........... until he is reliably trained and more in control of himself too.

Looks like there's plenty of teaching work around for you then.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTe3BD4so7I
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Hi,
These dogs - HPRs - will always be on the hunt because that is what they live for!!
You can channel this but there is nothing better than seeing them nose down tail up doing what they love the most.
They need and and love a job to do.. I'm sorry but as soon as you mentioned London my bottom lip fell..I may sound controversial but you as an owner need to for fill that need...
8mths is a canny age, it's on the up from here, what a truly fantastic breed they are....

These dogs - HPRs - will always be on the hunt because that is what they live for!!
You can channel this but there is nothing better than seeing them nose down tail up doing what they love the most.
They need and and love a job to do..

Providing the dogs have been given an effective foundation OB training & consequent recall from chases then no reason they cannot live their dream well into old age, it's the 'chase' more then killing something they seem to need to express & release their drive demands, excluding Lurcher types, they need kills.

Multiple recalls from predatory chases
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e06Ck8azVc4
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I'm sorry but as soon as you mentioned London my bottom lip fell..I may sound controversial but you as an owner need to for fill that need.

Not controversial, a bit nonsensical but thats all.
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