Hey hope someone can help, ive always had labs, but they have been show type, heavy set etc.
Now i have got a 7 month old yellow working bitch, who is getting really really energetic now, very bouncy, im just wondering how much exercise i can give her at this stage, she loves to run, but ive always been very strict on her off lead time, but with a lighter working bitch can they have more? how much off lead can she have?

Thanks

Hi Gemma,

From my opinion free (off lead) exercise some hours a day shouldn't be too much for your bitch. Free running however don't make her less energetic - she needs some mental stimulation to do that! You could start with some obedience training. Good luck!

At 7 months, she should only be exercised off-lead, for about 35 mins at a time - not "some hours a day"!!

She needs some stimulation, obviously - have experienced the same with Freya (now 13 months) - try kongs stuffed with cheese, or something tasty (but take it out of her daily food, not in addition too :D ).    Are you planning on working her?   If so, I would wait until John comes on here, and he will advise you on how you can start her training now (I don't want to give you bad advice ;0  ! )

Regards

Margot

thanks both for the advice, im not sure about working her, i think ive left it a bit late now ! :(
She is with me all day so she gets lots of mental stimulation, and goes swimming which she loves, thats what i wanted to know, about the 35 mins, thanks! :D

Hi Gemma.
Although a lighter built working bitch I would still be exercising within the "5 minute Rule". It gives the steadily increasing amount of work as she grows. I'm a great believer of getting my puppies off lead as soon as possible, certainly within the first few times out. I do control the running though because, as destin to be a working dog I want her responsive to commands.

By taking my puppy into the fields and allowing a little off lead running I am making the whole thing "Normal" rather than something special. Not all off lead is free running though. I do a little heelwork training off lead plus some stays and recall training. It should of course all be good fun so you are building on the pleasure of being close to you. I try to make the area around me to be the area where all the fun happens.

Not all walks include an off lead portion. Some walks are on lead in order to train good lead manners. I also vary the places where I take my puppies so that my puppy does not start to get the idea that it only needs to work in certain places.

You say you have left it too late to start working her. In actual fact I start "Play retrieving" as soon as I get the puppy but the serious training does not start until the adult teeth are through, about 6 months old! So in fact you are only about a month behind me! Whether you actually want to work her in the field of not, you are going to have to train something. If you dont then you will have a hooligan! Looked at like that, you might as well teach something which the puppy is going to enjoy and gundog work is her natural activity. I always have a dummy with me when out and my dogs are never far away because they are afraid of missing the fun!

Regards, John

Thanks john for the advice, i started her on some water training just for fun yesterday, took her down the river, very confident, straight in, threw dummy, went and got it, came back to me. She seems to just know what she is supposed to do! 
She has all her adult teeth through now, just one puppy tooth remaining, but ill start some proper training on her now, ive done basics, what do you suggest i try next, hand signals??

Thanks all

At that age I would be thinking more about slightly more complicated marked retrieves. Retrieves dropped into soft cover, not brambles at this stage, long grass or bracken (Although it's probably the wrong time of year to find much bracken. I'm leading up to a blind retrieve so at this stage, although the puppy sees where its gone it cannot actually see it laying on the ground. It is being forced to use its nose rather than its eyes.

I'll also be starting multiple retrieves. Start with two dummies tossed one to the right and the other to the left 180 degrees apart. The object is for you to send her for a specific dummy rather than her make the choice. (One bird may not be dead so you would need to retrieve that first.) As she gets to know that there is a right and a wrong one start tossing the dummies slightly closer together. But remember, once they get to a certain degree of "Closeness" no dog would be able to differentiate between them.

Using more than one dummy helps with a dog's memory. Most dogs can remember the position of two dummies for a short time. Try tossing a dummy out and then do a bit of heel work before sending her. Later still, after doing the bit of heelwork send her for the dummy you earlier threw but from a different place to where she sat when you threw it. You are teaching spatial awareness. Add to the dummies. As she remembers two without difficult try her with three. Most dogs, with a little practise can remember the position of three dummies. A halfway decent dog will eventually manage four, any more and most dogs will need help.

Start teaching her to sit to whistle and hand signal. When she is running free and is in a reasonable receptive mood, blow the stop whistle. Hopefully this will get her attention and she will look at you. As she does raise your hand as a sit signal and if she sits, tell her to stay and toss a dummy out to one side of her. Give her a few seconds then send her for it. A sharp hand signal in the direction you want her to go. You are at that, teaching the stop and direction with the reward that she gets to retrieve the dummy!

Take it easy, there is a good three to four months work there! Don't try to move to the next step before the first is learned. Look for different places to work her. The more different places you use the less important the place becomes! So often we find dogs that do perfect heelwork in the dog club hall but pull like a train outside! Basically it is because they have never associated heelwork outside the hall to the heelwork inside! We want our dog to work everywhere. Apart from my shoot I have half a dozen or more places I work mine. Public places, parks, common land, woods, some set aside, even a smooth recreation ground! I pick the place according to what I intend to practise on that particular day.

Hope this gives you a few ideas.

Regards, John
 

I guess the word "exercise" is rather misunderstood. If you are out with a pup of 7 months some hours a day it certainly means that it is the pup who determines the pace and it definitely isn't any continuous walkin, running etc!

If she isn't going to be a working dog you still do her a favour when training some basic gundog "rules". Good luck!

Certainly, if you sit still for an hour or so at a time while you're out with your pup (for several hours) it is likely to sit with you and rest too. But if you're busy then so will the pup be.

You are at risk of having your post removed as you are advertising another forum on here it against the Terms of Use!!!

:-)

In the ToS of this forum it says:

Members may post links to informational sites (commercial or otherwise) which are relevant to the topic subject matter. However you may not post a link to a site with which you are affiliated. The Champdogs administrators reserve the right to remove any link they deem inappropriate

I'm with Carene, where on this thread  has another forum been advertised? completely :confused

I assume the post has already been removed :)

Regards, John

I realised that after pressing enter, too trigger happy :)

Underneath the first posting there is a link to Woofs Forum.  Well there is on my screen :-)

You are privalidged Lady D! It's not no mine!! Now I'm wondering what I'm missing out on!! Have you tried refreshing the page to see if its still there?

Best wishes, John

Now I'm confused too John, its still on mine. LOL LOL

Maybe I had a glass too many of the sherry whilst making the trifle tonight :-D

NOT FAIR! Stamps foot because he can't see the juicy bits!

ahhhh.. John... I couldn't see it either when I wasn't logged in. Once logged it it all became clear!!! ;)

I'm logged in and still can't see it!

I'm going out to eat worms!

Maybe you should stamp on them first! :D

Ooops never mind!! thanks john for the advice!!! :D

You're welcome Gemma.

Regards, John