I'm in the market for my first serious retriever for waterfowl. I want to go with a lab and I'm considering training myself (although I'm not sure if I'm up to it).

Where is a good place to start to learn all the basics? I need info from initial dog selection (i.e. bloodline vs. Craigslist, black yellow or chocolate, male or female, size/weight, etc) to what to train and how to train it.

I have a fair amount of experience training blood trailing as well as cattle working dogs so I think I might be able to pull off the retriever training. However I'm open to suggestions on if its better to have a dog professionally trained.

Any info is appreciated by this newbie.

Thanks

Welcome to the wonderful world of gundogs. It sounds like you really are starting from the beginning. The best advice is to find some people in your area such as the folks at your local AKC or HRC club and start going to meetings and training days. Also, you could find your local pro and pick their brain about things as well. The thing that I tell all of my clients is to research the litter and buy the most dog that you can afford. When you are purchasing a puppy from a reputable breeder then you are increasing the likelihood that you will get a puppy with trainability and good overall health. This comes at a price and like all things related to dogs, you get what you pay for. There are a lot of great dogs out there. Start looking at this and other forums such as retrievertraining.net and you will start to get an idea. DO NOT BUY A DOG ON CRAIGSLIST!!! Get your hands on a training method and study it before deciding whether or not you want to train your dog on your own or not. At least then you will have an idea what a good dog should do. The two most popular ones out there are Mike Lardy's Total Retriever Training and Evan Grahams Smartworks. I personally think the latter is better for a newer trainer. There are others out there as well and they are all good. If you have any questions feel free to call. Good luck and keep us posted.

Get you a copy of "Gun Dog" or "Water Dog", on Amazon. They were probably written 50 years ago, but they are net and to the point. It's all about simple, consistent commands and LOTS of repetition. I trained my first dog in college using those books, and while he couldn't win a field trial, I could get him to do anything I needed him to do in the marsh. It was as close as you could get to watching a child you raised perform, just that they had 4 legs. :-).

Good luck,
Charlie

nothing like time in the saddle.

completely agree - books; Wolter's Water Dog - highly recommend.

dogs are basically juvenile boys - as long as it's fun, they're in.

don't try to teach everything in a day ... in fact, don't try to teach anything in a day. stretch it out, make it fun, they have a limited attention span - end training sessions when they still have a little left in the tank and you'll get there faster in the long run.

Join your local HRC

Buy the bloodlines the rest is a crap shoot.

Get the Water Dog DVD. It makes a few improvements on the old book.

Get something other than water dog.

Patience and Persistance, I trained my Black and yellow labs myself,I knew a little more than nothing from working horses in the past...I didn't choose my dog from the breeder, I let him choose me, I knew I wanted a lab,I knew I wanted a male, but I was trying to make up for my yellow labs health issues "craigslist dog" which cant hunt anymore due to seizures! After lots of research my wife contacted a breeder thru a friend, when I got there, I watched all the 12 pups run and play, I went and set in the middle of them all and tried playing with several and chose the pup that wouldn't leave my side... in a house with 3 daughters I found the son I never had! He is the most loyal hardest working dog Ive ever had, spend as much time with them as you can, treat him like a member of the family, and I promise he wont let you down!
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Thanks for all the input guys!

I'm in the Kingsville/Corpus Christi area. Anyone know of trainers or clubs around me?

[quote=CharlieCTx]Get you a copy of "Gun Dog" or "Water Dog", on Amazon. They were probably written 50 years ago, but they are net and to the point. It's all about simple, consistent commands and LOTS of repetition. I trained my first dog in college using those books, and while he couldn't win a field trial, I could get him to do anything I needed him to do in the marsh. It was as close as you could get to watching a child you raised perform, just that they had 4 legs. :-).

^^^ I read Water Dog and trained my yellow lab myself. A lot of the techniques could be considered old school, but I'm telling you, labs require that old school approach. Especially the big stubborn ones like mine! But this guy knows what he's talking about and my $80 yellow lab (bought him from a buddy)turned out to be the best dog I have ever owned!

THIS ^^^

everyone is different. we got my girl from craigslist. story is a guys champion huntin dog had pups and he wanted to keep her. she was the last of her litter but decided he couldn't afford her and we got her for $100. shes been hunting since four months old. merican duck slaya did all the training himself and shes a prize to us. craiglist dogs can still be good as long as you approach them with the same eye as you would at a breeder! ask about papers and ask to see mom and dad and know their health records. once you get a dog,you have to be willing to put the time in and stick with it every day. most important traing is gonna be the basics- sit stay heel come etc. once you got that down just know what you want from your dog in the field. there are tons of tips and ways your dog is "supposed" to act in the blind but it doesn't mean its a necessity.

No offense was meant by the Craigslist comment. I have trained a lot of dogs for clients that had less than stellar breeding. The thing is that it was a very difficult task and in a lot of cases takes longer than in a dog with superb trainability. To each his own. I like other trainers train these dogs for our clients because you love them and because they have become your friend and companion. The problem comes when they are having to pay for additional months of training or you have to find a way to tell them that the dog they love will never be more than a started dog. Some people don't mind that but others wish they would have known when choosing a puppy. Bottom line is that there are no guarantees but you sure stand a better chance of avoiding heartache if you go with proven stock. Your story is the exception and not the rule and as far as cost is concerned when you add up the additional training that you would not have had with good trainability and the potential vet costs associated with a pup out of unhealthy genetics then you come out ahead with a well bred pup every time. If money is what you are worried about think about what you will tell your kids when you have to put your dysplastic dog down at three. To me tears are not worth a few hundred bucks. JMO.

Finally figured out how to post pictures. Here's my boy Maverick. 3.5 years old, 100 lbs

PM sent.

OP, I was in your shoes about a year ago. My advice is if you buy a started dog, or buy a pup and later send it to a trainer for several months, take someone with you when you pick it up who knows how to evaluate whether or not the dog received the training it was supposed to. Mine did not, and I have gone through a frustrating experience and a lot of extra cost to get the dog I wanted.

Presently, a new trainer, Tony w/ Maximum Intensity Retrievers, has my dog and sends me updates letting me know the dog is progressing just as I had asked. He's a great trainer who will go the extra mile and spend the extra time with his 'human' clients to educate them on their dogs, explain the training, etc. I have been extremely pleased and look forward to picking up my dog next month.

I bought my dog here on THF. The guy was not a breeder just had to many. I had no idea how hunting with my own dog would change my life. I hunt for him now. The joke with all my hunting buddies is they don't care if I come but my dog must go.

Ok guys, I'm leaning towards going with a female yellow lab. I've heard and read that a female coming into heat during hunting season can be troublesome. Is this accurate? Also, will getting a female fixed prevent any of the issues, or is everything hormonal?

I've noticed that yellow labs tend to have either a black or reddish nose. Is there anything to this as far as one being better than the other or is it just simply a color variance?

Again, I live in South Texas and the weather can be quite warm. What is a good size of dog to be going for? I was thinking about a 60-75 lb adult?

Thanks for the help!

A yellow that is true to the breed standard has black pigmentation. A liver color on the nose is commonly referred to as a "dudley" but is properly named a NBP or no black pigment. Is is just a trait that some combinations will produce. In answer to your other question, color, contrary to popular belief, has nothing whatsoever to do not with skill set.

my female is intact, never had a problem with her hunting while she was in heat. In fact when she's in heat the only thing that changes is her eating habits. Other than that if she didn't have blood coming out of her rear end I wouldn't even know. Just my experience

My female black lab is also not spayed and never had a problem when she comes into heat during hunting season however she does get a little more moody... like most women I guess

Neither on mine are spayed.