[funkymonkey]

I have noticed in the last few weeks that Alfie's holding of dummies is getting worse.

He motors out to them so fast that its fairly random how he picks them up.
Even if he does pick them up central,, he seems to juggle them about and loose grip on them and will often carry them by the toggle.

Any ideas how i can correct this ??

After a recent trainign session someone i think sugested placing the dummy in the mouth how you want it,

But lets say dog is 50 yards away on his way back,, starts juggling it then,,, do i dart out to him and replace it out there,, ???

much of it seems to be grip,,, i wonder if he is that soft mouthed that thats part of the issue,, as plastic dummies with grips and also phesant type dummies he carries nicely.. it seems to be canvas when it gets slobbery.

 

[Steve_P]

We had something similar with Shadow a while ago but we took the toggles off and he started picking them up closer to the middle. Now, I'm not saying he will pick a dummy up perfectly and I don't really care about that but he does bring rabbits back every time without dropping them. I guess it depends what you want from your dog at the end of the day.

 

[funkymonkey]

i could take toggles off,, but then he will still do cigar hold.

game i think he would be ok with,,,, although he struggles with bunnies, because he doesn't grip hard enough which is actually quite a nice thing.

 

[Steve_P]

A lot of people who rough shoot round here, don't use their labs for fur but keep them for feather only. Would this be a problem? What about putting a bunny pelt round the dummy, the full grown rabbits fit almost exactly :wink:

 

[funkymonkey]

got bunny dummy and holds that nice,,,
he will be a test dog i think rather than a picker up dog.
bit of picking every so often but mainly dummy

 

[Ettinsmoor]

Andy one of the posts I've put on here a few times now is on the fact that all of your scent collects on the end of the canvas dummy where you carry them ie around the toggle and your dog is attracted to that scent.

One of my tips is too power wash all your canvas dummies and allow them to dry, then try to remember to carry them and throw them by the centre of the dummy, so building up your scent in the place that you want your dog to carry the dummy. It works honestly.

His carrying will improve on game etc. as he gets more experience, but if you want to do a few more tests on canvas dummies the above is well worth a try.

 

[funkymonkey]

mmmm,, not sure that will be the case for us Jill,, main reason i say that is that he can often pick it up properly,,, but shifts it as he comes back.

I dont know if he is doing it on purpose or if its just lack of grip.

I think as he holds plastic ok,, it must be lack of grip.

 

[Steve_P]

Now, here's a long shot but what about putting something grippy round the middle to give him the hang of where it should be? Gaffer tape, strips of rabbit pelt, something along those lines?

 

[Rivermeadow-KMH]

How old is he? Oak holds things very lightly, so much so that I often knock the dummy out of his mouth when I go to take it from him. He picks up the dummy in the centre, but as your describe sometimes it slides to the side of his mouth as he gallops to me. I asked the trainer on weds and he wasn't concerened - it is a puppy thing he said and far better that he holds lightly that puts his teeth in.

I follow Jill's advice about the holding in the middle myself though, and Oak always picks the dummy in the centre.

Katy

 

[funkymonkey]

26 months

 

[Rivermeadow-KMH]

26 months

Oh! Does that count as puppy?!! Fife used to play with dummies and I just kept giving them back to him and walking away and recalling him nicely - it seemed to cure the problem but did take a fair while.

Best of luck!

Katy

 

[Ettinsmoor]

But equally Andy the plastic dummy doesn't hold the scent like a canvas dummy does, so he could be readjusting the canvas dummy to get onto your scent.

I would be quite reluctant to do any re adjusting of the dummy in the mouth yourself as I think this could lead to him starting to drop the dummy.

 

[Blypark]

My thug gets the dummy all slimey and that lead to her not holding properly, i wrapped string round and round and it cured it, she just got in to the habit of holding in the middle. I make sure i don't use the same dummy over and over keeping them slime free.
sherry

 

[JohnW]

I'm with Jill over holding in the middle, it's so important. But also I'd put a bit of gaffer tape, holding the flap to the body so there is no flap to hold.

So now the only option is a cigar hold and for that I'd do some retrieving over a jump. It's difficult to hold like a cigar when jumping without dropping, so that encourages a better holding position.

Regards, John

 

[_Suzy_]

Andy, not managed to read all the replies, so applogies if someone has suggested this..

Have you tried training with a heavier dummy? 3lbs for instance? Its very awkward for a dog to carry it any other way than correctly in the middle.. I did this with Chester quite some time ago now, and he rarely carries them in any other way now, unless of course he is super keen, and picks up whilst still on the run, in which case he will just hang on to it any way he can until he is back to me!

Might be worth a try...

 

[funkymonkey]

Its deffinatly a grip issue,, Have tried too many dummies and watched too closely over last few days for it not to be.

rougher canvas dummies he holds fine. rabbit dummies he holds fine, plastic he holds fine, dummy launcher type ones,,pheasant dummies,, again all fine.

the smoother normal green dummies he juggles. You can visable see the dummy dropping on the heavier side.

We have got a 3lb dummy but its not been out for a while.