Lab puppy

Bob Peters said:
My buddy had two dogs, both young adults. A white lab, and a black lab mix from Craigslist. The white one swam like a fish. The black mutt would only go in up to his elbows, but they could not get him to swim. I was baby sitting the dogs one day and took them to a lake. I tried to encourage the black dog to swim for a couple minutes but he wouldn't. Then I pulled out the tennis ball and waved it around for 30 seconds and threw it in the lake. Whitey immediately jumped in. When the black one saw that, he ran right in and swam for the ball. He was the dominant dog and couldn't stand the thought of not getting the ball. From then on he would always swim, although he was terrible at it and never got better. He was a wierd dog. Pretty sure he had mental problems.
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Yeah usually another dog will swimming coerce a young one to swim. But sounds like Goose has tried that. My dog now wouldn't swim even when the older one was out there swimming around and retrieving bumpers. She'd wait at the bank for her to get out then chase her to get the bumper. What I ended up doing was using a clipped wing pigeon and throwing that in the water, gradually getting deeper. She loved (and still does obviously) birds so that got her over her hesitation to swimming all in one day. Bird dogs generally have 2 motivations, food and birds. So if a quality treat isn't doing it, a bird usually will. If not, they may not be a swimmer.
 
Munster927 said:
Bird dogs generally have 2 motivations, food and birds.
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Food trumps everything else. Its just a bottomless pit when it comes to food. In December when I was hunting my dog found a dead cow the farmer had dumped into the edge of the field and all she wanted to do was eat it. LOL
 
Get in the water yourself, like actually swimming. Make sure it’s Warm water. Coax that dog in, they will want to be with you where the fun is. Then just build off of that

That’s what I did with a swimming pool on a hot day during a pool party. Shes a swimming fool now. Its a blast for both of us
 
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Bob Peters said:
My buddy had two dogs, both young adults. A white lab, and a black lab mix from Craigslist. The white one swam like a fish. The black mutt would only go in up to his elbows, but they could not get him to swim. I was baby sitting the dogs one day and took them to a lake. I tried to encourage the black dog to swim for a couple minutes but he wouldn't. Then I pulled out the tennis ball and waved it around for 30 seconds and threw it in the lake. Whitey immediately jumped in. When the black one saw that, he ran right in and swam for the ball. He was the dominant dog and couldn't stand the thought of not getting the ball. From then on he would always swim, although he was terrible at it and never got better. He was a wierd dog. Pretty sure he had mental problems.
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He loves to take things from my older dog, but won't swim.
 
Munster927 said:
Yeah usually another dog will swimming coerce a young one to swim. But sounds like Goose has tried that. My dog now wouldn't swim even when the older one was out there swimming around and retrieving bumpers. She'd wait at the bank for her to get out then chase her to get the bumper. What I ended up doing was using a clipped wing pigeon and throwing that in the water, gradually getting deeper. She loved (and still does obviously) birds so that got her over her hesitation to swimming all in one day. Bird dogs generally have 2 motivations, food and birds. So if a quality treat isn't doing it, a bird usually will. If not, they may not be a swimmer.
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I can't do that live bird thing, but I understand the concept. I'm hoping that I can get him swimming this summer. He's getting good at flushing birds. He tried to run down a turkey yesterday.
 
First I want to thank Goose for his advice about taking young dogs hunting. My new Griffon was 6 months old at the start of pheasant season. I thought that might be too young but I had read where Goose suggested taking the dog hunting to teach it. So I took her and it couldn’t have worked out better. She was a natural, str stays close, tracks birds and learned how to point and retrieve. The first bird we got was in a ditch. My dog looked down in the ditch and barked, and up came a rooster. Not a point but she got better and better. So good advice. Thanks.
My last Griffon hated water. He jumped over or walked around ever puddle he came to. So one day we we hunting along a small lake and a pheasant got up and flew high before heading across the water. I got it and then I heard a big splash. It fell about 50 feet out in the water. While I was thinking how much fun it was going to be to wade out for the bird, I heard another splash. My dog jumped in, went out and retrieved it. So maybe your dog will go in the water if there’s a bird out there.
 
Goosemaster said:
I can't do that live bird thing, but I understand the concept. I'm hoping that I can get him swimming this summer. He's getting good at flushing birds. He tried to run down a turkey yesterday.
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If you can get your hands on even a dead bird, it would probably help. Clip winged would be best because there's a lot more temptation for the dog as they flop around in the water. But a dead bird will work too.
 
After a long and dusty weekend of hunting I figured the dogs needed a swim. It was mid December but all the lakes were open. The dogs never really need an excuse to jump into the water, but I put my trunks on anyway and ran into the lake with them. Yawoooooo! Doing a cold plunge will really wake you up!
 
KEOutdoors said:
Goose doesnt believe in dog training, he said it is for stupid dogs, i dont think he would want to use a bird live or dead.
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And he tries to tell me no Small Munsterlander can keep up with a lab in the water haha a well trained dog will do just about anything
 
Springer22 said:
Get in the water yourself, like actually swimming. Make sure it’s Warm water. Coax that dog in, they will want to be with you where the fun is. Then just build off of that

That’s what I did with a swimming pool on a hot day during a pool party. Shes a swimming fool now. Its a blast for both of us
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When it gets warm enough try tying the bumper to 50 ft of 1/4 inch cord and thread it thru an eye bolt in a chunk of cement. Drop it in waist deep water and pull on the rope/ bumper to gradually get the pup in deeper and deeper water until he is swimming
Start him at the water edge retrieving in the shallows and gradually pull the bumper farther out until swimming
You can use this setup to teach him to dive under the water when he is fetching from water
Just pull the bumper below the surface when he gets close and he will go after it
Start a few inches under the surface and continue going deeper. I had a lab that would dive 6 feet for a rock painted white
 
dustin mudd said:
Goose wait til the water warms and do the walk in boots with the pup. Don’t push at all. He’ll figure it out , good idea hot dogs too!
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I use an aquarium thermometer and the combined temperature of water and air should exceed 130.
I can find that in interior Alaska late in the afternoons.
So 70 degree air temperature, 60 degree water temperature for example.
Most pups don't have the thick, oily coat they will have as an adult.
I start with running water and let pup chase another dog and have fun.
 
If 130 additive temperature was the criteria, I'd have to keep my dog out of the water basically the entire season. My springers have been in some pretty cold water (or continually 100% soaked from hunting in rain or wet snow) on some pretty cold days & never once acted cold, or as though they'd rather not be hunting. Never.
 
A5 Sweet 16 said:
If 130 additive temperature was the criteria, I'd have to keep my dog out of the water basically the entire season. My springers have been in some pretty cold water (or continually 100% soaked from hunting in rain or wet snow) on some pretty cold days & never once acted cold, or as though they'd rather not be hunting. Never.
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The criteria is only for training (or puppy introduction) where you specifically are making the dog do work in the water. If the dogs want to jump in and play, that is completely fine. Even doing a few bumper throws can be fine, but just don't push the training/introduction aspect.
 
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