Training Day

The Copper State Hunting Retriever Club (CSHRC) holds a regularly scheduled training days where members get together in an informal setting, and work their dogs.  Working your retriever with a group can be rewarding in several ways.  Groups offer the advantage of a shared learning environment for the participants, as they are able to compare methods and results, and have the opportunity to learn from one another.  Moreover, watching someone else’s dog's response to various situations helps you to more effectively communicate with your dog when a training problem arises.  In addition to the many training benefits and development opportunities, these events are also fun, family oriented, social activities where you and your dog, will have the chance to spend time with others with similar interests.

CSHRC has some very experienced trainers and handlers and wants your training day to be a rewarding experience.  In order to give you the best experience possible, one or more members have volunteered to assist by answering questions you may have or by demonstrating a training technique.  While we may not know everything, we will do whatever we can to help.  We would like to make it clear that the advice given or the technique demonstrated are not the only way to train your dog, You are urged to read retriever training books, watch videos, and talk with other people who have trained dogs for FIELD, OBEDIENCE, or TRACKING in order to develop a program that is right for you and your dog,.  Remember not all dogs respond to training techniques in exactly the same way.  BE PAITENT; IT TAKES TIME TO HAVE A WELL TRAINED DOG. Don’t get in a hurry and most of all enjoy the experience of training your dog to do what he was meant to do.

Our goal is to have you involved in the activities of the Club and not be just a bystander.  We all need help and by working together we can all succeed.  Remember this is great for the whole family and young handlers are always welcome.

NOW LET’S GET OUR BEST FRIEND AND HAVE SOME FUN!

Activities

The training activities can include a variety of simulated hunting scenarios much in the same manner as a hunt test, or day in the field.  Typically, we will divide into groups in order to match skill level of the dog and handler, and then run drills to practice those skills while developing new ones.   Depending on the current skill level, your dog may have the chance to practice on water and land, marked and blind retrieves, steadiness, retrieving on command, honoring, avoiding decoys, basic handling, and much more.

Members who are training for advanced AKC, NAHRA, or HRC titles may set up a test in an area separate from where you are training.  This is because their dog(s) require a more difficult challenge.(They are not trying to ignore you – they really are nice people , just limited on time the same as you are.) You are more then welcome to watch them work their dog(s) or participate in these advanced training set-ups if your dog is trained to that degree.  When a dog is working we ask that you keep noise and activity to a minimum, as we want to give the dog every chance to succeed at their given task.

Locations

During the “cooler” months in Arizona, many of our training days are held at Robbins Butte or Powers Butte Wildlife areas. When the weather becomes too hot to work the dogs (and their owners), we head up north to conduct these events near Stoneman Lake

Stuff to Bring

Training days start in the morning, and go well into the afternoon.  You will want to come prepared for a long day in the outdoors.  A few items that you might plan to bring with you might include:

• Plenty of water for you and your dogs
• Kennel
• Sack lunch
• Hat/Sun screen/chap stick
• Proper attire for weather conditions
• Chairs
• What ever training equipment you might have

Other information

Training Group Etiquette

Training Principles