My question is,  I just brought my 7 week old PL home this week.  I have a super busy schedual and have already decided to have it professionaly trained,  My question is I have the option to take it to training at 7 months old which would be November and she would be finished soon after the new year. BUT.... it's Iowa and no lakes will be open and conditions out there could be a bit rough.  Or...   should I wait until the spring which would maker her 11 months old?   what are your thoughts?

Hopefully you will be working on no pressure basics and bird introduction over the months between now and 7 months. Get with whatever pro you are going to do, ask what program they use. If you do things in the same or similar manner, they wont have to undo stuff you have worked on.

I would do as much bird work, retrieving and no pressure ob, including taking the pup on a walk off leash every day, do socialization, water introduction work and crate training as you will get a lot more bang for the buck from a pro than just letting the dog be a puppy for the next 5 months. 7-8 months is ideal for formal obediance, force fetch and working steadyiness. Water work will be tough in winter, especially with a young dog, but a 3 month stint with a pro after you have given your pup a strong head start will result in a nice started dog.......as far as finished????? I have a 4 year old and I dont consider him finished. Maybe in a year or two. Good luck.

Hoyer,

Why start at seven months old? You should start training now. Many things you can accomplish. Crate training, bonding , puppy marks, introduction to birds, Begin to familiarize them, in a controlled way, with the world around them including the field.Typically pups are ready for the fundamentals of obedience between four and five months old. Including introduction to the lead and choke chain, gun, whoa training. different types pf birds, simple marking concepts, more bird work. Force fetch around six to seven months old depending on the dog.

Formal more structured training for me and my client dogs starts around five months. I want obedience solid by the time they get their teeth in so I can hit the ground running with force fetch. Be careful with timelines. Your dog will tell you when they are ready to move on. Learn to recognize that and forget the timelines you see in many books, videos. Train right not fast. You don't need to be in a race with anyone else to get things done. Enjoy the journey and the learning experience.

The most important thing you or a pro can do is to build the foundation right. Do that right and you have all kinds of opportunities to build on. ALl the advanced training will be based off of how well the foundation is built.

My suggestion is to build the foundation and then put a season under the pups belt if they are ready for it. Many things can only be learned in the field. The foundation will allow you to have enough tools in place to teach through out the hunting season on the real deal.

Have fun with the little guy. Will be a big dog before you know it.

Gary

PRG

Thank you for your input guys, you can bet i'll be doing tons of the stuff you talked about, like intro to birds, bonding, create training ect...    I absolutly love the PL breed and I love to hunt with them.  Thanks again for all of the advice and things you guys do to promote the Pointing Lab!!

Cory

Man that dog will be a great age to get real experience on the pheasants next fall and winter - I would hunt her next fall and then take that birdy monster to the pro right at the end of the season. Like the others said- do OB best you can so you have control when the season opens and enjoy it. You will have fond memories of that youngster learning about those wild roosters.

My pup, Points South Lady Kristtorn, "Kristi",  leaves in 2 weeks for training. Like yourself, my schedule doesn't allow me to train her myself. I also know that this will be my last pup, so I figured I shouldn't take a chance doing it myself.

My wife is convinced the pup won't remember us when she comes back home! Trying to convince her otherwise.

Best of luck with the training.

Rickreading, where are you sending your pup?

ZigZag Kennels in Weyauwega, WI
Charity & Tim Ziegler

Thats what I guessed, Im by Madison and talked with them about training my pup. I decided to do it myself more for fun than anything, but the cash is a little tight this year. More time than money I guess. They sound like good people. Good luck.