[pyrnet] Gun shy etc problems

[LESRVG@aol.com]

Hello,

Years ago we had a great Labrador Retriever.  When he was young and in 
training he was exposed to gunshots (not part of the plan) and got gun shy.  This is 
definitely not good for a hunting dog.  So I talked to some pro trainers and 
read some more (there was not Internet in those days) and it sounded like 
there was little I could do (one trainer suggested I "shoot the dog...he is 
useless"...what a jerk eh?)  Anyway, I used my ingenuity and understanding of dogs 
and tried the following:

I enlisted the help of a buddy who would be with my dog (on a leash) at all 
times.  He had with him a few ham on rye sandwiches (in other words a 
substantial food reward) and some training dummies for retriever (substitute toys or 
other good reward).  

I started at 100 yards with a 22 training pistol and fired a shot.  My buddy 
praised and re-assured the dog, sent him for an extremely short retrieve 
(leash length) and gave him a hunk of the sandwich.  All this happened in very 
short order.  I then moved about 10 steps closer and repeated.  Soon I was at the 
dog's (Kelly) side and firing the 22 with no shyness witnessed.  

We then repeated with a 12ga shotgun.  

The end of the story is that after training sessions like this, Kelly learned 
to love the sound of guns...he associated it with going afield on a hunt, 
food, fun, etc.  By the way, my buddy handled the dog because he did not want to 
shoot the guns...I think it would have been even better the other way.

This may be worth a try.  Romy our pyr is not gun-shy but I am still thinking 
about running through this exercise just to prep him so he does not become 
gun-shy.

Keith, Soo, Dusty, and Romy