Teach Your Gundog

09/06/2026

Our Puppy / Beginner gundog training classes take place in Haslemere on the Surrey, West Sussex, Hampshire border.

Suitable for all gundog breeds, puppies and older beginners, no previous experience is required to join these classes.

These small group classes for those new to gundog training will teach your gundog the foundation behaviours including heel location, games to develop a rocket recall, a reliable retrieve chain, hunting patterns, self management and much more.

You will also learn about your dog's personality, how to use a clicker and deliver reinforcement effectively, and how to engage with your puppy to get them to focus on you.

This class is suitable for pet gundogs, and those who would like to work their dogs or are looking to compete in working tests in the future.

A 10% discount is automatically applied at checkout when you book a block of 3 classes.

For booking and more information head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/products/puppy-beginner-gundog-classes

📸 Alice Loder Photography

06/06/2026

Traditionally, it was thought that gundog training should begin when the dog had mentally matured and was around 6 to 8 months old.

Some trainers also advocate waiting until the dog’s adult teeth have come through, as painful gums can prevent dogs from wanting to pick, carry, and hold the retrieve articles.

Waiting is, however, rarely beneficial. It is too easy to overlook the all-important early learning events when you tell yourself you will not start gundog training until the dog is six months old.

Owners miss out on thousands of opportunities to reward their puppies for their natural behaviours and don’t contemplate how their daily interactions with their puppies are beginning to mould their minds in the early months.

When your labrador puppy picks up a shoe for the first time, you want to praise them and encourage them into you, not sn**ch the shoe from their mouth.

When your vizsla puppy points on something in the hedge, investigate with them, don’t pull them away on the lead.

When your spaniel puppy starts hunting on a scent near your feet, sneak something out for them to find something right by you, don’t keep walking and expect them to follow you.

This means that gundog training needs to start when you bring your retriever, spaniel or HPR puppy home at eight weeks old.

The early stages of training should concentrate on building a solid bond between you, the handler, and your puppy, fostering trust and understanding.

Once you have nailed this, you can start to look at the basic gundog cues you will need to turn your puppy into a well-rounded pet gundog that’s also ready for beating, picking up, sitting on the peg, working tests, or whatever your goals are.

If you've just brought home a gundog puppy and want more advice on how soon you can start training, what foundation skills you should teach your gundog puppy first, and how much training you should do with your youngster, head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/blogs/news/you-ve-collected-your-first-gundog-puppy-now-what

03/06/2026

If you’ve been thinking about working towards The Royal Kennel Club Working Gundog Certificate on dummies, following the success of our first WGC course, we have a new block of 6 sessions starting on 18th July 2026.

Together with Lead & Listen we will be running the series of group training sessions at Oakhurst Farm, near Loxwood in West Sussex.

Both Silke and I have successfully passed this assessment with our own dogs and we also have a great deal of experience in running the assessments both on dummies and on live game.

In the first week, we will go through all the skills and behaviours required and establish your baselines from which we will help you to prepare your own personal training plans for the course.

Over the following sessions, we will be looking at hunting, retrieving, steadiness, water, shot, obstacles, heel work, social walking, delivery and much more.

At the end of the course, there will be a ‘dress rehearsal’ to run through the whole assessment and determine if you and your dog are ready to take the assessment, which will be organised for mid-October.

Those looking to take part in the sessions should ensure that their dog:
∙ has a basic retrieve (we will work on steadiness and delivery to hand during the course)
∙ has a reliable recall and basic stop
∙ is comfortable around other dogs off lead
∙ can swim and jump a small ditch or low obstacle
∙ has been introduced to the sound of shot and is not gun shy

You do not need to have a Royal Kennel Club-registered pure-bred dog to take part in the classes, but if you do not, you will need to register your dog with the RKC Activities Register before you can take the assessment.

Sessions can be booked individually, or you can book the entire block for a reduced rate.

For more information and to book your place, head to: https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/products/working-gundog-certificate-classes

📸 Alice Loder Photography

31/05/2026

Now we're well into Spring, it seems like every man, woman and their dog is bringing home a new gundog puppy right now.

And if you’re one of them, you might be itching to start your basic training.

For first-time gundog owners, you might be overwhelmed by everything you need to teach your little one.

For those more experienced, you might be cautiously planning how to avoid making the same mistakes with your new recruit that you made with your first or previous dogs.

Either way, if you’ve recently collected your gundog puppy you might be wondering when you can get your teeth stuck into the “real” gundog stuff alongside the toilet training and early socialisation.

In this blog, I’ll discuss how soon you can start training, what foundation skills you should teach your gundog puppy first, and how much training you should do with your youngster.

Finally, I will also explore what you can do if your gundog is no longer a puppy but you want to get started with gundog training.

To read in full head to: https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/blogs/news/you-ve-collected-your-first-gundog-puppy-now-what

28/05/2026

Here's what's coming up at Teach Your Gundog in June and July...

Puppy / Beginner Gundog
Saturdays 9:30am to 10:15am, Haslemere
• 13 June
• 20 June
• 11 July

Foundation GAP 1
Saturdays 10:30am to 11:30am, Haslemere
• 13 June
• 20 June
• 11 July

Foundation GAP 2
Saturdays 11:45am to 1pm, Haslemere
• 13 June
• 20 June
• 11 July

Foundation GAP 2
Wednesdays 10am to 11:15am, Haslemere
• 10 June
• 24 June
• 1 July

Progressive GAP 3/4
Wednesdays 11:45am to 1pm, Haslemere
• 10 June
• 24 June
• 1 July

Monthly Progressive GAP 3/4
Fridays 10am to 12pm, Loxwood
• 12 June
• 3 July

Royal Kennel Club Working Gundog Certificate
9:30am to 12pm, Loxwood
• Saturday 18th July
• Sunday 26th July

Can't make any of the dates? Or want to focus on something specific? You can also book one to one sessions with Jules.

If you have not done any gundog training before - whether you have a puppy or young dog, or an older dog that has done basic training but nothing gundog specific - you will need to start with our Puppy / Beginner group classes.

For booking and more information head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/collections/all

27/05/2026

An excellent post from Gary worth reading...

As the UK has been gripped with a heatwave and the highest ever recorded temperatures for May, we have a bit of a day off today before the temps spike again over the next few days. Well, day off is not exactly true, dogs overheat in all temperatures so never lower your guard.

Usually, when the heat arrives the arguments on how to cool dogs arrive with it, not this time, this time it's mostly about walking/exercising dogs when it's hot.
The amount of rude, abusive behaviour I've seen over the last few days is sad.

Sadly, as well as owners, I'm seeing dog trainers/behavourists putting up posts with the most foul, abusive language directed towards anyone who goes out anywhere with a dog and doesn't keep them at home, language I'm not going to repeat here. Some of these people have a large following and the potential to reach a lot of people, these posts often get a lot of attention, but unfortunately the only thing in common they all have is absolutely no educational value of any kind, they've helped no dogs, just maybe stoked a few egos.
I suspect in many cases they fail to educate because they don't really have the knowledge to put anything useful out that will help owners, which in turn helps their dogs.

There is a recent educational post put out by a Veterinarian who runs agility with her own dogs, a post far more useful for those dogs at events, that received a number of negative comments.
There have also been a small number of other more useful posts by some dog trainers receiving negative comments.
No one wants to see dogs getting hurt, people want to help, but there is a way to go about it.

To be clear, when it's hot, there are many dogs that shouldn't be out, some owners that refuse to listen, but, and people might not like to hear it, there are some dogs, with knowledgeable owners/handlers that do okay in the heat, they are looking after their dogs.
As for working dogs, they do need to train, with care, when the temperatures rise, to prepare for working in those conditions.
Heat alone doesn't kill dogs, people do.
If you only focus on the temperature alone, the number, you have much more to learn.

Education, and people willing to accept they have more to learn is key.
As the saying goes: "if you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room".

If you really want to learn and help dogs, surround yourself with people with more knowledge and experience than you, that's how you will improve.

With respect to those that don't understand, those putting out unhelpful, abusive information... do better.

This page was originally set up for the working/sporting dogs, but anyone can use the information.
This page is about education, the description of this page says "a compilation of information from multiple veterinarians, medics, researchers, mushers, and K9 handlers experienced in this field."
You can find all their information in this index post: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GXwJ6vY6r/ , information to better your understanding of heat and dogs, that will actually help, there's a lot there that will keep you busy... soak it up.

Here's a small selection:

Differences in Heat Tolerance between dogs and factors to consider:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1B3GEDF1z9/

Reading Dogs:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18FVwXcyPw/

Cooling in the Field: Realities & Practicalities:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Dk36UJ9J2/

Hydration Index:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ENSjcbDDC/

VTG's FREE Heat Injury Webinar:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1C678shmMm/

25/05/2026

If you spend some time watching good gundog handlers you’ll notice one tiny detail they all have in common. They all have access to the right equipment for the situation, know exactly where it is on their person and how to access it easily while they are training, competing or working their dog.

It’s an often overlooked skill, but being prepared with your gear can make a big difference in the training field.

There is nothing worse than turning up to find you have lost or forgotten something. It makes you feel uncomfortable and unconfident before you have even started.

By keeping your equipment in the same place, you should feel more in control which will transfer down to your dog.

It will also help you to remain focused on the task at hand and avoid what I often call “faffing”. Rifling through pockets can waste significant time at best, but can at worst negatively impact your dog’s learning and understanding, particularly if they are waiting for reinforcement.

When it comes to storing your equipment on your person, the best solution is a dummy vest.

They spread the weight of the contents easily across your shoulders, they don’t flap or dangle in the way of your dog, they have a lot of pockets, are often waterproof and can be worn over coats and jackets in the winter yet are equally comfortable over a t-shirt in the summer.

Dummy bags are fine provided they are well-organised and secured so that they do not swing forward and interfere with your dog.

The main bulk of your vest or bag will be taken up by your dummies which are typically easy to pull out due to their size. Aside from that, you will then need to decide where you are going to store all your other training equipment such as whistle, lead, treat pouch, clicker, ball, get it bowls, posts and go-to targets, placeboard, steady fob, water, as well as things like poo bags, car keys, mobile phone, glasses, and note pad.

Putting some thought into this and getting into the habit of keeping everything in the same place will be invaluable in the future as it will soon become second nature for you to quickly reach for your lead, whistle, dummy or treats.

Want more advice on the essential gundog training equipment that handlers can't live without? Head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/blogs/news/what-do-i-need-to-bring-with-me-essential-gundog-training-equipment-that-handlers-can-t-live-without

22/05/2026

If you’ve been thinking about working towards The Royal Kennel Club Working Gundog Certificate on dummies, following the success of our first WGC course, we have a new block of 6 sessions starting on 18th July 2026.

Together with Lead & Listen we will be running the series of group training sessions at Oakhurst Farm, near Loxwood in West Sussex.

Both Silke and I have successfully passed this assessment with our own dogs and we also have a great deal of experience in running the assessments both on dummies and on live game.

In the first week, we will go through all the skills and behaviours required and establish your baselines from which we will help you to prepare your own personal training plans for the course.

Over the following sessions, we will be looking at hunting, retrieving, steadiness, water, shot, obstacles, heel work, social walking, delivery and much more.

At the end of the course, there will be a ‘dress rehearsal’ to run through the whole assessment and determine if you and your dog are ready to take the assessment, which will be organised for mid-October.

Those looking to take part in the sessions should ensure that their dog:
∙ has a basic retrieve (we will work on steadiness and delivery to hand during the course)
∙ has a reliable recall and basic stop
∙ is comfortable around other dogs off lead
∙ can swim and jump a small ditch or low obstacle
∙ has been introduced to the sound of shot and is not gun shy

You do not need to have a Royal Kennel Club-registered pure-bred dog to take part in the classes, but if you do not, you will need to register your dog with the RKC Activities Register before you can take the assessment.

Sessions can be booked individually, or you can book the entire block for a reduced rate.

For more information and to book your place, head to: https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/products/working-gundog-certificate-classes

19/05/2026

Go-to targets are similar to placeboards in that they provide a physical target, but instead of remaining in a place, they encourage your dog to actively seek out and touch the target with their nose. This can be particularly helpful for teaching the straight lines that your dog will need for retrieving, or sending them out to practice the stop whistle.

Standard white electric fence posts can work well if you cut them down to a shorter size, as they are easy to push into the ground and are visible without being bulky.

Portable marker posts, such as the ones available from Mystique, are particularly handy because they fit into the back pocket of most training vests. The spike is also stored safely inside the tube, which means you can carry them around without stabbing yourself every time you bend down.

Cones can also work, and they are cheap, but they are awkward to carry in and need to be sturdy enough not to blow over in the wind.

You will usually want at least two to begin with so that you can set up simple lines and exercises. But as your training progresses, you will probably find that you want more so that you can set up complex exercises and grid-based drills.

Want more advice on the essential gundog training equipment that handlers can't live without? Head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/blogs/news/what-do-i-need-to-bring-with-me-essential-gundog-training-equipment-that-handlers-can-t-live-without

15/05/2026

We are hosting a water training workshop on Sunday 31st May at Loxwood Pond, West Sussex.

Designed to focus on teaching your gundog how to retrieve from water, the workshop will help you to develop the retrieve pattern and delivery from water, plus steadiness around water and how to shake on cue.

To get the most out of the session, which is suitable for all breeds of gundogs, of any age, you will need to have previously introduced your gundog to water and they should be confident getting in and out and swimming on cue.

To book your place head to https://www.teachyourgundog.co.uk/products/progressive-water-workshop