Gun shyness By gonehuntin

[BassNut]

Oh, You mean your not supposed to shoot a shotgun over your 8 week old been at the new house for 1 day puppy like my dumb kid did last weekend. I could of strangled that kid. Well he is 20 years old so not quite a kid. I've had gun dog's for 46 years and have NEVER had a gun shy dog. Not even close to gun shy. It's a good thing this new pup is a Chessy and is a bold pup or it could of messed him up bad. He did jump but showed no bad signs that it effected him much.

[SilverBelle]

Really good points! Here is a video on how I start my Puppies on Guns!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX0gB-QWX9k&feature=player_detailpage

[txhunter90]

short story on dogs being gun shy. We bought a finished lab female from our trainer that he has had since she was 6 weeks old. Best dog by far I have handled and been with. We went out to our lake to shoot guns and stuff. Well once we shot once she bolted the other way.... Crazy I know she would not get out of it and we eventually had to take her back and get our money back as bad as we hated to. With the trainer and a guy she was fine, anybody else she rolled out

[Dawnsearlylight]

IME as a trainer of hunting dog owners, breeder and hunter, gunshyness is always a man-made problem, the product of an ignorant owner and a sound-sensitive dog. Too many folks rush the pup to the shooting range "to see if he's gunshy", obviously going for the gold in the Idiot Olympics. As a breeder, I check for sound-sensitivity as I raise the pups, so I can deal with it early on. As a trainer, I don't even think about introducing the gun until the pup is totally focussed on the mark and retrieving at 100 yards, at that point they barely even notice the shot. From then on I pretty much use the method described in the sticky, but I do not use birds (have never found it necessary) until I am sure the dog does not have a problem with the gun that he may associate with birds. I have never had a gunshyness problem this way. I have seen dogs with such a severe problem that they would leave the county at the mere sight of a long gun, and God forbid you rack a shotgun within hearing range. Best to avoid creating the problem in the first place, very difficult to get a dog by it.

[Bartnmax]

Hey felllas.
I don't have the experrience/knowledge of some of you guys but I have had gundogs of my own (Britts) for over 26 years & before that I grew up hunting over my father's & Grandfather's English Setters.
I can certainly respect the views & opinions of others, but it's my own opinion, based on my own experience, that gundogs are never born gunshy - they are always made gunshy.

Both the methods stated in the original post should work reasonably well (with luck), but IMO before trying to fix anything a trainer needs to identify where the original mistake was made & how it became a problem. Trying to fix any problem without removing the cause just doesn't work. So, before starting down the road of using any particular method to fix gunshyness I believe it is vital to identify when/where it first occured. That time/location could have a major mental effect on the dog & could ultimately also effect the success of the fix.

Bill.

[frydaddy]

I got this from an old training book. when your pup has had a week at his new home. take a pan and a wooden spoon and while he is eating wack that pan from across the room or a safe distance if he is out side. if he reacts don't do it again until nxt day. if he just keeps eating move a little closer. with in a week you will be able to stand nxt to him and beat it like a drum and all he is concerned with is food. then you progress his training as normal and when you are ready for a blank pistol he wont even notice.

[Raffael]

good advice so far, and getting back with or help from his trainer is the best. One other thing Id add is that if you have access to pigeons- and provided he is birdy- a clip wing live pigeon throwin in timing with the sound of the gun , will usually help a birdy yet gun spooked (doesnt sound like he is all the way gun shy- but could get that way if not careful) dog get over it and realize its all tied in together...

[EMSguy]

one quick question... I'm working on this method with my pup, but I had her steady on marks before I started as she is somewhat sound sensitive... but what do I do to keep her from breaking on the shot and breaking in general when we do it this way? I always have to steady-train her again after we've done some gun work. Otherwise she breaks while the dummy is in the air.