Customer Reviews

Retriever Training Tests

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Anyone wanting to learn the fine details of training their dog for hunt tests or field trials could learn a great deal fromn this book. Mr. Spencer breaks down the various factors which play in setting up training sessions or tests into component pieces. I have found many people do not understand why their dogs do what they do faced with various factors of wind, terrain and mark placement. This book will help the novice and experienced trainer begin to analyze these factors. One result is a better sense of what your dog dog nees to learn to be successful in field competitions. It's a great book for someone aspiring to become a judge.

James Spencer shows different scenarios to set up for training your retriever. These tests can help all hunting retrievers: from your companion in the blind to your field trial champion. Note this book does not go into teaching commands. It focuses on marking and blind setups. He also goes on to discuss different types of competition. This book is filled with ideas and concepts you can put to use next time you are in the field.

This is a good book for those interested in how to lay out a test in the field, and why it is important to look at the retrieves from the dogs point of view. It had very good examples, and it was very easy to read.

Spencer seems to have realized a need to write books about retrievers that fill a specific niche in our understanding. He does a good job describing different factors to think about in the field that affect how a dog will retrieve.

While this book can't teach me everything about the factors that affect the dog, it helps me when I train, and think about what will tend to affect the dog's performance.