My springer runs off when she's let out of her kennel.

[Bummer]

I have a five month old springer and training her has been going well (first time trainer). She's very intelligent and has energy to burn. Within the last two weeks, when I let her out, she takes off out of her kennel and runs through this tall grass in my neighborhood. I would like to control her so she doesn't get hit on our quiet street or make my neighbors upset for being in their yards.
With her being that young, we're still in the early stages of training. I have a training/shock collar but I am not using it to train her. When she takes off, nothing stops her. Her run only lasts about 5-10 minutes but I know it must stop.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[gonehuntin']

Never let her out without a check cord, and obedience her at least for HERE. I hate having to catch a dog. If you let it continue now, it will become an ingrained problem later.

[Sharon]

How often does she get a good supervised run apart from yard work?

[Bummer]

I let her out on other ocasions during my free time, not just to train but now with her doing this, the check cord is now always on. She's a smart dog and knows she can't do it with the check cord. It might be time to put the ecollar on.

[Sharon]

I'm not sure what your answer was. My dogs get a good hour run , separate from training time, every second day. Gundogs are high energy dogs. If they don't get the heavy duty exercise they need, they will burn it in a variety of other unacceptable ways.

[Shadow]

lets see- you have a youngster and leave her in the kennel- yet you expect her to walk out docile and only want to be by your side-
and you have a shocker colllar- sure- put it on her- control right

[MikeB]

Bummer,
Your expectations of your pup are totally unrealistic. Every month she gets older her energy and exercise needs will in increase. Also as she gets older month by month you won't be able to increase her training ability to match her energy. Why... because she is a growing puppy. This is normal puppy behavior with dogs that are kenneled to many hours. She need to be let out of the kennel much more often and DO NOT get made at her for blowing off her pent up energy by running around. Let her go and when she is done then praise her for coming to you.

Yes a check cord is a great training tool but she still needs to RUN full out and "blow off" the energy.

And NO you don't need an e-collar!

I would only kennel my pup when I was working and she would be out with me all other times. Training is not just when you have time, training is every minute you are home with her. Anything less is not fair to any your dog. Now don't confuse "gun dog training" with basic puppy training every dog needs to be a well mannered adult dog in the end.
I am sure you dog will grow up to be your hunting partner 10% of the time and house pet 90% of the time. You have to train with that in mind. ... IMO. I am sure others here will agree.

If you work to many hours or gone from home to many hours and no one else in the home can take her out for exercise and play during the day, maybe you don't need this pup. I hope that is not the case.

Now go let your pup out of the kennel and play with her.

[kerplunk105]

My 8mo GSP tends to want to run away/not listen as well when she doesnt have as much exercise, (usually if its been stormy). I try and give her an hour run, (off lead), 2x/day.

[Shadow]

could easily say- were you ever a child-

if any of mine had ever walked out of the door or kennel - well- I'd wonder what kind of dog I had

what are you trying to do with a 5 month old- get a firm grip and be always in control- take the drive out of it

why did you buy a shocker collar- seems like you had it in mind from the getgo and because you don't understand you think it's time- throw the thing away

[Bummer]

I guess getting on this message board wasn't worth my trouble. I was looking for a little advise and all I got was dirty from being dragged through the mud by all of you. Don't assume anything about me and how I am with my dog. I've had many dogs before (this is just the first gun dog that I have trained). If you think I only let her out for the 15 minute training, you must have tunnel vision.
Every dog that I have had is just like one of the family. If you people get off on this kind of talk, reply to other people because it doesn't help me out.

[steingre]

Bummer,
Sorry about the "lectures"- they aren't a lot of help!

I run GSP's now, setters and pointers before; all would "light out" and burn some energy when they had the chance. I used it as an opportunity to do some training- for example, I trained to only come of of the kennel on command, come out at "heel", etc.

That can be helpful, but finally I "mirrored" what I saw at a guy who trained force fetch for me- a secondary fence surrounding the kennel- big enough to allow for some "racing", but small enough that my wife didn't throw too big a fit! Comes in real handy when pen cleaning, too- a little extra exercise for them without getting in my way while I work!

Good luck!

[ezzy333]

I guess getting on this message board wasn't worth my trouble. I was looking for a little advise and all I got was dirty from being dragged through the mud by all of you. Don't assume anything about me and how I am with my dog. I've had many dogs before (this is just the first gun dog that I have trained). If you think I only let her out for the 15 minute training, you must have tunnel vision.
Every dog that I have had is just like one of the family. If you people get off on this kind of talk, reply to other people because it doesn't help me out.

I too am sorry everyone decided you needed a reprimand for something that happens to everyone. I see nothing at all wrong with having the e-collar on her and using it if she defys a command you know she understands. That has been the number one purpose I have used a collar for and it sure beats paying a $5000 vet bill or worse yet having her killed.

All of this said, exercise is many times the key so try to do more of that and also try to get her out in a field where she can run lose or at least drag the CC. It is your job to find a way to gain control and it can be done. Keep working her, do it with the CC when there at home, and get her into a field where you can wear her out and then work on the commands when she isn't wound so tightly.

Ezzy

[R-Heaton]

Bummer,,,, first off,,, gotta get a little thicker skin,,,, don't ya know everybody on these message boards know's everything about everything.

My advice would be to speed up the "come" command training so when she bolts you can control her. You ought to be able to get enough of that in one week that she ought to be able to be atleast stopped. Kinda of like trash breaking them off deer,,,,, the bolting out of the front yard is off limits and there is a price to pay.

Heck when I first moved out of the house when I was 18 I had a direct son of Hicks Rising Sun,,, when he would get out I wouldn't see him for 3 or 4 days,, the neighbors would come by and tell me he was out but they couldn't catch'em,,, I had to respond with the "no chit,,, that's weird". That was before I became an internet trainer and know it all.

[Shadow]

I have a five month old springer and training her has been going well (first time trainer). She's very intelligent and has energy to burn. I would like to control her so she doesn't get hit on our quiet street or make my neighbors upset for being in their yards.
When she takes off, nothing stops her. Her run only lasts about 5-10 minutes but I know it must stop.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

agree with R-Heaton- need a bit thicker skin

first off I'm not a trainer
second look at your words
seems you don't have a secure area- course it's important to control your dog- living in town and not haveing a fenced in yard is a questionable thing with a gun dog- I've raised litters in town- so first you need to look at security- then at your dog-

to me it's been pretty hard to let an energic dog out the door or kennel and expect it to not want to fly-
so- if i had a small uninclosed area I wouldn't be letting the dog out- load up in the vehicle and take it somewhere where you can let yours go- for that 5-10 min.-

just can't see any reasoning to be thinking shocker collar

you need to understand your dog- read it- determine her needs as she's excited to be let loose- but probably doesn't want to be very far from you or to be forgotton about-

I'd bet if you let her run without any calling or getting upset for that first blast- you'd find you have her full attention- and that's when you want to start the handling

I've never wanted or tried to stop that first wild excitement in any of mine- it's what a lot of us breed for

[gonehuntin']

I have a five month old springer and training her has been going well (first time trainer). She's very intelligent and has energy to burn. I would like to control her so she doesn't get hit on our quiet street or make my neighbors upset for being in their yards.
When she takes off, nothing stops her. Her run only lasts about 5-10 minutes but I know it must stop.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

agree with R-Heaton- need a bit thicker skin

first off I'm not a trainer
second look at your words
seems you don't have a secure area- course it's important to control your dog- living in town and not haveing a fenced in yard is a questionable thing with a gun dog- I've raised litters in town- so first you need to look at security- then at your dog-

to me it's been pretty hard to let an energic dog out the door or kennel and expect it to not want to fly-
so- if i had a small uninclosed area I wouldn't be letting the dog out- load up in the vehicle and take it somewhere where you can let yours go- for that 5-10 min.-

just can't see any reasoning to be thinking shocker collar

you need to understand your dog- read it- determine her needs as she's excited to be let loose- but probably doesn't want to be very far from you or to be forgotton about-

I'd bet if you let her run without any calling or getting upset for that first blast- you'd find you have her full attention- and that's when you want to start the handling

I've never wanted or tried to stop that first wild excitement in any of mine- it's what a lot of us breed for

I would warn you Bummer, that shadow does NOT believe in obedience training his dogs, or in fact, training them much at all, or so he has stated on other boards. Most of us want an obedient dog that hunts it's tail off but listens to us.

I personally, would never tolertate a dog of any breed that bolted out of a kennel door without me giving it the OK.

[Mr. Crappie]

Bummer,
First of all it will be o.k. I have a six month pointer pup and she is excited about getting out of the pen. My dog gets out anytime I can get her out, which is normally three times or more a day. I, too, live in town and it does have some added challenges. I just worked with my pup on "come" and when I knew she had it well, I went to the training collar. It only took one time to correct her (be careful with the stimulation-start low) and there has been no problems. She does not get out of the kennel without me first putting the collar on her and only when I let her out on my command. Of course I have a hold of her collar as she is not whoa broke.
Ask a 100 people how to train dogs you are liable to get 300 opinions. Be patient with her and teach her the basics first. I am one that wants my puppy to be doing way more than she can possibly do at this age, but you have to realize that they are just "babes". Obedience training now will make the other stuff come easier later. Many people believe that training collars help train, but I believe they keep control once you have them trained. Keep using the checkcord on her until you get the come down and you will be fine. I don't care where you live, they need to mind and shouldn't bolt out of the kennel. I bet she makes you a nice
Good luck with your pup.

p.s.- National Champion Snowatch comes out of his kennel like a gentleman, not like a rocket !!

[Shadow]

very good gonmehuntin- I also don't believe control freaks who say they obedience train there's should need shocker collars

[natetnc]

i was in a similar situation with my 1st pup, lived in a townhome with a small (<2ac) natural area and pond. my pup was ready to hit the big world so i ramped up the "here" command on cc and then overlayed the e-collar as most training books teach. did this work... yes, i was able to let her run the natural areas and swim in the pond burning energy that would otherwise be contained. with this came a major side effect that i wasn't expecting but in hind sight should have been pretty obvious, her range was significantly less than it should have been, she hunted about the range i felt comfortable in the natural area. for you, this may not be a problem since you have a flushing dog. after 1 year in the field her range has significantly increased but it seems like it has taken forever. even if the shorter range works for you there is no substitute for letting your dog run in a large area, just remember, if you consistently retrieve your dog at the same distance it is likely to set its range.

5 mos is a little early but as ezzy said, if you know your dog knows the command and you think it will respond well to the e-collar on the correct level, it could be a very useful tool in this situation. also, if your not familiar with e-collar training then read up, this forum has plenty of good threads about it. i read a lot about how not to ruin a dog with one but didn't read further about the more advanced training with the e-collar, do yourself a favor and familarize yourself with the whole process.

there are some books about urban training hunting dogs but after reading through some of it in the store i opted not to buy it. imo nothing can replace a lot of the training regiments that have been proven over time.

[High Voltage]

Bummer - Hope you are still checking on the board and this thread! I don't post much but I am lucky enough to have a great group of bird dog people close by that I can go to for help We live in the country on a busy paved road and do not have a fenced yard and the way our yard is it would cost a lot to fence it. We went with the PetSafe wireless e-fence and love it. It is a reconditioned one we got on ebay over 6 years ago and we have not had a problem with it. We now have 4 dogs on it and our last one was around 5 months old when we started her on it. Our dogs are in outside kennel/runs while we are at work but still wear the "yard" collars. It's a good thing because the last 2 days Turbo has found a way out of hers but has not left the yard. Just an option that might give your dog some running room without getting out of the yard. Feel free to PM me with any questions.

[Bummer]

Here's an update on my situation. But first I would like to thank most of you on your thoughts and ideas.
I bit the bullet and put the shock collar on, I was very hesitant because I know some gun dog owners that had bad experiences with training via. stimulation. Their dogs became very timid. My dog has a lot of fire and drive and I didn't want her to lose it because I had to disipline her with the collar.
Now, on her progress, so far so good. I am pleased on how she is staying within my invisible boundry. I have only had to hit the stimulation once ( in fact, I have also only had to hit the "beep" button once as well. This confirms my thinking that she is a very intelligent dog. Hopefully, I didn't jinx it by writing this.