Spaniels are “pre-programmed” to hunt, it is their most basic instinct. So many new owners might think that starting to teach a spaniel puppy to retrieve would be straightforward and…
Graham Watkins
Professional gundog trainer
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The Hungarian wirehaired vizsla – charming and hardworking
What happened when I became the owner of a Hungarian wire-haired vizsla
How can I stop my gundog eating game?
What can you do if your gundog eats game instead of returning it to you and leaving it intact. A reader wrote to me recently saying: “Twice last season my…
How to prepare for your dog’s first shoot day
Getting your dog fit both mentally and physically will help prepare your dog for the field and the rigours of his first shoot day. It is also important for you,…
Teaching your gundog to work hedgerows
Q: I have a young spaniel, and when hunting along hedgerows he always pulls ahead and sometimes gets through to the other side — a couple of times he has run…
New regulations on breeding dogs
A reader writes: “I have a really good black Labrador that I would like to have a litter from and keep back a puppy. Any others from the litter I…
How to teach a gundog puppy to run straight
Gundog training: Tony explains how to train your dog to take a line straight to the fall.
Do Hungarian vizslas make good family pets?
I am thinking of buying a Hungarian vizsla as a hunting/hawking dog and which would also be a family pet, but I know little about the breed. Is there a…
Buying a puppy – what should I know?
What breed? Choosing the right breed of gundog puppy has to be the foremost consideration. You will have to not only decide what breed will suit your shooting requirements, but…
Buying your first gundog – what you need to know
Q: “I’m about to embark on acquiring my first gundog and I would like some advice as to what breed to buy and whether to get a puppy or a…
My Hungarian vizsla won’t hold a point. What can I do?
“I have a two-year-old Hungarian vizsla that I have been training for rough shooting and although she hunts really well she will not hold a point and will run in…
Teaching a gundog to go left and right. Should you?
This is not an uncommon question and, in my humble view, gundog handling is an important aspect of a gundog’s training and should not be discounted as simply being a…
Gundog training – marking a dummy
The causes for problems marking a dummy Some young dogs can develop this quirk and, although it tends to disappear as time passes and they get experience of the real…
When your gundog won’t retrieve
“I recently got my first gundog puppy and I started training her straight away. To start with she would go and pick up a tennis ball, but now she just…