Train A Lab To Point: When you decide to bring home your new Labrador Retriever puppy for the very first time, you have to learn how to train him to point. This is perhaps one of the most important things that you must do.
It has been proven that Labradors have a rich tradition of bonding with their human owners and sharing all sorts of activities with them. Labrador Retrievers began their history as working gun dogs thousands of years ago before we have come to see them as loving family pets today.
Are Labradors as easy to train as guns?
To prove that these dogs are capable of hunting, the Labrador Retrievers are classified as ‘gun dogs’ in England, which was one of the major reasons why they gained popularity there. In terms of gun dogs, Labs make outstanding companions since they make good obedience dogs as they are generally responsive and easy to train.
Nevertheless, if you are a hunter who enjoys hunting safely with your Labrador companion, he must be highly trained and ready to hunt. As part of your preparations for hunting with your canine companion, you should know how to train your Lab to point to enjoy your hunting expeditions to the fullest.
The Labrador Retriever dog, if it has been trained how to point, will easily alert you to the location of your prey and will learn to stay still until you instruct it otherwise. In this way, you can be sure that your gun dog will be protected even when you release gunfire while your Labrador is nearby.
How do pointing Labradors work?
In addition to the ability to point, dogs may also assist with hunting by using other methods besides pointing. If you have a canine pal, your canine pal should be able to show you the position of the game so that you can successfully track it. A dog will point when they freeze their body and raise one of their front paws as they point their nose at a particular location as they freeze their body. It is usually the case that a Labrador will do this when they want something to be brought to their pet parents’ attention.
The reason why your Lab might point even when there are other people in the room is that they enjoy collaborating with you or collaborating with other dogs even though they might be comfortable exploring their surroundings all by themselves. The social aspects of their personality are well fulfilled by this.
Train A Lab To Point
It is not an easy skill to learn like basic commands but it is a skill that needs to be mastered. You may have to create a scenario that makes it easier for your Lab to learn to point even though your Lab may naturally be able to point.
1. Allow them to chase their prey.
While they are still young, you can try to teach them how to chase prey so that they will have an idea of what they will be doing once they become authorized gun dogs. Consequently, they will have the opportunity to learn about the feeling of chasing prey in a way that is natural for them.
The Lab will also learn that chasing their prey outright will not be as effective as being able to sneak up on them and catch them when they are unaware. If your Labrador Retriever has this skill, then he will also be able to let you know when the time is right for him to stop. As a beginner, you might want to let your Lab puppy chase prey before going on to fully train him as a pointing Lab.
2. Teach your lab when to stop.
For your lab to point correctly, you have to train it to stop at your command. This is the second step in the training process. You must teach them how to stop when they hear you whistle as the very first thing you need to do. When you are confident that they can follow through with their commitments, you can then proceed to the next step.
The next step is to teach them a distance from you at which they will have to stop; about halfway is a good point to use as a guideline. You should at least be able to get them to consistently stop at your command before you go ahead with the third step. Although it may take you some time to reach that point, please keep in mind that patience is the key here.
3. Use a dummy.
Before you begin using an actual bird for training, you can try using a dummy and a bird launcher as a training aid. If you practiced stopping at command with your dog, you should do the same thing with yourself. If you want to launch the dummy in this case, then you should launch the dummy before you cease the operation of the laboratory.
If you would like to see progress with this training process of calling your dog, launching a dummy, and calling to stop, we recommend repeating it as many times as you can until you see some results. When you see your dog stopping in their tracks even without being directed by you, you will know that the training has been successful. Repetition is the key to ensuring the new habit becomes ingrained.
4. The bird should be a real one.
After the two previous steps have been completed, the next step remains mostly the same. To make things as real as possible, however, you are going to use a real bird this time around to simulate the situation as closely as possible. If you repeat this over and over until the Lab understands that when the bird is launched, it should stop, you will have to repeat this again and again.
If the bird is to be used for the launch, it should be a live bird and should be able to fly away once released. Adding to the training process, you can place the launcher in an area where it is not visible so that you can go ahead with the training.
The purpose of this exercise is to teach your dog that when they smell prey or a game, they ought to stop before it is too late. You might want to try this out in different locations just to make sure your Lab can get a sense of what you are trying to teach them.
Pointing tips for your Labrador Retriever
- When you are training your Lab to point at something, you should always keep that in mind. You will need to determine what chain of events needs to occur before and after they can point to something.
- If you are beginning your training, choose an area that is small and has a minimal amount of distractions. In case you notice that your Labrador puppy’s behavior improves during training, you can then move to larger areas where there are more distractions.
- Be sure to stand still with your Labrador Retriever pup, if he/she is standing still. Before you reward your puppy for a job well done, make sure that you concentrate on him for a moment.
In conclusion
It may appear that you don’t need to do much to train your Lab to point, but you tend to expect more than what you need to do. I believe that having a good relationship between yourself and your Lab is the most important thing. Additionally, they should be able to follow basic commands to continue their training.
Even though it can be challenging, it is possible to train a Lab to point, given the right time and determination with training. If you are willing to do it for some time, you will be able to get great results if you remember that it may take a lot of time.
You must take advantage of the time when your laboratory is still young and quite easy to train. This is because they need advanced training for them. Last but not least, always remember to be kind and use positive reinforcement within your Lab. This study about training methods, which was conducted in a context where 31% of the respondents were gun dogs, found that negative training methods were less likely to be effective.
Even though working with guns is a more serious type of training, there is still a need to praise your dog for the good job he is doing.
Can Labs be taught to point?
Training your Labrador Retriever to point isn’t going to be without its challenges. In fact, this command requires a high level of control, which only comes from rigorous training. Ideally, you will start at a young age. You will then get them used to the hunting environment and gradually introduce obedience commands.
What is a point labrador?
the long-trusted Labrador retriever has taken on a new role and is turning heads in the hunting world. The act of “pointing” involves tracking down upland game and keeping it contained until the hunter can arrive to finish the job.
Why do Labradors point?
some Labs have genetics that cause them to point. Some Labrador breeders have been breeding with the pointing trait in mind for many years, making it more likely that those puppies will point.
Is the Labrador Retriever a pointing breed?
No, it is a flushing and retrieving breed.
When can you start training a lab to hunt?
You can start training your puppy at just eight weeks old and the training should take from eight to ten months. Puppies are great at learning and absorb everything around them, so this challenge will be quicker than training an older dog. Hunting duck can be difficult because two elements are at play here.