I have a 2yr. old chocolate and she knows absolutely nothing except how to be spoiled by my wife and kids. Well, by me too but just a little bit. She's a great, and very smart dog. She also minds very well, and is very mature for a 2yr. old. So, is a 2yr. old lapp dog a lost cause, or is there hope for me in training her to be a hunting retriever?

You'd be bet ta completely remove her from that environment and work her from there.

So there's no way she can hunt and be a family dog, right? I don't.expect her to be a world class retriever, I just want her to be a hunting companion and to pull her weight in the blind. My wife isn't too keen on the idea of removing her from the household.

so people have different views on duck dogs and where their place is. my dog is a year and 3 months old and i raised her in my house with my family. she sleeps in my room on her bed, has a doggy door to go in and out of the house when she wants. she is very smart for her age and knows her commands well. she has an incredible drive to hunt and retrieve. i think it comes down to the dogs instincts and drive. my dog would rather go hunting than eat for a week. but she is a family dog as well and does well with kids and adults.
i Say give it a shot and see how your dog takes to retrieving and see if your dog has the drive to hunt.

She can hunt and be a family dog but it's gonna take a lot a work. Her mind and all her habits need ta be reformed. Has she ever retrieved a bird? She may never pick one up. Some are naturals but some need that imprinted at a young age so they develop prey drive. Lots a work ta do if yer wantin ta go through with it.

So its still possible even at the age of two to start from scratch. She absolutely loves to retrieve so I think there is plenty of drive in her. Is it easier to start a pup, rather than a 2yr. old? Should I send her off? Will a trainer even want to bother with a dog that age? I appreciate the feed back.

just bring the dog hunting,you may be surprised.....or you may need to pay a trainer plenty money.

my housedog does good some days and some days shes off,kinda like my shooting.

dog has no training its in her blood.

also,by far,the most spoiled member of the family.

It's not the retrieving drive I worry about in startin an older dog, it's the prey drive. Two entirely different things. It's one thing ta go after a toy and quite another ta go after a crippled bird.

Understood. With that being said, I think I owe it to her to give her a shot and if she doesn't work out, then i'll get another dog.

There ya go. Just get a fresh dead bird and work with her. You'll know right away whether it's worth pursuing.

Thanks bud. I appreciate it.

With it not being hunting season, where could one get a fresh dead bird from? I'm wanting to try my dog at this also.

Find a pro dog trainer. They always have em or know where ta get em. Ta might pay more depending on the year and availability.

You can also stop in at a local hunt test. They usually have left over used birds you can grab. Make sure they're fresh when working with a rookie dog though.

I have a couple birds in the freezer from last year that I was going to mount. I will sacrifice one of them. Do you think it will be fresh enough?

What exactly is wrong with her?? Won't retrieve? Gun shy? Or do you just mean you haven't gotten her on birds yet?

You can absolutely have family dogs that hunt!! All my dogs were raised that way. I actually think it helps (and so do many dog training experts)--labs especially want to please their owners that they are bonded with.

I have two black labs and my female wouldn't retrieve initially (although at a much younger age than yours). My male has always been exceptional. I almost gave up on my female but then I had her with me when I was training my male and it just clicked with her. From that day on she'll retrieve non-stop--dummies, birds, you name it.

I do the same thing. They should be fine if they were froze fresh.

I don't think this is an issue of whether the dog is a house dog or kenneled dog but simply an issue of whether the dog will be able ta be "reformatted" ta be trained as a hunting dog and will it have natural prey drive or not. The question is the dog, not where the dog is stored.

The only thing wrong with her is I've never tried to train her. Not her fault, but I heard that it was not worth training a dog that age. I don't really know how to train a dog and I'm not sure I have the patients to do so. I'm not sure if I should try to send her off or even if I can find a trainer that is willing to work a dog that age. I'm just not sure about alot of things.

Ive "retrained" more dog than I have trained. From young ages like yours to 7 year old dogs with bad habits. I keep them at my place fer 3 months and send em back "fixed". Fer me it's a lot more ta train the human owner than it is ta train the dog.

I think if you start out slow and get her attention and make it fun, she'll come around. Start playing fetch. That is the easiest way to find out if she'll even retrieve.

I like you am thinking of hunting with mine. He hasn'y hunted but does retrieve pretty much everything. He'll most likely have to see a bird fall before he goes to get it. The whistlers and other birds gets his attention alot at home. I'm just worried about some of the places I hunt. And my boat isn't big enough.