I'm sure you'd have loads of fun training Indie in this way Em
If you want to try her with beating on a shoot she will need to be whistle trained for stopping and for recall. I have a 210 for Alfie and a 211 1/2 for Tilly. To go on a shoot they do need to be very well behaved and under control for safety reasons - there are people firing live ammo so you have to be 100% confident that she will do as you ask and stop and come back on command and absolutely not chase any game which is flushed as this would be a disaster. This is why I'm glad there are still a few months to go before the season as Alfie is not quite 100% yet!! Depending on the shoot you go on as well some are more relaxed than others and will be more lenient on young or inexperienced dogs and handlers but a dog that doesn't come back or that chases is dangerous, not to mention disruptive for the shooters. Has she been introduced to gunfire? This is also important, she should also learn to 'drop to the shot' so that when a gun fires she automatically sits or lies down.
For beating she should quarter the ground in front of you and hunt with her nose, not her eyes. I use two pips on the whistle and an arm signal to change their direction when they have gone far enough one way, although Alfie is now getting to the stage where he will do this naturally. If they do flush anything they must stop and lie down instantly until you invite them to start hunting again.
Dummies are used for retrieving work, I have 5 of them here, 2 canvas, one canvas floating, one fur and one feather, but I very seldom let the dogs use them, maybe only once or twice a week to keep them fresh. I know they can retrieve and so I try to keep it as much of an 'exciting treat' for them as possible so that when they do get to do it they're totally fixated on it. For starting retreiving training a tennis ball is just as good a thing to use. You must train Indie so that she will sit or lie still while the ball is thrown but that she marks where it lands so you can then send her on to find it. She must NOT run after the ball/dummy until you release her to go.
For my two the command I use is 'go on' and then 'seek it out'. I started teaching them this in the house by playing with a tennis ball with them then hiding it and encouraging them to find it. I would shut Alfie in the kitchen and hide the ball in the living room then open the door and release him then encourage him by saying 'seek it out' in a very high pitched voice and really going overboard on the praise when he found it. The best way to train them is to make it into a game, they should enjoy themselves at all times and you will really see that tail go!
When the dog brings you back the ball/dummy/game they should hold it, sit in front of you and present it by tilting their head back, they should NOT let go of it until you have your hand on it and you ask them to leave it. Teaching a good hold and present can take quite a long time, I'm still doing it with Alfie!
You can get gundog equipement from country stores or any of the following...
www.gifts4gundogs.co.ukwww.scottcountry.co.ukwww.sporting-gundogs.comwww.canineconcepts.co.ukwww.countryloversstore.comSome good books you might want to try are 'Gundog Training Made Easy' by Eric Begbie, and 'Training Spaniels' by Joe Irving. The first one in particular is a series of broadsheets and it is very short, concise and easy to follow.
Good luck and let me know if you decide to go for it!
