My dog is three this month. He's had a lot of training. Both from me and professional classes.
He's GOOD. Recall is usually excellent.
BUT
There come days when he just does not listen. He's away. You call, he'll stop and look at you and then he's off.
So now I only release where there is LOTS of room and not much about. I've thought about a tracking collar actually.
So how ever hard you try this may always be a problem.
Sorry, AlanT I disagree on this one. It may take a very long time and a lot of hours but you can instill brakes and recall - both of which are vital with a working cocker spaniel.
Having been to many Gundog training classes there are a number of tips and hints I've picked up in the last few years: a dogs hearing isn't fully developed until it's at least 10 months old. So however good you think your dog is at recall/stop at distance you as a pup you need to keep working at this until they are fully grown - and in some cases, all the time. Dogs are born with their sense of smell, that's how they find milk from heir mothers, it also gets them into a whole heap of bother when they discover what those delicious smells outdoor belong to...........this time of year the ground scent is at its strongest which is why you (Montysmum and others on here) are finding your pups are running off.
Dogs go through three phases of development. Puppy - this includes bite inhibition (cockerdile) the zoomies along with all the expected puppy stuff shuch as toilet training. Adolescence - this includes the selective hearing issues, developing confidence and "bogging off" plus many other acts of defiance and can try even the most patient. Adult - this is the phase that the dog starts to realise what all the training has been about but you've yet to see consistency - it feels like a mix of what could be and what you've just been through with adolecence. Approximate ages - puppy, 5-7 months, adolecence 10-18 months and adult is 20-26 months. (Source Kipperidge Gun dogs).
Coral was a far better Puppy than Pearl, Adolecence started at 8 months and only started to disappear at 18 months. We are now in full "adult" phase at 21 months - some days she is fabulous (entered a working test) other days it's difficult to see her she moves so quickly and if any living creature has the audacity to appear she gives chase........this will be a very tough nut to crack but I have a plan
Never, ever, think that walking a cocker spaniel is just that - it's not! It's a training opportunity. My very first Gundog lesson with Pearl almost exactly 5 years ago, I was asked why I was taking her so far.....the idea is to walk very little distance and get your dog to do the work for you by quartering either side. It is possible to take a Gundog on a walk but this takes dedication and commitment to training - The Walshies take Fudge
on huge distances but I've noticed on every COL meet that Dave spends time reinforcing the stop and recall with him.
What I'm trying to articulate is that the wcs is bred to hunt and retrieve. Some will have more natural instinct than others but all wcs need to be trained to get the best out of them otherwise, as JeffD has indicated, you will end up with an out of control dog that either spends the rest of its life on a lead or is rehomed - I'm certain that none on here want that which is why you have asked the question to start with
Please "go back to basics" Monty is not ready to go out in woods until you know he can stop at distance and come back when you want, even if that means recalling a few times (I have a zero tolerance but then I intend working Coral and can't afford for her to ignore a turn or recall whistle).
It's not easy owning wcs - they are lovely natured dogs that are very cute and unlike some dogs also have brains which makes the training even more difficult!
