Long line for training pup

[james-hook]

Hi,

New here, I have had the pleasure of a golden working pup for the past 4 weeks, Bayley is now 14 weeks and everything is going pretty well. I have started whistle training as he has quite good recall to his name but I want the whistle to be a definate thing as where we walk can have plenty of crows and other dogs and although the roads are quite far away he can cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time for such a little thing. Also it can get quite windy so I think the whistle will be much more distinguishable for him. So my question is how long a line should I be using to ensure a good recall, I have large fields to my disposal without much scrub to snag on, I have been using a 5m flexi until now but want to move things along soon as he is doing well.

Great site, been doing lots of reading.

Cheers,

James

[james-hook]

Oh, also I am looking to start clicker training him as is seems it will be invaluable for distance sit-stays sit-downs etc. Can anyone reccommend a good quality one? (I understand it just clicks but I like things well built)

Thanks

[black taz]

as long as you can get.  I bought my off ebay, but i know some people use washing lines, horse ropes, etc.  I also have two training (i think they are 10 metres each) which i have on occasions joined together

[JulieM]

Hi

Congratulations on your new pup.

I guess the length of the line depends on the terrain. I had a 10m one and I have to say that when it was fully out it often got snagged on things (even short plants/ sticks in fields)- so I'm thinking if it was even longer things could get quite tangled! I found that Florence very rarely got to the end of the line at 10m, so it was hanging loose on the ground. I then would let go and let it trail behind her- was much easier to catch than her if I felt she got too far away from me! I needed this to build up my confidence but I know other people are much braver.

In terms of clickers I was told it makes no odds- it is just a bit of metal with a casing- so nothing too technical. But I was told to keep to the same clicker as each clicker has a subtley different noise that your dog gets used to (but perhaps someone who knows about this will say that's rubbish?) I think mine cost £2 and I have to say it was about the best £2 I've ever spent.

Enjoy your new puppy 

[praia]

A 10m line works great for a pup.  Make sure it's stiff to ensure minimum snaring/tangling and it would also be nice to have one that floats.  A pup that's trained for recall on land should also be trained for recall out in the water. 

The type of clicker doesn't really matter.  I use a cheap plastic one.  One person I know uses metal bottle caps with a pop button, the sort that shows that a bottle is still vacuum sealed.