Even before they became domesticated, dogs have been utilized by people to help them when hunting. Scent hounds work by following a scent trail while a sight hound stalk and go after the prey. Retrievers on the other hand locate and give back shot game to the hunter while setters, spaniels and pointers find and flush games for the hunter.
Some breeds are naturally hunter and only need minimal training while others are simply not suited to hunt regardless of how advanced the training they get. The Vizsla is one of the breeds viewed as natural hunter in which the ability can be refined through Vizsla training appropriate for hunting dogs.
Training a hunting dog will involve more effort, time and patience than when training the fundamental obedience. However, training for hunting starts the same way as with any other training objectives. Puppies need to be socialized well and must get used not only to the hunting locations but also in other areas like vet clinic, recreational areas and other public spaces particularly when the dog were to be kept as household pet apart from hunting dog.
Since the basic obedience is the foundation of all other dog tricks and commands, the potential hunting dog should master the most important basic commands first before the hunting dog training itself. Commands like sit, come, stay, down and heel should be included in the early part of obedience training followed by the combination of a couple of basic commands such as "sit stay" and "down stay". Other commands like "drop it", "leave it" and "search" ought to be tackled too.
Another part of Vizsla training for hunting dogs is to help your pet distinguish a decoy from a real prey. Setting the decoy far from the canine before tossing the prey or dummy will help your canine differentiate the two eventually.
In addition, it helps to train and put into practice frequently, everyday if possible. Dogs learn by routine so if training and practice are added into your daily regimen, he is more likely to learn efficiently. To make training more effective and motivate positive behavior, give him reward each time he demonstrate such behavior. In time, he will figure out that he gets rewards for that certain behavior thus will do it again when opportunity permits.
Amidst the training, always keep in mind to keep your dog in good shape. Be mindful enough not to over-train your pet and be sensitive enough in terms of his health condition. If you notice that he's acting strangely, look into possible health issues and seek your vet's advice immediately.
All of the effort you exerted during Vizsla training will be worth it when you see your gentle-mannered Vizsla do well in the field come hunting time.
Chloe Brooks is mad about Vizslas. By being a Vizsla owner for several years, she has learned lots of Vizsla training ideas she now shares at her site dedicated to Vizsla training.
