Found It, Fetched It - Gundog Training for Family Life

The Ladies Working Dog Group
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Pets & Animals
  • Updated Biweekly

Every fortnight, the Ladies Working Dog Group sits down with gundog experts, guest trainers, behaviourists and fellow handlers to talk about life with a high-drive gundog or working breed — the wins, the stuck weeks, and the stuff nobody warns you about when you bring one home.This isn't traditional gundog training, and it isn't generic pet advice. It's for women handling dogs bred to work, raising them as family pets, who want guidance that actually fits that reality.Part of the Ladies Working Dog Group — training, community and support for women with working-breed dogs. More at thelwdg.com.

  1. Jul 17

    212. When Is Your Dog Ready for a Charity Working Test?

    Abbie Reed of Riverlily Working Dogs joins Jo to break down what a charity working test actually involves, from the admin behind the scenes to what your dog needs to be able to do on the day. They talk through the six tests you're likely to face, how judges assess you differently to an official working test, and why your own mindset does more heavy lifting than your training log. In this episode: What separates a charity working test from an official Kennel Club test, and why unregistered and crossbreed dogs are welcomeThe basic skills your dog needs before you enter: steady to shot, steady to a thrown dummy, a clean retrieve, and a stop whistleA walkthrough of a typical test day, from signing in and the exercise area to being called forward by the judgeThe six common tests you might face, including the double mark, replacement blind, and the water splashWhy eighty percent of how the day goes comes down to the handler's mindset, not the dog's abilityHow volunteering or helping at a test teaches you faster than training your own dog ever could About Abbie Reed Abbie Reed runs River Lily Working Dogs in Hertfordshire, where she's organised ten charity working tests over the last twelve years. She competes and picks up herself, and she's spent years watching handlers of every level walk into the test ring, which makes her the person to ask when you're wondering whether your dog is actually ready. Key takeaways You don't need a perfect dog to enter a charity working test, you need a dog who's had the basics installed and will have a go.Judges at charity tests are more lenient than official ones, but they still expect a certain level of control before you toe the line.A zero doesn't mean failure, it means you've found exactly what to train next.Volunteering at a test teaches you faster than training alone ever will, because you get to watch dozens of dogs and handlers instead of just your own. Resources mentioned Riverlily Working Dogs — Facebook (Friends of Riverlily Working Dogs, and Riverlily Working Dogs), Instagram, website currently being updated Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  2. Jul 3

    211. When Your Dog Is “Too Difficult” for Training

    Jo and Claire Denyer tackle one of the most common worries handlers carry quietly: the belief that a dog needs to behave better before it is ready to see a trainer. They cover why the opposite is true, what so-called difficult behaviour is often really communicating, and how the most challenging dogs frequently become the dogs of a lifetime. In this episode Why your trainer needs to see your dog at his cheekiest, not his best behavedThe warning moment most handlers miss in the seconds before their dog disappears after a scentWhy difficult young dogs so often mature into the hardest working, most rewarding dogsHow watching other dogs at group classes and charity tests fast tracks your own handlingWhat displacement behaviours like scent marking and cushion humping actually meanClaire's recent case of a golden retriever whose recall problem was nothing like it looked About Claire Denyer Claire Denyer is an LWDG Group Expert and professional dog trainer who works with handlers and their dogs every week, from group classes and one-to-one sessions through to behaviour cases referred by local vets. She brings a rare mix of straight talking and genuine compassion, and her whole approach is built on helping the handler, not just the dog. Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  3. Jun 12

    210. Ten Years In: The Award, The Mud, and What We'd Tell Ourselves Now

    Ten years ago, the LWDG was bringing in about two hundred pounds a month and felt more like a nice idea than a business. This week marks ten years of the LWDG and ten years of Claire Denyer's Family Dog Services, so to celebrate, Claire turns the tables and interviews Jo in a business blind date. They talk about the exact moments it stopped feeling like a hobby (a national award for one of them, a very muddy fall on her bottom for the other), the bit of the job they still find hardest, how training has changed over a decade, and where they hope to be in another ten years. It's funny, it's honest, and it's the story behind the brand you've been part of. Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  4. May 21

    209. Why Your Recall Broke (And It Started in the Garden)

    You trained it and you were proud of it. Then one day, in front of people, your dog looked straight at you and carried on sniffing. Recall going wrong feels personal, like the dog is calling you a liar. In this conversation, LWDG Group Expert Claire Denyer explains why recall almost never breaks where you think it does. Claire walks through how to rebuild it from the ground up, why the cheese-word panic never works, and how to use a long line as a way to talk to your dog rather than a way to hold them. If your dog has been stuck on the lead because you no longer trust them, this is the episode that gets you both off it. Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  5. May 8

    208. What is Predation Substitution Training (And When It Actually Works)

    If you've ever thought that giving your dog a flirt pole or a tug toy would stop them chasing squirrels, this one's going to shift something. Predation substitution training sounds like the answer, give them an outlet for all that chase drive. But as Claire Deyer walks Jo through in this episode, it's not that simple. Here's what actually works, why outlets alone fail high-drive dogs, and when PST becomes part of a real strategy instead of a band-aid. Claire's spent a decade rehabilitating dogs that chase on command and won't stop, and what she's learned will reshape how you think about drive, boundaries, and what your dog actually needs from you. In This Episode What predatory drive actually is and why it's normal (not a flaw) in working dogsWhy chasing a toy will never replicate catching a real rabbit, the limitations of outlet trainingHow dogs behave completely differently when you're not watching (and why this matters for prey drive issues)The skills you need alongside PST: reliable recall, stop whistle, steadiness, and self-controlHow gun dog training fits into predation substitution trainingWhy diagnosing the root cause matters more than picking a training method Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  6. Apr 24

    207. Fear Periods in Puppies and Adolescence

    Fear periods are a normal part of puppy and adolescent development, but most handlers go into them underprepared. They know the phrase but not the timing, the signs, or the right response. In this episode, Jo Perrott and LWDG Group Expert Claire Denyer break down both fear periods in practical terms: what they look like, when they happen, and how to work through them without making the dog's experience worse. Claire covers the difference between healthy exposure and flooding, the role of eustress in building resilience, and how the training a dog already has becomes an asset in the second fear period in a way it simply wasn't in the first. In this episode Why fear periods happen and what makes them vary so much from dog to dogThe first fear period: why it lands exactly when you bring your puppy home and what to do about itThe difference between exposure and socialisation, and why pushing puppies into group play during a fear period creates problems rather than solving themThe second fear period: when to expect it, why it blindsides confident dogs, and how hormonal shifts layer on top of itWhat "go back to basics" actually means in practice, not just as a phraseHow to use eustress to build resilience without flooding your dog Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  7. Apr 10

    206. 10 Lessons From 10 Years of LWDG

    10 years. Thousands of conversations. One truth: you're not alone in all of this. Jo walks through the 10 lessons from a decade of watching what actually works with working dogs. Why your dog isn't difficult, just a gundog. Why more walks make them fitter, not calmer. Why consistency isn't about being strict. Why the dog you have right now is already the one you wanted. This episode is for anyone who's felt stuck, ashamed, or like they're the only one getting it wrong. Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

  8. Mar 27

    205. Knowing Your Dogs Limits

    Knowing when to stop isn't giving up. It's one of the most important skills you can build as a handler, and this week Claire and I are getting into exactly that. There's a real difference between pushing a dog and protecting a dog, and the line between them isn't always obvious. Claire talks about stretching a dog's ability, that productive discomfort where a dog is learning something new, might wobble a bit, might show a flash of an old behaviour you thought you'd cracked months ago. That's not regression. That's growth. It can look messy. It's supposed to. But there's another side of that line, and that's where things go wrong. What we cover in this episode The difference between a stretched dog and an overwhelmed one and why the symptoms can look identical if you're not watching closely. The dog isn't being naughty. It's telling you something. Physical fatigue vs. mental fatigue and why mental tiredness is the sneaky one. A physically tired dog slows down. A mentally tired dog starts chewing grass, showboating with the dummy, going off for a random sniff. It looks like misbehaviour. It's actually a dog running on empty upstairs. The bored dog trap because if you never stretch your dog and just keep repeating the same comfortable routine, you'll get behaviours creeping back in too. A bored working dog will find its own entertainment. It won't be the entertainment you wanted. External pressure and where it actually comes from the other handlers, the gamekeeper's nod, the dog two fields over who's been doing this since it was eight weeks old. Claire is straight-talking on this: comparison is not a training plan. Why working dogs will push through pain to do the job and why that means we have to be the ones to make the call. If you're waiting for your spaniel to tap out, you'll be waiting a long time. The warmup read Claire's practical tip for gauging your dog before you even start. Know what your dog looks like at their best, and you'll know when something's off. Finishing on a high not just as a nice idea, but as a training habit. The challenge this week is to finish one session earlier than you think you need to. Just once. See what happens. Claire also shares the story of Indy and Rose, two completely different dogs in terms of mental stamina, self-regulation, and what 'enough' looks like for each of them. There is no universal rulebook. There is only your dog, in front of you, today. And Claire is recording this just two and a half weeks post knee surgery. Still showing up, still delivering. She's very much one of us. Your challenge this week Finish one session earlier than you think you need to. Notice how your dog walks away from it. Notice how you walk away from it. Every session, every stumble, every breakthrough, it all counts. Keep going. We see you. Thanks for being here. If this episode gave you something, a laugh, a lightbulb, or just the feeling that someone gets it, that's exactly why we make it. 📚 Not sure where to start with your gundog training? Grab the LWDG Gundog Progress Gap Map. Work out where you exactly where you are and what to work on next, no more guessing needed.

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Every fortnight, the Ladies Working Dog Group sits down with gundog experts, guest trainers, behaviourists and fellow handlers to talk about life with a high-drive gundog or working breed — the wins, the stuck weeks, and the stuff nobody warns you about when you bring one home.This isn't traditional gundog training, and it isn't generic pet advice. It's for women handling dogs bred to work, raising them as family pets, who want guidance that actually fits that reality.Part of the Ladies Working Dog Group — training, community and support for women with working-breed dogs. More at thelwdg.com.

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