Newbie to Training

[FishnUMD]

Hey Everyone-

so my wife and i have decided to adopt a male chocolate lab from the local human society-he is "approximately" 9 months old.

i want to be able to bring him with grouse and pheasant hunting and maybe some waterfowl hunting as well. i've been reading a bit here on what books to read and such to begin training a dog, but they all seem to begin to talk about training as a puppy.

are there any suggestions for beginning to train a lab at 9 months? or any books i should try? i guess since this is the first dog i will own (my family had a dog but i didn't have anything to do with training), i am a bit confused/nervous as to how to approach training a 9 month old dog who has had who knows what done to him vs a puppy-

thanks for any help!

[870Express]

These books will work for you too. Just modify your program to your dog as you go...some things will come easier as your dog is older and will pick up on actions quicker, some things will take longer as you need to break old habits and condition new ones. Take your time, it'll work. A cheap book I'd recommend is Ten Minute Retriever. It's cheap and emphasises the basics. Because your dog may be more developed than other dogs at the same stage, make sure you take your time and don't "wear the dog out." This book will explain why. Good luck.

[Acemac]

9 months is a puppy