gun shy dog

[sheephead24]

I have a 6 year old female black lab who is gun shy. I talked to 2 trainers and they both said they can fix 4 out of 5 gun shy dogs, anyone know if this is true? I know its a lot of money to pay, 450 a month and they say it might take 2 months, especially if she doesnt get over her problem. My second question is, since she is already 6, by the time she could hunt she would be 7, is it worth spending the cash, how many years do you normally get out of a hunting dog? She is in excellent shape right now and gets plenty of excercise, but how many years could she hunt? Thanks for any help.

[fisherking01]

If you take care of her and don't hunt her hard, she will give you up to 5 years of hunting. Personally (I am one to love comapnions as well as hunters), I would get another dog for hunting. Sometimes it's better to have a friend just for a friend and another for hunting. It's not for everyone, or every dog in your case. I have the same situation, a dog that loves everything but loud noises, she will be here until her end, but I'll have another that doesn't mind chasing and loud noises in the field.

Some just are meant for friends, Brent

[Ufatz]

Did you just get this dog? Do you know why it became gunshy in the first place? Do you routinely work with the dog now i.e. working some obedience and tossing a few dummies? Do you have any affection for this dog or is it just something you want to use as a hunting tool? Is it a family pet too? With patience you can probably cure the problem yourself, but if you don't have the time please DO take the dog to a good trainer. And lastly, you will get quite a few years of hunting from the dog IF if has been hunting up to now and IF it has strong hunting instincts. Frankly, it sounds as thought this dog has not been hunted much, or trained much, if at all. You might well be better off with another dog for hunting and keep this older dog around as your pal.