Golden Labs

[walleyeking#8]

Was wondering if anyone else has had this problem with there golden lab? I have a golden lab that justed turned three this past spring. Ok the problem i have is he hasn't hunted waterfowl except for when i took him along when he was 6 months old, last saturday i took him for his first waterfowl hunt, got the decoys setup in a buddies pothole crawled into the blind and thats when it started. My golden lab thought it was time to take down the spread. He started one by one going out and retrieving the decoys. I finally tied him up in side the blind so he would stop. After about an hour or so, I untied him and he started doing it again. The only positive thing i see in this is that i only had to bring in 3 of my 14 decoys i had placed out there. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[bear204]

The problem is not that he is golden its that he hasnt seen the decoys before and hasnt trained with them, so he thinks hes doing the right thing. Put some decoys out in the yard and throw some dummies for him. He get the picture after awhile

[HunterLee]

I'd bring two dogs with one for the birds and one for the decoys. Mine brings them in once in a while but thats when she gets tangled up in them.

[1runhotshot]

Maybe he has an inferiority complex about being called a "Golden" Lab? Jokes aside.. Your "Yellow" lab probably has simply just not been in that situation before (or along time ago, he doesn't know if you are playing or hunting. There is no substitute for training. Go out in a hunting situation with no decoys, Heel, Sit, Fetch. Repeat..Repeat.. Put a decoy out. Heel, Mark, Fetch. Make sure he sees the training dummy. Keep the decoys to the side (Dont tempt him too early by having to swim next to the decoy until he gets the picture). If he knows the "NO" command and comes close to a decoy, Scream "NO".. IF!!! he is collar conditioned and he does not listen to "NO" send him a "e-mail" with a stern "NO". Hopefully he will get the picture. First and foremost. TRAIN IN HUNTING CONDITIONS. It all starts with basic obediance, you shouldn't have to tie him up at the blind. My 2 cents... Happy training...

[walleyeking#8]

Thanks for all the insight and suggestions. Oh by the way, isn't a golden retriever crossed with a yellow lab called a golden lab? I guess i thought it was.

[Bobb-o]

thats what i thought too, mine is black lab crossed with golden and i tell people she is a golden lab even though she is black.

[ReelTimes]

Then I would call that a golden retriever-yellow lab mix. I guess you can call them whatever you want but there isn't a recongnized golden lab breed, so problem is most people won't know what you mean or will assme you mean a yellow lab. Seriously no big deal, call em whatever you want...its your dog

[walleyemkr]

not that it's really worth debate, but i was under the same impression... i call my golden retreiver / yellow lab mix a GOLDEN LAB (as do most others i guess). whether or not it's an "official breed", is that not the mix people are commonly referring to as 'golden labs'???

[duckbuster]

I really hate to disappoint people on this forum but some times there needs to be some honesty.

Unless it is pure bred Lab to Lab it is nothing more than a mutt, half breed or like some have stated, "it's your dog" who cares what he is.

A golden retriever and a Labrador retriever are not the same there fore it would not a pure bred.

I always think people are talking about a yellow lab when they mention they have a "golden lab", "fox red lab" or "ivory lab".

In the end you either have a Chocolate, a Black, or a Yellow lab. But again, it was stated earlier, who gives a rats a@##% it is your dog and as long as he does what you want that is all that should matter!!!!

[1runhotshot]

Good point, Fox Red and Ivory are "unoffical color phases" that simply descibes the variety of yellow. I have gotten a few emails on my current litter and there are people that want "The whitest one available" I wonder if they will tell their buddies they bought a white lab? Kinda tuff to give many discriptions of Black or Chocolate I guess. That in no way demeans your Golden Lab! On a 200 yard retrieve who cares what color it is? I'm sure your Golden Labs is a beauty!