gun fire training - Page 1

I start all puppies when they start eating puppy mash. As puppies are chowing down, I'll fire a few blanks from a starter pistol. Gunfire
means chow time, which is a VERY good and enjoyable thing to a puppy. Have not had any problems as of yet :)

Meliissa

Melba, Thanks. This is how I have done it as well. I just like to hear what others try so if one this is not working, I will have other ideas to try.

I'm of two minds about gun fire training.  On one hand, it's nice to desensitize them to this, especially for competition sports. 

But...on the other hand, if you start desensitizing a dog to gun fire at a very young age, then aren't you missing out on learning more about your dogs' nerves?    I'd really like to know how a mature dog reacts to gunfire when it's never heard it before.  

Interesting point Euroshepherd. Question though.Can the nerve of a dog be seen at a younger age?? This is one of the things I look for when I am selecting a puppy. How does it respond to suprise loud noises, if it reacts does it recover etc. Not disagreeing or anything, just interested in your thoughts. Since I compete in IPO , I do desensatize my dog.

I don't really do anything.  I think being gun shy is genetic.  When I'm at SchH club, probably every other person who does OB asks for gun fire so my dogs get exposed regardless of whether I'm intentionally training them.  When my current dog did his breed survey recently we were all cracking up because the judge fired the gun from about 5 feet away from my dog (and the club has a particularly LOUD gun), I jumped a few feet in the air and the dog didn't even blink.

I'd really like to know how a mature dog reacts to gunfire when it's never heard it before. 

Well, it depends on several things.  The dogs nerves and temperament, the state the dog is in before the gun fire, for example is the dog in drive or is it completely neutral and just walking around?  If the dog is in drive, what drive is it in?  That will have a big effect on the reaction.  It is also going to depend on proximity to the gunfire and the caliber that is shot.  When I test dogs gunfire is an important part of the evaluation and is generally the second test I do.  The dog is taken out and allowed to acclimate to it's surroundings, there are no toys and no stimulation.  No bite work and no chasing or carrying a toy.  I have a handler walk the dog and let the dog sniff and relax and then fire a gun and watch the reaction.  I prefer the dog to notice the gunfire but not be startled or aggressive, rather neutral.  An aggressive reaction is ok as many dogs have been exposed to whips in training and gunfire but not as desirable as a dog that shows interest in a calm, confident way.  A negative, startled, nervous or scared reaction is obviously less desirable. 

Generally, we start from a distance and decrease the distance as the dogs show a positive response. 

Now that I live in hickville, gunfire is the order of the day, and the night, and the dawn...around these here parts, so every animal isn't bothered by it..I can fire off my horse too.
But, before I did, I lived in a neat ilttle suburban developement.  I totally see what EuroShepherd is saying ,and it's an important issue. Here is what happened. I used to show my male Dobe in AKC conformation. At that time I was living in the suburbs.  I was at a dog show and it was in July, so people living around the area had fireworks. Someone decided to let off an M80 in the neighbhorhood neighboring the show grounds, pretty much on the other side of a fence with some bushes/trees, which made most of the dogs jump, and people too. But my Dobe did NOT jump, in fact he wasn't bothered at all. I think he was in the 6-9 or 9-12 month class at that time. So I got to see how he reacted(he didn't react) to a non planned, non desensitized situation.
I think it is important to expose dogs to as much as possible as early on though so nothing is a surprise later.

I do see it as a catch-22 situation.  It is very important to socialize young pups and expose them to all kinds of things, including loud noises. 

The thing with pups is the all the phases they go through at a very young age, sometimes their reactions can be very different from one week to the next.  How the undeveloped, immature brain reacts is different then how an adult, mature brain reacts to stimuli.  Socializing and desensitizing certainly will affect the outcome.  But I think knowing what the true genetic "base" of that temperament is important in a breeding program..that comes from observing the actions and reactions of a mature dog who has had nominal exposure to things and has not been desensitized to loud noises and other oddities.  

A few years ago when I was putting a TT on one of my dogs, I saw a women take her dog over the chainlink laying on the ground (part of the TT test) multiple times before the testing started.  Her dog was so freaked out about some of the stuff, she had to desensitize just enough so it would pass the TT requirements.   You can desensitize a nervy, spooky temperament...but it's still there and it still gets passed on when those folks breed their desensitized "titled" dogs.  
(in contrast to the woman who desensitized her dog right before testing, my own adult dog that I did the test with had never walked on chainlink or similar, yet he didn't hesitate to walk across it when I asked him to during testing) 

Whether to desensitize or not, I don't think either one is wrong.  Each person should choose what is best for them and their dogs.   It's just one of those things that can't be a perfect answer.  

Thanks Euroshepherd. I alway learn fro my your posts.