Moultrie Camera
Many squirrel dog lovers have different ideas about how a squirrel dog training. It is my opinion that you must first start with a good hunting bloodlines. This will be your puppy's chances in making a squirrel dog. Next you need a few suggestions ...
Step 1: socializing the puppy early. Or choose the puppy to 6 weeks or 12 weeks old, give it as much human interaction as possible. If you have children allow them to play with the puppy as much as possible. This is really the fastest way to socialize a puppy.
Step 3: Next approximately 8 to 12 weeks working on basic obedience and by all means get the puppy used to wearing a collar and working to break to walk on a leash. If you asked you save yourself many future headaches, while hunting in the woods!
Step 4: By age 12 to 14 weeks old puppy start Short walks in the forest 10 to 30 minutes tops. This allows the puppy to get what I "Woods Wise call. Woods Wise is nothing more than to become familiar and comfortable with all various sights, sounds and smells of the forest has to offer. It also makes a huge difference in the total duration puppy.
Step 5: By age 3 to 6 months old and loves to start laying drag the pup with squirrel tails, skins or dead squirrels. Use this time to see the puppy's tail to get trees, hiding or dead squirrel. Once the puppy starts barking performs it to the next step. There are many different methods that can be used to make the puppy "look" ...
Step 6: Caged squirrel. This step can be beaten if the puppy has barked up on a wild squirrel. I personally do not like using caged game as a training method, but it's nice if you have limited resources to get the puppy in an area where there are squirrels. Anyway, fall and place a live squirrel in a cage and set the caged squirrel in an increased location such as a tree trunk, picnic table, brush, etc. ... Casually walk your puppy around the area where the squirrel cage is located. This puppy will search the squirrel cage on its own. If the pups curiosity gets the best of it will move in closer to check it out! At the moment the face and the scent of the squirrel will stimulate the pup. Once the puppy starts to bark at the squirrel cage, then pet him and encourage him. You can also do this with the caged squirrel with a rope. The rope will allow you to squirrel an increase in tree, so you can use the puppy barking. Once the pup barks consistently performs at a caged squirrel hung in a tree to move to the next step. Be careful not to exaggerate the caged squirrel! Once or twice is enough!
Step 7: Catch and Release! Put a caged squirrel loose in an area where squirrels are limited choices of trees and let the puppy chase and hopefully the tree. If that is the tree, then reward the puppy with treats and praise. Be careful and never release a caged squirrel more than a few times!
Step 8: From the age of 5 to 6 months is nothing but "Woods Time". Woods is no more time than actually hunting the puppy! This is the main ingredient to make a squirrel dog. Everything else is just tips and tricks to speed up the training ... Good Luck!
Note: All ages above the lot may vary depending on the progress of your puppy. Always keep in mind you are actually dealing with a child is not too much on them too early. Allow the puppy to a puppy. If it comes out in him ... I've said it before and I'll say it again: "I've never been able to teach a dog to hunt or a tree. I can only give it the opportunity to do what it was bred to do. Handling, obedience and bad habits, I can work, but the instincts and pedigree puppy will do the rest. "There also is all my personal opinion and nothing else. That is exactly what works for me ... Hope this helps.
Happy Hunting!