Your Puppy Isn't Aggressive. It Just Needs Manners.
I had a phone call a while back that's stuck with me. A family had a five-month-old puppy. Spaniel. Full of life, full of energy - and biting them. Jumping up, nipping fingers, going for ankles. They'd tried everything they could find online. They'd been to see someone. That someone had told them the dog had behavioural issues. Possibly needed a behaviourist. Maybe even medication. They rang me to say they were going to have it put to sleep. A five-month-old puppy. Put to sleep. Because it...
Why Won't My Puppy Come Back? The Truth About Retrieve Training for New Handlers
You threw the dummy. Your pup flew out there, picked it up, and then... ran the other way. Or sat down with it. Or dropped it halfway back and started sniffing. Sound familiar?
A New Beginning - Meet Jam and Evie
: Darren Kirk introduces Jam and Evie, two English Springer Spaniel pups with FTCH pedigrees, joining the Kirkbourne pack as future working and demo dogs.
The Dummy Launcher Workshop: This Is Where It Gets Serious
There's a moment at the shooting field - or the working test, or even just a training session with other handlers watching - where you realise the retrieve isn't the problem. It's everything before the retrieve. The dog that breaks on the shot. The one that's already running before you've even lifted a finger. The one you've asked to sit three times and it's sat twice and the third time you just gave up because everyone's watching. You know the one. It might be yours. That's not a retrieve...
DEFRA's Gamebird Consultation Isn't Just a Shooters' Issue. If You've Got a Gundog, Read This.
The window closes at midnight on 1st November. And right now, the people who want to see game shooting restricted are putting their evidence on record. The people who rely on it - shooters, handlers, trainers, beaters, pickers-up, working dog competitors - aren't keeping pace. BASC have said it plainly. There are an estimated 650,000 people involved in game shooting in England. The response so far? A fraction of that. This post is for everyone who's thought this doesn't apply to them. Because...
Kirkbourne Latest News
National Gundog Competition
The National Gundog Competition set at Stubbs Hall Shoot Ground held by kind permission of John Soar on 10th and 11th of June 2017. ...
RETRIEVER WORKING TEST TRAINING DAY
With the end of the shooting season in sight, those that regularly attend training clubs and sessions turn their thoughts to the...
MEET THE TEAMS - PART III
Well it's here, time for the Yorkshire Game Fair, which means time for the National Gundog Competition. Those that can't be there with...
MEET THE TEAMS ... PART II
Time to meet two of the members from Team "Cooper". Milly Martin and Stephen McGuire. MILLY & BREN LABRADOR RETRIEVER, BITCH, 08/12/09...
MEET THE TEAMS
After weeks of serious training, both in group sessions and as individuals the teams for the National Gundog Competition have been...
STICK WITH THE PLAN AND "TRAIN TO WIN"
Oh the excitement of deciding that the time has come to bring a new puppy home. For most of us that enter the world of gundog training,...
MULTI-TRAINERS "R US"
The first multi-trainer day of the new training season saw us back at Harewood. Our three trainers for the day, Darren Kirk, Nigel...
THE CLASS OF 2016 (the puppies...)
YEN, PADDY, ARCHIE, MINNIE, KIT, ARI, MONTY & PADDY Puppies Puppies everywhere and didn't they all do well !! Saturday saw our very first...
PUPPY SCHOOL ... the "kirkbourne" way !
2016 seems to be the year of the puppy, lots of our existing members have new recruits and so now seems to be a perfect time to introduce...
UPPING THE ANTE ...
Spring is in the air and it's time for our advanced handlers and our Gundog Team members to start soaking up the pressure and the sun. As...
BACK TO BASICS
With the shooting season now well behind us and our new training season underway, Saturday was our first Novice day of the year. What a...
"JUMP"...
The first of our specialised sessions was our recent "barriers" day. A fantastic day, handlers, dogs and trainers al thoroughly enjoed...
Advance Day Harewood House
Our Advance day was set to be a challenge for all handlers. We wanted to push the dogs and handlers to make them understand some very...
Working Test 22nd February 2015
Kirkbourne Spaniels held their first 2015 working test at Stubbs Hall Doncaster. It was greatly received by our Handlers with 20 dogs...
Multi training day Harewood House 14th Feb
Well we started the 2015 with a massive Multi trainer day and what a day we had. We had 4 trainers there all training different tasks...
The end of the shooting season means back to some serious training…...
It only seems like yesterday that we were preparing our young spaniels for their first season beating and polishing up the retrievers for...
Game Fair Season approaches
© ANDY BIGGAR Game fair season soon here are some photos of our past fairs. We really cant wait to see you all so when the Kirkbourne...
