Originally posted by dawn ray:
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Thank you for some great advise on what I need to do for my new bird dog. He is a upland hunting dog and I am sure that it will take a lot of patience on my part to get him to be a great hunting dog. I would have never thought that I would be so into a hunting dog and training him to flush out bird (being that I am not a hunter). I think that I have decided that if I am to be a good trainer I also need to get out there and experience what this breed loves to do. I am so excited to get him and he will be a great addition to our home. </STRONG>

You do not need to train the dog to flush out birds just because this is what the breed was originally bred for. There are many things you can do with your GSP in the training area that you may enjoy more (since you don't hunt). You can do obedience, agility, tracking (this might be really good for a GSP) or search and rescue. Before I got married, I never trained my Goldens to hunt. They did obedience mostly and then some other things like pet therapy and swimming, more swimming, and even more swimming (Goldens really love to swim)! I only did the hunting thing with my first Golden after getting married since my husband is a hunter. Of course if you really want to do hunting then you GO FOR IT GIRL!!!! They sky is the limit! Just have fun!!!!