Biggest Problem
If you're a neophyte trainer, you may well find teaching your young dog the Sit-whistle unbelievably simple. Shortly after you bring him home as a just-weaned puppy, you teach him to sit on the verbal command, Sit. You push down on his rump and lift his chin as you say, "Sit." Then, you praise him, and perhaps give him a food treat. After a few repetitions, when you say, "Sit," his rear hits the rug before you can utter the final "t." At three months, he'll sit on command anywhere around the house or yard. At six months, he'll not only heel beside you but also sit politely whenever you stop.

To transfer this response from the verbal command to the Sit-whistle, you'll toot Tweet immediately before saying, "Sit." After a few repetitions, the verbal will no longer be necessary. "Wow," you may think, "dog training is easier than I ever dreamed!"

So it goes with many neophytes every year. However, if the Sit-whistle is such a breeze to teach, why do so many older retrievers ignore it at the most inopportune times? For example, at hunt tests, why do you so often hear, "Mallard-Muncher was doing fine, but then he started slipping whistles and the judges told me to pick him up"? (The terms, "slipping whistles," and "slipped whistles," are euphemisms for the harsher term, "ignoring the whistle," and "whistle refusals.") The same retriever that has obeyed every sit command, every Sit-whistle, since he was a pup, suddenly goes deaf under pressure. Why?

The trouble is, training a retriever to sit is too easy! Therefore, the beginner thinks he has completed the job when he has barely started it. He has taught his youngster to sit under ideal circumstances, that is, in the house and around the yard, where there are almost no distractions. Too soon, the proud trainer checks the Sit-whistle off as a job well done. Only later does he discover his error. Even then, he tends to let things slide, to put up with a few slipped whistles, rather than go back and finish the training as he should.

The Finishing Touches
After your dog sits reliably under ideal circumstances, you should introduce him to less and less ideal circumstances, in other words, distractions. With him on lead (for control), you should first distract the little guy one way and another before tooting the Sit-whistle. For example, in the backyard, you should have a family member approach and, as your dog rushes off to greet him, you should toot the Sit-whistle. If your dog ignores it, as he almost certainly will at first, a quick leash correction should bring him back to his senses. (Nota bene: After every correction, as soon as your dog is sitting, you should praise him lavishly, just as if he had obeyed without correction.) Next, have someone bring in another dog (on lead) before you toot the Sit-whistle. And so on until you've exhausted all the readily available backyard distractions.

Next, with your dog on a check cord or retractable lead, you should take long walks around the neighborhood. When he's near the end of the check cord and highly distracted, you should toot the Sit-whistle, and correct him (followed by praise) if necessary. Then, you should extend this check-cord technique to romps in cover out in the country. And so on.

Finally, you should "e-collar condition" your dog so you can reinforce the Sit-whistle immediately at a distance without a check cord. For details on e-collar conditioning, see either of my books, Retriever Training Drills for Marking, or Retriever Training Drills for Blind Retrieves (available from the Wildfowl Bookshelf).

If you complete Sit-whistle training this thoroughly, you'll get reliable responses almost always. And, whenever your dog begins to backslide, you'll know how to restore his former "integrity."

Jim Spencer's books are available from the Wildfowl Bookshelf. Titles are: Training Retrievers for Marshes & Meadows, Retriever Training Tests, Retriever Training Drills for Marking, Retriever Training Drills for Blind Retrieves, HUP! Training Flushing Spaniels the American Way, POINT! Training the All-Seasons Bird Dog and the video, Duck Dog.