Thank you for the birthday wishes, Logi and Zeta had a lovely day and were spoilt rotten of course!!!
Lyn, I read with interest your post, but I do have a question? Why do you have to chose which discipline? Surely the two go hand in hand, yes it is true that I gave up competition obedience several years ago, but why with a 6 month old puppy are you choosing one or the other. A working gundog needs basic obedience, it is a fact if you are competing in working tests or field trials or doing what we do and that is rough shooting with the dogs, you need a dog that will walk to heel, a dog that stop when told, sit when told and come when called. Surely that is what you will be teaching Ghillie and all of those disciplines are needed to any activity you do with your dog. Munsterlanders are working dogs, many will of heard me say that Munsterlanders don't go for a walk they go for a hunt, but you can do anything you want with a Munsterlander, they are such an intelligent dog they just need to do something. Agility, Flyball, working in the field, obedience, showing heel work to music, there isn't an activity that a Munsterlander wont do, and do well. I can name Munster's that have excelled in all of those activities. The problem comes with how much time and effort the owner can put in. ?If you do too many activities there is always a chance that your dog will become a Jack of all trades and master of none, but then surely it is you that makes the decision, as the dogs can and would do it all. I am quite sure that a Munsterlander could excel in the obedience ring and the field, if you put enough time and effort in training both disciplines. It is true that you have to make a choice on which discipline if time is short but it is not the dogs that dictate that, they are capable of it all.
It does annoy me when 'so called experts' come out with remarks about all Munsterlanders are manic, and usually OTT, does it not occur to these 'trainers' that they may only of met the family dog that has been left untrained for too long, so in desperation the owner turns to the trainer, usually a little late and usually when bad habits have been learnt. Munsterlanders are not mad, or tearaways so long as you make sure to devote time to them from day one. All my owners will know that I always ask them to go to training classes as soon as the jabs are done. It is so important that the dogs are socialised, they are not a breed for the faint hearted as they are very intelligent, they do need to be taught an activity, as they will become bore without something to think about, BUT answer me this, could I live in this tiny house with 9 Munsters if they were mad, OTT and wild, no I certainly could not. As with any breed of dog, Munsterlanders are what you make them, put the time in and you will have a wonderful, devoted dog, that will excel in what you teach them, leave them to their own devices and you will have a bundle of trouble, if is the owner that makes the dog. Breeders will do their best to produce healthy and well adjusted puppies, what you do with that puppy will become the end result. Even down to showing, you can not turn up at a show and expect your dog to 'perform', you need to train them to show, they need to be taught to stand correctly, move correctly, they need to gain confidence so that when the judge 'goes over' them they are fine with it and lastly they need to ignore the 1000's of other dogs that will be there, all my lot come home exhausted from a show.
Right I have waffled on more than enough but I do get annoyed when so called experts make blanket statements about the breed, a good trainer would be able to understand why that particular dog is a little wild, and also I do not understand why you have to pick one thing or another to train, to me it all goes hand in hand.
Oh yes last thing, Choke chains???? NO sorry don't ever use them, I use my voice and arm to stop pulling, I do use half checks, but when Gundog training they go on slip leads, and no they soon stop pulling without any physical discomfort........
