Picking up, for me, means we are out training and preparing all year round so that when the 1st of September arrives and partridge season begins, we’re in the best place we can possibly be and, most importantly, ready to go.

I currently have six Labradors and three Springers in my team. One of my Labs sadly lost a back leg in a bad accident, but she still does full days in the field and is a very smooth operator. I keep a close eye on her and manage her workload carefully on shoot days. She can’t jump fences or walls anymore, so I adapt the day around her needs. Her mindset is extraordinary, she gives everything she has and simply doesn’t understand failure.

What matters most to me on a shoot day is driving there knowing that we’re fully prepared and ready to handle whatever challenges may come our way. So, how do we get to that level? We train with purpose. I set high expectations and push my dogs beyond the norm. But at the heart of everything is ensuring success in whatever task we’re training for.

I start my young dogs off with small, simple tasks and gradually build up the distance and difficulty, but always in a way that’s achievable. Ensuring consistent success from the start gives the dogs a clear understanding of what’s being asked of them. This confidence means they don’t overthink when faced with more complex scenarios, and they make difficult work look easy.

When you see a well-drilled picking-up team working in sync, knowing their job and getting results, you can be sure there’s been serious time and effort put in by the handler.

With my puppies, it’s hugely important to build strong foundations early. If those foundations are solid, everything else can grow from there. Once I’m happy with the basics (and this takes a different amount of time for every dog, it should never be rushed), and we’re seeing consistent success in training, expectations start to grow. At that point, the dog should be full of belief in itself and in you as its handler. That level of trust is powerful and sets the stage for a lifelong working partnership.

My three-legged Lab is a perfect example of what belief and confidence can achieve.

Once an individual dog is progressing well, we move on to group work. This stage should go smoothly but that’s not always the case. Some dogs get fired up by the competition, which can be a double-edged sword. Most of the time, it brings out their best, pushing them to raise their game. But occasionally, it can cause issues. My advice? If problems arise, don’t hesitate to take a step back. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Refocusing and resetting is far better than letting bad habits creep in. Be honest with yourself and proactive with your training, you’ll bounce back faster.

How often do I train my dogs?


It’s a question I get asked a lot and honestly, the answer changes daily!

I currently have nine dogs in my team, and that’s roughly where we’ll stay numbers-wise. The challenge for me at the moment is maintaining steady progress without rushing. The team is at various stages, I’ve got a couple of highly experienced, reliable picking-up dogs; a few that are showing great quality and promise but are still young and gaining experience; and then there are the real youngsters just starting their journey.

Because of these different levels, it’s up to me to tailor the training to get the best out of each individual dog. Their personalities vary massively, some need regular, almost daily sessions to maintain consistency, while others can be trained less frequently and still perform brilliantly. The key, I believe, is little and often. And when you do train, make sure you achieve success and hit the goal you’ve set for that session.

This is where the trainer really needs to be switched on, knowing what each dog needs, when they need it, and how they respond best.

I also think downtime is just as important. When my team has days off from training, they behave well and don’t cause any headaches, whether we’re on a walk or around other dogs. We’ll go for a stroll or a swim, and they can relax without any expectations. Just like us, dogs need time off, they benefit from rest and reset just as much as we do.

I know this has mainly been an overview of how we prepare for a shoot day, and I haven’t gone into much detail on other key inputs like diet, condition, fitness, mindset, and building calm, level-headed dogs but all of these elements play a massive role in what we do. They go hand in hand, and ultimately, you’ll only get the best performance when all the right inputs are in place.

Finally, I want to say a big thank you to the people and companies who support me and my team. I’m incredibly lucky to be sponsored by some of the best in the business, and I’m hugely grateful to each of them. Massive thanks to: Sporting Saint, Team Pure Flax, TransK9 and Lochnell Sporting

Wishing you all the very best in your training and for the season ahead.

Huge thanks to The Country Girls UK for asking me to write this, it’s a real honour, and I’m genuinely proud to be involved.

Written by Fraser MacDougall
Arisaig Gundogs

< back to blog Print