Training Spaniels

A how-to book that is based on a consistent, firm, caring approach.



Joe DeMarkis, the trainer and breeder with whom Larsen and I spent a weekend in March freely admits to using the training approach offered by Joe Irving.

Interpreting Irving's book through the DeMarkis seminar implies that the approach is soft, but definitely not touch-feely.  In DeMarkis' seminar, and described in Irving's book, there is some ear twisting and firm correction here and there when the dog blatantly disobeys, but there was also a huge premium put on building trust.  Or, as Irving would put it, a premium on genuine training rather than breaking.  Irving explains the difference thusly:

Some trainers are reluctant to admit [to their failures], but if we are honest, we must.  In the training of gun-dogs, more so perhaps than in most pursuits, an invaluable asset to the trainer is the ability to look inwardly, to understand himself and his own shortcomings, to recognize when the mistakes are his, and to learn and profit from them.

It is this gift of insight, coupled with the ability to understand a dog, that differentiates the trainer from the breaker.

Honest self-assessment, the ability to look at your own failures and shortcomings and learn from them and the ability to adapt your training approach to the particular dog separate the trainer from the breaker.  We will spend some time describing some of the finer points of this book.