Your Most Important Prep: Pre Season Gundog Training
- 13/05/2026
Written by Teresa Borrell
As the days shorten and the first crisp mornings hint at the opening of the game bird season, most hunters turn their attention to equipment preparation: cleaning the shotgun, selecting and patterning ammunition, dusting off decoys, and catching a couple of claybird shoots to sharpen up.
Yet amid this meticulous preparation, one vital partner often gets overlooked until it's too late – your gundog.
Your faithful retriever, pointer, or spaniel isn't just equipment; they're your mate and super bird finder in the field, and like a finely-tuned athlete they too need intentional training and conditioning to perform at their peak.
Dusting off the training dummies, refreshing obedience drills, building stamina through steady runs, and sharpening steadiness to flush or retrieve can mean the difference between a memorable hunt and a frustrating one filled with missed opportunities or lost birds.
Training Foundations
The foundation of a reliable gundog for hunting season rests on four core commands: Sit, Here, Heel, and Fetch. These are the pillars on which great field performances stand. They are obedience commands building both control and a readiness to work with you come game day.
Dedicate short consistent sessions at home to teach your dog these commands. It doesn't matter how old or young your dog is, what breed, or what hunting you will do. All dogs will benefit from the time you spend together teaching and practising these fundamental commands.
Sit forms the basis of steadiness and encompasses stay. Sit means sit down, stay, and be quiet until told otherwise. It's used to keep your dog steady and quiet in the maimai, to stop in the field for instructions to locate a blind, and to sit quietly beside you amid distractions like birds lifting off, gunshots, or other dogs working. Normally taught as a puppy with treats or a toy, it is later paired with a whistle (one long blast) for control at a distance and then refined in highly stimulating environments such as under the gun with birds in the air.
Here (come) ensures instant, distraction-proof recall – vital for safety and control. Taught in low-distraction settings with high-value rewards, then proofed by increasing distance and challenges (e.g., recalling from scent trails or running rabbits). Use verbal cues or short whistle pips (toot…toot…toot). Using a longline during teaching helps pattern snappy, quick responses and avoids the slow ambling sniff at everything on return.
Heel keeps the dog close and attentive at your side – crucial for walk-ups, stalking ponds, thick cover, or quiet stalking. Teach on a lead first, guiding to your left leg with treats, varying pace and direction. Progress off-lead, rewarding focus. Solid heeling stops ranging ahead, bumping birds out of range, or interfering during shots.
Fetch covers the full retrieve: clean pickup, gentle hold (no mouthing/chewing), prompt delivery to hand, and later, directional sends like 'back'. Use dummies initially, then introduce cold game to build bird manners. Reward calm, no-drop deliveries. This channels instinct into controlled, stylish work and prevents hard-mouth issues or lost birds.
These basics aren't the glamourous stuff. They are built in the unseen hours. After work sessions on the veranda, in the garage, or on early morning walks. However, they support everything else – steadiness to wing and shot, marking falls, directional handling, and safe performance. Commit to short daily sessions (10-15 minutes) of focused repetition and occasionally film yourself and your dog for self-review and to see your progress.
As you move from training alone to the group environment, don't expect your dog to perform at the same level he has at home. The fundamental commands must be practiced in different environments and contexts before they become truly part of your dogs learned and reliable behaviour in the field. Dogs are place and context specific in both learning and retention of commands. Unlike humans they do not readily generalise a command from one place to another or from one context to another. They need to be taught to generalise. For example, you taught your dog to 'sit' with treats at home on the veranda in the evenings after work. He's good at this and pretty good at sitting when asked during your after-dinner lead walk around the block. Now he's off lead in the maimai and ducks are coming in – will he sit? I don't think so. Why? Because the sit command has not been generalised to be reliable in different places (the maimai) and different contexts (I'm off lead) and with distractions (incoming ducks). So, back to the unglamourous basics and unseen hours. Tip: use the 7x7x7 method to teach and generalise a command.
7X7X7
This method uses sets of seven repetitions, applied in seven different locations and in seven different contexts. In one session teach the command seven times. Next, use this short seven-repetition teaching set to improve your dog's response to the command.
Repeat the seven-repetition set later that day, or the next day. Keep sessions distraction free, positive and reward success. Seven seems about the right number to learn without disengaging, getting bored or starting to resist or resent training. Seven training sessions of 'sit' using seven-reps/session should have your dog transforming an unsure, just learning or slow 'sit' into a snappy butt plant as soon as you say the word.
Next, take this refined snappy 'sit' and practise it in seven different locations: in the kitchen, in the yard, in the park, in the field, in the maimai etc. Next train in seven different contexts: lead on, lead off, with other dogs, with lots of people around, with gun in hand, with gunfire, with birds in the air. This way you'll generalise the 'sit' command from your veranda after work to the maimai with ducks overhead.
Excitement is a context within which a dog must learn his obedience commands continue to apply at the standard you taught him. If you let a dog 'sit' (or any other command) erode under excitement, you'll have taught him a lower standard applies when he's in the field. Use the excitement of a group training class to teach your dog how to stay in control when excited.
Many dogs look great at home, at the park and initially in low stimulation training groups. But bring out the duck callers, the guns and the birds and you have a totally different dog. Everything speeds up and everything you have taught him seems to fly out the window. Now this is the key message – find your group. Choose a like-minded training group or club that suits you and your dog and what you want to achieve. Train with the gun, fire blank shots for noise, train with birds, use your duck caller. Go to your maimai and practice with a friend or use pop-up blinds in your back yard. Not once or twice before the season, multiple times. Find the training sessions offered within the WGNZ community, or through NZGTA affiliated clubs, or with the Gundog School (see below for details). Help your dog generalise his control commands – Sit, Here, Heel, Fetch – from the back yard to realistic hunting environments before you pull the trigger on Opening Morning. He'll thank you for it.
Groups and Online Resources
One of the best ways to accelerate your gundog's progress and build confidence ahead of the game bird season is by connecting with like-minded hunters and experienced trainers through local clubs and organisations. New Zealand is fortunate to have a strong network of gundog enthusiasts, starting with the New Zealand Gundog Trial Association (NZGTA) – the parent body overseeing 26 affiliated clubs nationwide. Visit their website at www.nzgta.co.nz to find a club near you, complete with contact details for secretaries, upcoming events, training schedules, and even graded training schemes that cater to all levels, whether you're aiming for casual fieldwork or competitive trialling.
For those focused purely on practical hunting performance, explore Working Gundogs NZ (often active on Facebook as WGNZ – Working Gundogs NZ), a community spotlighting gundogs as essential partners in recreational game shooting, where you can share tips, find training advice, and connect with others prioritising real-world field work.
Working Gundogs NZ Inc stands as a passionate community of hunters, trainers, and dog enthusiasts who share a single, unifying belief: a well trained gundog is essential to safe, ethical, and effective hunting in the New Zealand environment. More than a club, it is a collective dedicated to preserving the traditions of gundog work. Working Gundogs NZ Inc emphasises practical, scenario based training that prepares dogs not just to perform, but to excel in real hunting situations. This includes exposure to terrain, scenting conditions, and – critically – the presence of firearms.
Training with a firearm is a cornerstone of the organisation's philosophy. A gundog must be confident, steady, and reliable around gunfire, not only to perform its role effectively but to ensure the safety of both dog and handler.
Controlled exposure builds trust, reduces risk, and creates a partnership where the dog understands its job and the handler can operate with confidence. This focus on safety is one of the defining features of the group's training ethos, and it reflects a deep respect for the responsibilities that come with hunting.
The organisation is driven by passion – passion for dogs, for the outdoors, and for the traditions and responsibilities of hunting. Members share knowledge, support one another, and celebrate the remarkable bond between handler and dog. Through training days, workshops, and community events, Working Gundogs NZ Inc fosters a culture where skill, ethics, and enthusiasm come together.
Professional guidance in gundog training is also available through the Gundog School (email [email protected]). It's a dedicated gundog training facility, located in the Waikato, to help you and your dog prepare for hunting or competition. It offers one-on-one training, private groups, open classes for duck hunters or field trial competitors as well as specialised one-off workshops such as the recent North Island Retriever Revival which bought in two internationally recognised gundog trainers, Dennis Voigt and Kevin Cheff to New Zealand for a three-day intensive training workshop.
The Gundog School caters for all levels and abilities, with specific programmes such as Duck Dog School running from February to April each year. This schedule offers training in realistic hunting scenarios.
While nothing replaces hands-on club sessions, training your gundog solo can be highly effective with the wealth of high-quality online resources available today. These expert-led programs offer structured guidance, video demonstrations, and proven methods tailored for hunters training alone. They're perfect for building obedience, steadiness, retrieving skills, and fieldwork confidence right in your backyard or local paddock.
For retriever-focused training, Dennis Voigt stands out with his 'Training Retrievers Alone' series and Retrievers ONLINE platform (ybsmediastreaming.com and retrieversonline.com). Voigt, a multiple national champion trainer who often works solo, shares practical techniques for throwing marks, using remote devices, and advancing your dog without a group. It's ideal for one-person setups, with one-time purchases for lasting access.
Kevin Cheff's FETCH Online Retriever Training program (theretrievercoach.com) provides comprehensive membership access to videos, webinars, and coaching for hunt test or hunting prep, including his Junior Hunter Online course. It's subscription-based with regular updates and clear 'why' and 'how' explanations that suit independent trainers.
Pat Burns of Elite Retrievers (eliteretrievers.com) offers extensive content from one-off programs like Bomb Proof Basics to the subscription Retriever Revolution. He also hosts outstanding free Purina-sponsored masterclass webinars covering retrievers, spaniels, pointers, health, nutrition, field first aid, and more – excellent free starting points with deep expert insights.
For puppy foundations, Bill Hillmann (billhillmann.net) delivers exceptional step-by-step video programs starting from eight weeks old, progressing through basic to advanced skills in real-time training footage – superb for getting your young dog off to a strong, confident start.
Other trusted online US programmes include Bob Owens of Lone Duck Kennels with his Zero to Duck Dog Course (loneduckoutfitters.com) and Cornerstone Gundog Academy (cornerstonegundogacademy.com).
For English-style training aligned with traditional UK/New Zealand gundog work with emphasis on steadiness, natural hunting, and positive methods, explore The Gundog Club UK (thegundogclub.co.uk) for affordable training manuals and online resources, or GundogTV (gundogtv.co.uk) for subscription video lessons from puppy basics to advanced fieldwork or Ben Randall's Gundog app (gundog.app) offering over 300-plus training videos to take your gundog from puppy basics to advanced obedience and hunting skills.
These are just a selection – many more reputable trainers exist online – but starting with these widely respected ones gives you reliable, expert content to explore and adapt to Kiwi conditions.
Disclaimer:
The information presented in these news items is based on the context and regulations in place at the time of publication. Please note that some articles may include reference to laws and regulatory standards that have since changed. For the most current and accurate information please check our Fishing Licences & Regulations pages or our Hunting Licences & Regulations pages.