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Cockapoo: Fishing friend or foe

I take my Springer with me for all my fishing trips and he's absolutely as good as gold......that is a complete lie,total nightmare more like but I love him to bits and couldn't leave him at home espically as he loves fishing trips.

Worse still he's a barker when he gets excited and goes from zero to ten on the excitement scale for no reason at all,he settles down eventually during the day but come dusk it's hunting time for foxes,rats and anything that russles in the undergrowth.He also has a passion for digging for mice,this keeps him occupied for ages,once on the Kennet after a particularly determined digging session I looked round and could only see his hind quarters sticking out of the hole.

Strangely enough he doesn't effect my catch rate at all,barbel and chub,he often stares over the edge of the bank just over my near side baited spot and I still have bites.

H,get the dog and bring it with you,great fun and give a purpose to blanking!!!
 
I went for a jack Russell as a fishing companion, however she doesn't like rain or cold. its taken a while to teach here how to behave and not chase the birdies. nearly 3 years old now and spot on when fishing...a couple of mishaps hooking her on boilies and pellets when not looking what she's doing...but taught her the lesson
 
My ESS has been going fishing since she was three months old.

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Crikey Nigel, i had to look twice then, i thought your dog had two heads. :D

Note to self:- must get new specs.
 
Crikey Nigel, i had to look twice then, i thought your dog had two heads. :D

Note to self:- must get new specs.

:D

That's her litter sister who is owned by a mate who also takes his springer with him fishing.
 
To be honest both look like they a dying to dive in :p
 
I agree with all that has been said about cocker spaniels. I bought mine with the specific hope that he would be a fishing companion. He is 18 months old now and he never has been fishing with me, and probably never will. Though I love him to bits, he is madder than a bucket of frogs, barks at every sound, nearly breaks the patio door down to get at a blue tit on the bird feeder or a pigeon on the garden...and nearly has an apoplectic fit trying to get out if a squirrel appears. Lovely, but NOT a fishing dog :D

Cheers, Dave.
 
You could quite easily train him out of all those behaviours David. Clever dogs Cockers, the fact that he doesn't behave well enough to go fishing with you is your fault not his.
 
You could quite easily train him out of all those behaviours David. Clever dogs Cockers, the fact that he doesn't behave well enough to go fishing with you is your fault not his.

Who should we blame for your poor training Tony? You really shouldn't be allowed to go onto forums, not without supervision anyway.

For all you know, Dave might have some vastly more important things going on his life to deal with than train a dog to go fishing.
 
All good stuff..... If training is done early you can achieve most things... Just the time needed.
I had a spaniel that was a superb gun dog...... Was able to be put in a pen and moved a few feet at a time on the whistle...... She was a fab fishing companion also...... Just had to say "leave" when the hunting instinct triggered!!! :)
 
I do agree about the training aspect, and admit that if there is a fault, it is mine, rather than a failing of my dear little dog.. The thing is, we all make choices. Although I mention all my little chaps madcap ways, I am not really complaining, because I love him as he is, for what he is.

I don't really want a dog with all his character trained out of him, and if that sounds strange...that's probably because it is. I know deep down that it is ME who is madder than a bucket of frogs, not him, bless him. I would have enjoyed his company on my fishing trips, but like my wife, fishing is not for him, it would drive him nuts. Such is life

Cheers, Dave.
 
Would love to be able to take this lad fishing with me, unfortunately dogs are not allowed where I fish, rather strange really as there is a right of way that people from the local village use for walking their dogs.



 
You could quite easily train him out of all those behaviours David. Clever dogs Cockers, the fact that he doesn't behave well enough to go fishing with you is your fault not his.

I have a Springer and he has a character like all other good Spaniels that is hard to surpress, and why would you? I also have a Lab, that if I ask her to move an inch she will, I literally have to give her a new command and she will have it in no time. They have been bred by man to carry out different roles in the field, so best accept that.

OK I as a young man was a RAF Dog handler, and the dogs were all Alsations, or German Shepherds if you will, and these dogs were donated by the public, for whatever reason, but mainly because the owners couldn't cope The regime of training that both dog and handler went through at RAF Debden will stay with me for ever, some didn't make it for mainly the gun shy test, but they all had a inherent ability to Guard and be receptive to commands. That is the nature of Alsations, Springers and the like have a free role to a certain extent, and Labs are just ultra attentive.

So, on this occasion, Dave I couldn't agree more, retain the spirit of the dog, have boundries, but I love to see happy dog's warts an all, just being happy.
 
I agree with all that has been said about cocker spaniels. I bought mine with the specific hope that he would be a fishing companion. He is 18 months old now and he never has been fishing with me, and probably never will. Though I love him to bits, he is madder than a bucket of frogs, barks at every sound, nearly breaks the patio door down to get at a blue tit on the bird feeder or a pigeon on the garden...and nearly has an apoplectic fit trying to get out if a squirrel appears. Lovely, but NOT a fishing dog :D

Cheers, Dave.

They certainly keep you young and focused Dave, :p Birds of all types are the 'enemy' they all have it, I still get a kick, as he does in putting up Pheasant, even the Lab joins in the fun.

I don't shoot btw.:rolleyes:
 
Spaniels are without doubt very difficult to train particularly working strains,shooting men say a Lab is bourn half trained and a Spaniel dies half trained.Most working dogs are are kennelled which makes things slightly easier but when they are pets and part of the family it's virtually impossible to have that level of control you see in the shooting field.

I've seen how some are treated and there personality is crushed out of them and that is just unacceptable for me.
 
"I've seen how some are treated and there personality is crushed out of them and that is just unacceptable for me".

I have seen that too Richard and couldn't agree more.

Howard, are you sure your surname is spelt Cooke?....... David said, "I bought mine with the specific hope that he would be a fishing companion".
 
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