Fortiscorde Gundogs

18/11/2025

Puppy time!!

13/11/2025

Beautiful Sprocker Puppies.
Introducing our new arrivals out of Izzy our homebred Sprocker and Flynn our Springer Spaniel.

5 ⭐ homes will be sort for these lovely chocolate pups available for reservation. Ready to leave to their forever homes mid-January 2026.
For those who know both Izzy and Flynn will agree this is a lovely combination.

For anyone interested in reserving a puppy please get in touch.

Message us or email: [email protected]
Visit our website for more information about our breeding programme and further information.

Don't forget to follow over on Instagram for plenty of puppy updates.

06/11/2025

Stunning Autumn colours in our shoot today.

04/11/2025

For some dog owners, having a bitch can be stressful. We’ve put together a brief overview of what to expect during her season and how best to manage it so everyone stays safe & happy 👍

https://www.fortiscordegundogs.co.uk/bi***es-in-season/

04/11/2025

Own a female dog? She’ll go through a season - and it’s more than just a few weeks of her not feeling herself. Learn what to expect and why it’s best to avoid public places during this time.

We request that bi***es in season are not brought to training... Owning a female dog comes with a few extra responsibilities, and managing her season is one of them. With a bit of planning and understanding, you’ll keep her safe, comfortable, and out of trouble.

https://www.fortiscordegundogs.co.uk/bi***es-in-season/

30/10/2025

Halloween can be a challenging time even for working dogs, especially gundog breeds that are highly sensitive to environmental changes. With the increase in noise, visitors, and unusual sights and smells, it's important to make sure they are OK.

Here are a few tips to help your dogs get through the busy few nights over Halloween.
✅ Exercise before dusk
✅ Avoid taking dogs out at peak times
✅ Limit access to the front door
✅ Make sure they have easy access to their crate or quiet area
✅ Monitor their body language for signs of stress

View our blog for more tips and guidance:
https://www.fortiscordegundogs.co.uk/halloween-helping-dogs-get-though-a-busy-trick-or-treat-season/

22/10/2025

Group Gundog Training - Friday 24th 10-12pm
We're holding a group training session Friday 24th Oct 10-12pm. £35 per dog.
Did you find your dog a bit rusty on your first shoot? ... Looking to polish up on directions and steadiness? Let's get you working as a smooth and team. Small intimate group allowing the opportunity for a focused session.

[email protected] to reserve your place.

18/10/2025

18/10/2025

Happy birthday to Fortiscorde Titan or Tom. 11years old. officially the First ever Fortiscorde Dog.
Tom is as close as it comes to the perfect dog. Gentleman, honest, amazing noses, works hard. Great around kids. In the last few years he has become Sophie’s dog, and what a partner ship they are.

18/10/2025

Borrowed from the Working cocker spaniel

The Science behind why working cockers LOVE hunting!

1. Hard-wired reward circuitry.

Hunting behaviour in dogs, particularly in working breeds like cockers, is governed by the mesolimbic dopamine system, the same neural pathway that governs pleasure and motivation in humans.

When a cocker uses its nose, finds scent, or flushes game, the dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and nucleus accumbens fire.

This releases dopamine, the brain’s “feel-good” neurotransmitter, which reinforces the behaviour.

The anticipation of finding something (the search phase) is actually more rewarding neurochemically than the capture or retrieve — a concept known as seeking behaviour (Panksepp, 1998).

So, for a working cocker, the act of hunting itself, not the outcome, triggers the brain’s reward system.

2. Genetic selection for the SEEKING system.

Over generations, breeders of working cockers selected dogs with enhanced activity in the dopaminergic SEEKING system (as described by affective neuroscientist Jaak Panksepp).

These dogs showed persistence, curiosity, and intrinsic motivation to search and explore.

That means the neural pathways that govern “motivated search behaviour” are unusually strong in the working line, it’s not just training, it’s neurobiological inheritance.

3. Olfactory and sensory stimulation.

A working cocker’s olfactory bulb is proportionally far larger than a human’s, and its brain devotes extensive cortical real estate to scent processing.

Using their nose activates not just the olfactory cortex, but also the amygdala (emotion) and hippocampus (spatial memory).

That multisensory engagement is mentally enriching and satisfying, it’s a full-brain workout that feels good.

4. Endorphin release and the flow state.

When in sustained, purposeful activity like hunting, dogs experience a flow-like state similar to that seen in athletes.

Physical exertion releases endorphins, natural opioids that reduce pain and elevate mood.

Combined with dopamine and serotonin from successful searches or retrieves, this produces a powerful neurochemical reward loop.

5. Social bonding and oxytocin.

Hunting isn’t solitary, working cockers were bred to hunt with humans.

Cooperative work with the handler releases oxytocin, the “bonding hormone,” in both dog and person.

That mutual reward strengthens teamwork and makes the act of hunting socially and emotionally satisfying.

6. Cognitive satisfaction: instinct expression.

Finally, behavioural science shows that performing instinctive, species-typical behaviours (like hunting for spaniels, herding for collies) reduces stress and increases well-being.

Preventing those behaviours leads to frustration or displacement (like chewing or hyperactivity).

Expressing them provides intrinsic reinforcement, it simply feels right to the animal.

To summarise:

Working cockers find hunting so rewarding because it activates:

The dopamine-based SEEKING system (motivation and pleasure)

Endorphin and oxytocin release (physical and social satisfaction)

Deeply ingrained instinctive neural pathways selected over generations

Hunting isn’t just something they like, it’s something their brains are designed to find pleasurable and fulfilling!

Non “science nerd” version of this topic to be posted next 💪🏻

02/10/2025

Fabulous evening working the dogs pushing the birds back towards the pens. A great training opportunity for our clients to put everything onto practice.

26/09/2025

Just a reminder…
THERE IS NO Foundation or Level One gundog training this Sunday 28th September….. back to normal with groups (Foundation and Level Two) on Sunday 5th October 👍👍

… don’t forget to book 👍👍