Acer Gundog Training

Acer Gundog Training Online & In-Person Gundog Training for family pets & working gundogs 👉Herts & Cambs Our clients tell us that they want to live harmoniously with their gundog.
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Gundog Training at Acer is for owners of pet gundog breeds such as Labradors, Spaniels & Pointer/Vizslas living in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. They want to enjoy going out for walks without feeling stressed. They certainly don’t want to have their arm yanked out of its socket and to suffer the frustration of seeing their dog disappear over the horizon and completely ignore them

every chance it gets. Gundogs are bred to work in the field and not to lie asleep on the sofa all day, waiting for their owner to return from a day at work. They like to run, to hunt, chase and retrieve things. Generations of selective breeding have gone into making these behaviours part of your dog’s natural instinct. Acer Gundog Training helps the pet gundog owner harness all of their dog’s drive and energy in a positive way. We can help you develop a harmonious relationship with each other based on co-operation and fun. Whether you have a new puppy, an exuberant teenager, or a mature adult dog, we have training to suit your needs.

- What is gundog training? Gundogs are now the most popular pet dogs in the developed world. Acer Gundog Training will help you to harness your gundog’s desires to hunt and retrieve and channel them into activities that use their natural instincts. At Acer Gundog Training, our style of training is aimed at ensuring your gundog’s urges and passions are controlled and exploited in the best way possible.

- Can I bring my pet dog to gundog training? The vast majority of working gundogs in the UK today, are first and foremost, pets. Most gundog owners do not work their dogs every single day, even in the shooting season. Most gundogs live indoors and spend their evenings snoozing on a rug in front of the fire. Many of the owners that come to us for dog training have no interest in taking their dog on a day’s shooting, their primary interest is in having fun teaching their dog good manners and building a lasting bond with their companion.

- Where are training sessions held? Most dog owners train their dog to sit and come when called within the confines of their home, or maybe at a class in the local church hall. The trouble is, these environments won’t equip you to deal with all the tempting distractions that your dog will face when you are out and about together in the countryside. Our training sessions take place outdoors in various countryside locations in Herts and Cambridge. We choose this environment because it is ultimately where you want to enjoy spending time with your canine friend and not to have to worry about unruly behaviour. We offer training in the form of individual sessions and group classes.

- We only use Positive Reinforcement (Reward-Based) training methods

Some of the traditional methods used in training working dogs are based around punishment and have now been shown to cause behavioural problems such as aggression further down the line. We believe in using positive reinforcement training methods to motivate and build the strongest bond between owner and dog. By applying rewards which are pleasurable to your dog, there is a very good chance that he will be encouraged to repeat a desired behaviour again and again in the future. To find our more, head over to our website at: www.acerdogs.com

19/05/2026

These are my favourite ways to use a flirt pole in gundog training 👇

1️⃣ Impulse Control
2️⃣ Steadiness
3️⃣ Retrieving
4️⃣ Hold a Point & Flush
5️⃣ Delivery to Hand
6️⃣ Stop Whistle
7️⃣ Sit to Flush
8️⃣ Recall

A flirt pole can be an incredibly versatile training tool to have in your kit bag for high-drive gundogs.

If you’d like to give one a go with your dog, I love to use the new Flirt PoTug-E-Nufftugenuff

Comment “FLIRT” and I’ll send you the link along with a 10% discount code.

13/05/2026

Sometimes the difference between a clean retrieve and a “send and pray” moment is simply teaching your dog which way to rotate on the back cast as they set off.

Casting backwards is much harder than to the side, and the line your dog takes often determines how efficiently they locate the retrieve. If you can aid them using the wind, or avoid distractions on the route they take, starting their outrun with a left or right rotation puts them on the best line straight away.

It’s a small skill that gives you far more control and makes the tricky retrieves feel much more achievable. Dog and handler working together in partnership together.

Here’s how to build it:
1. Walk the dummy out in an arc
2. Face your dog and take 2–3 big steps to the side
3. Raise the arm that matches the direction you want them to rotate

To progress:
4. Throw the dummy (or pre-place it as a blind)
5. Reduce, then remove, the side steps
6. Add distance between you & your dog, and then dog & dummy (remember: distance erodes control, so do this last)

Follow me for more gundog training tips like this.

12/05/2026

Your gundog doesn’t need you to teach them how to hunt.

That instinct is already there.

The real training is helping them learn to hunt with YOU 🫵

To trust your direction and believe that when you send them somewhere, that’s where they’ll find what they’re looking for.

That trust is built through reinforcement history. Over time, your dog learns that where you direct them, leads to them finding dummy you’ve hidden, or the shot bird that’s waiting to be retrieved.

That’s where a partnership is created.

If you’ve got a gundog breed and want simple, easy-to-follow training steps, comment “GUNDOG” and I’ll send you my free Bark to Basics course.

09/05/2026

Dog ignoring you?

Probably not on purpose. Chances are, they don’t understand what all the words mean.

And boy, do we humans love to chatter away to our dogs.

To a dog, words are just sounds. They don’t speak English!

Until your dog has learned to properly associate a sound with a behaviour, you might as well be speaking gibberish.

Here’s how to pair a cue or a command (whatever you prefer to call it) with a behaviour:

1️⃣. Get the behaviour. A lure is a reliable way to get started.
2️⃣. Say the word as your dog does the behaviour, so the association starts to build. Repeat this often enough that you think your dog has made the connection, then…
3️⃣. Test it. If your dog gets it right, mark and pay.

There are more stages beyond this, building fluency and proofing the cue so your dog can reliably recognise it separately from other words, but that’s plenty for today.

If you’ve got a gundog breed and you’d like help getting them to speak the same language as you….

Comment “GUNDOG” and I’ll send you access to my free Bark to Basics course.

07/05/2026

Most people think the value is in the food itself.

But for your dog, it’s not just about the tiny cube of chicken. Your dog's not a robot, they value the social bond they form with you. This means that training is about solving the puzzle by working together in partnership.

So you can transform the value of that same cube of chicken tenfold with how you deliver it when your dog gets it right.

Make the reward feel like something special. Then you’re building that partnership, and not acting as a human vending machine, mechanically dishing out treats.

1️⃣ Mark the behaviour.
2️⃣ Then build some anticipation as you reach into your treat pouch.
3️⃣ Use a voice that actually sounds pleased with them - forget who’s watching and just go for it.
4️⃣ They'll remember what they did because of how you made them feel.

Doesn't need to be every single time, just now and again for when your dog really nails it. You'll find it transforms your training.

FOLLOW ME for more training tips like this.

06/05/2026

Your pet gundog needs a job.

You don’t need to have aspirations of taking your pet Labrador, Spaniel, or Pointer out shooting to benefit from gundog training. In fact, the majority of the people who train their dogs with us, don’t either.

Gundog training isn’t about guns or game necessarily. It’s breed-specific training designed for all gundog breeds that provides appropriate outlets for their natural instincts. It gives dogs bred for working the job they were born to do.

Whether your gundog retrieves a tennis ball in the park, or a pheasant from the peg, their brain is wired in exactly the same way.

Gundog training teaches dogs to switch their brain on around distractions, to focus on what matters, to listen to you, to have impulse control when things get exciting, and to make good decisions even when arousal is high. It creates a calm behaviour out in the countryside when instincts kick in.

For your family pet, that means better recall, less pulling, more enjoyable walks, and a dog who listens and thinks instead of reacts.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

They were bred to work, to use their brains and their body together. Gundog training simply channels those instincts into everyday life.

Same dog, same instincts, but a whole lot happier and easier to live with.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

If you’ve got a pet gundog and would like a few ideas to get started, join my free Bark to Basics Course. Type the word GUNDOG in the comments and I’ll send you the link to join.

02/05/2026

Get better heelwork results 🦮

Not every dog is motivated by the same thing, and if you’re struggling with heelwork it might just be that you haven’t found what makes your dog tick yet.

In this reel I’m showing you three different reward mechanisms to teach a reliable heel:

1. Chasing food
2. Chasing a ball as the reward, and
3. Premack principle (also known as ‘Grandma’s Rule’ - eat your greens before you get your pudding).

Try all three and see which one begins to make walking your dog feel less like a battle and more like something you both enjoy.

If you’ve got a gundog breed and would like to start teaching them some of the basics like heelwork, join my free Bark to Basics Course. If you comment the word GUNDOG, I’ll send you the link to join.

30/04/2026

Still getting dragged around by a dog that pulls like a truck?

Here’s how I would teach them to walk nicely by your side without pulling on the lead 👇
1️⃣ Get their attention before you move 👀
2️⃣ Take no more than 3 steps in any direction, whether that’s forwards, backwards, or side to side 🦀
3️⃣ The moment they follow you with a bend in the lead, mark it with a clear “yes” ✔️
4️⃣ Reward, reset, repeat 🔁​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
..then, add more steps as you both get the hang of it.

It’s brilliant for sharpening your handling skills on the move. Learning to observe, capture and reward becomes second nature before you know it 🙌

And if you’d like more training tips like this, type the word GUNDOG in the comments and I’ll send you the link to join my free Bark to Basics training course.

27/04/2026

A good dog trainer doesn’t train your dog.

They train you to train your dog.

That’s why we don’t take the lead and do it for you.

We work through things step by step, so you learn how to understand the dog in front of you and make sensible adjustments according to the environment around, the stage your dog is at, and how they’re responding that day.

Because dog training is a two-way partnership built on a mutual understanding between you and your dog.

The goal is that, one day, you don’t need a trainer stood beside you.

It’s a bit like learning to drive. At first, you need someone beside you, helping you make decisions. But eventually, you need to be able to head out on your own and adjust your driving to the road in front of you. And you don’t learn that from sitting in the passenger seat.

That’s what good dog training should give you: the confidence and understanding to keep making progress at home, even when your trainer isn’t there with you.

Because when you can read the dog in front of you and adjust your training accordingly, everything becomes much easier.

If your training feels like it’s going round in circles, my free Bark to Basics course will help you start making progress with the dog in front of you. Comment the word "GUNDOG" and I'll send you the link to join.

25/04/2026

Hidden gaps in your dog’s training often don’t show up until it matters, when your dog is under real pressure to perform.

For a behaviour to be reliable, it needs to be generalised through a process called proofing.

New places, new distractions, more distance, more temptation.

That’s the bit many people miss. They teach the behaviour but don’t proof it properly before expecting it to work in the real world.

When something tests your dog, those gaps show up fast. But here’s the thing - it’s genuinely useful information, because now you know exactly where to go back and fill them in.

It’s also why structured training matters so much more than a series of random drills. Structure means you can always retrace your steps.

Want to start closing those gaps? My free Bark to Basics course is the place to begin. Comment the word “GUNDOG” and I’ll send you the link to join.

Address

Steeple Morden
Royston
SG80PD

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+441223901340

Website

https://www.acerdogs.com/, https://www.acerdogs.com/, https://www.acerdogs.com/, https://

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