Learn To Train Gundogs
Learn how fulltime professional dog trainers train all manner of breeds of gundog. The ‘hows’, the ‘whys’ and the ‘whens’.
Learn how dogs learn and how to troubleshoot training issues when things do not go to plan.
Covering all aspect of gundog training from equipment, getting started with age appropriate exercises to prepare a young pup, through basic obedience and training good manners, example training exercise progressions, how to introduce shot and game (if desired), along with advice on training for fun, scurries, competition, and working.
Being an instructor means working with people and dogs. Improve your communication skills, understand how people learn and the various ways to get your message across. Learn how to create action plans to achieve your training goals, stay motivated and motivate your clients and their dogs.
You’ll learn various ways to present your ideas, using instructional videos and handouts, creating your own video footage of your training and of you training others. You’ll even be using AI to hep build your observational and communication skills!
The programme runs from 17th October until end of March, (with a break over Christmas and New Year) and concludes with a 2 day practical weekend including an assessment on 11th and 12th April 2026
Course includes 9 lessons and 9 live sessions, concluding with an amazing 2 day practical weekend.
Weekly sessions will alternate between, work assignments delivered online and a live online session the following week.
Student instructors will watch tutorial video/s and and learn from handouts. Each lesson will include homework to study, your homework will include coaching skills covering exercises to improve observational and communication skills, trouble shooting, and exercise planning. You’ll also be presenting videos of you training your dog and videos of you training someone else.
During the live sessions student instructors will receive feedback on their homework and have an opportunity to ask questions on the subjects covered
The final weekend of the course is a 2 day practical weekend with your dog, hosted by Family Dog Services in Kent. Here you’ll be demonstrating the skills that you have learnt through exercises with your own dog and teaching stooge students (you will need to arrange your own accommodation or travel).
This course is suitable for anyone with an interest in training gundogs, either for yourself, or as a new skill in teaching others.
You should have your own dog or access to a dog to use throughout the course, and someone else that can play the part of your student (dogs and students should have no aggression issues)
You will also require a camera on your phone and access to a laptop for accessing the online lessons and live sessions
In this lesson you will be covering age appropriate training, basic learning theory, equipment and basic foundational obedience exercises including sit, stay, recall and present. You will also begin with an informal or 'puppy' retrieve (a game of fetch).
For your homework you will need a camera or phone camera to take video footage. You can get someone else to hold the camera, place it somewhere close by or you may prefer to purchase a cheap tripod to use for the duration of the course.
You will also need a dog to train, and a willing volunteer to be your student along with their dog (this could be your dog if you cannot find a willing participant).
In this lesson you will be covering dog and handler body language, whistle commands, steadiness and self-control, setting your dog for a retrieve and introducing marked retrieves.
You will also be testing your observation and communication skills.
For your homework you will need a camera or phone camera to take video footage. You can get someone else to hold the camera, place it somewhere close by. For the retrieving elements you can use your dogs favourite toy, a ball, or a training dummy.
You will also need a dog to train, and a willing volunteer to be your student along with their dog (this could be your dog if you cannot find a willing participant).
You will also need access to a web browser and an online AI image generator (we have provided a link in the lesson).
In this lesson you will be covering hunting, stop, memory retrieve, and steadiness.
You will also be learning about the different ways that people learn so that you can adapt your style of teaching to help them understand or provide more than way to get a message across
In this lesson you will be covering jump retrieves and crossing natural barriers, progressing your stop whistle, your distance of memory retrieves and steadiness in your marked retrieves.
In this lesson you will be covering directional control (left and right), blind retrieves, progressing your stop whistle, progressing memory retrieves with cover and undulating ground and progressing your dog’s steadiness
In this lesson you will be covering direction (back) and the turn whistle. Progressing your blind retrieves, your stop whistle and steadiness
In this lesson you will be covering retrieving from water and multi-dummy retrieves. Hunting up, further steadiness exercises and stop.
In this lesson you will be covering the use of shot and training a dog to be steady to a flush.
In this lesson you will be looking at how and when to introduce game, the trained dog's activities on a shoot, and working with blinds
Here's what our students thought of the previous courses
"It was so good that l didn’t want it to conclude 😒 Definitely would recommend it !"
"Lots of information covering training that you may not have had to think about with your own dog but very insightful. Videos very useful for easy guidance and to refer back to. LOVED IT ❤️"
"Absolutely loved the course and the weekend"
"Loved the course. Learnt a lot. Very informative, logical progression through exercises. Logical progression from one lesson to another. Highly recommended"
"Loved the course and thought you did an excellent job in delivering the content. I particularly liked the trouble shooting exercises. Thank you both for a great course"
"The course was incredible and learned so much throughout. Definitely would recommend to others and looking forward to learning more. Thank you Claire and John, what an amazing 6 months"
"It’s probably one of the best things I’ve ever done. I really don’t think there is anything thing other than pure positivity to comment on. Just brilliant, I loved every moment"
"The course videos were very extensive and really added to understanding. I feel very privileged to have been able to increase my knowledge from the pair of you. You are so invested in your vocation and I am very aware that I will never reach your levels of expertise but pleased to have a grounding to feel more confident as I approach my dogs in the future"