Brains Before Brawn

From our July/August 2025 Issue

Not that long ago it was customary to wait to train a gundog until it was a couple of years old. Maybe the thought was that hunting dogs were like fine wines and that good things took time. Regardless, things have changed, and the focus now is on brains before brawn.

Research turned the wait-to-train school of thought on its ear, as studies showed that a puppy's brain and central nervous system develop exponentially fast. Franck Péron, DVM, PhD, a Royal Canin research scientist, a veterinarian and an ethologist, studies animal behavior with a focus on puppies. "When a puppy is one month old, his brain is small," Péron said. "In fact, it is only about one third of its adult size. The brain grows very quickly, and when a puppy is two months old, his brain has nearly doubled in size. By the time he is six months old, the brain has reached 80 percent of its total size; and that's why training at a young age is so important. The brain's full growth is reached when the puppy is about 12 months of age, which is interesting because that is about the time when the other body systems—including the skeletal, respiratory and cardiovascular—are fully developed."

Part of what makes puppies such fast learners is the rapid growth of their neurons. Neurons are cells that transmit information to other nerve cells. They are at the center of the nervous system and are the basic working part of the brain. There are three parts to neurons: cell bodies, axons and dendrites. The dendrites are important, because they connect the brain to the body. The rate at which they grow is important, just as is the thickness in which they mature. The stronger and healthier they are, the more alert and responsive the puppy will be.

The puppy's body also produces docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). According to Dr. Péron: "DHA is an omega-3 fatty acid commonly found in fish or algal oil. Research has proven that DHA can help with their learning, but their younger bodies can't produce enough. That's one reason many dog food companies add supplemental DHA to both their puppy and adult formulas." Since learning parallels the rapid brain and central nervous system's growth, the first year is the best time to build a strong training foundation. Here's some of what you should work on.

• Socialization for life

Puppy socialization is the process of helping puppies form positive associations with everything they will encounter during their lives. A pup will need to know where it will eat, drink, relieve itself and sleep. That socialization will include loading up in a kennel and riding in a truck or ATV. Since puppies are dependent on their owners, set up routines that develop their confidence. Feed the pup at the same time each day, let it relieve itself after eating, train it at the same hour of the day, and put it up for the night at the same time and in the same place. Pups adjust quickly to schedules and look forward to what's next, be it food, play or sleep.

• Socialization for where they'll work and play

Expand the puppy's mental stimulation by introducing it to water, training fields, woods and bird coverts. Start slowly, and increase as the pup shows confidence and mastery. Walk puppies through seeps, and when they are used to the muddy water, introduce them to a slow-moving stream or pond. Let them figure out how to navigate their way in, around or across. During this time of exposure, they can do no wrong, so praise, encourage and pat them regularly.

• Set expectations

Visit your vet, and you'll see some dogs that don't want to be there. Still, your pup will need regular vet visits along with its ears cleaned, eyes inspected, nails clipped, coat brushed, body washed and so on. Run through each of these necessary events while the pup is young, and it will be a calm, willing adult.

• Yardwork and commands

Well-mannered dogs come from well-taught pups, so get started with yardwork. Define what you expect from your dog, and teach it those disciplines. There are mandatory and optional commands. Mandatory commands include recall ("Come" or "Here"), steadiness ("Whoa" for pointing dogs and "Sit" or "Hup" for retrieving and flushing breeds), "Heel" and "Kennel." Optional commands are those that aren't essential for all handlers. An example is a handler who is fine with a pup pointing dead instead of retrieving to hand ("Fetch"). It's your show, so think about the goals of your training platform and work with your pup accordingly.

• The bird is the word

Introduce a pup to birds when it's about 4 months old. Hold pigeons by the legs above the pup's head so it can see the wings flap. Some puppies jump up to get the bird, while others run away. After the bird has flapped its wings for a while, toss it and let it fly away. Timid pups will come around quickly if you fly three or four pigeons per session. Once the pup is obviously excited, you can plant a few birds in a field for the pup to run up: but make sure that birds like quail are flight conditioned so that the pup can't catch them.

• Discipline-specific activities

When the pup is about six months old, it's time to work on formal training. Introduce it to place boards, let it walk up on training tables, and stack it on a barrel or bench. Ask the pup to "Whoa" and hold its position for five to 10 seconds. Stack and style the pup while stroking it all over. Rub the pup's back, belly and legs, and make it feel good about standing tall. After a short time have the pup follow you around while you walk. Praise the pup and make sure it has a positive experience.

• Distractions

Get puppies used to loud noises and commotion. Expose the pup to construction-site noises, beeping horns or just banging pots and pans. Praise and pet the pup when it hears lawn mowers, leaf blowers or the like. The more noises and commotion it hears when it's young, the more focused it will be when it's older.

• Short and focused sessions

These early sessions are about teaching a pup new skills, and the sessions should be short and focused. It's also important to always end on a positive note, as this sets up confidence for the next session.

It takes up to a year—sometimes a bit longer, depending on the breed— for a pup to achieve physical maturity. Hold off on roading, hard running and conditioning until after the pup's bones have achieved their full length and density, its growth plates are closed, and its other body systems are developed. As Vince Lombardi said, "Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is." That attitude applies as much to gundog puppies as it does to gridiron ballers.