We learned when we featured the Wetterhoun as a Purebred of Interest that there aren’t many people who actually hunt with their Wetterhoun, and when the breed is used, it’s as a retriever. One Wetterhoun owner told us, “The idea that a Wetterhoun is not a good gun dog is mainly caused by the way the majority of hunters and gundog trainers in the Netherlands train dogs.
The Wetterhoun is not a Labrador or German Shorthair or the like. Most of them have to be taught to retrieve, they don’t do that as automatically as a lot of other breeds. Even to [sic] much pressure will cause the dog to block completely, so the training should be positive and friendly, little steps, aiming for success …..And you have to vary your exercises, because if you ask a Wetterhoun to retrieve a dummy once he will do it.But after two or three times he will refuse. Once at work you will benefit from his nature to finish his work. They do not work at a high speed,but they work accurate. There is but one thing that can make your Wetterhoun unsuitable as a gundog they can be hard mouthed and spoil the game. Since a couple of years we also train Wetterhounen as scent dog and they all do that remarkable well. It’s probably because of their imperturbable character that allows them to focus so well.”
The Wetterhoun is not a Labrador or German Shorthair or the like. Most of them have to be taught to retrieve, they don’t do that as automatically as a lot of other breeds. Even to [sic] much pressure will cause the dog to block completely, so the training should be positive and friendly, little steps, aiming for success …..And you have to vary your exercises, because if you ask a Wetterhoun to retrieve a dummy once he will do it.But after two or three times he will refuse. Once at work you will benefit from his nature to finish his work. They do not work at a high speed,but they work accurate. There is but one thing that can make your Wetterhoun unsuitable as a gundog they can be hard mouthed and spoil the game. Since a couple of years we also train Wetterhounen as scent dog and they all do that remarkable well. It’s probably because of their imperturbable character that allows them to focus so well.”
Wetterhoun photo by Marjoleine Roosendaal