Swim-By~A One to Two Week Process of How to Perform Swim-By for Retrievers~The Retriever Nation

Printable Instructions: rb.gy/ysipqe
Why is it called swim-by, and what is it for? Swim-by gets its name from the process of getting a retriever to swim by you down a channel with a bumper in its mouth. Swim-by not only teaches the retriever to be comfortable while handling IN the water but also teaches handling TO the water and STAYING in the water while going straight. Teaching swim by is the basis for teaching a dog not to cheat. This process is broken into daily 10 to 15-minute sessions progressing sequentially from one step to the next. Whether you're new to the game or an experienced handler, this is a thorough explanation of how to perform swim-by in one to two weeks.
#theretrievernation
#swim-by
#swimby

[@Tyler-dt8cg]

Like how she hit the water wide open

[@theconstantsearch]

Love your channel!!

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Thanks for your support Marni!

[@cren7605]

Great video!! Thanks for the lesson. Huge help.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Thanks for watching and thank you for your support!

[@Bearhunt002]

Excellent content and very basic. Thanks

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Glad you enjoyed it, thank you for watching!

[@DadDare]

Fantastic! Thank you so much. I took notes the whole time.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching!

[@flycreekkennels9559]

Love your enthusiasm for her success! Keep it up❤

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Thanks for watching! There's nothing wrong wrong with showing enthusiasm on a job well done for the dogs we love, right? 😁

[@RetrieverTrainingAlone]

Excellent! 4:15 One key concept to teach during swim-by is treading water. A dog that can tread water and not drift after the whistle stop and wait for the handler's next cast is easier to control on water blinds. I try to increase the duration of treading water as the dog improves and succeeds with each swim-by session.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Thanks for the comment Missy and thank you for watching!

[@chengsterboi07]

Great advice but it's hard if you dnt have access to a pond for swimby like that.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Very true! At the time that we produced this video, I had belonged to four different retriever clubs. This particular pond was about a 50-minute drive for me one way! It definitely takes a commitment!

[@Acal51]

Wish I had a pond like that.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

We wish we had a pond like this, too! It is located at Old Oaks Retriever's in Blooming Prairie. Having access to ponds like this is a benefit of belonging to a club. There are several clubs throughout the state. Lake Country Retriever Club may be very close to you. Some great friendships can be made in the dog club world. Enjoy your new puppy!

[@Acal51]

@@TheRetrieverNation I’m only 30 mins from blooming prairie. Use to have access to ponds like these when I worked at Dokken’s Oak Ridge kennels.

[@mattnelson7554]

Great video! I’m about to teach Swim By after doing Run By and my dog tends to cheat when it comes to water. When you start the overs at the 6 min mark, what would you do if she cheated and ran around on land to you?

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Great question! Make sure you have that bumper right at the waters edge and start recalling as they grab ahold of it. You want them thinking of returning as they pick up the bumper. Also it helps if the swimby pond isn't too narrow. Thanks for watching and good luck!

[@stevenbender4896]

I'm going to start this after I work my two through more double T. Do you have a video that teaches a dog how not to cheat going into or out of the water? Like how they might take the bank instead of coming back through the water? Basically having the dogs for duck hunting but want to challenge ourselves in hunt tests. TIA!

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Thanks for the question! That is the "million dollar" question at that! A dogs natural tendency is to "cheat" or "square" the shore, take the easiest path. Even some FC/AFC dogs will do just that in certain situations! The key is SWIM-BY! Get them comfortable handling in and around water, then when they want to cheat, handle them! After swim-by, you can work on cheaty or channel marks and teach them the right way to enter or exit with handling and repetition. You should see a huge improvement! Also, always keep an eye on them! Be ready to catch them before they commit the crime! I hope this helps and thanks for watching!

[@stoney1955]

Thank you Kevin for uploading this video. I’m interested in how you go about swim bye it’s a little different from what I do and I’m surprise that you don’t teach the OverLine using recalls before you begin casting little that you have in. The video is fantastic tremendous, driving, desire and a very happy little dog u have obviously done a great job. I am also interested that you cast in a straight line to the back rather than marginally away from the bank which can be achieved by putting out white pegs. I’ll be very keen to get your opinion on that

[@jackbrustkern7040]

Thanks for this video. My dog was with a pro trainer and they said my dog kept cheating during the swim by training, which went on for months and was finally washed out of their training program and many $$$ out of my checking account. You train this in 2 weeks. I’m now questioning the pro trainer’s skill I hired. Again thanks for showing me how this training should be done. My question would be what do you do with a soft dog, but good drive that does cheat during swim by training? Thanks in advance.

[@TheRetrieverNation]

A lot of dogs these days are soft and there's nothing wrong with that! Positive reinforcement, your diligence in getting through the SB program in a timely manner and an environment that doesn't encourage cheating is a strong place to start. If the dog knows better, handling comes into play. I try to avoid too much pressure during this because you always want to maintain a positive attitude around water. I hope this helps and thanks for watching!

[@jameswinnett4012]

Great video! Question, since we've not begun swim by, what correction or simplification would you have used if the dog chose the shore line instead of the water on return? Our swim by will begin next spring, as we are still in 3 hand cast and not to T drill. My pup is 7 months now. Thank you!

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Great question! Be sure that you don't skip any steps that we went over. If you follow the program and get into any "cheaty" situations, you should be able to handle. Don't correct. You want a positive attitude around the water at this stage! Thanks for watching!

[@steezli]

What's the purpose of starting with the dog's name and then switch to saying back?

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Good question! When you identify the pile by throwing a bumper, you are actually throwing a mark which means you then send by name. Each retrieve after that, no bumper is thrown so you are sending for a blind(even though the dog knows more bumpers are in the pile). This helps teach your young dog know that when you send on "back" even though they didn't see a bird go down, they have to go. I hopes this clears things up and thanks for watching!

[@steezli]

2 questions Why do some trainers think that swimby is done in a month? How many sessions do you think I can fit in a day? The pond is an hour from my house so I figured I could possibly do 2 sessions, maybe 15 minutes max per session and break for 45 minutes

[@TheRetrieverNation]

You can fit a lot into a 15-20 minute session. I wouldn't do any more than that in one day. The pressure from these sessions could be more than you bargain for if things go south. I typically drive about an hour for my swimby pond and commit myself to driving it every day for a couple of weeks. The dividends will more than pay for itself. This isn't a process that you want to rush through. I have had dogs take 3 weeks, and some fly through in a week. Every individual can vary. Thanks for the comment, and thank you for watching.

[@steezli]

@@TheRetrieverNation appreciate the thoughtful response!

[@RetrieverTrainingAlone]

With advanced retrievers, I routinely put the dog into swim by-mode in training to maintain the swim-by response: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d4KWmXt_obikfMk

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Excellent point Missy! Its good to give them a reminder once in a while especially if their trained responses diminish around water. I usually do some sort of swim-by drill or tune-up every spring after our long winter! Thanks for the comment!

[@blakegreene6641]

10-15 minutes a day is there a minimum number of times a day I should be training my dog?

[@TheRetrieverNation]

Sometimes we train for 15 minutes, other times 3 hours, it just depends on the day and what we are trying to accomplish. For swimby, I dedicate 15 minutes per day for about 2 solid weeks. Thanks for watching!