Are you and your gundog ready for your first shoot?
With the 2025 / 2026 British shooting season now upon us, you might suddenly be experiencing FOMO for the first time.
Seeing your gundog friends out beating and picking up, it’s easy to be tempted to get involved with your dog, but are they ready this time around? And more importantly, are you?
If your gundog is working at an intermediate or advanced level, you may have started thinking about whether they are ready to work on their first shoot.
In this blog, we will explore the standards of behaviour your gundog needs for beating and picking up, what you need to know if this will be your first shoot experience, and finally, why all our Handler Courses involve real-life shoot experience days.
Introducing your gundog to game and shot
Before you consider working your retriever, spaniel, or HPR on a commercial shoot, small syndicate, or rough shoot outing, you must have introduced your gundog to game and the sound of the shot.
While some dogs will pick up their first bird and deliver it to hand like they were born for the job, others will be more cautious about picking feather, and some will be overexcited and choose to run around or muck about with it.
Equally, some dogs will not bat an eyelid at the sound of a shotgun, while others will be more cautious.
Unless you want to risk causing irreparable damage and “ruining” your dog, neither of these processes are to be rushed.
The best way to introduce a dog to the sound of a shotgun is when they are young puppies. Helen typically takes hers out with her older dogs, and when the puppy is happy and relaxed in the environment, her husband Chris will fire his gun or a starter pistol in the neighbouring field.
The pup will look to the older dogs for how to react. As they are all happy with the sound, somewhat even excited about it, the puppy learns that this noise is nothing to be concerned about. Over time, we will continue reducing the distance between the puppy and the gun until a shot can be fired while walking alongside them.
If this is your first gundog, you might not have known to introduce them to the sound of shot when they were young. The process for older dogs is the same and we would suggest enlisting help from friends with dogs who are happy around the sound of shot. You should be aware that difficulties can arise if they have previously had a bad experience with sudden, loud noises.
In all instances, you should keep a close eye on your puppy or dog and stop immediately if you see any signs of avoidance, flight or distress.
If you’ve yet to tick off an introduction to game and want to know how to get started or are looking to progress to working with cold game, we suggest you look at our blog “How to introduce your gundog to game” https://gundogtrainersacademy.co.uk/blogs/news/how-to-introduce-your-gundog-to-game
Is my gundog shoot ready?
When it comes to assessing the behaviours your gundog needs for its first shoot, the Kennel Club’s Working Gundog Certificate (WGC) is one of the best references.
The WGC aims to determine whether the handler-dog partnership is ready for the shooting field, with criteria designed to show that both you and your dog will be an asset to a shoot and will not interfere with the well-being of other people, dogs, or livestock.
Control:
To be deemed shoot-ready, a gundog should demonstrate self-control and refrain from barking or whining. Handlers should be able to communicate with their dog without giving excessive or continuous noisy cues.
Obedience:
Gundogs should be capable of walking to heel, off lead, and remaining reasonably close to the handler without running off. They should demonstrate steadiness by remaining at heel, sitting, or dropping to shot when other distractions are present, such as other dogs retrieving, game moving, being flushed, or someone shooting. Reliable recall is a must, and dogs should return to their handlers on cue.
Temperament:
While some of this will be genetic and related to how your dog was socialised as a puppy, to be considered shoot-ready, working gundogs need to be able to mix and work with people and other dogs without showing any undue aggression. Gun-shy dogs would also be given a ‘not ready’ assessment, and it is of paramount importance that dogs are introduced to shot before attending their first shoot day.
Hunting:
Gundogs must be willing and able to hunt effectively in difficult locations, such as thick cover and open ground, while remaining under the handler’s control.
Retrieving:
Before taking them on a shoot, your gundog must be able to pick up dummies from various locations, over obstacles, from land and water and bring them to hand. If your dog has a poor delivery, which could allow the wounded game to escape, you need to work on this first, as the birds’ welfare and ensuring injured birds can be humanely dispatched are always our priority. You will want to make sure your dog has picked feather before too.
Are you shoot ready?
If you fell into the world of field sports by accident - it is very common to start with a pet gundog and soon find yourself fully immersed, wanting to work your dog - then you might be wondering if you have the proper knowledge to go on your first shoot.
In the UK, gamekeeping, land management, and conservation linked to shooting sports enhance our landscape and allow wildlife to thrive. From an economic perspective, according to BASC, over a million people are involved in British shooting, which makes a substantial contribution to the rural economy, valued at £2 billion annually to the UK.
However, it is not without its opponents. So, it is paramount that anyone looking to go on a shoot adheres to high standards, impeccable etiquette, and ethics.
Whatever your role, whether with or without your gundog, in the beating line or on a peg, to protect the future of shooting, you should always aim to act as a good ambassador for the sport. This can be done by learning and following The Code of Good Shooting Practice created and endorsed by BASC, GWCT, CLA, and many more bodies involved in British shooting and conservation. https://www.gwct.org.uk/media/768987/CodeGoodSHootingPractice.pdf
At a minimum, from a gundog handler's point of view, one of the Code’s ‘golden rules’ that you should be familiar with is that ‘game’ is food and must always be treated as such.
We must ensure that “adequate provision” is made to retrieve all shot ‘game’ and “dogs are an essential part of this process”.
As the Code explains, “respect for quarry is paramount.” Therefore, it is crucial that any wounded birds are dispatched swiftly and humanely and that all shot game is treated following the Guide to Good Game Handling so that it is always supplied to the end user in the best condition.
You can download your copy of the Guide here: (https://www.gwct.org.uk/media/550179/Code-of-Good-Game-Handling.pdf)
Building confidence on shoot experience days designed for gundogs
Despite being a haven for friendly folk who love nothing more than working their gundogs, the shooting scene can seem incredibly intimidating to newcomers.
This is further exacerbated for those who are keen to find work for their gundog but are not 100 per cent confident that their dog is ready. Or those who are not entirely sure what the roles of beating and picking up involve or the etiquette and responsibility of properly handling ‘game’.
The best way to cement your hunting, pointing and retriever training before going on an actual shoot day is to practice everything you’ve learned on live and freshly shot game.
If you are based in the UK, then GTA co-founder Helen runs a small shoot, Kemble’s Field in Worcestershire, which offers a range of group shoot experience days, private one-to-one shoot over sessions and shoot preparation camps and workshops.
Having found these to be such valuable learning experiences for both dogs and handlers that are new to shooting, we make sure that our Handler’s Courses include a Group Shoot Experience Day at Helen’s.
The group shoot over days are organised for handlers and their dogs looking to progress to the final stages of their training. All Guns are there for the benefit of the participants, who will also be taught about the etiquette, roles and responsibilities of game shooting in the UK.
Our 2026 Handler’s Courses are open for enrollment.
Whether you’re a passionate gundog owner, a pet dog trainer with gundog-owning clients, or are dreaming of becoming an accredited gundog training instructor, our Handler’s Course will give you everything you need to train a gundog in the basics.
From learning theory and clicker training, to practical gundog skills and real experience on a training shoot, over the four modules Helen and Jules (who have over 60 years' combined experience) will show you how to get the very best out of your gundog.
2026 Handler's Course Worcestershire - held at Kemble's Field, WR10 3LQ:
Module One - 20th to 22nd April 2026
Module Two - 15th to 17th June 2026
Module Three - 10th to 12th August 2026
Module Four - 12th to 14th October 2026
2026 Handler's Course Surrey - modules one to three held in Haslemere, Surrey, with module four held at Kemble's Field, WR10 3LQ:
Module One - 21st to 23rd May 2026 (Surrey)
Module Two - 30th July to 1st August 2026 (Surrey)
Module Three - 27th to 29th September 2026 (Surrey)
Module Four - 26th to 28th November 2026 (Worcestershire)
To find out if this course is going to be a good fit for you and your dogs, please email members@gundogtrainersacademy.co.uk
Or to book your place today, click here for the Handler’s Course in Worcestershire: https://gundogtrainersacademy.co.uk/products/2026-gta-handlers-course-worcestershire
And here for the Handler’s Course in Surrey: https://gundogtrainersacademy.co.uk/products/2026-gta-handlers-course-surrey
For more information about the gundog shoot experiences held at Kemble’s Field, please click here. https://kemblesfield.co.uk/collections/gundog-shoot-experiences