Flat coated Retriever: Nutrition, character, training and much more about the Flat-coated Retriever

By Roland Berger

This book contains the most important basics about the Flat Coated Retriever breed. This unique breed belongs to the oldest hunting dog breeds at all and is, especially for active people, a great companion. However, other retriever fans will also find exciting information about classic retriever training, which is a great way for humans and dogs to spend time together and learn.

The contents of the book include:
- Breed characteristics
- Classic retriever work
- The right diet
- The care of the dog
- Dog training
- Possible problems and behavioral errors
- Dog games

It is worthwhile to take a look at the explanations of common communication errors and misunderstandings between humans and dogs, because this will allow you to bring even more harmony into living together. Not only owners of retrievers can learn something with this book, but every person who keeps a dog or is thinking about a dog can also learn how to solve common communication mistakes and misunderstandings between humans and dogs.

The book also includes over 15 illustrations. Use the knowledge from the book to get a first introduction about the Flat Coated Retriever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: XinXii
• Release date: Apr 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9783986469023

Book preview

Introductory

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Welcome to the world of the Flat Coated Retriever. In this book you will learn the most important basics about this special breed. Hardly anyone knows that the Flat Coated Retriever is one of the oldest hunting dog breeds and what unique abilities he has.

But not only people who are interested in the Flat Coated Retriever should take a look at this book. Other retriever breeds, such as the Golden Retriever, are very popular family dogs and already live in many households. Many dog owners are unaware of the special needs that all retriever breeds have in common. You can learn more about this in the chapter on classic retriever training. Many other employment opportunities and training tips, including other breeds, are also included in this book.

All dog owners want a harmonious and loving life together with their dog. To achieve this goal, it is worthwhile to take a look at the explanations of communication between humans and dogs and typical misunderstandings in the process. Also how to deal with particularly common misunderstandings is a relevant topic for every dog owner.

So as you can see, this book is exciting for those who want to learn more about the Flat Coated Retriever or Retrievers in general, as well as for any other dog owner who has an interest in furthering their education.

The Flat Coated Retriever

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lat Coated Retrievers are very unusual dogs, which are rarely talked about. In the first chapter the Flat Coated Retriever will be introduced with it. What kind of feeding and coat care does he need? How strong is the hunting behavior? For which persons is the adoption of a Flat Coated Retriever best suited and who should rather do without it?

So this chapter is first about the dog and its nature itself.

Appearance - breed characteristics

To begin with, a few formal details so that you can basically classify the breed: The Flat Coated Retriever breed is a medium sized hunting dog breed that belongs to Group 8, Section 1 of the FCI. It is listed there under the standard number 121. Group 8 includes retrieving dogs, retrieving dogs, and water dogs. Section 1 designates retrieving dogs with working test.  Males are usually between 59 and 61.5 cm tall and weigh 27 to 36 kg, bitches reach a height between 56.5 and 59 cm and have a weight of 25 to 32 kg. As the name suggests, Flat Coated Retrievers have a smooth coat that shows some luster. The legs and tail are feathered, which means that the coat is longer there than on the rest of the body. The hair texture is dense and of fine to medium texture, which is especially relevant for coat grooming. The color of the coat is either black or liver brown. In fact, Flat Coated Retrievers may also carry a genetic predisposition for yellow coat. However, this does not conform to the prescribed breed standard.  Flat Coated Retrievers are muscular, because they are supposed to have a certain performance for hunting, but nevertheless they look elegant and agile because of the smooth coat and the narrow head shape. Of course, the well-angled stifles and hocks also contribute to this, making this dog an enduring and very agile runner. The Flat Coated Retriever is very robust and well suited for beginners. It is not prone to certain diseases, and it does not tend to get sick in other ways either. Even people who do not have too much experience with dogs can have a nice life together with a Flat Coated Retriever. However, you must be aware that this hunting dog is very intelligent and without proper employment can not lead a happy dog life. Physically, this breed is also very active. So, you should enjoy exercise and be willing to spend a lot of time with your dog. As a rule, Flat Coated Retrievers get along well with other pets, even cats.

Flat Coated Retrievers are very lively and bright dogs. As a rule, they approach all people openly, because they have a high sociability. For this reason, among others, they are good family dogs. Another reason is their pronounced play instinct, which probably also has to do with their genetic disposition as a hunting dog. However, one should be able to cope with his energy level and be able to exercise him, otherwise problems can arise in living together. Especially if the members of a family or even a single person is enthusiastic about sports anyway, they will have a lot of fun with a Flat Coated Retriever. With him you can do pretty much any activity that you can do with dogs, be it agility, dog sports or a hike.

History of the Flat Coated Retriever

The Flat Coated Retriever is one of the oldest retriever breeds ever. Its history begins in the 19th century in England. There they crossed Wavy Coated Retrievers, a retriver breed which, as the name suggests, has a wavy coat, with Setters and Collies. The Wavy Coated Retriever, also called Saint John's Dog, is the forefather of all retriever breeds and was crossed with many other breeds at that time. This gave rise to the retriever breeds we know today. The Saint John's Dog's enthusiasm for water and swimming can still be seen in many retrievers today. The Saint John's Dog was introduced to England by sailors in the mid-18th century. 

Due to its already described elegant appearance, the Flat Coated Retriever was very popular with the English nobility from the beginning. But also his abilities as a working dog were appreciated. So it was clear early on that the goals of breeding had to be two-pronged. On the one hand, one wanted to further optimize the suitability as a working dog, of course, because the Flat Coated Retriever stood out early on because of its performance. At the same time, owners who did not use their dog for hunting, or at least not only, attached great importance to its appearance.

However, during World War II and in the post-war period, breeding of the Flat Coated Retriever declined sharply. Instead, Labradors and Golden Retrievers gained increasing popularity. Fortunately, however, a few breeders continued to successfully advocate for the preservation of the breed. In the 1980s, breeding of the Flat Coated Retriever finally began in Germany, where it has been consistent ever since.

Born hunting dogs

To call the Flat Coated Retriever a born hunting dog is quite correct. After all, as you have learned in the brief description of its history, it was bred for this very purpose. He is a good companion especially for hunters who go hunting alone, but the Flat Coated Retriever is also excellent as a rescue dog. He owes this to his good sense of smell, his strong nerves and his high adaptability to different types of terrain. But also simply as a family dog he makes a good figure, because he is very social and fits well into the family life.

The breeding of hunting dogs has a long tradition in the history of mankind and has already produced a variety of breeds. The individual breeds were sometimes bred for very specific tasks. Even if a dog lives as a pure family dog, certain predispositions are still in his genes. It is the responsibility of every dog owner to know the genetic predispositions of the dog and to meet its needs if necessary.

Running dogs have a particularly fine sense of smell. When hunting together with a hunter, they communicate with their owner by barking. This tendency to use the voice can be considered annoying in everyday family life, because in general you would rather the dog did not bark too much. Running dogs include beagles and bloodhounds.

Pointing dogs bear their name because of the way they communicate with the hunter. They raise a front paw when they have located a prey animal, thus drawing the hunter's attention to it. This so-called pointing is shown by many dogs, even dogs that do not belong to the hunting dogs, but in pointing dogs this behavior has been specifically reinforced. To the pointing dogs belong dog breeds like the Settler, the Münsterländer or the Pointer.

Among other things, retrieving dogs have the task of tracking down prey that has been successfully shot by the hunter and bringing it to him. Of course, the prey must be small enough for the dog to carry it in its mouth. Typically, they are used to hunt waterfowl and hares, for example. This subspecies of hunting dogs is particularly interesting for this book, because the Flat Coated Retriever is assigned to this species. Also included are other retrievers, Labradors, and some poodles.

Stöberhunde are specialized in finding and following the tracks of game. They have a very good nose and are very ambitious during the search for tracks. These include, for example, quail and spaniel.

Figure 1: The Flat Coated Retriever

Classic retriever work

Retrievers are hunting dogs that require special attention and occupation. Even the breed name is derived from the English word to retrieve, which means to bring back or also to retrieve. They were primarily used in the hunting of birds, especially waterfowl - hence the affinity many retrievers have for water. The retriever's main job was to retrieve game killed by the hunter. The naturally uncomplicated nature, coupled with the excellent endurance and strong will to work, make him a more than suitable assistant in the hunt.

In order to exercise a retriever, it is important to provide a variety of challenges, because just because you decide to keep your dog as a family dog and not take him hunting together, it does not make his natural dispositions disappear. Three walks a day is not enough to do a retriever justice. Rather, he wants to live out his innate talents and must be allowed to do so in order to live a contented life. The needs of the retriever have given rise to, among other things, what is known as classical retriever work. The three sub-areas of classical retriever work address different skill areas.

Retrieval

Retrieving is literally in the genes of the retriever. Retriever can be translated as retriever and the name says it all. Most retriever breeds take great pleasure in games where they are allowed to retrieve.

Hunting behavior

The natural hunting behavior of dogs is composed of eight individual steps. Of course, this is only a theoretical scheme. It can always happen that the hunting behavior of an individual dog differs in parts of it. So it can be for example that a dog omits the one or other part, above all the steps, with which it becomes really serious and the loot is killed. Dogs are