The Pointer is a very smart dog and a quick learner. The downside to this is they are just as quick to pick up bad habits as they are the good. They need to be well socialised from a young age and their training has to begin early, bearing in mind these sensitive dogs do not like being dominated. Their training has to be very consistent and always fair so that a dog understands what their owner expects of them. Pointers are never happier than when they are given something to do which is why they are so amenable to learning new things.
The key to successfully training a Pointer is to make their training as interesting as possible and to avoid too much repetition. It's also a good idea to keep training sessions that much shorter which helps keep a dog more focussed on what is being asked of them. Being so sensitive, they do not respond well to any sort of harsh correction or heavier handed training methods. They do answer very well to positive reinforcement and high value food rewards which always brings the best out of these intelligent and eager to please dogs.
