While there are many different ways to go about training hunting retrievers, my training method is focused on bringing out the natural abilities in my pups and applying the controls needed to produce a useful hunting companion. I generally do not use popular retriever training programs that utilize avoidance training techniques such as Force Fetch and extreme pressure with an e-collar. I prefer to shape the behavior of the young pup with food, praise and repetition and use firmness when the adolescent pup decides to blow me off. If necessary, I will use an e-collar to reinforce basic training concepts like Recall or Sit to the Whistle and find it very useful when training high drive dogs in suburban parks bursting with rabbits and deer. Once my dogs have finished advanced training and I'm confident that they can resist the temptation to chase wildlife, they're gradually transitioned off the e-collar and are usually quite capable of hunting without it.