I’m sure you have said, “He just can’t switch off,” especially when you own a Gundog.
You’re not alone! From experience this can be especially difficult with spaniels and young retrievers.

The good news is that calm isn’t just a personality trait that you either get or you don’t. In most dogs, calm is a learned skill. It’s a behaviour with, clear criteria, and lots of repetition in the right setups it can be “trained”.

In gundog training, calm is the foundation for steadiness, clean delivery, good hunting decisions, and safe work around other dogs, people, livestock, water, and gunfire. Let’s break down what “calm” really is, why it’s trainable, and exactly how to teach it in a practical way.

What do we actually mean by “calm”?

When handlers say “calm”, they usually mean a number of things:

• Low arousal body language: loose muscles, soft mouth, slower breathing
• Stillness: choosing to sit/lie/stand quietly rather than pace, whine, bark, bounce
• Impulse control: not snatching, grabbing, jumping, creeping, or self-rewarding

“Calm” isn’t the absence of energy. A great working dog can be high drive and still have an excellent off-switch.

Why calm is trained (not just temperament)

1) Dogs repeat what works

If bouncing, whining, or spinning makes the dummy fly, the lead come off, or the door open, those behaviours get reinforced. Over time, excitement becomes the dog’s default strategy because it has a strong reinforcement history.

2) Calm has to be rewarded, too

Most people accidentally reward arousal (attention ( even the bad kind), movement, noise) and ignore calm (quiet lying down). If calm never “pays”, it doesn’t grow.

3) Arousal affects learning and steadiness

High arousal narrows the dog’s brain: less thinking, more reacting. That’s when you see creeping, vocalising, poor delivery, and “selective hearing”. Training calm helps your dog stay in the zone.

4) “Calm” is made of teachable micro-skills

Settle on a bed. Wait at a doorway. Hold a sit while something exciting happens. Switch from action to stillness. These are all behaviours you can teach, strengthen, and generalise.

The two parts of calm training: “capture” and “cue”

The fastest, kindest approach is usually a blend of:

• Capturing calm: rewarding your dog for choosing calm on their own
• Teaching a settled behaviour: a trained “go to mat/bed and relax” that you can cue anywhere

Think of it as building calm from the inside (choice) and the outside (structure).

Step-by-step training plan

Step 1: Start with a clear “calm picture”

Pick one easy behaviour to define calm at first. For most dogs:

• On a bed/mat
• Chin down (optional, but brilliant for switching off)
• Quiet (no whining/barking)

Make it simple. Calm grows from clarity.

Step 2: Teach “go to bed” (2–5 minutes, once or twice daily)

1. Place the bed down in a quiet room.
2. Stand next to the bed.
3. The moment your dog chooses to step on the bed, calmly feed a treat between their paws.
4. Pause for 1 second and feed again. (For this, I would not mark the behaviour as it can cause arousal)
5. If they step off, don’t tell them off. Just reset back to step 1.

Goal for the first few sessions: your dog learns that being on the bed makes treats appear, and staying there makes more treats happen.

Step 3: Add a “settle” layer (stillness and exhale)

Once your dog happily stays on the bed for 10–20 seconds:

• Feed slower (every 2–5 seconds).
• Feed lower (between paws) to encourage head-down posture.
• Reward any signs of relaxation: hip roll, sigh, blink, chin drop.

Optional superpower: teach a chin rest on the bed. When the chin is down, the brain often follows.

Step 4: Name it (only when it’s predictable)

When your dog is reliably moving to the bed, add your cue:

• Say “Bed” (or “Settle”) as they’re heading to it.
• Reward as normal once they’re on.

Don’t rush cues. Cue too early and you’ll accidentally teach the dog that “settle” predicts confusion. If this does or has happened, start again with a new cue word.

Step 5: Build duration using tiny jumps

Use a simple rule: increase time by seconds, not minutes.

• Work in sets of 5 reps.
• If your dog succeeds 4/5 times, make it slightly harder.
• If they fail 2+ times, make it easier again.

Example progression: 2 seconds → 3 → 5 → 8 → 12 → 20 → 30 → 45 → 60.

Step 6: Generalise calm (new places, new triggers)

Calm at home doesn’t automatically become calm in the garden, the car, the training field, or on a shoot day. You must “re-teach” it in new contexts (but it does get easier).

Progress distractions like this:

1. Different rooms
2. Front garden / driveway
3. Car park (engine off)
4. Training ground at quiet times
5. Near other dogs working (at a distance)
6. Near dummies, launchers, scent, water, game (again, at a distance)

Key: distance is your friend. If calm breaks, you’re too close, too long, or too difficult.

How this looks for spaniels vs retrievers

Spaniels: calm without “switching off” the hunt

Spaniels often run hot — busy feet, big feelings. For them, calm training is about recovery and steadiness, not dullness.

• Use short settle reps between action bursts (30–60 seconds calm, then a quick fun retrieve or hunt-on in a small area).
• Reward calm before you start a session of hunting or throwing a dummy.

Retrievers: calm with “clean lines” and patient waiting

Retrievers often benefit from calm training that supports steadiness and delivery.

• Practise quiet sits while you handle dummies, open gates, or talk to someone.
• Reward still head and soft mouth around dummies.
• Use calm reps before a mark: if the dog is humming, the mark waits.

Practical calm exercises you can do daily

1) “Calm gets the thing” (real-life rewards)

Doors open, leads come off, dummies fly, and food bowls go down only when your dog offers one calm behaviour (sit, stand still, or bed). If excitement happens, the reward pauses. No shouting — just calm, consistent criteria.

2) The “treat drizzle” on bed

For 1–2 minutes, feed tiny treats slowly while your dog stays on the bed. If they pop up, treats stop. When they settle, treats resume. This builds the idea that relaxation controls reinforcement. ( You could use their dinner for this one )

Common mistakes (and what to do instead)

• Mistake: Asking for calm only when the dog is already over-threshold.
  Instead: Train calm when it’s easy, then slowly add challenge.
• Mistake: Increasing duration too quickly.
  Instead: Add seconds, not minutes. Reward often at first.
• Mistake: Rewarding excitement accidentally (talking, touching, throwing the dummy to “shut them up”).
  Instead: Reward quiet stillness. Pause access to rewards when they rev up.
• Mistake: Using harsh corrections for arousal (which can add stress and make it worse).
  Instead: Use management (distance, lead, crate), reinforcement of calm, and calm consequences (reward pauses, reset).
• Mistake: Trying to “exercise it out”.
  Instead: Balance physical exercise with skill training, sniffing, chewing, and proper rest. Fitness can seem to help, but it doesn’t automatically teach an off-switch.

Troubleshooting

“My dog won’t stay on the bed”

• Make it easier: quieter room, shorter reps, higher reward rate.
• Pay for position: feed between paws, not from your hand above their face.
• Use a lead as a safety belt (no yanking) so leaving the bed simply becomes boring.

“He whines or barks when waiting” – Noise is a tough one

• Drop the difficulty: increase distance from the exciting thing.
• Reward silence fast: start by paying 1–2 seconds of quiet.
• Build a pre-work routine: bed → calm → release to work. Predictability reduces vocalising.

“She’s calm at home, wild in the field”

• That’s normal. Calm doesn’t generalise automatically.
• Train calm at the field with no retrieves at first — just stationing and rewards.
• Then add tiny pieces: one calm rep → one simple retrieve → back to calm.

“My dog gets frantic in the car / at the tailgate”

• Teach an open-crate settle at home first, then move it to the car (on the drive).
• Do short “nothing happens” sessions: sit in the car, reward calm, go back inside.
• Don’t always arrive and instantly train — that pattern can create anticipation overload.

When to get help

If your dog’s “can’t settle” comes with panic, destruction, self-injury, or aggression, get support from a qualified behaviour professional (and your vet if needed). Calm training still helps, but anxiety needs a tailored plan.

Conclusion: calm is a skill you can build

Calm isn’t magic, and it isn’t “soft”. It’s a trained behaviour built through reinforcement, routines, and thoughtful progression. Teach your dog a clear settle, reward the small signs of relaxation, and practise in the places your dog finds hardest — starting easy and building up.

If you’d like, share where your dog struggles most (home, car, training ground, line, peg), and we can tweak the plan. You’re also welcome to join the conversation in the Gundog Skool community: https://www.skool.com/gundog-skool-4820.