A Retriever masters 6 basic commands for it to be the hunting sidekick you need.
Retrieve to hand, a gun dog is trained to wait for the command to give the fowl to the hunter (dropped at foot or at hand).
Mark command, this is given before any shot is done. This signals the dog to be on the look out for the game you shoot over head. Without the “Mark!” command, your gun dog will be looking up at you and not at the fowl you just shot. If this ever happens, never blame the dog, it was waiting for your signal you know….

Hand Signals, when game is down in the water, your Retriever needs to be guided to where to get the fowl. Hunting is a lonely sport at times, if you talk to your gun dog don't expect for him to understand beyond the hand signals. Again it is pointless to blame the dog for not understanding your language- Retrievers are intelligent but not multi-lingual.

 Shake, a pet dogs first impulse when drenched in water is to shake the water off, in a hunt a gun dog waits for the signal to do so. Shaking on the boat can cause an accident and shaking without retrieve to hand command will get you a damaged fowl no matter how soft you claim your pets mouth is. The shaking will let him bear down on his bite to keep the fowl in place…

Just like dogs, a Retriever's secondary role is to flush game. Quarter train your dogs to work in a grid pattern to find upland game fowl. The gun dog stays within range so it doesn't flush out of shooting distance.

The Steady command is for your Retriever to sit when a game bird flies and when a gun is fired. The gun dog usually marks where the shot bird drops. A good Retriever is ready  and steady on wing and shot.

Keep in mind even from a line of Retriever breed, each dog is unique in character, talent and potential. There are gun dogs that exceed anyones expectations while others are just like your own kin, they may not be perfect but they do it with heart.