Gun Dog Forum

AG74

He's not a puppy "sometimes". He is a puppy period! You know what is going to happen so don't play the game his way. You want to see him retrieve a bird? Put a check cord on him and throw a dead one for him, where's he gonna go? If you keep shooting birds for him just to see if he's gonna do it thi...

AG74

Hmm, having successfully trained your dog to heel, you are way ahead of me, but the way I made progress teaching my dog NOT to pull was to start out and as soon as he started to pull, just stop, turn around with your back to him, and wait. After a few moments, I'd say his name and start in the other...

AG74

I've made that trip from Pendleton, OR, up thru Spokane all the way back to SW MN (just past Watertown SoDak) a couple times in winter, I think you'll be fine in mid-NOV, unless there is a freak storm that could hit, you never know. I grew up in those parts and we've had 2' snow on Halloween before,...

AG74

I'm not a real trainer, but have been where you are, very recently. My 13 m.o. GWP is very similar on the possessiveness thing. Don't worry about it too much, he is just being a puppy, BUT it will develop into a bad habit if you don't try to correct it a little. My dog would retrieve bumpers, balls,...

AG74

The answer is four. As in, four years old. You have a late maturing dog. I would try to challenge him, wear him out physically running (this is where welding cables are handy) and go back to leash obedience with food rewards separate and apart from any yard or field work. Bond with him. Sounds like...

AG74

If there is any doubt in your mind that he may catch a bird, I would not take him. Trust me, I just had this experience. I took my dog to a preserve this summer for a training session, kept him on the CC, but he did still manage to catch one of five birds (4 of 5 were crappy fliers). OK. Then after ...

AG74

The state doesn't release any birds, and to my knowledge never has. As Windswept points out, the preserves release birds, but any you find on public ground are wild. Our counts are off significantly after two rough winters and the loss of a lot of CRP, but there will still be plenty of wild birds t...

AG74

I'm pretty certain South Dakota does A LOT of releasing of pheasants each year, which helps ensure there will be birds around during the season. I'm not saying it will be a banner year or anything, but SoDak has it figured out: pheasant hunters are one of their main sources of tourism and income. Th...

AG74

I'm a bit of a novice at chukar hunting with only one season under my belt, but in the rolling country of eastern Oregon, I've found them in canyons and side canyons mostly, although I've found some down near farmland also, as long as there are canyons and big country nearby. I think the biggest fac...

AG74

Scott Linden wrote:Why Richland? If you're so inclined, come to my favorite Oregon location. Might be closer for ya anyway.

Scott, what IS your favorite Oregon location? Not looking for any secret spots, or honey-holes, just curious. There must be a reason its your favorite location, right??

Thanks,
Al
Echo, Or

AG74

I always have the ecollar on my dog, even if we're on a walk and I don't even turn it on. He is wearing it and is used to wearing it whenever we leave the house. Part of his uniform - then he doesn't get "collar wise".

AG74

If you have him off lead or CC, then the only way to reinforce commands is with ecollar. BUT, if he is retreiving, and you correct him, he will likely associate it with whatever is in his mouth at the same time, and drop it, and have a negative association with retreiving. I would get all your obedi...

AG74

Thanks guys, great advice - he's been doing a lot better with stopping on command. I use the whistle as the pre-cue, then snub the lead, and command whoa. He will now stop on the whistle, sometimes, so there is progress. Once stopped, he is money - will stand for a long time while I walk around in f...

AG74

Thanks for the congrats! I hadn't thought too much about UT - I'll probably see how this hunting season goes and go from there. I don;t really hunt waterfowl, so some of the UT events would be a bit out of my realm and maybe more than I want to teach the dog. But who knows, maybe I'll find out he is...

AG74

Thanks 4dabirds and Gonehuntin for the great input (as always). Got some pigeons (finally) and I had my neighbor release three fly away pigeons while I had the dog at WHOA in the field. He did pretty good on those, so we planted one, walked him into the scent cone and my neighbor kicked it up after ...

AG74

4dabirds, trying to PM you, message won't leave the outbox. Thanks for the opinion. Here is the plan: 1. Fly away birds till dog steady on CC. 2. Throw dead bird and shoot till dog steady w CC. 3. Plant multiples, launch when dog pointing. Keep steady w CC. 4. Kill a bird when dog STEADY. No retriev...

AG74

I have a high energy GWP that gets destructive if he doesnt get enough exercise. I physically couldn't run him around enough myself to get it done. So my wife and I take him to the local football field, go to opposite ends and call him back and forth (HERE). He gets a treat when he does it perfectly...

AG74

I'm in your shoes. I also have a yearling that is steady to wing and shot with pigeons. Green broke I guess. The next step would be getting some Chuks or Quail and planting them or using in the remote launchers but I can't find decent flyers locally. Forest grouse season starts Thurs and I have yet...

AG74

My biggest problem right now is getting pigeons for fly-away training, etc. I don't have a reliable source, so that is what is complicating things. I should have just bought a live pigeon trap back in June, but had a couple acquaintances who said they could get pigeons for me. Well... now its the en...

AG74

My GWP is now 12 mo, has great prey drive, desire, etc. Finds birds well and holds a good point. He will chase a flushed bird, or retrieve a shot bird after the shot. Just received a 108 NA Prize I this week. Should I start to get him steady to wing and shot now, or just hunt this year and work on s...

AG74

Just gotta brag on my GWP, Blaze, a little. He earned a 108 NA Prize I at the Treasure Valley NAVHDA test yesterday! I couldn't be prouder. Mostly went to the test with little to no expectation and lots of curiosity on how it would go. Thanks again to the gang at Treasure Valley NAVHDA in Caldwell, ...

AG74

Knine, thanks for the link. Interesting article. I think I'll just stick with the aversion training and skip the vax. Thanks again

AG74

Does anyone have an opinion of rattlesnake vaccine? That is, is it worth getti g? Are there any risks or negative side effects? I'm taking my dog for live rattlesnake aversion training soon with the NAVHDA chapter. Thanks
Al

AG74

OK, I did a bunch of reading on Bloating and Stomach Torsion, and am now PARANOID about my dog getting either one of these, even though I exercise him before feeding in the AM, and now the same in PM. I feed Diamond Puppy formula, since my dog is just now 12 months old. When this is gone, I will swi...

AG74

RayG, Thanks for your concise reply - makes sense to me. I've had some trouble with the obedience side of things. I don't want to be too heavy handed and ruin the dog's style, on the other hand, being a candy-a$$ is an invitation for a dog to walk over its handler. any tips on striking that middle g...

AG74

RayG, great post. Could you please expound for me the "value" in having a dog heel perfectly? I don't intend to trial, don't waterfowl hunt. My dog heels "okay" but definitely not perfect, and beyond the obedience value gained, I am unsure if I really care if he heels perfectly. He heels well enough...

AG74

My GWP is about the same age as your GSP and all he wanted to do was pull on the lead. So, everytime he pulled the lead tight, I just stopped, turned around and waited a few seconds. Then I would just say his name and walk the other direction - until he pulled the lead tight in that direction. Repea...

AG74

I had a very similar situation. Got a Sportdog 6, seemed to do the trick. 8 hr limit on that one also, vibration activated. We did some of the separation training, and the dog quickly learned that we'd be back. He has learned that when we drive away in the AM, we won't be back till PM and barking is...

AG74

I hope it all works out for you. Keep your head about you and you and your pup will be fine. you may just try keeping a short cord on the pup when in the field and keep your routine. When the pup goes to parade, gently pull her in with a here command. In time the pup will get it. Letting the pup ho...

AG74

What is the appropriate amount of time after feeding that a hunting dog should exercise? Since it has been hot this summer, I've been feeding my dog at 5 pm, then waiting until 8 pm to exercise him. Is that enough time? He has not displayed any negative effect that I can tell, but just wanted to get...

AG74

Al, have you had him on some birds? Hi Brenda - yes, he was started on pigeons by the trainer and I've had him on pigeons twice and chukar once since I've had him. He finds the birds and holds a staunch point, so I think he'll be okay in the field portion of the test. Unless he gets a real wild haa...

AG74

Tyler, Thanks for the reply and tips. The only type of "tracking" I've done with Blaze was a week or two after I had him, I took a pheasant wing (not a fresh one, but one from the store) and drug it on the dry lawn with a fishing pole and stashed it in some bushes. Then let him out near my start poi...

AG74

Hi Guys, I intend to run my 12 m.o. GWP in the NAVHDA NA test in about 10 days. I "work" with him every morning and evening, but it's mostly for exercise and fun. We do recall (HERE), some quartering on the whistle and hand signals, some WHOA reinforcement, and I walk him at HEEL for a few minutes e...

AG74

Retrieve is nice and a great tool to have your dog on, but pups are pups. Let them find the love of birds first and then train retrieve. I don't remember if this was the pups first time on birds. It may help to play fetch with a dead bird in a controlled back yard setting with a CC. A bumper is not...

AG74

I actually had a trainer show me the blow in the ear trick. It worked when he did it, I guess I was not coordinated enough to pull it off! I've just been doing yard work with Blaze for the last couple weeks, specifically HERE and using the ecollar a little when neccessary. He will now HERE much more...

AG74

I have a dogtra 2500 T&B, same stim range. My 11 month old GWP notices stim at 22 or 23 when not distracted. I've used in the 30s when he is distracted by something else. Some brands have a "jump" feature. Allows you to go straight from min stim level to a higher one so you don't gradually amp it up...

AG74

I'm basically in the same situation as you, except I got my GWP at 9 months old as a "started" dog and have had him for three months. He knew HERE well when I got him and WHOA pretty well also. I did all the other obedience with treats/clicker, which helped him learn them well, but just like you, wh...

AG74

Dashin', 4dabirds, and gonehuntin', Thanks for your incredible insight, thoughts and advice on this topic - it is greatly appreciated. Thru conversations, PMs and this board, I think I've come up with a focused lesson plan for me and Blaze. Armed with some new insight on collar conditioning, I will ...

AG74

Gonehuntin' thanks for your replies. I'm glad this is normal for a young dog and that it's not a serious problem. I'll try the fetching solution you offered. I have a question on HERE and using the e-collar. I'm a bit apprehensive about using the e-collar, since I don't want to put too much pressure...

AG74

Wow, thanks for all the replies so far! I'll agree with a couple of the posters, his obedience is good, but not 100%, or even 80% maybe. He is very good with no distractions, but can get off track easily with distractors, so his obedience is not yet where it should be. That being said, I work with h...

AG74

When we got Blaze (GWP) he was 9 mo and "started" - ie - he would point, hold to the shot, then retrieve to hand. I saw him do this with his trainer. I havent had the opportunity to put many birds under him, but in the 2 months I've had him, I've done a lot of obedience type training (sit, stay, lay...

AG74

4da, thanks - he is not quite steady to shot, but to falling bird, which I think is fine with me, being that we will hunt pheasants a lot - i'd like him to be moving once the bird goes down. Here is what we do for steadiness training in the yard. On the FB field, after doing some recall between 2 or...

AG74

Short update on the barker... think I narrowed it down to Blaze "wanting" to go to the football field, and when he realizes we are not going there, starts barking. Maybe fears we are going to the kennel again, or the vet. My job will be to make the vet a good place to visit, not a bad one. The more ...

AG74

Thanks Swagg, I agree on the bark collar. I don't think it's the crate anymore. I took the crate out and had him go in and out yesterday as well as stay in there for a while. He is good in the crate in or out of the truck, when the truck is stopped. Moving is another thing. I got in the habit of tak...

AG74

4daBirds, Thanks for the great advice! That all makes sense to me. We don't ever reward him for barking, but him whining in the morning is what gets him out to go to the bathroom, so in that sense, he has used it to train me I think... I've heard about teaching the dog to bark on command, then NOT t...

AG74

Thanks for the replies guys. No, he is normally not crated, but stays in a similar dog house in a kennel next to the house. I don't think his barking is excitement, because he is whining and sounding pretty pitiful too... it could be excitement, but to me it sounds like "let me out! let me out!" Of ...

AG74

We got a 9 m.o. GWP as a started dog from the breeder/trainer. We took him 400 miles back home in a crate in the Chev tahoe, didn't make a peep the entire ride, did very well, we were impressed, especially since he was not crate trained, but raised in a kennel. Lately (2 months later), though, he ha...

AG74

Thanks for the input everyone. update on the story - i went out to the farm last nite to see how the family and dog were doing and offered some of the few training tips i have recently learned to the family. Since the dog had been basically ignored for 3 years and they gave it to the 13 year old son...

AG74

A friend recently got a "give away" 3 y.o. GSP from a friend who had to move and could no longer keep it. After a couple weeks it appears that the dog wasn't given much attention as it doesn't know its name and has little to no manners or obedience. The dog recently got loose and killed one of the o...

AG74

Thanks for the replies guys - i appreciate it. I wouldn't worry about it so much, except the lab is older, slower and less inclined to play rough. She has gotten after the pup a few time though, and he stops it pretty fast. So he gets the message. Then he just barks at her, but won't make contact. I...

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