Gun Dog Forum

love2hunt

Yeah, no argument there on the bird exposure. I have her on pigeons at least twice a week. In the fields as much as possible. I just spent $800 on a new Alpha, so spending cash is a little short for a while. The thing I have realized these last couple days is that both programs have some very simila...

love2hunt

I've been debating this in my head all weekend and would love some input to settle it. Of those who have used and applied both methods, which works best for you: Huntsmith Silent Command System, or the West/Gibbons Method as refined in Training with Mo? I see advantages to both, but I am torn betwee...

love2hunt

The best command I've ever taught any of my dogs is PLACE (i.e. go to and stay on your bed). My current dog has this 90% down and it makes having her in the house so much better. Now she will even hang out on her bed without being told to do so. The real key was to get a bed that stayed in place and...

love2hunt

I have an old Mother vest that is very comfortable, but it makes my back so dang sweaty. I'll have to look into this one now.

love2hunt

Ruffbrit, it definitely has its limitations. The nice thing is that the collar is GPS, so when you're phone is back in service, you should be able to find the dog. Not as good as a Garmin, no doubt, but it's a more affordable stand in and better than no GPS at all. Bill, I do not see any of those fe...

love2hunt

I wanted to share my experience with a product that Susan Ross shared with me. It's called Whistle, a GPS device that you can attach to your dog's collar and track them from your smartphone. So far, I've only used it one day, but it saved me a lot of walking to look for my dad's squirrel dog. Its bi...

love2hunt

Thanks for the perspectives. The dog ended up being adopted before we could get there. However, it's cool to know that so many have had good luck with rescues. We will definitely strongly consider it for our next one when the opportunity arises.

love2hunt

Would love to hear some thoughts. My wife and I stumbled on a Llewellin Setter in our local humane society. I got more info through the guy who dropped her off and found out that she was gotten rid of by his neighbor. Apparently, she was messed up by a "pro-trainer" with an e-collar and will break h...

love2hunt

Did some more bird work and added the cap gun last night. I started with a released bird from 50 yards away and fired a shot. She wasn't phased. Stepped up to her kennel and did the same thing, didn't even pay attention. Then we worked 3 planted birds. The only time she looked at me when firing was ...

love2hunt

Keep forgetting to buy the cap gun when I go to Walmart...

MillerClemsonHD, I did not know I could get in touch with him. I will do that as well. Thanks for the suggestion!

love2hunt

I have been reading into the "Training with Mo" PDF from Steady with Style, and I started doing a little (very little, once every couple weeks) bird work with my Llewellin following his method. The issue is, I am only able to work in my backyard right now (1.5-2 acres), and I cannot shoot any guns ...

love2hunt

The only thing I could possibly think of was maybe putting too much pressure on the dog? Thats the one thing I would avoid. What method are you reading that has gun intro before bird work?She's a pup, let her be one. Hmmm that could be why. Both the Training with Mo and Huntsmith method use birds t...

love2hunt

ruffbritt4 wrote:Keep getting her into birds, I don't see why you would have to take a break.

I couldn't see why either, but every training method I've researched has gun breaking as a prerequisite to obedience and bird work. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't gonna mess it up by flip-flopping it!

love2hunt

I have been reading into the "Training with Mo" PDF from Steady with Style, and I started doing a little (very little, once every couple weeks) bird work with my Llewellin following his method. The issue is, I am only able to work in my backyard right now (1.5-2 acres), and I cannot shoot any guns d...

love2hunt

polmaise wrote:Yea, but some like me are just not as literate That doesn't make them uneducated regarding dogs

No disagreement there!

love2hunt

I will , however, do exactly as you recommended and do what I want with her! My Llewellin pup, Ann, was introduced to a pigeon at 10 weeks, but was a little intimidated by it. I decided to give it some time before I tried again . I tried to do what was described in the HuntSmith Puppy Development 1...

love2hunt

love2hunt, Your dog is stupid and will never hunt....you should take her to the pound! :) You're exactly what's wrong with this place NEhomer :P Wow love2hunt.... seems you've got your feathers ruffled. Maybe I've missed something in the posts as I didn't read anyone criticizing what your doing jus...

love2hunt

Good heavens. Did bird dog training really just get compared to brain surgery? :roll: Let me give y'all some perspective from a relative rookie. The bulk of people checking out this forum are guys training their first bird dog, or thinking about doing it. The way y'all jump on and correct some of th...

love2hunt

I didn't see Ann do anything that wasn't normal for a pointing pup. her instinct is to point and not catch or chase. She saw the bird and slowly tried to decide how to handle it. She did it and did it well. I just don't see much timidity but rather just caution. I am not saying it is the way to do ...

love2hunt

The last time we showed her a pigeon, we let it flap and it spooked her. I wanted to make sure she built some confidence first before I let it flap around her again. You can see in the first part of the video how she was. She was like that for about the first five minutes. Definitely glad I put tha...

love2hunt

Saw you have a cocker as well. How old? I just sold him to a guy in GA. He's is almost 2, however! Pretty pup. My Llewellin's the same age. Nice! I'm not used to the timidity. My Cocker was obviously not (is there such thing as a timid Cocker lol?), and my squirrel/coon dogs definitely weren't eith...

love2hunt

Question: What's the reasoning for the harness on the pigeon? The last time we showed her a pigeon, we let it flap and it spooked her. I wanted to make sure she built some confidence first before I let it flap around her again. You can see in the first part of the video how she was. She was like th...

love2hunt

My Llewellin pup, Ann, was introduced to a pigeon at 10 weeks, but was a little intimidated by it. I decided to give it some time before I tried again. I tried to do what was described in the HuntSmith Puppy Development 1 training DVD and just let her build confidence. As you can see in the video, s...

love2hunt

Thank you guys for the input! I had read other similar comments about having to mess with the screen, but wasn't sure if it was as big a deal as they made it out to be. Looks like it is. Sharon, I don't get a discount on Dogtra, so that's why it isn't on there. Knine, are you running an Astro and Pr...

love2hunt

I use the Garmin Pro 70. It is reasonably priced. It does every thing I need for training. You can add all the receivers you want up to six....................Cj Since you said the dog is not trained yet go with the Pro 550. Great training tool, multi dog capable, beeper accessory. Looks like the G...

love2hunt

twistedoak wrote:it really depends on what the collar main use is.

if your looking for training and timing is critical use a sportdog.

if the dog is basicly trained and looking for a more universal tool get an alpha

My dog is not trained at all, besides here and kennel. SportDog is better over Garmin for timing?

love2hunt

I have a connection to get discounted SportDog and Garmin products, but I'm having trouble deciding on which one of their collars to get. With the discount, I can afford to get any one of these. Here's my scenario: - I have one dog (19-week old Llewellin) right now, but anticipate adding more dogs i...

love2hunt

Terrific! My guy was born on Dec 3rd~ They're sure teenagers now huh? Mine is so well behaved and sweet I'm amazed. Maybe it was just that my Brittany was a total jerk but Whip does none of her behaviors....running off.....chewing stuff....pooping on the walk.....getting into garbage.....getting up...

love2hunt

NEhomer, looks like we're in about the same boat! I have a Llewellin female from Jornada Setters in NM. She was born December 5. I'll be interested to see your progress!

love2hunt

Mine is from Jim as well lol I thought I remembered you saying that! Very cool. Switched things up today and hit the duck blind with fellow forum member Krakadawn and a couple of his retrievers in search of some divers. It was a cold day out on Lake Ontario and the ice is creeping in but it was all...

love2hunt

Very nice! Bo looks like my Jake's doppelganger - black with a white blaze on the chest. He'll be on fire now that he knows what you're after. Where is Bo from? I had booked a deposit with Jim Karlovec, but Jim's dog ended up not having enough puppies for me to get one. He had a friend in CA who ha...

love2hunt

OUR FIRST BIRDS! I went out with a friend this morning to find the quail I found last weekend. We got rain 2 days ago, so the birds were not gathered around the water hole today. We worked up a wash that feeds into the water hole. Bo flushed a rabbit, then I flushed another. 30 seconds after, we mov...

love2hunt

polmaise wrote:Every minute the dog is doing something without you it is being trained
Even if it's doing nothing

So exercise should be more structured, too? I do have a local pond as well that we could work on some water retrieves...

love2hunt

You got it, and your dog sounds like a quick learner, love2hunt. If as a handler, you think of this situation as "teaching and requiring calm behavior in the house" - then you are off and training for in-house behaviors just like you train for hunting, OB, or retrieving behaviors. Leadership, consi...

love2hunt

that sounds pretty good! he must be getting the idea already. my Brittany will misbehave -- mostly chewing on shoes, clothes, etc. -- when she needs exercise. so she's my motivation to get out every day for a good hunt or hike in the woods, and her daily off leash time is absolutely essential to he...

love2hunt

Alright, now I'm getting the picture! I brought him inside this morning after letting him use the bathroom and leashed him while I drank my morning coffee. At first, he was spinning in circles, trying to chase our cat, etc. I made him sit, and whenever he was calm I would quietly pet him. If he brok...

love2hunt

I'm not understanding the correlation. He's great in the kennel, would happily stay in there all day. What does it have to do with him being calmer inside though?

love2hunt

Question for you spaniel guys. I was really hoping to have Bo as my buddy and hunting companion, but his energy level is just too much when he's indoors. Every time I bring him inside, he is just a nut case. He will slow down a little bit, but he will never sit still and just "lie down by the fire."...

love2hunt

Been a while since I've posted on here, but am finally getting back to working with my FBECS, Bo. I pretty much gave up on hunting him last season due to lack of birds where I was living in VA, so just worked on some retrieving. This past summer, though, we moved to Phoenix, and I've been able to f...

love2hunt

Been a while since I've posted on here, but am finally getting back to working with my FBECS, Bo. I pretty much gave up on hunting him last season due to lack of birds where I was living in VA, so just worked on some retrieving. This past summer, though, we moved to Phoenix, and I've been able to fi...

love2hunt

Took Bo out for opening day of woodcock and grouse season here in VA. I was really just hoping to get him in contact with some birds, but no luck. I have never hunted either species and that was probably the biggest problem. However, I did find what I think might have been some woodcock "chalk." How...

love2hunt

+3 on getting the pup to your vet. There are lots of things that could be causing the lack of energy. Mine is currently getting treated for kidney function problems that were causing some of the symptoms you describe.

love2hunt

I think it is a good idea to get a dog trained prior to hunting. However, for a guy with his first hunting dog and only hunting dog, it is hard to not hunt with your dog until it is trained which, depending on when it is born, could be missing at least one hunting season and some of the second. Mos...

love2hunt

I'm also seeing the temptation of why so many people don't bother to steady their spaniel. It's more work -... Yes, you're seeing it crystal clear, and hearing it in stereo. ...for me it will delay actually killing birds over him until next season. I'm beginning to think, though, that it's better t...

love2hunt

[ The American system says to steady after the dog has had birds shot over it What would concern me here is backwards training. kraka, it would concern us, but not 95% of "American system" spaniel owners who never manage to steady their dogs during their (dogs and handlers alike) lifetimes. In whic...

love2hunt

"I personally want a hard charging, hard flushing spaniel that will get that bird into the air in a hurry. Steadiness can come later. My plan with my pup is to build the desire and hunt him and steady him after a season. The guy who runs my training group has all of his springers (besides the pups)...

love2hunt

I have a 16 month female Eng cocker and already have 1 season under her belt. I like the kiss method. I wouldp work on recall its the most important command. Second work with birds and and more bird's, thar will keep there prey drive going. Then slowly add a shot from a gun while on birds. I mean 1...

love2hunt

Got a question to get this thing started! I seem to be picking up 2 different schools of thought on steadying. The American system says to steady after the dog has had birds shot over it, while British seems to wait to shoot until the dog is steady to flush. The British system seems to make more sen...

love2hunt

Nice to see another cocker owner on here! I have an 8 month old fbecs named Jake. You sound just like me - what you want to hunt with him, and I think you made an excellent choice! Sounds like you are well on your way. At 4 months, just work on the basics and keep sessions short and positive. Cocke...

love2hunt

New to the Gun Dog Forum and have enjoyed reading all the topics, tips, and training advice! I have a English Cocker Spaniel male, named Bo, that is just over 4 months old. I have been reading a re-reading everything I can get my hands on about training (much to the chagrin of my dear wife) but am f...

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