Gun Dog Forum

will-kelly

If the dog is a mutt then the genetics might not have a natural point built in. Hunting him with other dogs may not teach him anything. As with any pointer you need to develop the point. Yes there are many dogs that point the minute they come out of the womb but the natural point is just a built in ...

will-kelly

Now we're getting somewhere. Whoa at the edge of a road means don't cross the road. "Whoa on birds means he comes back to me." You have communicated to him that whoa means come to my side so we can cross the road. I am guessing you talked to him while crossing the road as well. This is where the con...

will-kelly

Alright, how do you tell the difference between disinterested and bored? I don't believe a dog ever gets bored. It's a very human concept. His natural hunting instinct is absent and I am guessing that is a fault of the handler/training and not a natural reaction. As a second observation I would sta...

will-kelly

You NEED to go get yourself a "training with mo" book and start from the begining and follow his methods. I was/am also a new V ower and new to training. I trained all willie nille at first not know which step to do when and created problems. Mo's methods have turned her around 100% they are very l...

will-kelly

Pack mentality & the whole runt thing gets in the way of humans understanding dogs because we try and relate it to our own experiences. We all assume it's the weakest one that couldn't fend for itself the kid that never fit in. In the wild it would have never survived. This is a total bunch of crap....

will-kelly

Take the dog hunting. Just make sure you go with the right expectations. In my opinion the pen raised wild bird argument is over played. Many people have fantastic dogs with all kinds of titles and the dog has never seen a wild bird in their life. Catching a bird isn't the problem it's what you do o...

will-kelly

First I wonder why the dog was re-homed? The laser pointer is most likely just a symptom of the way the dog was treated. If they didn't know the laser pointer was a bad thing why would they not do it? I am going to take a guess and say that B stands for Birds. The dog is a bird dog and I have to thi...

will-kelly

First thing that comes to mind is does the dog retrieve at all? If the dog does not understand retrieving a bumper or a tennis ball then he probably isn't going to retrieve the one item he is genetically bread to hunt find and eat. It's just to much biological pressure. If he does retrieve then it's...

will-kelly

Vizsla

Temperament and trainability are top two reasons.

Great in the field, great with the kids. House doesn't smell like a dog and the hair is minimal.

will-kelly

You changed dog foods and it seems to have affected the dog's normal eating habits. Hopefully you mixed the old with the new food to transition him. I would get a bag of the old food and see if he eats it. If he does then your problem is the food. If he doesn't eat it then it may be heat or health r...

will-kelly

I purchased one on the board a few weeks ago. It is an excellent collar. Worth the money.

There is a rebate going on this month. Look on Gundog Supply. I think it's around $75.

will-kelly

A 15 week old pup is way to young to try and teach a release command to in my opinion. Socialization is the key to a young pup not finishing them as a hunting dog. You run the risk of sending a wrong message or making a mistake that will be much harder to undo later in life. Let the dog discover the...

will-kelly

I had the same problem yesterday. I didn't lose my cool but I was frustrated. I wrote down exactly what I did on a piece of paper. All the problems pointed to the e-collar. Every time I gave my girl a nick she moved or turned her head. She was fine on the check cord but it didn't translate to the co...

will-kelly

Bald Eagle State Forest/Park is a great place to find them. It's where I shot my first one about 20 years ago. It's very close to State College. You can also find them in Sproul which is to the north and R B Winter to the east. Make sure you have a good dog and good boots. Miles of hiking with a sho...

will-kelly

In PA we have a healthy Grouse and Woodcock season(if you catch them right. Hurricane screwed things up last year). Pheasants are being managed but they are nothing like the past. I get a chance to hunt them all in a year. I also head to a local preserve and guide for them when asked. I will give pr...

will-kelly

1) Training a hunting dog has absolutely nothing to do with being a hunter. 2)"Finishing a "Hunting" dog has to be done on wild birds" is a ridiculous statement as well and may be one of the most ridiculous statements I have heard on this forum. A finished hunting dog performs as a member of a team ...

will-kelly

Pete Deangelis of http://www.longviewkennels.com/index.htm used to be a renowned gsp field trial guy. He focuses on Brittany's now but is an excellent trainer you should talk to.

will-kelly

Congratulations on getting the dog back...

If this person was willing to stare you in the face and say he had no idea about the dog then what is there to prevent him from stealing someone else's dog in the future? Not sure I would have gone the route you took.

will-kelly

Glad to here he's improving on the force fetch...

I guess it wasn't such an urgent problem after all.

will-kelly

Without seeing your dog, I wouldn't assume its a behavioral problem like others have said. Sounds normal for a lab. Here's my issue with this comment. You think this is normal? How many labs have you had that have been placed in an electrified kennel chew through a wall? As a former lab owner I spe...

will-kelly

7 is way to young. In the years to come you will remember th lessons that's he taught you. It's amazing how a great dog can imprint you for life.

will-kelly

Your dog's chewing through a building is a sign of an anxiety or or social issue. It is not a chewing problem! I would take a step back. Forget the FF for now and resocialize this Labrador before it is to late. I was involved in two clubs for 10 years with my lab and I have seen a lot. We had an act...

will-kelly

Dried blood and feathers...

will-kelly

I was going to post that you didn't follow Bill West or Mo's system. You were just using parts of it. However... Magspa you just heard it from the man himself :wink: . He said you're in good shape and now you have to work on the dog before the next hunting season and reinforce it once you are afield...

will-kelly

You do not have a serious problem. There I said it. Additionally you may not have caused the creeping problem by shooting over her. You do have a problem and I had the same exact problem. The dog was not bumping birds because I shot. The dog was bumping birds because I wouldn't shut up. Whoa...Whoa....

will-kelly

+1 Chukar -1 Whoadog ***Not trying to start anything Whoadog Whoadog in your reply I believe you actually prove the point Chukar is making. In example one you have already taught the command and are working with a dog that is defiant. I would venture to wager that in the gutteral growl it isn't the ...

will-kelly

Had no idea...but now I do.

Great blog and project. Can't wait to find some time to read the past articles.

will-kelly

Doves..pigeons...what's the difference?

Oh yeah one is illegal to use.

A lot of people refer to "Whites" racing pigeons as doves. Most of the ceremonial release companies use white homing pigeons. If this is what you mean then you should have no problems.

will-kelly

Brad Higgins is in Northern California. He may have someone in southern california that he can recommend. You can find him here on the forums or check out his website at http://www.higginsgundogs.com

Good luck with the pup.

will-kelly

Talking too much because I haven't properly shown the dog what to do. If you show them what you want them to do they will eventually work hard to do it. Say it once...if the dog fails to respond. Do not say it again. Instead show it what you want to do and start over. Eventually the dog will begin t...

will-kelly

Sounds a little timid but it sounds to me like she is just young. My Vizsla took about 1 year to really turn it on. She was/is timid by nature. Once she is confident in something she is all out no stopping her. Her hunting drive may seem lacking but it sounds more like she's bored and doesn't know h...

will-kelly

Try turning the heater off. If the dog gets cold I bet he heads for the box.

will-kelly

Training is understanding.

You must first understand what you dog can and cannot do.

Then train your dog to understand what you want him to do.

will-kelly

Thanks for all of the advice. Lots of good information. To answer some of the questions: She is whoa broke. With her creeping issue I had gotten to verbal with her as she went on point. In an effort to keep her from breaking or creeping early in the season I began to "speak" over her point. It actua...

will-kelly

I agree with Ezzy. I would add that true breeders are looking for specific attributes in their lines that may not play to the style of hunting. Field Trialers breed for something totally different from duck hunters. Make sure their is a good history of OFA certifications as well. Breeders willing to...

will-kelly

I wanted to see what everyone else is doing to reinforce this valuable step in training. My 18 month old Vizsla had a creeping problem that I have been working on. The problem wasn't the dog it was me. Recently she has been moving/running to see where the bird will fall or if the gunner is in betwee...

will-kelly

I used Brad Higgin video from 3 years ago to train my current dog to heal. The dog really got the idea much faster than my previous dog.(Labrador) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3FEQcCY1E0 Brad just posted a new video about teaching a puppy to hunt. I personally like his method of naturally trainin...

will-kelly

Sharon the link is not working to the Youtube video. Can you post a new one? I would like to see what you were pointing to.

will-kelly

Good luck and stay safe. The Alaska wilds are a totally different world.

will-kelly

Both. You don't want the dog following behind you but you do want the dog to go "with" you. Let's say you are out hunting and see a bird flush up a head and land in a field to the left. The dog was doing what dogs do and did not see it he wants to go right. By having the dog trained to go with you a...

will-kelly

If the choice is buy or breed I say breed. With that said, everyone on here knows that breeding is only part of the equation. If breeding was the only factor then you could just keep remixing FC DNA and do less work. It's just not that simple. For those that field trial breeding FC's is a lucrative ...

will-kelly

Your plan sounds great but the challenge is controlling that training to make it effective. Take advantage of the clubs. Not only is a cheap method to getting on birds but it is also a way to meet people in your area that want to train on a regular basis. The Keystone NAVHDA club is pretty active in...

will-kelly

1. In a trial/test, does the softness of a dog's mouth play into the retrieve score any? Is a dog docked points for being hard-mouthed? I asked a friend who is a very successful trialer and judge. He said that the term hard mouth is to broad of a term. If a dog mishandles a bird there is a deductio...

will-kelly

Chevyman what part of PA are you in? There are a bunch of NAVHDA clubs, The Eastern German Shorthair Pointer Club and many more. The cost of a seminar can be a few hundred bucks or more. In my opinion, seminars are better for dog owners who have been training. You can ask specific questions that per...

will-kelly

Welcome. Where in SE PA?

will-kelly

Pretty soon there will be an NHL season. Watch some hockey.

Shoot at least 10 rounds of sporting clays it will benefit both you and the dog.

will-kelly

Issac stop what you are doing immediately. Do not take the dog to a range in his kennel. He is already showing signs of gun shyness and taking him to within 50 yards of a shotgun is just stupid at this point. I just took a look at your posts and it looks like your dog is only 5 months old ! Here is ...

will-kelly

My thoughts on your post... I took him out running during the summer and he seemed fine. Seemed fine is a very relative term. You trained the dog all summer long or you took him for walks? One thing with training a dog is that you condition the dog to get excited. My dog sees me grab my gun, her ken...

will-kelly

Short answer is Yes it is possible to train Vizslas(any breed for that matter) to hunt.(Work a field) The long answer is that you must consider that this process even with the best breeding will take longer than if you started out with a younger pup. This dog has had 2 years of imprinting that witho...

will-kelly

Thanks for the feedback. Believe me I am a willing to let her be a dog but I too have been to the ER for a round of 14 stitches. Couple of skin infections even though I scrub her whenever we get home from the field.(Wife's rule) She's hard charging and the cold is not a concern at all. I get cold lo...

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