Gun Dog Forum

Nutmeg247

You guy's are lucky ! We now have licence control for a Daisy /BB Gun ! In this civilised Society :evil: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-27420858 Knife legislation is making its way over here, too, which even for hikers who may like to carry a locking Swiss army knife can le...

Nutmeg247

birddog1968 wrote:...

OP what breed are we talking about?

Breed and use/style of hunting are probably both relevant, even as to whether FF gives that much benefit at all?

Jake just always seems to take incredible photos, btw.

Nutmeg247

Apologies if I missed an earlier discussion of this. I'm considering Boykins as one possibility for my next dog. Currently I have a pointer and am looking for a flusher, with ability to do water work and deal with cold temps here and there a plus. I have direct exposure to labs and field-bred spring...

Nutmeg247

Hmmm...I dislike lawsuits to address what is at the end of the day a "fluffy natural foods/health foods versus science" dispute. I view Blue Buffalo and other brands with "natural" marketing as sort of like Whole Foods, bound to be a lot of bs and high prices, but sometimes neat stuff, too. Problem ...

Nutmeg247

[quote="Sharon"]The advantage of clicker over voice is that the voices changes in intensity and tone and we aren't even aware of it. A click + perfect timing is always the same so pup learns more quickly.[...quote] Yes, this is one of the clicker pluses. Interestingly to at least me, some agility an...

Nutmeg247

Remember you can also just use your voice rather than a clicker. Minor pros and cons to either voice or clicker, but not that big a difference. The term clicker training often implies, but doesn't require, "shaping" as a training technique, meaning marking some behavior the dog spontaneously display...

Nutmeg247

... Using the highest setting to break a dog off chase...when it is headed straight for a busy roadway...is NOT abusive use of an e-collar. Hope that makes some sense to you. RayG This sums it up. Unfortunately this thread reads like a troll by someone looking for anti e-collar material. Any type o...

Nutmeg247

[quote="Uplandish"]... His recall (even with birds he is trying to devour) is as sharp as it can get, he comes straight to me, but while in transit he is deep throating the bird and working his jaw as if he wants to swallow it whole. He even presents it to my hands but just doesn't want to give it u...

Nutmeg247

[quote="RayGubernat] ...[snip]... I can barely even feel a 1 on my neck and cannot feel it on the back of my hand. ... RayG[/quote] Yes, while it's still electrical stimulation, low-level stim is more a tickle. I've had e-stim for physical therapy that caused more reaction in me than low settings on...

Nutmeg247

Really nice production quality, and beautiful birds and dogs.

Where do the pointers you use come from?

Nutmeg247

...That lady had tried just about everything else and I only suggested the e-collar as a last resort to prevent the dog being shot or put to sleep. Nevertheless the "nice little doggie police" on the forum still said I was wrong... That kind of sums up part of the issue. Whether enforcing a trained...

Nutmeg247

A dog defining ones masculinity sounds pretty shallow.... You know, I was thinking the same thing. I have never heard or thought about a dog or breed in terms of masculinity. :? :roll: Charlie reallly? never? you've never assigned gender to a dog breed? I find that hard to believe. Poodles? yorkies...

Nutmeg247

Just echoing some of what Roostersmom has said, with you and your wife both working long hours, definitely consider a started dog or even a full adult. I don't own a lab, but am involved with a local lab rescue out west, and for 5+ year old dogs here, there are some really great dogs to look at. You...

Nutmeg247

Hi Diogenes, Welcome! You don't say what you will be able to do several times a week to exercise the dog. Also, I don't believe you say whether the dog will be in the house, or a kennel, and whether everyone in the house is on board with shedding and oil issues from the dog's coat. I don't believe m...

Nutmeg247

Sounds to me like she is doing like most dogs do, they eat less once they are through growing. I think most picky eaters are created and that is what happened when you were mixing canned and dry. She liked it and wants you to continue doing that. I have found that dogs like humans eat when they are...

Nutmeg247

I think this is how a lot of pheasant dogs in particular end up, though not necessarily with the stop to flush. Great video. I am curious as to what Mr. Higgins views as the main differences between falconry and hunting with a gun in terms of what's desired from the dog? Say, hunting wild chukar in ...

Nutmeg247

Those that think that raw is more natural, that it is what they eat in the wild and say corn is bad; need to look at a few game cameras at corn deer feeders - coyotes love corn. I have seen them raid a corn field. Now I don't buy they make a conscious decision to eat what is good for them, no, they...

Nutmeg247

Ben Point (2) (800x600).jpg

Ben inside the city limits. Not hunting per se, but on point.

Nutmeg247

That photobucket album was worth another raw thread by itself, thanks for linking that.

One day I really hope all the raw versus kibble banter will stop, and people can unite against the real enemy, corn being fed to dogs. J/k, j/k.

Nutmeg247

I find the evolution from the West method -- which, if I am correct, I believe Mr. Higgins taught previously? -- to what might be described as a cooperative approach interesting. I'd be interesting in hearing what spurred the shift in training methods.

Nutmeg247

Thanks! I know next to nothing about horse gaits/paces/gallops. And I knew nothing about the classic trot of the Bracco or Spinone until I went to Italy and saw a field trial for those breeds. I was actually quite amazed. The fastest dogs there probably trotted at a speed equal to some dogs' medium...

Nutmeg247

... The previous poster who said their dog just froze, gave a more common response to the e-collar from an incompletely transitioned dog. It may be that your dog is also showing confusion, but in a different way. I seriously doubt that a six month old bird dog pup is being stubborn or willful. DD's...

Nutmeg247

Definitely make sure the collar is working, and that it has a snug fit so that you get reliable stim and don't have the risk of arcing. Assuming it is working and on properly, the fact the he is not doing anything even at a higher level means, to me, your dog is actually just shutting down because i...

Nutmeg247

I've found the short pdf and the Martha books to be great. I need to get the two longer books myself. What I've read and used so far has been some of the best-written, most succinct training material I've seen anywhere.

Nutmeg247

WWII aside, I just don't see the idea of hunters as a reserve army as selling well, in terms of promoting hunting. Spreading familiarity with shooting sports could make the armed force's job easier in terms of producing soldiers, but they are two different things. The constitutional and cultural ar...

Nutmeg247

WWII aside, I just don't see the idea of hunters as a reserve army as selling well, in terms of promoting hunting. Spreading familiarity with shooting sports could make the armed force's job easier in terms of producing soldiers, but they are two different things. The constitutional and cultural arg...

Nutmeg247

Great-looking dog for sure!

Nutmeg247

Hi, Apologies if this has been covered -- I searched the topic but feel I've likely missed something. In terms of dealing with dog medical issues in the field, I normally carry triple antibiotic ointment, duct tape, athletic tape, spare inner tube which normally would be for booties but could have f...

Nutmeg247

Want to see if yotes attack dogs, go to pleasant hill productions Facebook page and read and see what happed at the Virginia amateur AA Trial the other day. I saw that, crazy! Mating season makes them more aggressive but jeez. Cleaning that bite up and keeping it clean looks like it would be fun ti...

Nutmeg247

Had an encounter today where I think my dog basically almost ran over a coyote that may have been bedded down behind a boulder. Some snarling and snipping on both sides, and fortunately only a scrape on my dog. I can't really call that an aggressive encounter as opposed to a defensive one, though, s...

Nutmeg247

As far as pointing, isn't it something that the more exaggerated the natural point gets, the more you risk getting other less-desirable traits along with the very strong natural point? So, it may be a question of balance of desired traits?

Nutmeg247

there is a long time GWP breeder in the area of the slide out there using a GWP in the rescue. Her reports have been sad and shows the emotion and effort put forth. there are several GWP's in SAR work, some do great, others do not. It seems to be an individual dog thing.... but bless all those who ...

Nutmeg247

Sharon wrote:I think "I wish I had a flusher here to day."

I'm considering a small flusher for dog #2 for in part this reason.

Nutmeg247

Thanks for such an informative thread, much appreciated!

Nutmeg247

KyleandCharlie, I just read in a related thread that the same dog is also gunshy? At very least I'd think about whether you may have been trying to do a lot of things too quickly, at least for your specific dog. You may want to think the training process issues thus far through (how the dog ended up...

Nutmeg247

I actually don't get the idea that a clumsy trainer who uses positive reinforcement badly can't cause bad stress for the dog. As a sometimes-clumsy trainer of only my dog, I've been there and done that, with positive methods. (My shortcoming, I am not saying those methods have to be stressful.) Toug...

Nutmeg247

My 2 1/2 yr old black lab mix has recently stopped fetching. He used to be pretty good and even loved fetching out of water. A couple weeks ago we were playing fetch and I quit praising him on fetches that he didn't bring the dummy all the way back to me and then over the past week he has quit fetc...

Nutmeg247

http://lumi-laddie-test-series.blogspot.com/2014/03/laddie-post-at-hunting-retriever-stud.html Fun and, imo, well-written blog by someone who has had success without FF or an e-collar. He's also pretty frank about some of the challenges he's faces with this approach. I am not asserting at all that t...

Nutmeg247

When shopping for my pointer pup, I did find several breeders who couldn't say whether or not any pups in the litter retrieved, because it just wasn't a priority. On talking a bit further, it became clear they all had some fair degree of natural retrieve. That doesn't mean this extends to all AF poi...

Nutmeg247

First post. Doing a bit of research on dog foods for my 2 springer spaniels as well as new pup coming. Came across this website from another hunting forum. Tons of information and ratings on almost very brand available. Im sure there is always a bit of personal opinion but it appears a great starin...

Nutmeg247

Supposedly the dog is a Czech dog? I don't know information that carries with it, if it means anything. It looked to me like a thin Great Dane at first. I thought it was a great ad from the perspective of who Land Rover wants to sell cars to. I can see that type of exposure making some of those car ...

Nutmeg247

Bird dog, you have just expressed what I've seen in Kate, pictured above. She runs harder every day when on long trips. Never had a limp or even shown signs of soreness, including feet. I was waiting for someone to bring up brains and/or heart. Difficult to tell what role they play in gait and loco...

Nutmeg247

A field just stocked with pheasants can be a lot of temptation.

Are you able to work him on pigeons this spring?

Nutmeg247

Thanks for the update. I'd missed this thread earlier, and really enjoyed hearing about the progress as you worked with your dog. Congrats also on your first bird!

It's awesome to see someone getting pulled into hunting through developing their dog, as well.

Nutmeg247

Treats are one in a list of things that are rewarding for dogs. You've got food, as noted attention, ear scratches, play, and really fun things like birds. So, when someone shoots a bird over a dog that was steady, they are reinforcing that behavior with a reward. So, to me, in concept, treats fit w...

Nutmeg247

Very interesting thread. At one time, I spent a lot of time in an area on a turkey vulture migration route, and while predation of any sort didn't seem to be an issue, property values were. Seems when they took a liking to someone's roof, just the inevitable byproducts of 20 turkey vultures sitting ...

Nutmeg247

Having to clean the bowl well after may not be a reason not to do it, but is something to be mindful of.

Nutmeg247

I looked back over the first post, and don't see any mention of digestive issues, the dog relieving itself inside the house when left alone, vomiting, excess salivation, or other signs of panic such as frantic yelping, when first left alone. That, along with the fact the dog seems ok in the truck, m...

Nutmeg247

Totally agree on not being heard on yourself, and in fact giving yourself credit where you stepped into a situation with a dog with 4 prior years of learning to deal with. In terms of trying to crate the dog in a K-9 condo, that sounds too confining for me -- I'm not surprised she wanted to chew her...

Nutmeg247

The article doesn't say what the actual civil damages were awarded for in terms of theory. If the shooter was truly fairly wealthy, and the punitive damages were aimed at making him feel the pain a bit financially, I can actually understand the amount of the award. But, I do agree the money should t...

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