Gun Dog Forum

RoostersMom

You want the dog to associate gunfire with a dead bird. The Perfect Start DVD from Perfection Kennel has an awesome gun intro section. Gunshot = dead bird. You don't want to train a "tolerance" for gunfire, but build a positive association and anticipation that GREAT things happen with gunfire.

RoostersMom

What a beautiful dog, I'm sure you have many good memories of him! Sorry for your loss.

RoostersMom

Tighten up your obedience with the dog. Here means here. Not 30 feet away. Ignore the bumper/retrieve thing and focus on her recall. Get her reliably recalling to you - then go back with the bumper and do retrieves and enforce the "here means here" rule. Whether she drops the bumper or not, here mea...

RoostersMom

I have and do use the Perfection Kennel method. I have PS and PF and have been nothing but pleased with the results. Jon has helped me with my Elhew pointer (who is now at summer camp with Jon in North Dakota). I intro'd birds early on to the dog using the PS methods. I also introduced gunfire (at P...

RoostersMom

An eight week old puppy just needs to learn a few things. One, that you bring everything good in the world to it. Two, he needs to learn about the whole wide world by going just about everywhere with you - and seeing everything. And if you're wanting a dog that hunts independently, part of this whol...

RoostersMom

In addition to Don's placement on markers, I use toilet paper - it's biodegradable and it just disappears after a rain.

RoostersMom

Just don't overdo it. Once you've had a very successful bird - STOP. Don't continue to "test" your dog. If you run into real trouble, you can always contact Jon Hann - however, they are at summer camp in North Dakota until September, so they are pretty inaccessible now. You'll do fine putting the bi...

RoostersMom

I LOVE my wingworks vest....love my Filson chaps - but they are heavy and hot. I would not go with a vest I don't think.

RoostersMom

I recently suggested to my sister that she vaccinate her dogs on alternating weeks (rabies one week, then wait, then give the combo shot). She discussed that with her vet who absolutely disagrees with there being a problem with multiple vaccines given at once. He says that building immunity response...

RoostersMom

I use my collars on beagles to stop deer chases and for recall. They are trained to come to the "tone" signal on the collars instead of my voice since beagles can often get out there quite far from me when hunting.

RoostersMom

I always enjoy your photos. Are Teckels mainly used for blood trailing wounded deer?

RoostersMom

See if you can find a beagle training operation in your area. They generally have "running pens" to train the beagle pups. This will be a fenced in area where there are abundant rabbits. You can practice there.

RoostersMom

Tri-tronics collars have worked for me for the past 14 years. Love them. Have a multi-dog system myself (three) and it works well.

RoostersMom

If the pup likes cheese throw the cheezits or whatever they call them on the water. They float and he will go get them. I haven't done this but several on here have and say it really works well. Makes sense to me. Cheez puffs or Cheetos. Cheezits are the little crackers - and they don't float! My V...

RoostersMom

I agree that conditioning them is key - and I'm working on a pup to go to summer camp now. But I'd trade you our 80 degree days with 95% humidity any day for a TX or NM "dry heat." I miss the desert and the sheer lack of humidity. I don't know how it affects dogs because I didn't get into them when ...

RoostersMom

Yes, totally - you can obviously see the style and intensity. Never mind the fact that the quail in pic 1 has burrowed underground (the dratted subterranean subspecies) while the one in pic 2 has flown away.

RoostersMom

Swim with him if you can - find a spot where he has to swim across with you (and the other dog) usually they will go if they see others headed that way.

RoostersMom

Sign up for a PK clinic once you've decided you like the training system. Bring your wife. Lots of couples there when I've taken classes - and they do allow both people to work with the dog if that's what's going to happen at home. As a wife who occasionally allows my husband to help - I know what y...

RoostersMom

I'm in the same boat as Rich. I'm re-purposing our large barn for my husband's new workshop for his 40th birthday (surprise). The more time I'm spending out there, the more I want to have a dedicated space out there for my training supplies. I bet I can convince him to build me cubbys for my stuff o...

RoostersMom

A GSP or an English Setter. Maybe a Llewellin Setter. No matter which breed you pick, you need to research the line carefully to be sure you're getting the distance dog you want. There are some very close working GSP and Setters, and some half mile dogs. Search your NAVHDA chapters in the area and s...

RoostersMom

Are the pup's feet normally splayed out like in the picture? That sure looks like a basset hound from the elbows down! Maybe it's just the picture, but it doesn't look good from that angle.

RoostersMom

I have had bad experiences with pups from the same litter. Google littermate syndrome and heed the advice given there if you do end up keeping two of the pups. I think it matters less if you keep them kenneled and they are not "family dogs" as well as hunting dogs. The advice to keep the separate, t...

RoostersMom

They might be bad parents. But I would do a dose of 4-in-1 medication to be sure it's not a medical issue. I have seen a lot more successful hatches since I started a more regular worming/treatment schedule.

RoostersMom

Once you've had permatack, you'll never go back! I love the stuff Mary puts out there for checkcords and dog/horse stuff too. www.permatack.com. Mine don't tangle, don't get soaked or mud caked and they're easy on the hands. I've been using them for the past 14 years - love their stuff. She makes cu...

RoostersMom

GunDogAdventures wrote:(Kennel name/owner's last name)'s Pyromaniac "Pyro"
.....Sparkler "Sparky"
.....MD-80 "Boomer"
.....Bottlerocket "Rocket"

My next dog is going to be Pyro - hubby wouldn't let this one go with that name, but I'm using it next time!
I also like Popper and Bomber and Torch.

RoostersMom

I have used the Perfect Start DVD to show me how to successfully use the e-collar. It worked well for me. It's all about reinforcing the command that the dog already knows. You overlay the collar with the checkcord and known commands and then eventually you work away from the CC and use the collar e...

RoostersMom

I've had two GSP's and an EP that are terrified of fireworks and storms. All three are absolute dreams to hunt behind - they love the gun. Love to retrieve and show no other sound sensitivities (air guns, neighbor's impromptu shooting sessions with his AR buddies, heavy equipment). I guess it's diff...

RoostersMom

Once they're flying reliably each day to and from the loft for about 2 weeks, I would then take them 1/4 mile in each cardinal direction and release them. Individually is how I do it, but Ezzy really is a pigeon guy on here and he probably has better advice. I do the cardinal directions twice from t...

RoostersMom

Quail are great for retrieving and putting in a dogs' mouth. They are harder and messier to raise than homing pigeons though. And homers fly way better than quail - one of the cardinal mistakes in training a young dog is letting the dog catch birds. Homers fly hard and dogs *usually* can't catch the...

RoostersMom

Chevy, On another note - the dog won't like fireworks or loud sounds even if you get it to tolerate or even look forward to gunfire. They are not the same. I had a GSP that was terrified of fireworks but LOVED the gun. Concentrate on training the dog that the gun=birds. Not desensitizing at all - tr...

RoostersMom

Well,

That was certainly quick. He's a fancy looking pup. Gotta special place in my heart for the liver and white ones!

RoostersMom

Ray's advice is real similar to that I would give you. We've had one really bad gunshy dog - would go running back to my husband and cower behind him if we fired a shot (this was at about 70 yards with a capgun while we were throwing a dead bird). We ended up sending him to Perfection Kennels to hav...

RoostersMom

Maybe he's part chessie - both of ours stink to high heaven. We learned to live with it - but they aren't allowed on the couch!

RoostersMom

Added to Neil's point, don't ever call him back in the field unless you absolutely have to. Let him get a taste of freedom.

RoostersMom

Surely birds are harder to come by in Alaska!

RoostersMom

My dog broke her plate so we had to eventually remove it. No big deal, it took a very short time and she was healed up quickly. It would certainly eliminate the possibility of that being the issue if you had it removed.

RoostersMom

Awesome Mark - keep sending pictures!

RoostersMom

Suzy, I had a half Australian Cattle Dog (blue heeler) and half german shepherd dog in college and into my first few years in my career. He was trained (or learned on his own) to point quail. He assisted with our quail research project (finding roost sites) and was a great swimmer and retriever. He'...

RoostersMom

$700 a month for a great trainer here in Missouri. Three months is a good time frame unless you do a lot of the prep work.

RoostersMom

Let me clarify. I don't use objects for retrieve other than birds, so I don't feel like I have a use for a dummy launcher. If you're having the dog retrieve things other than birds, then I can see a utility for the dummy launcher.

RoostersMom

Bird contacts with birds he can't catch is critical. I like the bird starting and gun intro from Perfection Kennel - it's a DVD, so good for me because I learn best when I can actually see what the author is talking about instead of just reading the advice. The one I'd recommend is the Perfect Start...

RoostersMom

Agree totally with above. I'd also add that if you think it is a resource guarding issue (dog is guarding you or an object), then one of the most effective ways to eliminate that is to use the NILIF program - Nothing In Life Is Free. It works wonders on dogs!

RoostersMom

Blank Gun. There is no need for a dummy launcher at all in this process. Maybe for retrievers, but I see limited application to pointing dogs. You use birds for gun intro. Dead birds. Get the Perfect Start DVD, it has an awesome gun intro section. Has worked like a charm for my last and current 8 do...

RoostersMom

So sorry to hear about Libby. I'm glad that she had your family to love her through this.

RoostersMom

Not only do we eat birds from our trials (BHU) - at our joint BHU - Pheasants Forever event we fed them to a bunch of youth at our event that were trying bird hunting for the first time. We had over 100 quail and it took a heck of a long time to clean them! The kids (inner city mostly) had a blast, ...

RoostersMom

What a great accomplishment. So few get that far. Congratulations.

RoostersMom

We demand to see pictures of the Yointers. I've never seen such a thing and I'm curious! Glad to know you've got the little buggers placed.

RoostersMom

I love seeing your pics of Diemo. Next time maybe you could do a short video - what say you? He looks like such a cool dog.

RoostersMom

There are going to need to be pictures of these Yointers. Just get them to homes that will spay and neuter them so we don't have a bunch of Yointers taking over the animal shelters

RoostersMom

The little one with a lot of white on the face looks like trouble to me! Bet you are having a blast with them. They are super cute.

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