Gun Dog Forum

Trying to train too early is like trying to teach calculus to a second grader. At 3 mos. about the only "training" I did was what you would normally do with a pup that age around the house and yard. I respectfully disagree. While my real specialty is pointing breeds, I know that if training session...

Like Doc I don't allow my flushing dogs (spaniels) to move in on a point. I too blow the stop whistle. I was told many years ago that if a pointing dog had it's points stolen by another dog too often ,it could become jealous and begin to break point or perhaps move straight into flush. Bill T. You ...

Sharon wrote:If it were me, I would hold off for 4-6 more weeks, except for hard exercise..
Work on a reliable recall.

Great idea. A tired dog is a relaxed dog. And a GSP will appreciate the exercise and love you for it.

You gotta let a pup be a pup, it will end up a more well adjusted dog in the long run. Trying to train too early is like trying to teach calculus to a second grader. At 3 mos. about the only "training" I did was what you would normally do with a pup that age around the house and yard. I think I did ...

I have a wood stock 1100. I can barely hit anything with it, so I use a model 58 that is just about worn out but fits me much better and keep the 1100 for emergencies. True that! If the gun doesn't fit you it doesn't really matter what make or model it is, you'll have a hard time hitting with it. L...

Sorry to insert this red herring but what is the likely cause of the dearth of game birds in places where there used to be plenty ? I usually hunt anything from about 2 hours to 6 hours per day. Bill T. Normally I would say hunters, but not the case in my old stomping grounds. There are no bird hun...

Ezzy, I probably know more about dog shows than you might think...started participating over 50 years ago and decided 20 years ago there was absolutely nothing of value that can come from it...accept the hospitality hour and overpriced 8x10" glossy photos. I have finished Bullmastiffs, Border Terri...

Interesting thread. When my buddy raised Labs, primarily for waterfowl hunting, he never removed dew claws and never had a problem with it. Now, he raises GSP's and has the dew claws removed as a matter of course. I think a lot of it depends upon the application for which you will use the dog. We hu...

Wow! Gorgeous scenery and some great looking dogs. Don't you just love it how pups sleep?

Stuck on the couch for 2 weeks huh? Be thankful you're not a GSP, you'd have probably eaten it by now!

Not sure if any of you watched the show, but I tuned in for the Sporting Group. I was expecting dogs to look nothing like their working cousins, and for the most part I was right. The pointer looked very houndish in the face to me, all the spaniels were just ridiculous (could be the hair, IDK) , th...

We have our 5th one and love them. What else can I buy that will haul 7 or 8 people, three dog crates, bags of feed and groceries, get 19 mpg in town and 22 or better on the highway. And the best part is sitting up rather than almost laying down in a car which is great when spending a day on the ro...

This reminds me of something my Grandmother said when I was just a kid. This was about the time when the term "Senior Citizen" was gaining traction. She told us about going to the pharmacy to have a prescription filled. The clerk informed her that she qualified for the Senior Citizen discount. My Gr...

Buy the book called "Hup!: Training Flushing Spaniels the American Way". You follow that and the Kenneth Roebuck book and you should end up with an excellent hunter. If you are looking to compete then you may want to spend some money on a program. In my opinion strict program is not as necessary wi...

More important to me than the brand as long as it is known maker, is that it be premium 1 1/4 oz of 5's in 12 ga. I have shot all the major brands and their top shells all perform well. True that! I clicked Remington Nitro on the survey, but actually I use Remington Express long range, 1 1/4oz, #5 ...

I look at this question different I guess. Dogs can only smell what scent get to their nose and 99% of that depends on the conditions you are hunting in. Wind, humidity, temperature, amount of scent the bird has, the recent activity of the bird, and time of the year are some of the things that affe...

I've tried trapping and had no luck even in really good barns with lots of pigeons. Those barn pigeons are tuff and can get out of anything. They say get the trap as high as you can. Put feed in it and let the bobs open for a couple days then rebait it and shut the the bobs. Those bird would clean ...

Never punish your dog when he finally decides to come to you. A couple weeks ago my dog brought me a chukar. I had kicked up the planted bird and it flew a short distance into the woods. My dog remained steady while I fired a blank (I'm in the process of breaking her). I called her off and directed...

Nope ! No! Never! You can not train any gundog to hunt, they have it or they don't some mature later than others. All you need to do is to train the basic commands, whoa, here with bsic discipline he will hunt he will chase be patient work it out and you will have a great hunting buddy for many yea...

Thats what I would do. Ezzy I second that emotion! My buddy has GSP's. Two of them are not gun shy in the least, the third one freaks out! For the life of us we can't figure out why, but she is and we just have to deal with. We took her out to our hunting club outside of hunting season just to let ...

I train the bejeebers out of very young dogs. I really like to get puppies at 12 weeks. and work them until they are about 6 months old. But, my training sessions are puppy games in which they don't even know they are learning. They are respondly the way I want them to naturally to the pleasurable ...

OK, I'll bite. I'm new here, so I've never heard of this before, but my question is this. Are the prices quoted in the story accurate? If so, then inflation must have hit Jamaica like a ton of bricks! What's their dollar worth? About a half cent U.S.?

It may be nagging the dog but it definitely teaches the dog. It's the exact same philosophy as FF. The pressure only comes off once the task is completed. Like FF, eventually the stim is only used as a reminder. Very good point . Hadn't thought of that. I'm going to chime in here, even though I'm a...