small birds VS game birds

GSPaddict · Post by **GSPaddict** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 5:57 am

God I am such a newbie, but I need to ask or I'll never know. How does a dog know the difference between a small common bird and a quail or grouse or whatever? If they point at squirrels, why not point on everything that moves?

I am curious on how it works.
Please enlight me

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 7:29 am

The dogs simply come to understand the birds that are interesting through repetition.

E.g., if you shot field larks for a pointing dog and ignored quail, they would soon point field larks and mostly ignore quail.

Best regards,

bondoron · Post by **bondoron** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 8:13 am

Greg hit it on the head. The dog will figure out pretty quick what you want it to point out. You could even make the dog point at fur only if you wanted. I have seen quite a few dogs that point at song birds and fur and certain other objects but as soon as they hit the field they know what is expected.

snips · Post by **snips** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 8:51 am

Also to add, gamebirds have a different scent. They learn thru scent of what you want.

gundogguru · Post by **gundogguru** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 10:08 am

But most game birds have a similar scent. quail pheasants chukar grouse.

Post by **ezzy333** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 4:03 pm

How do we know how the game birds smell? I think it has been proved that every bird has its own smell. Otherwise a dog couldn't point one while carrying another in its mouth. I do think they learn to point birds that will set for them and also leave a smell by walking on the ground. The small birds that are mainly landing on a weed and then flying off leave little if any smell for the dogs. But if they did and we encouraged them when they point one I'm sure they would learn to hunt them also.

Ezzy

gundogguru · Post by **gundogguru** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 5:05 pm

If i comment on the last post I will be edited again so I won't. Just why can you take a dog that has only been worked on quail. and take that same dog to lets say NODAK and hunt Huns or Sharpies and the dog points them like she has done it all her life. I'm thinking similar scent. Because I have had the same dog run in to a field with a couple of hundred small birds in a group and never look twice at them.

GSPaddict · Post by **GSPaddict** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 5:10 pm

Well it does make a lot of sense, I still have a lot to learn, thank god your all there

thanks!

Post by **ezzy333** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 6:18 pm

Gundogguru,

I think we have the same results when I said they will point most anything that has a body scent and is setting for them. I'm just not sure about all birds having the same scent, maybe simuluar, but how do we know? It was an honest question that I doubt if any of us can answer.

But most dogs are going to point anything that has a body scent till they discover that isn't what we are hunting. My pup is pointing field mice but I'm sure she will stop as she gets more experience. I'll bet they don't smell anything like a bird. The dogs have always pointed rabbits but it appeared to me not as intense as a bird. These are all animals and birds that have a scent but do you think they all smell alike? I just don't know but it was explained once that all birds have different scents just like people do and that is how they can tell one from the other.

It would be interesting if we knew exactly what a dog smells that is potent enough for it to know where the bird is when it maybe 30 feet or more away and if it can do that what do the scents we smell seem like to them.

Ezzy

Wagonmaster · Post by **Wagonmaster** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 6:35 pm

Bird dogs seem to recognize gallinaceous birds by scent even if they have not come across a particular specie before. Gallinaceous birds would include the grouse, partridges, pheasants, etc. They do not always recognize or treat non-gallinaceous birds the same.

we hunt dove in the early season, and it is not always easy to get the dogs to recognize what it is they are supposed to retrieve, even when they saw the shot and fall. and they don't seem very interested in pointing them even when the opportunity presents itself. pigeons are used for training, and many dogs will work them, but i have also seen a number of dogs that will ignore them and a handful that actually lift their leg on them (on expression of opinion perhaps?). immature dogs will sometimes sight point "bleep" birds, but as they mature, they tend to give that up. they all recognize the gallinaceous birds, when they have had early exposure to some.

snips · Post by **snips** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 9:57 pm

I gotta go with John and Guru here. I don`t know if a pigeon is a gamebird, me thinks not, but that would be the only bird that scents like a gamebird that is feesable to train on and still have dogs point gamebirds. Otherwise you could train a dog with planted Robins instead of quail. I can see your point tho about encouraging a dogs interest in anything you kill for them, but I don`t think the scent is there (or is the same) as it is in gamebirds.