Intro to birds...

[goatkisser]

I have a 10 MO Boykin that is INSANE for birds. He will chase birds, bees, helicopters and buzzards. He will be 90% retriever and 10% flush dog.
He is ready to hunt other than introducing him to birds.
The timing (age vs seasons) and since he is so birdy I have held off on getting him on birds.
He has not had any shot or freshly killed birds but I've been working with frozen pigeons and doves for about a week.

I have 4 clipped wing pigeons in a coop and was wondering what is the best way to utilize then with my puppy and introducing him to birds?

[Will]

Let them grow their flight feathers back in....get them homing...and then tease him up with one..toss the bird and let him chase....birds come back and you can keep using them for training. If he's already high prey drive on birds you should be able to quickly move to planting birds for him....only move to this if he isn't timid of a flying bird...doesn't sound like he will be. If he's that bird crazy I don't see why you'll need clip winged birds at all....he'll just catch them and kill em. You can also intro gunfire if he's chasing hard then....if you want to pull flight feathers on one and then just fire a blank gun for his first "shot" bird that's not a bad way to do it.

[goatkisser]

Thanks for the reply! I'm planning on working on the retrieve with the birds. I'm kind of paranoid about just throwing them out , shooting and letting him retrieve. The other Boykin I have is hard on doves and kills pigeons. I quess what I'm asking is there a better way to introduce him to the birds to prevent problems and is killing a cripple bad?

[crackerd]

Goat, you ask a lot and get a lot of good advice elsewhere, but go your own way...for better or worse. You noted elsewhere that you introduced the pup to birds months ago--you never should "unintroduce" it from that day forward. And it should be ducks or pheasants from then on, not birds whose feathers can create a sh*tstorm of trouble in a dog's mouth. You also said you're training using "Hup!" and "Water Dog," two sources that really don't address bringing along a Boykin's natural abilities as a retriever. On top of that, you've said you aren't force fetching and you're adamant about that--particularly with a Boykin that hasn't been given birds throughout, the consequences of that decision are yours. Boykins come out of the whelping box retrieving, your task--which seems to be uphill now--is having them retrieve on your terms.

MG

[goatkisser]

Thanks, I think? I understand what your saying, just didn't have access to birds. He's going to turn out fine.
I was just hoping for some ideas(other than using a time machine).

[gonehuntin']

Crackered is really a spaniel expert. Take what you're told by Crackered and put it in the bank.