And believe me I've heard some hacking going on out there and there is a DEFINITE difference!
because that is what a gundog should do and also because the standard calls for marking down the dog for excessive hacking and noise from the handler.
These people have pretty much summed it up. There is a BIG difference between singing a little to your dog to let him know he is doing well and should keep doing things right and the just plain screeching and hollaring that is done all the way around a course all in the name of "singing"<GG>).
I'm not at all opposed to singing as long as it is done in proper context ....
Singing should be done for AA dogs of course and I EXPECT to hear the handler talking to his dog when they are way the heck out on the edge of a big All Age course! IT is a necessity!! But here in the East, where the grounds are tight and the cover is thick ,
that gun dog had better be handling KINDLY and hunting for the handler at all times. Getting too verbal and making too much noise just is not my idea of how a good gun dog ought to be working......ESPECIALLY on a course that the dog knows well!!!! But again this JMHO.
I apparently assumed wrong when Brian said something to the effect of "If he doesn't know whoa, how do you teach him to back?"
He never said that. Sorry you misunderstood. He
did ask you if your dog was not familiar with the whoa command, how did you caution him or get him stopped if you needed to. But you already explained that too. Your dog is now at the point where he no longer ever needs to be cautioned as he now backs perfectly every time. Which is excellent.
Again....different trainers, different methods and as long as the methods produced the desired results, who cares??
