When training a dog, when is it ok to hunt over him?

[Ayres]

Justus will be 5 months old in September (first dove season, I believe) and he'll be 7 months in November (prime season for quail, I believe). I'm not sure how far I'll be on his field training by that point in time, but when would it be ok to hunt over him? I don't want to mess anything up with his training by putting him in a non-controlled situation, but it sure would be nice to take him out this season if it would be ok. My breeder said he'd be ready by that time, but I don't know if he was taking into consideration the type of training I'm wanting to put into this dog to take him to some field trials.

Opinions from experience, anyone?

[snips]

At 5 mo. I would not do the dove hunting. I would be getting some good flying quail to expose him to and get him understanding what he`s looking for and to get him hunting and some exposure to a blank pistol. Then work your way up to shooting a bird for him. This is 6-7 months old. When you feel he`s ready I would take him looking for wild birds.. I would not start him in formal training until next summer before hunting season. Just go have fun this year.

[sudiegirl]

i agree with brenda... dove hunts can be pretty chaotic with many hunters and dogs and birds flying (and falling) every-which-way and tons and tons of gunfire. fun day for an old pro, but for a young pup that has never heard gunfire, it could end up a disasterous experience for your pup! good luck!

[Decoy]

The most important thing in a Dove field is an obedient dog!!!!

Not the best place for a puppy.
You need to be able to call the dog off someone else's bird, the dog needs to sit quietly till you send him and then return to sit quietly.

Let that dog see as many good flying pen raised birds as you can --If he is chaseing the bird shoot some 22 blanks while he is chasing.
then move up to a 20 guage.

if he points the bird and is steady to flush be ready to kill the bird for him. (after you have introduced gunfire)

[Ayres]

I can all but guarantee that the gunfire won't rattle him. I've banged a pot with a wooden spoon right over his head and he just turned and looked at me. Also, my breeder had drag racing cars (loud and no mufflers) and the whelping box was kept in the garage. No, gunfire is no problem.

And, as for the dove hunting, I usually do it alone or with one other person on the family property. But, it's still probably not the best idea to introduce that type of hunting, so thanks for that input.

Hopefully I'll be able to get him out bumping birds this season though. It sure would be some fun (and cheap, since they're wild birds) and some good sniffin for Justus.

[Wa Chukar Hunter]

Ayres - With respect, gunfire is alot different than a pot banging or a drag racer - and the dog needs to be introduced to it in a fun and controlled environment.

I would recommend netting a bunch of barn pigeons, taking your dog out and pull some of the flight feathers of the pigeon and let the dog chase - after a few times doing this use a blank pistol and work up to shotguns - shouldn't take more than a week to do it.

[Ayres]

Thanks for the advice, WCH. I had planned on doing it that way anyways, just because I'm a precautious kind of fella.

I've noticed that there must be certain frequencies that startle animals more than others. For instance, fireworks and firecrackers didn't phase Justus at all, but the siren of a firetruck did. The booms and clanks of the railroad don't make him flinch an inch, but when the garbage truck clipped the dumpster (boom!) he went ducking for cover.

If I can't get my hands on a cheap starter's pistol, I'll just use the .22 rifle to start with, and maybe have someone with the 20 ga. off in the distance, just to get him accustomed to the sounds of gunfire without it being scary.

[WildRose]

Ayers you're getting some good advice. Kieth is dead on, "noise" is completely different from gunfire, and dogs will generally react a whole lot differntly to them. I know of lots of dogs that will cringe in the face of a thunderstorm that will never think anything of the sound of a gun other than "ohh gooody where's my bird", as well as just the opposite. The proper introductiont to gunfire has to be done skillfully and carefully in order to prevent problems from occurring. Sure, some dogs simply cannot be screwd up, but they are rare.

The introduction to the gun and to birds are the two most critical things you'll ever put yourself and your puppy through, they are also the easiest to screw up and the hardest to fix once you do.

As for dove in general I will never recommend to anyone that dove is the place to start with a ponting dog of any breed, or even a retriever. The conditions during dove season are usually terribly hot, the birds taste nasty, and of course the feathers are loose and stick int he dogs mouth creating a rather unpleasant situation for the dog.

You also have the aspect of the fact that you want your dog to point first, hold, then retrieve after the shot. Again very importan aspects of proper development in a dog. I had a dog here for foiur months this year, a two year old that is incredibly well bred. His owner had started him dove hunting, both simply sitting and shooting passing doves, and walking around shooting those that flushed or flew over. The dog was tought therefore that pointing is not important because daddy will shoot what ever flies. Consequently it took me four months of nearly daily work to get the dog to EVER hold a point for more than thirty seconds and he'll likely be back for at least four to six months more training this year before he's pointing and holding reliably. Multiply those months out by $450 which is on average what his ownder will be spending including birds.

I promise if you ask his owner he'll tell you that he's kicking himself daily for NOT taking my advice and skipping the dove hunt the first year. CR