Gun Shy or Bird Shy

[mikmant]

I have a 6 1/2 month old French Brit pup I've started working on trapped feral pigeons. I keep them in an old bunny hutch for a couple of days before I've used them. She demonstrated no fear what so ever of the birds while they were in the hutch. She would run around the pen and put her paws up on the mesh to see them and was very excited. The first 6 or seven birds she was exposed to I held in my hand and teased her with them and then let them fly off for her to chase. She loved it. Monday I took her out with 5 pigeons and my buddy came with my shotgun and some primed hulls. The first 3 birds I used she chased like the others and my buddy popped of a couple of primed hulls. Bird one caused her to stop and look at the gun. Birds 2 and 3 she chased like the others and ignored the gun. When I brought out bird 4 she became frightened and hid behind my friend with the gun. It took a good deal of time to get her to even get close to the bird. When I let it fly she ran to hide behind my buddy again who held his fire. When I took out bird 5, she sniffed it a little bit but wouldn't chase when it flew.

She didn't seem afraid of the gun, she seemed afraid of the bird but I have no idea what may have spooked her.

How should I proceed?

Mike
New Hampshire

[bonasa]

Were these the pups very first birds? How far was the gun from the dog on ignition? To much to fast. Id go back and focus on establishing the bird drive for the time being. I wouldn't be in a rush about introducing the gun yet until she is hunting birds as it is her job.

[snips]

Were these the pups very first birds? How far was the gun from the dog on ignition? To much to fast. Id go back and focus on establishing the bird drive for the time being. I wouldn't be in a rush about introducing the gun yet until she is hunting birds as it is her job.

+2
Object is start with a blank, and only after she is back trusting u and the birds...Once bold, and giving chase pop one...One...The next time u may not even shoot, they need to know a bird does not mean noise. But is fun, once they are having fun then try it again...Or just wait a couple of months and let her grow up some and hav fun with birds....

[SetterNut]

You are getting good advice.
Put the gun away for now. You are creating a problem with it.
Get the excitement back in the dogs for birds. That is your safety net in training.

[gonehuntin']

You are getting good advice.
Put the gun away for now. You are creating a problem with it.
Get the excitement back in the dogs for birds. That is your safety net in training.

+1, no gun. Try some clipwings she can catch. Throw the clippie and send the dog. Nothing excites a dog more than handling a bird.

[Wildweeds]

I'd stop the speed train method with 5 birds also......................... one bird and done,make her want to WANT em!

[mikmant]

To all who responded, thanks for the advice. I thought she was progressing really well. The birds I was shooting over were not her first exposure. And we were only popping shotgun primers at about 25 yards or so. I thought I was pretty safe. I'll put the gun away for a while and let her chase some clipped pigeons. Does anybody have a link or picture of how to put rubber bands on their wings or clip them?

Mike
New Hampshire

[Mike50]

If you have a big enough training area. You could just pull 5 flight feathers off each wing toss the bird a let him chase. The bird will fly 50 yds or so then land on the ground provided there are no trees around. If you time it right and you get to the bird when your pup does just take the bird and give it a rest while you and your pup walk around. After a little while do it again. If you clip the wing or put a rubber band around the wings there's no chase other than how far you can chuck a pigeon.

[4dabirds]

To rubber band the wings just double them up and put them above what would be the elbow. It is easer to do with a helper . They can fly a good distance this way but not so far that the dog will not catch them, which is good since you are trying to build drive into the dog. When you are ready to intro the gun do not think of it as an acclimation to gun fire. What you are trying to do is to create an association with gunfire. This association should be subliminal. The dog should not respond to the gunfire only to the bird . The gun should be far enough, at least a hundred yards, so it does not effect the dog. If the dog responds to the gun in any way you are too close and should stop or move to a distance that is acceptable. Fire the gun when the dog is in the act of catching the bird. This will be the point of greatest distraction for the dog and the gun will be least likely to be noticed. If the gun is too close and the dog is startled it will make the association you have now.Stretch this out over multiple sessions gradually moving closer to the dog. When the dog is responding well on the 22 repeat moving up through the gauges one at a time. When this is done properly the dog will associate the gun with the bird in a positive way. Be sure that you have had enough repetitions without the gun to create a positive association with birds first before returning to the gun.

[mikmant]

So I've been taking the pup back out into the field with some feral pigeons. I'll put a rubber band on one wing and pretty much played fun retrieve with it. She's crazy to get the pigeon and brings it back for another go every time. She hasn't mauled any of them yet. I'll use the same bird for 5-10 tosses then I'll take the band off its wing and let it fly. She chases about 50% of the time when the bird flies off. I think she's figured out that if its flying she can't get it. I've done this 3 times with 2-3 birds per session. She's had maybe 40-50 retrieves this way. How long do you think I should continue before I try to reintroduce the gun?

She ran into her first ruffed grouse today.

Mike

[4dabirds]

I would not be in a rush . As long as the dog is aggressively chasing birds it will be distracted enough at the moment of the catch to not notice the gun fire as long as it is far enough away . This should be subliminal for the dog. If you are a hundred yards away the dog should pay it no mind. If the dog shows any sign of even acknowledging the gun ,back off and go back to birds alone. If the dog does not notice the gun do a couple of repetitions and quit. Considering your previous experience you can not be too cautious.Take it slow and do it over several training sessions.

[gonehuntin']

I wouldn't for at LEAST a month. Not until the dog is totally bird crazy. Do NOT intro the gun with a blank pistol; they are much louder than a shotgun unless you wrap something around it and muffle the sound.

A .22 riffle is OK, pointed BEHIND you.

From there, I'd go 410 or 28, then the 20. Never direct the blast AT the dog, always away or behind you.

There is NO rush to into the gun. Get the dog bird crazy first. Once feathers start growing from her ears, then into the gun. Everyone is in too much of a hurry. There is no hurry.