Traveling Pointing Dogs

I put an e-collar, that hasn’t worked in years, on Tur Bo and lead him out of his kennel with the piggin’ string. He has never felt electricity. When I felt him pull on the leash I would go in the other direction. This makes him pay attention to what I’m doing. I lead him to the retrieving bench and told him “up”. This gets him used to jumping when I say up. He already jumps on his house when I tell him to. The retrieving bench is higher than his house so I assist him with the leash.

After he is on the bench I have him walk up and down. I walk up and down, then stop and pet him several times on both sides of the bench. This gets him used to the bench. Dogs like to smell your breathe when you are happy. With a leather glove on, I stick 2 fingers in his mouth just behind his canine teeth. I keep them in his mouth until he stops moving and accepts them. At first as soon as he quits chewing or trying to spit them out I wiggle my fingers and take them out. As he gets used to this I leave them for longer periods of time. Later I will use a retrieving buck and progress to him walking on the bench with it in his mouth. Then we will move to the ground. I like to get ‘hold and give’ real well before we do the trained retrieve.

Retrieving bench and dogs on chain gang.

I then put him on the chain gang and got Whitey out of the kennel. I put a working e-collar on her and made her heel to the retrieving bench with the piggin’ string. She jumped to the retrieving bench and I walked her up and down, stopping occasionally to pet her. She has been through the trained retrieve so I had her do some retrieves on the bench then tossed a tennis ball on the ground for her. I only threw the tennis ball 5 or 6 times. I like to leave them wanting more. I put her on the chain gang with Tur Bo.

Dogs on the chain gang.

I then went through the same routine with Blaze, then put her on the chain gang with the other dogs.

I hid 2 pigeons on the training grounds and put Tur Bo through some more heeling with the piggin’ string on the way to the bird field. This really reinforces the heel command because the dogs know that there are birds to be found and they really want to be turned loose. When I turned him loose he blew through the first part of the bird field without getting close to the first bird. He started pointing at every place he had ever found a bird and I just kept walking. He wouldn’t let me get ahead but he didn’t trust his nose. When we got near the second bird he decided that it was in a brush pile where he had found birds before. He tried to point but he couldn’t get any scent so he would move around to the other side and try again. He did this 4 or 5 times then started hunting another area. He was moving pretty fast when he finally caught the scent and whirled into a point. As soon as he went on point he tried to take a step and I flushed the bird.

We hunted back toward the first bird and Tur Bo was hunting now instead of just stopping at ever bush. When he got close to the other bird he slammed into a point. He was about 75 yards in front of me when he went on point. I watched him as I walked toward him for any movement. He was on the opposite side of the bird than I was and I walked to the bird without him moving. I took some pictures then moved to the side to take some more but that was too much for him. He moved and I flushed the bird. I let him run back to the chain gang.

I put 2 pigeons out for Whitey and worked her on the piggin’ string toward the bird field. She ran by the first bird and slid to a point. I walked in front of her and kicked the cover and flushed the bird. She didn’t move. I walked around some then lead her away, then whoaed her, tapped her on the head and sent her on. She pointed the second bird and again didn’t move even after I flushed the bird. I lead her away, whoaed her and tapped her on the head to send her on. She hunted back to the chain gang.

Then I put two birds out for Blaze and worked her to the bird field on the piggin’ string. She pointed the first bird right off. I walked in front of her and kicked in the cover and she was solid. When I flushed the bird she forgot that she was supposed to stand still. She started chasing the pigeon and I pressed the e-collar on level 3 until she stopped. I didn’t say anything. Finally she stopped and I let off the button as soon as she stopped. When I let off the button she started moving again. I hit the button and said whoa. She stopped and I picked her up and carried her back where she was originally on point. I only said whoa 1 time and didn’t say anything else. I walked in front of her and kicked the cover then slipped the piggin’ string on her and lead her away.

She pointed the second bird and I walked in front and kicked the cover, but this time I made her stay on point longer than usual. Finally I flushed the bird and she didn’t move. I went to her and stroked her up and told her what a good dog she was. Then I went in front of her again and kicked the cover, then lead her away and turned her loose. When we got back to the chain gang I turned the other 2 dogs loose and let all 3 run for a little while before I put them up.

I really enjoy watching young dogs learn and trying to figure out how to get across to them what I want them to learn without putting a lot of stress on them.

I haven’t trained dogs since February 27. On the 28th I guided at Bird Fever in Richmond, Missouri. I worked there a few times this season. The hunters shot more birds over my dogs Friday than I killed all season. Then March 1 the cold and snow moved in and we were trapped in the house. Today I finally got the young dogs out.

I worked Tur Bo first. I put him on the retrieving bench first. Mainly to get him used to being up high. I put 2 fingers in his mouth behind his canine teeth and had him hold them. When he stopped moving and fighting my fingers I took them out. When he is holding my fingers without fighting I will start telling him to hold and when I take the fingers out I will say give. I make sure they get “hold and give” down real well before I go to the trained retrieve. I worked him only about 10 minutes on the bench and most of this was just getting him used to walking up and down the bench. When I took him off the bench I put him on a chain gang, then put out 2 pigeons for him.

When I took him out of the kennel I used the piggin’ string and worked him on heel to the retrieving bench, then from the bench to the training grounds. When he tugs on the leash I turn and go the opposite way. Pretty soon he is watching me to see which direction I’m going next. I have worked him about 4 times and I haven’t told him “heel” yet. So far I just step off and expect him to go with me. Before I put a name to the action he is doing it well.

Tur Bo

I had 2 pigeons hid on the training ground for Tur Bo. The first one he pointed, he was about 10 yards from. Although I usually don’t walk around when he points, I was too far from him to get a good picture. The bird was between Tur Bo and me, so I moved up close to the bird and he never moved. I took some pictures then stood and watched him with my finger on the button of the release trap. He stood for well over a minute then moved his left foot and I released the bird. He pointed his second bird but he moved pretty quick and I flushed the bird.

Tur Bo on the 4 wheeler

I let him run and hunt on the way back to the kennel. When I got close to the 4 wheeler I saw him standing on the seat pointing the cage I use to hold the pigeons that I’m going to use for the other dogs. There was 4 pigeons in the cage. I’ve had dogs stand on the ground and point the pigeons in the cage but this is the first time I’ve had a dog stand on the seat.

Whitey was up next. She is doing real well on her birds. On wild birds she stands and lets me go in front and doesn’t move until the birds get up. Her first pigeon she pointed she stood and let me walk around her and take pictures. When I flushed the bird she didn’t move. I put the piggin’ string on her and lead her away. I released her to find her next bird. She pointed the second bird then moved almost immediately. I released the bird then whoaed her. She stopped and I picked her up and carried her back to where she originally pointed. I made her stand there a couple of minutes then lead her away. I let her run and have fun on the way back to the kennel.

Blaze also holds real well on wild birds but I’m going to get both of them steady to wing and shot. Blaze pointed her first bird and let me kick close to the bird without moving and she stood when I flushed the bird. I lead her away and released her to find her next bird. She pointed her next one and I was able to walk around, take pictures and then release the bird without her moving. She ran and had fun on the way back to the kennel.

If the weather will warm up and my pigeons hold up I will have these young dogs ready for next season. Then if the quail will only make a miraculous come back I will be in good shape.

I worked the young dogs on two pigeons each. I put an e-collar on Whitey’s neck and flank. The pigeons were already in the release traps when I turned her loose. She and Blaze both are less intense on point with the collar on their flanks than without it. But this, through repetition, will take the chase out of them. Some days I will release the pigeons before they can point and they have to stop to flush.

Whitey

When Whitey pointed she stood while I walked in front of her and kicked around. I got in no hurry to flush the pigeon. When I finally flushed the birds she didn’t move. She’s learning.

Blaze was next. She is more reluctant to run with the flank collar but she’s starting to get used to it. The first time she had a flank collar on I was teaching heel and whoa. After she was heeling and whoaing without the e-collar and would heel and whoa most of the time I started using the e-collar on the lightest setting that the dogs could feel. I would stimulate her then say whoa. As soon as she would stop before I could say whoa I would say whoa and only use stimulation if she didn’t stop.

Blaze

Blaze pointed her first pigeon and stood for me to walk in front and kick around. Again I was in no hurry to flush her bird. When I did release the pigeon it came out low and flew right over her head. She turned and watched it fly away. That’s what she is supposed to do. She pointed the second bird and it also flew right back over her. Again she turned and watched it fly away. She is learning.

I put an e-collar on Tur Bo’s neck but he has never felt any electricity. At 8 months old whatever he does is okay. To build desire I let him run and chase birds. At this point I don’t try to walk in front of him or talk to him when he points. When he goes on point I do too. When he points I stop and watch him. At his first movement I release the bird. He must figure out that his moving made the bird fly.

Tur Bo

Tur Bo

On Tur Bo’s first bird he was running pretty fast and slammed into a point. He was on point for 20 or 30 seconds then took a step and I flushed the pigeon. He started chasing and the pigeon landed in a tree. He went back to hunting. His second bird was in a fence row and the wind had changed. When he pointed it he was too close so I flushed the bird. He had a good long chase then came back and went to hunting. Later on I will start walking in front and get him to stand there but right now we both are just having a good time.