Old Dogs, Last Hunts

Posted on August 6, 2019 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

I read an article that got me to thinking about the last hunts of some of my old dogs. I’ve been blessed with some good dogs and the ability to still be able to hunt at what some (most) people think is an advanced age. Most of these old dogs pictures aren’t on this computer but I will use what I can find.

Dolly. She used to have a good tail.

Dolly when she was younger.

Lucky

A lot of years ago I had an old English setter that the kids named Scamp. Scamp wasn’t flashy but he hunted really hard and when he went on point he would stay as long as the birds didn’t run off or flush. My son, Ryan, and I were hunting him near Warrensburg Missouri one day when we lost him. This was long before GPS systems. We looked for him for about 45 minutes and found him on point near where we had last seen him.

When we walked in a nice covey of quail flushed. After we shot and Scamp had hunted dead if we got anything, we were talking about Scamp. I said something about him holding the birds for a long time and Ryan said, “He was mad at you. Did you see how he looked at you when we got here”? I hadn’t noticed but I’m sure he was.

Later, when Scamp was old, Dennis Garrison and I were hunting in the same area. We hadn’t been out very long when we noticed that Scamp was running into trees and other solid objects. He was blind. I started back to the truck with him. There was a draw that ran from where we were to the truck and I stated down one side and Dennis was on the other.

Dennis yelled, “dog on point!” I said, “go ahead. I’m going to take Scamp on back to the truck”. “It’s Scamp on point”, Dennis said. I went to his side and we killed the single that he was pointing. I took Scamp on back to the truck. That was his last hunt. He still lived another six months and had a good life.

Mann on point.

Another nice dog that lived a long life was Lucky. Another English setter that was named by my grand kids. Lucky lived to be almost 14 years old and hunted to the end. His last season we were hunting in Kansas on a large property and were finding a few quail. Lucky wasn’t as fast as he used to be but he was happy to be hunting.

This property had some rolling hills and I saw Luke on point near the top of a small mound. He was looking off to the south west and since the birds had been running a lot I tried to circle in front of him but out several yards. Lucky came in front of me and without seeing Luke went on point. He was looking to the west.

I got almost even with him and a large covey flushed about 30 yards in front of him. These birds were at least 75 yards from where Luke had made the original point. I don’t remember whether I killed any or not but I think that was Lucky’s last point. Lucky was a good dog and sired a lot of good dogs.

Another one was Lady. I bought her when she was about 7 weeks old and kept her in the house for a while. Her first year she was a natural retriever until the last day of the season. She quit retrieving and I force broke her to retrieve in about 2 weeks. She became the best retriever I’ve ever had.

Vince Dye and I were hunting near Greensburg Kansas and when we turned dogs loose he said, “I’ll bet you a quarter on the first rooster”. I had just barely agreed when a rooster pheasant flushed in front of us. I knocked it down and Lady went to retrieve. When she just kept going I knew the pheasant was running.

Luke on point.


We looked a few minutes and I checked the GPS and Lady was still moving away from us. I knew she was after the pheasant. We went just a little way and Vince knocked a quail down. As Roxie, his short hair, brought it to him, with the white on the little rooster quail’s head gleaming, Lady brought the pheasant to me. The pheasant wasn’t in any shape to be mounted. She had pulled a lot of feathers but she got the bird. I got my quarter from Vince.

Lady had covered a lot of ground but as she got older she stayed in front of me about 50 to 75 yards. Vince and I were hunting in Missouri and were using several dogs along with Lady. The other dogs were hunting hard and covering lots of ground. As we went down a wide water way Lady pointed. When we went in a covey of quail erupted in front of her. Vince was surprised. “With all of these dogs down she still finds birds, doesn’t she,” he said? I wasn’t surprised. When she said there were birds, there usually were.

Another time Vince and I were near Greensburg Kansas. One of the dogs pointed and as we walked in a covey flushed and flew to my left. I was between Vince and the birds so he didn’t get a shot. I only shot one time and knocked a quail down. Lady saw it fall and went after it. I watched her and as she came back with the bird I saw her head jerk to the side. I told Vince I bet I had hit two quail. Lady brought me the quail and waited for the head then went back and got the other bird. She got the head off that one, too.

When she started retrieving I had started giving her the head off of the quail that she retrieved. As she got older and there were faster dogs she thought she deserved the heads off the quail whether she retrieved them or another dog did. She, usually, got them.

The last hunt that I took her on was near Emporia Kansas. As the other dogs hunted hard and covered lots of ground Lady stayed right in front of me. As we got close to a large thicket that was too thick to go through she went on point. She could no longer hold her tail up but I knew she was on point. As I got close her tail started wagging. She was telling me to hurry the birds are running. When I got close to her I heard the covey flush way ahead of us, in the thicket. I couldn’t see them until one quail flew back over us. When I shot it fell in some tall weeds 40 yards from us.

Three quail and my W.R. Pape side by side.

Lady didn’t see the bird fall and I took her to the area and said, “hunt dead”. It took a couple of minutes but she found the dead bird. I think that was her last hunt.

Then there was Dolly. Dolly was Lady’s daughter out of a son of Grouseridge Reroy. Dolly as a puppy, about six weeks old, would climb the chain link pen to get onto her house because she got more attention than her litter mates.

I would play with the puppies and she would style up and her tail would curl until it hit her back. I knew I didn’t want a dog with a cycle tail, that bad. Every few days I would tell my wife, June, that I was going to get rid of her. She would always say, “you better wait”. As she got older the tail straightened. I’m glad I waited.

I guided for a few years at Bird Fever in Richmond Missouri. I always used Dolly and usually had Lucky along, too. Once, I was using her and had about 4 hunters with me when she pointed looking to the south west. There was a pretty strong wind out of the north east so the wind was hitting her right in the butt. The hunters got ready and I went in front of her and walked out about 15 yards. Nothing. I tapped her on the head and she moved up.

She only moved a few yards but still the wind was behind her. I went back in front and couldn’t get anything to flush. I went back and tapped her on the head and she went about 25 yards, still with the wind, and grabbed a dead chukar and brought it to me. How she could smell that is beyond me but she knew it was there.

Sally honoring Tur Bo.

She was a good retriever but not as good as her mother, Lady. But very few dogs are as good as Lady was.

Last season, I took her to Oklahoma in February. We didn’t find a lot of quail and I don’t remember her making a point but she hunted, for an old dog, well. A few days after we got home I noticed a swelling around her mouth. When I took her to the vet he said she had cancer. And she was in pain. There was nothing that could be done. I rubbed her head as she was put to sleep. That is the hardest thing a dog owner has to do.

I have been blessed with other great dogs. It’s hard to take them to the vet for the last time but that can’t keep us from having dogs. The good times with the dogs far outweigh the bad. I have some young dogs and I’m starting a puppy.

Mann one of my young dgs.

Sally with her pups. I’m going to keep at least one of these.

Babe with the pigeon asleep on the barrel. Another young dog.

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Raising A litter Of English Setters

Posted on July 31, 2019 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

I got up early this morning to get in a little training before the day warmed up and it was raining. Not a hard rain but enough to make everything wet. I decided to tell you about raising this litter of puppies. Sally, the mother of this litter is a granddaughter of Shadow Oak Bo on the top and a granddaughter to Tekoa Mountain Outrage on the bottom. I bred her to Bruce Sooter’s male that is a son of Tekoa Mountain Sunrise on the top and Tekoa Mountain Outrage on the bottom. Sally may be the best bird dog I’ve ever owned. These puppies should be bird dogs.

Sally shortly after giving birth.

Sally and her puppies.

Sally and her puppies.

The first 3 weeks of the puppies life Sally did everything. I gave her a good whelping box in the shed with an air conditioner. The whelping box had a heat pad that the puppies used a lot the first few days. The puppies had been used to Sally being 101 degrees so the heat pad was needed. For several days puppies can not regulate their own temperature. A lot of times, when it was in the mid seventies in the shed, the puppies would be on the heat pad.

I had an indoor outdoor carpet on the floor of the whelping box. The carpet gave the puppies traction to move around from the time they were born. When I checked on the puppies sometimes they would be nursing but a lot of times they would be on the heat pad. And they were able to move from her to the pad within minutes of being born. The puppies can’t see or hear but they can smell. I understand how they smell their mother and go to her but how do they know to get on the heat pad?

The shed was set up with a dog door leading out into a large pen that is attached to the kennels. Sally could get out of the shed whenever she wanted. I fed her a lot more than she was used to getting and she still looked good even while nursing the puppies. The puppies were 8 weeks old yesterday and she is still letting them nurse occasionally. I put her in with them each morning and she stands for them to suck for a few minutes.

At 3 weeks of age I start feeding the puppies. I mix a can of evaporated milk with a can of warm water. To this add a tablespoon of plain yogurt, a tablespoon of honey or Karo syrup and an egg yolk. The egg white isn’t supposed to be good for dogs. After they start eating this pretty well I start soaking some dry dog food in it for a little while before feeding them. Once they start eating the softened dog food I stop the milk and feed them puppy chow soaked in water.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

One of the best things, in my opinion, that I do with all of my puppies is everyone that stops by my house must pet puppies. I even invite people to bring their kids and grandkids over to play with the puppies. Until last Sunday, the most people I had in a day was nine. Last Sunday, at one time I had thirteen people playing with the puppies. These puppies are well socialized.

Some of the people that come over have too much decorum to get on the ground with the puppies but the kids don’t. The kids lie on the ground and let the puppies climb all over them. The puppies can investigate every part of the human and they lose all fear of them. Kids are great for puppies.

Also, at 3 weeks of age, when I start feeding the puppies the milk I start playing a CD from Masters Voice that has gunshots interspersed with music. Master’s Voice makes CD’s for breaking gun shy dogs and just getting dogs used to gunshots. I play the tape each time I feed them and now that they are older I play it morning and evening when I clean kennels.

Another thing I do is put little collars on the puppies with a short string tied to it. For the rest of their life, probably, the pups will be wearing a collar and the little rope will teach them to give to the lead. They pull each other around when they notice the string moving across the ground.

Babe next to the whoa barrel.

The opening in the whelping box that Sally goes in and out through is about 10 inches off the floor. When the puppies get big enough to get out of the whelping box I move them to the kennels. It seems like this litter was younger when they started getting out. I should write down the ages and keep track but I don’t.

Whenever anyone comes over to play with the puppies I usually turn some pigeons loose for the puppies. I started by locking the wings on a pigeon but the puppies got too aggressive, quickly. I started holding the pigeon in my hand until the puppies got close then letting it fly away. Now, at 8 weeks old, I leave a wing loose, to flap, to attract the puppies, then let the bird fly away. They chase for a little way, usually.

A lot of what I do is, nothing. I turn the puppies loose and they run all over and play but they also learn a lot of things. My yard, especially close to the kennels is for bird dogs. Near the kennels is the pigeon coops and a small thicket. The puppies play around the pigeon coop and inside the thicket. Across the yard is a fence row with a barb wire fence that they learn to cross.

My pigeons don’t all go back into their house, immediately. Some sit on their house or drop to the ground to pick waste food. The puppies sometimes flash point, chase these birds or just watch them as they sit on their house. Sometimes it’s a surprise to the puppies when a bird flies. This is easy dog training, I’m just sitting in my chair watching.

Babe with the pigeon asleep on the barrel.

It’s been raining a lot and the pigeon poop that falls to the ground near the pigeon coop smells really good to the puppies. They want to eat it. That can’t be good for them. I started putting the ones that were eating the poop back in their kennel. That didn’t work.

It kept raining enough to keep the poop smelling good to the puppies. I started taking my ball cap off and smacking them on the butt with it. The first day I had to smack every one of them. The second day only a couple. Now, occasionally they slow down close to it but when the puppy sees me coming they run off. It’s raining this morning I’ll see if the hat continues to keep them away from the poop.

To me, this is a special litter so I’m going to keep two females and a male until at least September and work with them. At that time I may turn loose of one or more of them but the longer I have them the more I want to keep them.

White and orange male.

Female.

This female will be going to Oklahoma.

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There Is Cool Mornings, In July, For Dog Training

Posted on July 27, 2019 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

I was able to train dogs, again on Wednesday. The temperature was in the low 60’s for the second morning in a row. I can’t go to the northern prairies to train but these mornings are almost as good. The dogs are always ready but with the cooler weather it’s easier on them.

Tur Bo pointing a pigeon.

Sally on point.

Luke on point.

I hid 2 release traps, with a pigeon and a frozen quail in each, on the training grounds. I worked Sally and Tur Bo on retrieving the frozen quail the last time. The release trap doesn’t throw the frozen quail very far but I hope that it will get them used to retrieving. They have both been force broke but I can’t shoot here so I wasn’t able to work them on just killed birds. They work fine on thrown, frozen quail but they haven’t made the connection to hunting.

I put an e-collar and a long check cord on Tur Bo and heeled him out of the kennel with the piggin’ string. I put him on whoa and got on the 4-wheeler. I had him stand on whoa while I started the 4-wheeler and put it in gear. After a few seconds I said, “okay”. He raced toward the training grounds.

I had hidden one release trap on my side and the other on the neighbor’s side. There was almost no wind and he was close to the first one when he hit the scent cone but he slammed into a point. I took pictures then walked in front of him kicking the cover. When I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol the frozen quail went about 2 feet high and 2 feet away from the release trap. He took his usual one step. I stroked his sides then said, “fetch”.

He’s used to dead birds being farther from where they flushed from than 2 feet. I reeled him in with the check cord and said, “dead bird, dead bird”. He found the quail and brought it to me. I petted him then took the frozen quail and tossed it 10 yards away a couple of times. He raced out and hurried back with it each time. He seems to enjoy retrieving the frozen quail. Enough repetitions and he may retrieve dead birds in the field. I released him to hunt.

What little wind we had was out of the north west and he was going with the wind when he caught a little scent and whirled into a point. I took some pictures then walked in front kicking the cover. This release trap was in some high weeds and when I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol the frozen quail went into the tall weeds.

Tur Bo must have seen the quail and went straight to it. He scooped it up and came to me in a dead run. I petted him then told him to give. He dropped it into my hand. I tossed it twice for him and he retrieved each time. I took him back to the kennel.

After reloading the traps I brought Sally out and put her on whoa near the 4-wheeler. When I started the 4-wheeler and put it in gear I released her with an, “okay”. These dogs know when I have birds out and they are in a hurry to get to the training grounds. The 4-wheeler has to go pretty fast to keep them in sight.

She pointed the bird on my side of the training grounds and I took pictures. I walked in front of her, kicking the cover. When the pigeon was flushed and I shot the blank pistol, the frozen quail didn’t go very far. Sally didn’t move. I stroked her sides and told her to fetch. She went straight to the quail, grabbed it and came back. I stroked for a few seconds then tossed it two times for her. She also likes to retrieve the frozen bird. I think this may carry over to hunting season if I do it enough.

We covered my side then went through to the neighbor’s side. All the way to the back, she pointed. I took some pictures then walked in front kicking the cover. When I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol the frozen quail landed in the tall weeds close to the release trap. Sally went straight to it, grabbed it and came back. I petted her for a few seconds before taking the quail. I tossed it two times for her then took her back to the kennel.

Tur Bo pointing a pigeon.

Luke was next. I don’t even try to get him to retrieve. He’s nine years old and set in his ways. I brought him out and put him on whoa. After I started the 4-wheeler and put it in gear I released him to hunt. He is faster than the others.

Just as I came around the brush pile I saw him go on point at the back of the property. I walked in front of him kicking the cover after taking pictures. He wasn’t getting much of the scent but he had enough to stop but not enough to look really good. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move just watched the pigeon fly away. I released him to hunt.

He checked my side out then went back to the kennel. I rode the neighbor’s side without finding him and when I got to the kennels he was waiting. He has the seniority. If he’s through who am I to argue. I put him up.

I’ve been working Babe on her pointing without wagging her tail. I don’t have a problem with a little wag but she has been wagging like she’s the happiest dog in the world. Other dogs don’t recognize her as being on point. The last time I worked her she didn’t wag much. I had high hopes.

When I brought her out I whoaed her once before we got to the retrieving bench, walked about 25 yards in front of her, knelt down and called her to me. She came in a run. We went on to the retrieving bench. She jumped onto the bench and I petted her.
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I placed the dummy in her mouth and walked her down the bench. She started out being reluctant to walk but she’s getting better. I had her walk down the bench holding the bumper. As she walks I say, “hold”. Hold and whoa sound a lot alike. I should come up with another word but these come to me naturally and she will figure it out. After she carried it several times I set her on the ground.

As we went to the training grounds I held the end of the long check cord. If I don’t she will go to the west a long way. When we got near the first hidden pigeon I turned loose of the check cord. She went a little faster but didn’t try to go off the training grounds. She hit the scent cone and went on point. She was wagging a little but not much. I walked in front of her, aggressively kicking the cover. She stopped wagging and I flushed the pigeon. She didn’t move, just watched it fly away. I stroked her sides, grabbed the check cord and released her.

Sally pointing a pigeon.

Again, about 75 yards from the next pigeon I turned loose of the check cord. She hit the scent cone and pointed. She wasn’t getting a lot of scent so I tapped her head and said, “okay”. She moved a couple of steps and went back on point, with more intensity. I took some pictures. Most of the time her tail wasn’t wagging. Once in a while it made a little movement. I waited for her to quit wagging and flushed the pigeon. She watched it fly away. I held the end of the check cord until we got close to the kennel. I put her up.

When I walked Mann toward the retrieving bench I whoaed him and walked about 25 yards ahead of him then called him to me. He came in a run. We went on to the retrieving bench.

He jumped onto the retrieving bench when I said, “up”. I petted him then placed a dummy behind his canine teeth. He’s not as far along, on the bench, as Babe. He walks but I really have to drag him. I think the “hold” and “whoa” sounding similar is his problem. With enough reps we will get through it. After he carried the dummy a few times I set him on the ground.

He’s hard to keep up with. I turned him loose and he checked my side out then went to the neighbor’s side. He hit the scent cone at the back of the neighbor’s side and went on point. I walked in kicking the cover after taking some pictures. When I flushed the pigeon it flew right over his head and he turned around to watch it. He never tried to chase. I stroked his sides then released him.

He checked all of the neighbor’s side out then went back to my side. He had checked it before but missed hitting the scent cone. This time he found the pigeon and went on point. I took some pictures then walked in front kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move. I stroked his sides then took him back to the kennel.

Luke on point.

Although he has had a lot of birds shot over his points, for a 15 month old dog, I haven’t worked him but a few times with the blank pistol. He doesn’t try to move when I shoot it. The first time he took one step. Since then he’s been steady. Just what he does, I guess.

Sally’s litter of puppies are going to be old enough to start working them on some birds real soon. I have been turning a few loose as the puppies play close to me. When I grab a pigeon and call, they come to me, quickly. I’m also throwing some dog food in the grass by my chair in the shade. When the puppies get close they smell the food and eat. I think, this wakes up their nose. The earlier they use it the more they rely on their nose. Anything I do with the dogs is fun for me and them.

Babe pointing a pigeon.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

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Working English Setters On A Cool Morning

Posted on July 24, 2019 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

Not often in July do we get this kind of cool weather, 60 degrees early, for training my English setters. I have been thinking about more ways to get Tur Bo and Sally to retrieve. One of the ways I had in mind was to put a frozen quail in the release trap with the pigeon. I would need to keep a long check cord on them to grab in case they went away from me with the bird. That was my plan, anyway.

Tur Bo pointing a pigeon.

Sally pointing a pigeon.

Luke pointing a pigeon.

After putting two release traps out on the training grounds with a pigeon and a frozen quail in each I put an e-collar around Tur Bo’s neck and hooked a long check cord to his regular collar. I heeled him out near the 4-wheeler and put him on whoa. I got on the 4-wheeler, started it, put it in gear and told Tur Bo, “okay”. He went toward the training grounds in a dead run.

I followed on the 4-wheeler. When I had to slow to cross the little creek, he gained a lot of ground on me. When I came around the brush pile he was on point about a hundred yards ahead of me. When I got close I got off the 4-wheeler and took some pictures. I kicked the cover in front of him then flushed the pigeon. The frozen quail landed right beside the trap without going very high. The pigeon was a young bird and tried to land close to the trap.

Tur Bo didn’t let it land. He grabbed it before it could hit the ground. I stepped on the check cord and knelt down. I called him to me. Because I was close he came to me. I petted him then held my hand under his mouth and said, “give”. Tur Bo has been trained to give on command but just before he gave me the bird he clamped down on it to keep it from harming me. He dropped a dead pigeon in my hand.

I petted him some more then told him to hunt dead. He did but without much enthusiasm. He kept trying to go farther away from me so I grabbed the check cord. I kept him close telling him to hunt dead. He ran his head into the grass, grabbed the frozen quail and came to me with it. I petted him then took the quail by the legs and said, “give”. He dropped it in my hand. After petting him I tapped his head to release him.

He went toward the back and when he hit the scent cone he went on point. I took more pictures then walked in front of him. He moved up a step expecting to catch another pigeon. I whoaed him then picked him up and set him back. I made him stay on point, as I kicked the cover for a longer time than usual. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. Again, the quail only went up a few feet then landed near the release trap. The pigeon flew away and Tur Bo took his normal step but didn’t chase.

This time the frozen quail was lying in the shorter grass. Tur Bo saw it and brought it to me. I took it and threw it for him to retrieve, again. Tur Bo doesn’t do anything slow. He ran to the quail, scooped it up and raced back to me. I took it and threw it again. He retrieved it. I tapped his head to release him after petting him for a while. I took him back to the kennel.

Sally on point.

I reloaded the release traps and brought Sally out. Sally has been cooped up with the puppies for 7 weeks and for several days before they were born. She was ready to be worked on some birds. She, too, beat me to the first pigeon. As I came around the brush pile I could see her on point. After taking pictures I walked in front of her kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon, the frozen quail and shot the blank pistol. She watched the pigeon fly away without moving.

The frozen quail landed close to the release trap in the tall weeds. I told her to fetch and tapped her head. She must have seen the quail fall. She went straight to it scooped it up and brought it to me. I petted her for a few seconds before saying, “give”. She dropped it into my hand. I tossed the frozen quail a few feet and she ran out, grabbed it and brought it back. I released her to hunt.

She ran down the training grounds and near the back went on point. More pictures then I walked in front of her kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon, the frozen quail only went a few feet, and I shot the blank pistol. She didn’t move. I tapped her head and said, “fetch”. The quail was lying in the shorter grass and she grabbed it and returned. I petted her for a few seconds then said, “give”. She dropped it into my hand. We returned to the kennel.

Luke was next. He doesn’t retrieve so when I reloaded the release traps I didn’t use the frozen quail. I brought him out of the kennel and put him on whoa close to the 4-wheeler. I got on the 4-wheeler, started it and put it in gear. Luke took off in a big hurry. I whoaed him and he stopped. I let him stand for a few seconds then said, “okay”. He was in a dead run in just a few steps.

When I came around the brush pile he was just coming back from the neighbor’s side. The dog’s know when I use both sides because the smell of the 4-wheeler is over there. I hadn’t been over there so the dogs don’t spend much time there. Luke was going with the wind when he passed the pigeon and slid around into a point. I took pictures then walked in front of him kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move. I tapped his head to release him.

Tur Bo on point.

He went on to the back and went on point. After taking some pictures I went in front of him kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. He moved his front feet a little to watch the pigeon fly away. I stroked his sides then tapped his head to release him. We went back to the kennel.

Babe was next. Instead of riding the 4-wheeler I walked Babe toward the back. I put her on whoa and walked about 25 yards ahead of her. I turned and called her to me. She came in a run. We went to the retrieving bench. She jumped on to it.

I walked her up one side then down the other, petting her. I placed a retrieving dummy in her mouth and walked her down the bench, had her turn and carry it back to the other end. The turning was new but she held the dummy with no problem. I walked her down the other side then turned back to the other end. She is holding real well. I set her on the ground.

I released her to hunt but held the end of the check cord because she will go to the west a long way. When we got close to the first pigeon I turned loose of the check cord. When she hit the scent cone she pointed. She has been wagging on her points. Not just a little but like she’s the happiest dog in the world. This morning her tail moved a few times but when I got close it stopped. I walked in front kicking the cover. When I flushed the pigeon she didn’t move. She watched the pigeon fly away without moving her tail. I tapped her head to release her.

She was dragging me down the training grounds so I dropped the check cord. She hit the scent cone and pointed. A couple of slow wags of the tail and she quit moving it. I walked in front of her kicking the cover. Again, when I flushed the pigeon she only turned her head to watch it fly away. I stroked her sides then took her back to the kennel.

Babe on point.

Mann was the last dog to be worked. On the way toward the retrieving bench I whoaed him and walked about 25 yards in front of him. I called him to me. He came in a run. Not as fast as Babe but fast. We went to the retrieving bench. He jumped on to it.

After walking him back and forth petting him I placed a dummy in his mouth. After he took a step I had him give the retrieving dummy. I placed the dummy behind his canines and as he started to take a step he spit the dummy out. I pinched his lip against his teeth and replaced the dummy. He spit it out. I pinched his lip against his teeth and replaced the dummy. He held it while he took a step.

We went to the other side of the retrieving bench and when I put the dummy in his mouth he spit it out before he could take a step. He spit the dummy out 4 or 5 times and I pinched his lip against his teeth each time. Not real hard just hard enough to be uncomfortable. Finally, he held the dummy and took a few steps. I had him hold it several times then set him on the ground.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

This was what he was waiting on. I had worked 4 dogs before him and he wanted to find a bird. I released him to hunt. As I came around the brush pile I saw him go on point. I took pictures and walked in front of him, kicking the cover. When I flushed the pigeon he didn’t move. I stroked his sides then tapped his head. He went toward the back.

He was moving pretty fast when he hit the scent cone and slid to a point. After taking some pictures I walked in front of him kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. This wasn’t the first time I had shot the blank pistol but it has to be only the third or fourth time. When I shot he took a step but stopped without me saying anything. I set him back and petted him. I took him back to the kennel.

This morning while I was working dogs I thought I should put a disclaimer on here. If you have read my posts for a while you know that Mann has been shot over a lot during hunting season and over the chukars I’ve bought. If you’re new to the post it looks like I have only shot over him a few times. Not the case. He is used to gun fire.

What a great life I have been blessed with. During this cool weather I was able to work 5 dogs and get 10 points in my back yard. It’s not as good as a real bird hunt but it’s close.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

Babe pointing a pigeon.

Luke pointing a pigeon.

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