One of my puppy buyers, Mike Devero and his grand daughter Katie, came by yesterday. I had everything ready to go when they got here. We turned their puppy out for them to play with. I had talked to Katie about using a paint roller cover for the first retrieving dummy for their puppy. I had laid one on a bench near the puppy pen and the wind had blown it off. Before we knew what was happening the puppy grabbed it and ran under a large cedar tree that had limbs hanging to the ground.
Puppies finding the food I threw in the grass.
Josie honoring the backing dog.
Abby honoring the backing dog.
I tried to get close to her and she kept moving away from me. After a few tries I knelt down and called her. She came to me and I picked her up. I worked my way out of the cedar tree and handed the puppy to Katie. Katie petted her for a few seconds then set her down. The puppy ran back to the paint roller cover under the cedar tree. I wended my way back close under the cedar tree. I knelt down and called the puppy to me. She left the roller cover and came to me. When I got out of the cedar tree I handed her to Katie.
When Mike, Katie and their new puppy Millie left the paint roller cover was still under the cedar tree. I could see it from the edge of the tree but there was no way I could get in to get it.
This morning I turned the six puppies that are still here out. I put some adult dog food in the grass near the pigeon houses and near a chair where I sit. The puppies eat the dog food first then start playing. They really like to play under the cedar trees. (I think there are birds that roost of the night in the cedars.) In just a couple of minutes I saw a puppy with the paint roller cover and a couple of pups after her.
I didn’t even try to get the roller cover from the puppies. There were some pretty good fights and first one then another would have the roller cover. After I put the puppies back in their kennel I went out to get pigeons to work the older pups and I could see the roller cover lying near the edge of the cedars. I put it in the shed. I forgot to give Katie another roller cover but she’s coming back Friday or Saturday and I’ll let her have one then.
Today, I wanted to flush more pigeons in front of the young dogs. I got a place board out and put it near the training grounds. I set the backing dog up with two pigeons, in release traps, in front of it. I stopped the 4-wheeler near the whoa barrel with pigeons in the bird carrier. I had two pigeons in a bird bag slung around my shoulders.
I put e-collars around Josie’s neck and flanks and heeled her out of the kennel with the piggin’ string. She was dragging a long check cord. As we went toward the front of my yard I whoaed her several times by hitting the transmitter on med 1 on her flank e-collar and saying, “whoa” a second later. Josie was getting a little slow about whoaing so I moved the e-collar to 2 and hit her with a low 2. That made her hear the whoa command better.
Abby with one of the birds gone from the release trap but there is a pigeon asleep in the grass.
We went across the front then back toward the back. When I got to the place board she wanted to go beside it. I kept working with her. The first time I whoaed her she had 3 feet on and 1 beside the board. That’s okay. She’s not sure I want her to step on the board. I worked her several times and from both directions on the place board. As soon as she stepped on I said whoa. When she was going on with no problem I started tugging on the piggin’ string and saying, “whoa”. She pulled back.
I heeled her onto the place board, held the transmitter button down on 2 low and said, “whoa”. As soon as she stopped I let off the button. She got really good about whoaing and would pull back when I tugged on the piggin’ string. I stood beside her with a hand on the piggin’ string but with slack in the line. I whoaed her and tossed a pigeon in front of her. The first time she wanted to chase but I stopped her from coming off the place board. I waited on her to settle down then tossed another pigeon in front of her. This time she didn’t move her feet. She just watched it fly away. I led her away after stroking her sides and telling her what a good girl she is.
We went past the retrieving bench, crossed the creek and she was anticipating the backing dog as we came around the brush pile. She stopped as soon as she saw the backing dog. I walked around her taking pictures then held the piggin’ string with a loose line. I flushed a pigeon and she tried to follow the bird as it flew toward the house.
Josie on the barrel with a loose chain.
As soon as the first pigeon flew away she styled back up on the backing dog. I stroked her sides and told her what a good girl she is. I walked in front of her then back to hold the piggin’ string. I flushed the second bird and laid the backing dog down. I heeled her to the retrieving bench.
She fell off the bench several weeks ago and it still bothers her. I can pet her on the far end but she won’t stand up. She lies on her belly. I tossed the glove about half way down the bench and she retrieved it. I tossed it the second time about 6 inches past the middle and she scooped it up and came back. The next toss was about a foot past the middle and she wouldn’t go to it. I walked down, tossed it back to the start of the bench and she retrieved it to me but she didn’t have to come past the middle. I set her on the ground.
She jumped onto the whoa barrel. I stroked her up then got two release traps off the 4-wheeler, put them in front of the barrel with pigeons in them, put another pigeon to sleep and placed it in front of her. Josie always looks good when birds are involved. I walked in front of her and she moved up on the barrel to where the chain was tight and her feet were hanging over the edge. I set her back and stroked her up, telling her what a good girl she is.
Josie on the barrel with 2 birds in the release traps and a pigeon asleep in the grass.
Before I could walk in front of her the pigeon that was asleep woke and flew away. Josie lunged at it coming completely off the barrel. The chain let her back feet touch the ground but she was still jumping around. I put her back on the barrel and stroked her up. I must have put her back 4 or 5 times before she calmed down enough to stand with a loose chain. She wanted to lean into the chain with her front feet hanging over the edge. I thought her falling off the barrel would intimidate her but it didn’t.
Finally, she stood with a loose chain and I flushed a pigeon from a release trap. She came to the end of the barrel with her toes hanging over the edge and a tight chain. I held the transmitter button down on medium 2 and set her back. I picked her up and let off the button on the transmitter when her feet touched the barrel. Several times. As soon as I set her down she would move up. I set up back holding the button down on 2 medium. Over and over.
Sometimes she would let me walk between her and the release trap before she moved but she moved. Over and over. Finally she stayed. I flushed the last pigeon and she didn’t move. We’ll see which one gives up first. I took her back to the kennel.
I reloaded the release traps in front of the backing dog and stood it up. I put a couple of pigeons in the bird bag and had 3 more birds in the box on the 4-wheeler. I brought Abby out with the e-collars around her neck and flanks pulling a long check cord.
Puppies like to find the adult food in the grass.
We worked on heel and whoa as we went toward the front yard then across the front and back down to the place board. She was just like Josie. She didn’t want to step on the place board. I worked her onto the board from both directions to get her used to it. When she was whoaing on it I started whoaing her and tugging on the piggin’ string. She pulled back without moving her feet.
When she was whoaing real well I whoaed her on the board and tossed a pigeon in front of her. She didn’t move. I continued to walk her on and off, whoaing her each time she walked onto the board. I tossed another pigeon in front of her and she didn’t move. I heeled her away.
We went past the retrieving bench, crossed the creek and as we came around the brush pile she saw the backing dog and honored. I stroked her sides and then walked around her taking pictures. I flushed a pigeon and she turned her head but didn’t try to chase. I stroked her sides then flushed the second bird. She didn’t move. I heeled her to the retrieving bench.
I had just walked her up down the bench when my neighbor and a friend of his came over. They wanted to see the puppies so I threw my glove down the bench one time and Abby retrieved it. I took her to the kennel and turned puppies out for them.
A puppy saying, “please pick me up”.
After they played with the puppies for a while I put the puppies back and since I hadn’t taken the e-collars off Abby I took her to the whoa barrel. I had picked the release traps up and put them on the 4-wheeler so I reloaded them and placed them in front of her. I put another pigeon to sleep in the grass.
Abby was standing really well and I flushed a pigeon from a release trap for her. She didn’t move her feet. She just turned her head to watch it fly away. As I stroked her up and told her what a good girl she is the pigeon that was asleep woke and flew away. Again, she didn’t move. I stroked her up and flushed the last pigeon. She watched it fly away without moving. I took her back to the kennel.
When I started working with these two young dogs I would have bet that Josie would be easier to break than Abby. I would have been wrong. But with enough repetitions they both will get steadier and steadier, I think. The good part is, we have lots of time before the next season starts.