The meteorologists are saying that it will rain all of this week so I went out early this morning to train the English setter puppies, before the rain starts. Most of the training grounds are extremely wet. One of the release traps was in a small amount of water but it wasn’t deep enough to get the bird wet.
Mann watching a pigeon fly away.
A head shot of Babe when she was pointing a pigeon.
Mann pointing a pigeon.
I had a lot to do today so I only worked the English setter puppies. If I hurry I can get the two puppies worked and still get my other stuff done.
I put 4 pigeons in release traps out on the training grounds, just on my side. It’s too wet to even get to the neighbor’s side. I heeled Mann out with the piggin’ string. He was wearing the e-collar and GPS collar. Just a few yards out of the kennel I whoaed him. I walked in front of him about 50 feet then walked back to him and around to his rear then to his side. I said, “heel” and heeled him away.
After several more yards I whoaed him again. I walked about 50 feet ahead of him, knelt down and called him to me. He came running. I heeled him away. When we got to the retrieving bench he jumped on to it.
We walked back and forth with me stopping every few feet and petting him. After a short petting session I took a canvas covered retrieving dummy, opened his mouth and said, “hold”, placing the dummy behind his canines. He spit the dummy out as soon as I removed my hand from his chin. I pinched his lip against his canine tooth and replaced the dummy. He spit it out. I pinched his lip against his canine and replaced the dummy. He held the dummy until I said, “give”.
I put the dummy in his mouth at 6 different spots on the retrieving bench. Three different times he spit the dummy out. Each time, I pinched his lip against his tooth. Not real hard, not hard enough to make him yelp, but he has to know there is a consequence for spitting the dummy out, before I tell him to. When he did it right I told him what a good dog he is. I set him on the ground.
I left the long check cord off and released him to hunt. The wind was light, out of the south east when we started. At the very back there is a small area that I haven’t been able to mow this year. I had hidden a pigeon on each end of it. He was moving real fast when he hit just a little of the scent cone and whirled into a point. He moved a step closer and went back on point. That surprised me. He usually doesn’t move after pointing. I set him back. I went in front of him, kicking the cover and flushed the pigeon. He didn’t move. I tapped his head.
He went on through the tall grass, hit the scent cone on the next pigeon and went on point. He moved up a step. I set him back, then walked in front of him, kicking the cover. I took some pictures then flushed the pigeon. He didn’t move. I tapped his head and he went back to hunting.
He moved up the field. I had set the release controller for the next bird that we would come to but he was on the opposite side of the field when he went by it. He hit the scent cone on the other bird and slammed into a point, then took a step. I flushed the wrong pigeon but he heard it go. I changed the controller just in time. He took another step and I flushed his pigeon. He stopped and watched it fly away. I took him back to the kennel.
Some of the time when Babe points she wags her tail. Not just a little but like she is really happy. I have been putting her on the whoa barrel to see if I can convince her to point with a straight tail that doesn’t move. When she’s on the barrel I toss pigeons in front of her, from a bird bag.
Babe with the pigeon asleep on the barrel.
I heeled Babe out with the piggin’ string. She was wearing a GPS collar and an e-collar, dragging a long check cord. After walking a few yards I whoaed her, walked in front of her then went back to her and walked around her. I heeled her a few more yards, whoaed her, when I got about 50 feet in front of her I knelt and called her to me. She came running.
I put her on the whoa barrel, snapping a chain to her collar. The first time on it she jumped off but hasn’t tried since. I styled her up, took a pigeon from the bird bag holding it by the feet. As it flapped I turned it loose. She watched it fly away.
The next pigeon I took from the bag I put to sleep and laid it on the ground right in front of her. She watched the pigeon and when I woke it up it just walked around the whoa barrel. She watched the pigeon but didn’t try to move. I moved the pigeon around the barrel. Finally, it flew away.
The next pigeon I took from the bag I put to sleep and laid it in front of her on the barrel. Her tail was twelve o’clock and there was no twitch in it. I took some pictures then woke the pigeon. She didn’t move even when it flew away. I took the last pigeon from the bird bag holding it by the feet. As it flapped I turned it loose. She didn’t move or wag her tail. I set her on the ground.
I put her on the retrieving bench. After walking her back and forth petting her I placed a canvas covered bumper in her mouth. Babe is good at this. She holds the bumper until I say, “give”. After she held it in 6 different places I set her on the ground.
Mann pointing a pigeon.
I took the piggin’ string off but held the end of a long check cord. Babe likes to go to the property to the west. Sometimes a long way to the west. The wind had changed from the south east to the north east. When we got to the first bird she pointed. Her tail wasn’t moving. I went in front of her, after taking some pictures, kicking the cover. I flushed the pigeon and she didn’t move. I tapped her head.
She was farther away from the next bird when she pointed. I went in front of her and she started wagging her tail. I stopped moving and watched her. I stood for several seconds watching her tail. It stopped moving and I flushed the pigeon. This bird was a young pigeon and it fluttered out of the release trap and she was after it. The pigeon flew onto a low limb on a tree. Babe stood on her hind legs trying to get the pigeon. She circled the tree looking up. I untangled her check cord and started her on down the training grounds.
She pointed the next pigeon. Her tail wasn’t moving as I went in front of her. I kicked the cover after taking some pictures. I flushed the pigeon and she didn’t move. I tapped her head.
Sally pointing a pigeon.
She pointed the last pigeon but her tail was moving. I walked in front of her and she quit wagging. I kicked the cover and flushed the pigeon. She didn’t move. I tapped her head and we started toward the kennel.
We were almost back to the kennel and I thought I could let her run a little without me holding the check cord. She came along with me then went to the north. I called her but when I checked the GPS she was moving north and west. I got the 4-wheeler and picked up the release traps and put them in the shed. I rode to the back and called her. She was about 300 yards to the west.
I toned her with the e-collar and called her name. She kept going to the west. I toned her, called her name and hit the e-collar transmitter on medium 2. I waited but the GPS showed her still going west. I turned the transmitter to level 3, hit the tone, called her name and hit the button on the transmitter on medium 3. She kept going. Now the GPS was showing 600 yards.
I moved the transmitter button to level 4, hit the tone, called her name and held the button on the transmitter down on medium 4. She turned towards me. Pretty quickly she was 95 yards north of me and I rode the 4-wheeler back toward the kennel. She got in front of the 4-wheeler and we went to the kennel.
Babe is different from any dog I’ve ever worked with. She is really smart about most things. When I first started working with her she wanted to circle her birds. She hasn’t done that for a long time. But from the first day working on birds she has wanted to wag her tail. She is like she is really happy for finding them. I’m not going to field trial her but I’m still going to try to break her from doing this. To me it doesn’t look good.
Mann has done really well from the get go. He’s normally real steady on his birds. On this training day he moved on his birds but just flushing them when he moves will stop this. Both of these English setter puppies are only a year old. They both will be really good bird dogs, starting this next year, for the rest of their lives, I think.
Mann watching a pigeon fly away.
Babe with a pigeon asleep on the barrel in front of her.
Babe on the whoa barrel.