Today, I put a roading harness on Tur Bo and attached a weight to each side then walked him to the front of my yard, across the front, down the other side to the back, across the back then up the other side. I have 5 acres and it is 1400 feet deep so he had to pull the weights a little over 1/2 mile. I heeled him with the piggin’ string and as we walked I said whoa and then I would stop. At first when I stopped he wanted to sit, so I tapped him on the head and started walking again. After a few times he quit trying to sit. Occasionally he would be in front of me when he stopped and I would turn 90 degrees and step off. Pretty soon he was watching me and would stop when I did.
At the back of my lot I took the piggin’ string off then let him run still pulling the weights. It took a while for him to quit running in circles, tangling the weights, but soon he lined out. When we got to the kennel I sat down in the door of the shed to take the roading harness off. Then we sat and I petted him.
Then I put the piggin’ string on him and walked him to the retrieving bench. Again he laid down instead of jumping on the bench. I put a little pressure on the piggin’ string and he stood and jumped on the bench. He is comfortable on the bench but I had him walk up and down. I stopped him and petted him several times. Then I rolled the tennis ball down the bench and he retrieved it twice then he would chase it but not pick it up. I took him off the bench and put him on the chain gang.
Whitey
I put a e-collar on Whitey and heeled her down to the retrieving bench and threw a tennis ball for her. She ran out and touched it with her nose and came back. Held the button on the e-collar down, on level 2, and walked her out to the ball. She picked it up and carried it back to where I had thrown it from. I threw the ball 7 or 8 times and she retrieved it every time. When I put her on the chain gang I remembered that I had not turned the e-collar on.
I heeled Blaze with her e-collar on, down to the retrieving bench. I threw the tennis ball 7 or 8 times for her and she retrieved it each time. Sometimes she act as though she likes to retrieve and sometimes not. With enough repetition she may get to like it. I put her on the chain gang.
I have been riding the 4 wheeler around on my neighbor’s land then coming onto my yard and hiding the birds to make the dogs use their noses as well have more places for them to hunt. This morning I didn’t drive on the neighbor’s land. I stayed on my land and hid 2 pigeons in release traps.
I heeled Whitey to the edge of my neighbor’s land, as I usually do. She made 2 circles then headed over to my side. Today I wanted to do something different so before she could point the first pigeon I flushed it and she stopped to flush. She stayed until I could walk to her, stroke her up and praise her. I released her and she went back to hunting. Again when she got close to the other bird I flushed it and she stopped. She is starting to figure this out. I petted her and turned her loose.
I heeled Blaze to the edge of my neighbor’s land and turned her loose. She also made 2 circles and headed to my side. When she got close to the pigeon I flushed the bird. She stopped. I stroked her up and praised her. I released her and she went back to hunting. When she got close to the second bird I flushed it and she stopped. This is the start of being steady to wing and shot. They are not there yet but we have until October or November to get it done.
I heeled Tur Bo to the side of my neighbor’s land and released him. He made 1 circle and headed over to my side. He went to my side so fast that by the time I got over there he was already on point. I was going to flush his birds before he pointed also, to make him think he had to be more cautious. I could see him through the brush on point and I flushed his bird before he could move. He chased it for a little way and started hunting again. When he got close to the second bird I flushed it and it came over his head. He had a long chase on that one.
I always let all 3 dogs have run after the training session just to let off a little steam. They seem to enjoy that.
I think the dogs know that I put the birds out off the 4 wheeler and when they don’t smell the 4 wheeler tracks that the birds are not there. I thought that it would take Tur Bo more time to figure out that the birds were not on my neighbor’s side but it took him less. Does that mean he is smarter? I don’t know.