I got back to dog training today. I started with a jacket on and finished in a short sleeve shirt. I put the e-collar and roading harness on Tur Bo, then hooked the weights to the harness. He’s getting used to pulling the weights but on heel he sometime tries to lead. When he gets ahead I turn 180 degrees. Now he’s pretty fast about getting back in position. We walked the 1/2 mile around the yard going from heel to whoa. This morning I could go both ways around him. I also started going in front with him standing on whoa, raising my hand like a traffic cop, then walking around him before heeling again. Just before I turned him loose to run with the weights, I was able to turn loose of the piggin’ string and walk away from him and he would stay on whoa.
I let him run back to the shed where I took the weights and harness off. The we just hung out for awhile. I put the piggin’ string back on and heeled him to the retrieving bench. About the time he is ready to jump on the bench I command “up”. He walks up and down the bench for awhile and I pet him. I rub his ears and let him smell my breathe. Dogs like to smell your breathe when you are happy. They hate to smell your breathe when you are angry. I rolled the tennis ball down the bench and he retrieved it 3 times then quit. One of the times when I rolled the ball it fell off the bench and I had picked up another. When I put him on the ground, I turned him loose and he found the ball on the ground and brought it to me.
I loaded dogs, pigeons, release traps, check cords, leashes and remotes and we went the county park about 2 miles from my house. After tying all 3 dogs out, I lead Blaze to a different spot than the place I had made them retrieve the ball the last time. I threw the ball and she touched it with her nose and came back. I held the button on the e-collar down on level 2 and walked her back to the ball. She picked it up and returned to where I threw it from. I threw it 7 more times and she retrieved it each time.
I lead Whitey to the same area and tossed the ball. She went out touched it with her nose and returned. I walked her back out holding the button on the e-collar down on level 2. She touched it with her nose but didn’t pick it up. I turned the collar to level 3 and she picked it up. I took it from her when we got back to the area I had thrown it from. About the third time I threw the ball she touched it with her nose but didn’t pick it up. I held the button down on level 2 and walked her to the ball. She picked it up and carried it to the area I had thrown it from. I threw the ball for her again and she did fine for 2 or 3 times then touched it with her nose but refused to pick it up. Again I held the button down on level 2 until she picked it up. Finally I threw the ball 7 times and she retrieved it just fine. Usually Whitey retrieves just fine and I have trouble with Blaze although Blaze retrieves quail better than Whitey.
I put a check cord on Tur Bo so he couldn’t play keep away with the ball. When I threw the ball he dashed out, picked up the ball and retrieved it to me. The third time I threw it he ran out but didn’t pick it up. If I had not had the check cord on him, he would have gone hunting. I took him back to his tie out leash.
I put 2 pigeons in release traps about 75 yards apart. I put an e-collar around Whitey’s flanks, then, because the wind was from behind us, I heeled her down the road to get her on the other side of the birds. With birds out the dogs want to pull but I make them heel as they are supposed to. If they start pulling ahead I turn around. They learn that they have to do it right if they want to hunt.
I heeled Whitey down the road about 150 yards then turned her loose. I had hid the birds in the blue stem pasture but Whitey saw a line of trees and that’s where she wanted to hunt. I called her out of the trees and got her to hunting in the pasture. The wind was swirling around but she hit her first bird and pointed. I walked in front and kicked the cover. I flushed the bird and she never moved. I kicked some more then released her. She pointed her second bird and when I released it she never moved. Whitey is getting this figured out.
I heeled Blaze down the road to get the wind right for her. When I turned her loose, she was wired from seeing Whitey work her birds plus she saw me put more birds out. She was hunting the pasture but she was quite a way south of the birds but I let her hunt. She finally came around and pointed the first bird. I kicked the cover and when I released the bird she didn’t move. I kicked the cover again then released her. She pointed her second bird and when I released it she took a step then stopped. I picked her up and put her back. I walked in front and kicked the cover, then stroked her, then kicked the cover again. Then I released her.
After seeing 2 dogs work birds while he was tied up, and only 9 months old to say Tur Bo was wired was an understatement. I don’t remember how many times I turned 180 degrees as I heeled him to the south side of the birds but it was several. When I turned him loose he was really going. He pointed his first bird but the wind was not exactly right and he moved to get the scent better and I flushed the bird. His chase was short and he went back to hunting. He slammed to a point on his second bird. This time the wind was right and his had and tail were both high. I walked close to the bird and as I watched him his mouth opened and closed like he was chewing the scent. This was the first time that I have kicked the cover in front of him when he was on point. While I kicked he never moved. I stood in one place and kicked but he never moved. After about a minute of me kicking the cover I flushed the bird. He had not moved. He chased for a short way then went back to hunting.
Maybe if I would turn my e-collar way up I could train these young dogs faster but the way I do it works for me and I don’t think I take anything out of the dogs. The dogs hunt for me and always seem to be enjoying themselves.