Luke watching a pigeon fly away
Luke
It rained yesterday, almost all day long, so I didn’t train dogs. The temperature was in the upper 50’s, this morning, with almost no wind. I like to have to grab a jacket before going out to train. Next week if it stays cool I will take these dogs hunting in Kansas. Prairie chicken season is open now and the first of October turkey season opens. Kansas allows turkey hunting in the fall with dogs.
I hid 2 pigeons, in release traps, on the training grounds and brought Luke out with e-collars on his neck and flanks. I started the 4-wheeler and released him with an okay. I have been releasing all 3 of these young dogs the same way for the last month or so and they really run when I release them. I had hidden the first bird about the middle of the training grounds and Luke was south of it on the way through but he slammed into a point on the pigeon at the back. I took pictures then walked in front of him kicking the cover. I shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the pigeon. I shot the blank pistol and he never moved. I continued to kick the cover and shot the blank pistol again. He still didn’t move. I went to him and stroked his sides. I started the 4-wheeler and released him.
He checked all of the cover in the back then worked toward the front. He was almost hidden in the tall grass when he pointed the next bird. I took more pictures then went in front of him kicking the cover. I shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover then flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. He never moved. I continued to kick the cover and shot the blank pistol. He didn’t move. I went to him and stroked his sides telling him what a good boy he is. I tapped him on the head to release him. I let him run for a while before taking him back to the kennel.
Tur Bo
Tur Bo
Luke had had a problem finding the pigeons I had hidden so I moved them. There was almost no wind but I set the birds out for him as if there was a north wind. The way Luke had pointed indicated that the wind was out of the south. Tur Bo was in between where I had moved the pigeon from and where I had moved the bird to. He was looking the wrong way. I took pictures then went in front of him kicking the cover. I shot the blank pistol and he didn’t move. Tur Bo figured out that he was facing the wrong direction but he didn’t move his feet. He turned his head. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the pigeon. He turned around but didn’t chase. I shot the blank pistol then shot it again. He danced a little but didn’t really take a step. I stroked his sides then started the 4-wheeler and released him with an okay.
He was pointing the next bird from about 15 yards showing me that the wind was out of the south. I took pictures then went in front of him kicking the tall weeds. I shot the blank pistol and he didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the pigeon. He took a couple of steps, at the flush, and stopped. I picked him up and carried him back. I kicked the cover and shot the blank pistol then shot it again. He didn’t move. I went to him, stroked his sides and told him what a good boy he is. I tapped him on the head for the release. I let him run before returning him to the kennel.
Blaze
Blaze
I caught up with Blaze as she hunted the first part of the bird field and followed her through the field. She was still moving really fast when she ran by the first bird and got the smell. She was past the bird but she pointed. I took pictures then went in front of her kicking the tall weeds. I shot the blank pistol and she didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the pigeon. I shot the blank pistol and she never moved. I continued to kick the cover then shot the blank pistol again. She still didn’t move. I went to her, stroked her sides and told her what a good girl she is. I started the 4-wheeler and released her to hunt.
Blaze was running the edge and was right on top of the pigeon when she pointed. I took pictures and went in front of her kicking the cover. I shot the blank pistol and she never moved. I thought as close as she was to the bird that she might chase. I flushed the pigeon and shot the blank pistol. She never moved. I continued to kick the cover and shot the blank pistol. She still didn’t move. I went to her, stroked her sides and told her what a good girl she is. I tapped her head to release her. I let her run before going back to the kennel.
There are hunting seasons open for prairie grouse in the north west and with chicken and turkey seasons being open before long in Kansas, I need to be out there. I have had some work that kept me busy for most of the day. I had time to train for a couple of hours but not the time to go hunting. I will be through with the job tomorrow or Saturday. This time of the year it depends on the weather but I should be able to go hunting next week.