On December the seventeen, on a real cold day, I was cleaning kennels and was on my last one when I slipped on the ice. I landed on my back hitting my head. A couple hours later I noticed my vision wasn’t right. I had double vision. I went to the ER and they did a CT scan and didn’t find anything wrong. I still have double vision.
Sally on the bench and Betsy on the chain gang.
Sally pointing a pigeon.
Betsy pointing a pigeon.
On Monday I went to Silverstein Eye Center and they gave me a prescription for some lens covers for my glasses that help on the double vision for distances. For reading or near I have to take off my glasses and close one eye to see. This put a stop to my hunting until my vision heals. I did work some young dogs yesterday and walking, even on ground that I have crossed hundreds of times, is still an adventure. Working dogs is not as much fun as bird hunting but almost.
I got Betsy on her house and put an e-collar around her neck and flanks. I heeled her around my yard heeling and whoaing her. When we got close to the retrieving bench I had her jump on. I walked her back and forth petting her every few feet then put her on the chain gang.
I took her flank e-collar off, had Sally jump on her house and put the e-collar around her neck. Sally is 6 months old and I won’t stimulate her with the e-collar but I want her to be used to wearing it. I usually just turn her loose but today I started her on heel and whoa. I put a piggin’ string on her and started heeling her toward the front of my yard. When she charged ahead I turned to the rear. When she charged to the right I went left. We went from the kennel to the front edge of my yard then back to the back. My yard is almost a quarter of a mile deep and when we got to the back she was heeling fairly well. It had been a rodeo for a while but after she was heeling pretty good I would stop. She was ready to stand at my side. After I do this for several days I will give her a command. At this time she is waking when I do and stopping when I stop.
When we got back to the retrieving bench I had her jump on it. I hooked her to the cable that runs from end to end and the first thing she did was jump off. She is long enough to touch the ground but she was happy when I helped her back on. I walked her back and forth petting her every few feet. I put her on the ground and heeled her to the chain gang.
She has jumped off before. I didn’t think she would jump again. I don’t let my dogs jump off the bench. I always put them on the ground. I don’t want them to think they can end a training session whenever they want.
Betsy pointing a quail.
I put 3 pigeons, in release traps, out on the training grounds and turned Sally loose. She still had the e-collar on but it was just to get her used to wearing one. Betsy has to wear a check cord because she sometimes decides to hunt longer than I want but Sally only has the e-collar.
I followed her on the 4-wheeler. I had 2 birds hidden on my neighbor’s and one on my side of the training ground. My neighbor’s side has 3 areas that I usually hide birds in but today I hadn’t hid any in the first area. I like to try to fool the dogs so they have to hunt hard to find the birds. She checked every place I had ever hidden a bird in with no luck and went into the second area.
She hit a little bit of scent, from on a long distance, and took a couple of steps and went on point. I took a couple of pictures then got off the 4-wheeler. I took more pictures. As I started in front of her she took a step and I flushed the pigeon. When I last worked her, on pigeons, she would let me kick in front of her but because of my bird hunting I haven’t worked her on pigeons for a while. She doesn’t chase very much. She just runs in and smells the trap then goes back to hunting.
Sally pointing a quail.
She hunted toward the back. There are a lot of places, that I have hidden birds, that she must check. She hit the scent cone on the second bird, at about 20 yards, and slammed into a point. I took pictures. As I started in front of her she started toward the bird. I flushed the pigeon. She ran to the trap, smelled it and went back to hunting.
She checked out my neighbor’s side then we crossed to my side. I had hidden this bird over a bank and she passed it the first time. The second time she came by she was close to it when she pointed. I took some pictures from the 4-wheeler and sat watching her. After about 30 seconds she moved and I flushed the bird. She hunted back and I put her on the chain gang.
I reloaded the release traps. I had taken the e-collar off Sally when I put her on the chain gang so I put it on Betsy’s flanks. She likes to get away from me so I put a long check cord on her. I led her to the bird field then turned her loose. She’s not used to the check cord. She’s not sure if she should go hunting or heel. She stays just in front of me about 20 yards until we hit the first bird field. Then she forgets the check cord. She went into the second field moving rapidly. She hit the scent cone and locked up. I walked to her taking pictures and rubbed her sides and her belly telling her what a good girl she is. She hasn’t had any bird work for a while either. After she stood for a while I flushed the pigeon. The pigeon flew toward it’s house and she was right behind it.
I was afraid that was a good way for her to get away from me but after about 150 yards she turned and came back. She had forgotten the check cord. She was going 90 to nothing when she hit the scent cone on the second bird. I took pictures and went to her. I stroked her sides and belly. She started to take a step and I picked her up and set her back. I stroked her some more then flushed the bird. She chased a little way then came back.
She was still running hard. When we got to the bird on my side it had already been flushed. I must have pushed the button when I was wanting to flush one of the others. She hunted back to the kennel where I put her up.
Sally likes to run in front of the 4-wheeler so I turned her loose and let her run for a while. Working dogs is almost as much fun as bird hunting. I got 5 points in my back yard and I got to be with my dogs.
Sally pointing a pigeon.
Betsy pointing a pigeon.
Sally on another pigeon.