I was working the English setters almost every day and, I think, doing the same things every day, made them bored with the training. It was hard to get them to do what they knew how to do. I let them have a few days off and they went back to retrieving like I know they can. Babe and Mann still point their birds with enthusiasm, though.
Mann watching a pigeon fly away.
Babe pointing a pigeon.
Mann pointing a pigeon.
Since I had decided the dogs were bored and I gave them a few days off, to prove my point I put the retrieving dummies in the same place. I tossed the nine dummies in a row right in front of the kennels, so all of the dogs could watch the one doing the retrieving.
First I heeled Luke out wearing an e-collar. Luke is nine years old and I don’t expect very much out of him but I enjoy getting him out. I heeled him down the line of dummies and just before we got to a dummy I said, “fetch”. He picked up each dummy holding just long enough for me to take the dummy. When we got to the end I threw the Dokken quail just a short distance for him. He retrieved it 3 times then when I tossed it the fourth time he went back to his kennel. He was done.
Next, I heeled Tur Bo out with an e-collar around his neck. Tur Bo is a free spirit and a fast free spirit. When I send him to retrieve he may get the next retrieving dummy or the last one in line. As long as he retrieves one of the dummies, I don’t care.
When sent this time he got the first one then the second one. The third time he went for the Dokken quail that was the next to last dummy in the line. He’s really proud when he returns. He sits, proudly, grinning as I pet him and tell him what a good boy he is. I held the fake quail until he had retrieved each of the dummies in the line.
The last time when I had thrown a long retrieve, Sally and Tur Bo both had run out but came back without the dummy. I had some frozen quail in my vest in case this happened again. I threw the Dokken quail as far as possible then tossed the Dokken chukar a short distance to the side as he went after the fake quail. He scooped up the quail and came back, in a dead run. He circled me, sat at my side and waited for me to take the quail. I petted him for a few seconds telling him what a good boy he is then said, “give”. He dropped it in my hand.
Waving my hand toward the chukar I had thrown to the side I said, “fetch”. He ran to it and scooped it up and came back. He usually comes in on my right and circles to my left and sits. I pet him for a few seconds then say, “give”. He’s always ready to spit the dummy out. I threw a long retrieve, with a short toss to the side, as he was going after the long one three times, then put him in the kennel.
I heeled Sally out with the piggin’ string and she had an e-collar around her neck. I whoaed her about ten yards short of the line of retrieving dummies. I waved my hand in the direction of the line and said, “fetch”. Sally is a little calmer than her sire. She went right down the line retrieving each one as she should have. She comes right to me, stands in front holding until I say, “give”.
At the end of the line I threw the fake quail as far as I could then tossed the chukar to the side. She ran out, grabbed the quail and came straight back. I waved at the chukar I had thrown to the side and she retrieved it. I did this three times and she retrieved it each time. I still had some frozen quail that I never had to take out of my vest. After letting her play a few minutes I put her in the kennel.
The pups, Babe and Mann, weren’t waiting patiently. They weren’t barking but they were pacing their runs as I worked the other dogs. I put two release traps, with pigeons in them, in three different spots on the training grounds. I mix up how many birds are in a spot. In the past I have placed three traps in a spot, once I had four in one spot and two in another, several times I have had two traps in a spot and once I scattered all six traps out with just singles. This keeps the pups from knowing how many birds are in a spot but to stay on point until I tap them on the head.
Babe pointing a pigeon.
Mann barked while I was hiding the pigeons so I put an e-collar and GPS collar around Babe’s neck and heeled her out with the piggin’ string. She was also dragging a long check cord. I have to work her on the check cord or she will go way to the west chasing, I know not what.
I whoaed her just a few yards out of the kennel, walked out in front of her and called her to me. She came in a run. I had a couple of pigeons in the bird bag so I whoaed her and put one to sleep right in front of her. When I whoaed her she just stopped but when I put the pigeon in front of her, her tail came up. I walked around her kicking the grass. I gently rolled the pigeon over and it flew away. She didn’t move, just watched it fly away.
After a couple more whoa and here sessions I put her on the retrieving bench. I petted her for a while then put a canvas covered bumper in her mouth, just behind the canines. She does a good job holding the bumper. I can step away from her and she will still hold the bumper. It’s time to start having her walk with it. I haven’t tried, yet. I put her on the ground.
I held the check cord as we went down the training grounds. What little wind we had was out of the south. Babe hit the scent cone as we went down the edge on my side. She pointed and I stroked her sides telling her what a good girl she is. I walked in front of her kicking the cover. I flushed the first pigeon. She didn’t move.
Mann watching a pigeon fly away.
I waited for her to realize the bird she was pointing was still in front of her. Then I decided to just stand not saying or doing anything. I watched her as she stood on point. I stood for about 3 minutes, quietly. Once she started to move and I said, “whoa”. After that she stood until I flushed the pigeon. She watched it fly away without moving. I tapped her head and we went back to hunting.
We checked my side out then went to the neighbor’s side. Just before we got to the next set of birds I turned the check cord loose. When she hit the scent cone she pointed. In the past she had been trying to move after pointing. She wasn’t trying to flush the bird but I think she wanted to see it before stopping. This time she didn’t move.
Walking in front of her I kicked the cover but I waited for a while before flushing the pigeon. I flushed the farther bird and she watched it fly away. I continued to kick the cover. I let her stay on point for a couple of minutes before flushing the pigeon she was pointing. She watched it without moving. I stroked her sides then tapped her head.
Again, I held the check cord until we were close to the next set. She pointed when she hit the scent cone. I walked around kicking the cover but waited before flushing the pigeon. She was getting a lot of scent, opening and closing her mouth. I flushed the farther pigeon and she watched it but didn’t try to move. I continued to kick and flushed the next pigeon. She didn’t move. I petted her then tapped her head. I held the check cord until we were almost back to the kennel. I put her in her kennel.
I realized that I still had a pigeon in the bird bag, that I didn’t use with Babe, when I got pigeons to reload the release traps.
Mann on point.
After reloading the traps I heeled Mann out with the GPS and e-collar around his neck, pulling a long check cord. I don’t run Mann on birds with the long check cord but both of these pups have tried to go past me instead of coming to me on “here”. On both pups I was able to step on the check cord when they went past me. Mann tried once and Babe has tried twice.
After doing the whoa and here I whoaed him and placed a pigeon, that I had put to sleep, right in front of him. After kicking the grass the pigeon awoke on it’s own and flew away. Mann didn’t move. We practiced whoa and here a couple of times then I put him on the retrieving bench.
Babe and Mann have both been on the bench the same number of times but Babe is better at holding the bumper than Mann. This time I decided he was going to get better. As Long as I held my hand under his chin he would hold. Today I took my hand from under his chin and he dropped the bumper. I put it back. He dropped it again. I pinched his lip against his teeth. I put it back. He held for a few seconds and I said, “give”. He spit it out.
We went through this six times in six different places on the retrieving bench. He got a little better by the end of the session. He has to learn that there are consequences for his actions. We will continue to work on this. I put him on the ground and released him to hunt without the check cord.
Tur Bo with a frozen quail.
He was gone in a flash. He went down my side to the crossing to the neighbor’s side. He crossed and was far enough ahead of me I knew he would be on point when I got to him. And he was. He was on the west side of a pigeon with the second pigeon hidden in a grass strip I had left in the center of a clearing. I walked in front of him and flushed the pigeon in the grass strip. He knew that wasn’t the bird he was pointing and hardly even moved his head.
I continued to kick the cover and dropped the pigeon in the bird bag in front of him. He flinched but didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the pigeon he was pointing. He didn’t move. I stroked his sides and tapped his head to release him.
We went on toward the back and I was behind but I had a lane where I saw him go on point. When I got to him I stroked his sides then walked in front of him. I flushed the pigeon that was farther away. He raised his head but didn’t try to move. I continued to kick the cover. I flushed the pigeon he was pointing. He didn’t move. I stroked his sides then released him.
I crossed to my side expecting him to be on point but he had hunted toward the front and I had hidden the birds at the back. When I got close he came in front of me and went on point. These birds were well hidden but they were close together. I kicked the cover and flushed one. He didn’t move. I continued to kick the cover and flushed the second. This pigeon came out low and right over his head. He spun around but didn’t try to chase. I turned him back, stroked his sides and released him. We went back to the kennel.
I will put a picture of one of the release traps as I use it. It is completely covered so the dogs have to use their nose to find them. I have finally, maybe, got Babe to quit trying to see the bird by covering the traps, really well.
Trying to out figure the pups is sometimes the hardest part of training dogs. Someone said you have to be smarter than the dogs. Sometimes I’m not that smart.
There is a release trap in there.
Babe pointing a pigeon.
Mann pointing a pigeon.