Sending dog to a trainer

[KurtR]

It's a real thing. The dog usually has ribbons to show for it.
View attachment 498256

Finished is the ukc/hrc title. Mh is akc . So I was being a smart ass . I have a hrch and going to get our mh this summer.

 

[deadi]

Years ago I had a high strung GSP and an e-collar. Several kennel owners told me to give her time without the collar, obedience train her, teach her to woo on a table, and then hunt her lots. finishing the training as I hunted her. Turned into a great hunter and pal. I think dogs need time to learn and to me that's not two short sessions each day that the trainer gives them. I really do not like how so many trainers immediately go to an electronic collar. Unless it is bad bloodlines, patience and repetition normally works just fine. E-collars appear easier than giving the dog time to learn, and I wonder what impact that also is having on the dogs natural ability since we do not know what the dog is thinking when we shock it. Granted self training takes time and effort, especially introducing to live birds. Several dogs later that process is still working. If you can carve out the necessary time daily the reward is fantastic. That's it for my rant.

 

[Tobias]

I have been using upland institute. Have launchers, pigeons easy access to flight ready quail. I just don't have the time in winter for the bird work. Twice a week is about all I can get in. The trainer I would use does training twice a day for 6 weeks. That is a whole lot more bird contact and work than I can do in that time and the main reason I want to send her off

How's the upland institute? Worth the price? Seems like a quality program but haven't found really any reviews to justify it

 

[loganwayne]

How's the upland institute? Worth the price? Seems like a quality program but haven't found really any reviews to justify it

It's pretty good. Most of the "puppy" training is pretty much common sense for someone who has had or trained a dog before, but good for someone who's never had a dog before. As I'm working into the more advanced training stuff it seems to be good information.

 

[KenLee]

I've been working with her for several months and her progressed had slowed some. So this morning I decided I'd shot a few for her. She's been gun conditioned. Well I think her watching it bust and then shot she finally put it together and I saw some pretty good improvement this morning.

Something that I gotta work on is she doesn't want to retrieve a dead bird she just goes and points it again. I think some more time with birds and she will figure it out.

Some dogs take awhile for "dead bird" to flip a switch for them. She'll get it.

 

[sconnieVLP]

Dog s that run tests can dogs that just hunt can’t . There is never been a dog that has competed at the top that won’t do everything meat dog will and do it better. I hear the same bullshit I don’t need a field trial dog. Don’t worry you won’t you don’t have the dog with the talent or the knowledge on how to make an all age dog.

I know I’d rather hunt over my dad’s field trial dogs than just about any other dog. Didn’t realize growing up how spoiled I was duck and pheasant hunting with labs that had enormous amounts of training and time stuck into them. Knock down 4 ducks and now the dog needs to do a quad from memory? No problem. Need to send him on a long blind for a winged bird? No problem. I’m immediately suspicious of someone who bought a lab and immediately declares it a hunting dog.

Plus, field trials and hunt tests are just cool. My favorite part of bird hunting has always been the dogs and getting to see them work so the “games” are a cool way to do it year round. Just waiting for the day when my life supports a lab of my own.

 

[loganwayne]

The breeder I got our pup from invited me to come to a field trial last weekend. It being my first trial ever and not knowing what to expect I just entered her to get a TAN pass. This little girl is pretty shy about new people and dogs and I was nervous how'd she handle everything, and I was nervous with her breeder, 5 UKC judges, several well know trainers and the president of the breeds US club standing by and watching her and the other pups.

As soon as I unclipped her lead and told her to hunt them up she was gone like a bat outta hell. She made three loops out searching, hit the birds scent made a hard 90 degree turn and went 15 yards and locked up on point. At this point she's 70ish yards away, she held point as I kicked around for thr bird and it flushed then took off after it and when it hit the ground she was 15 ft behind right back on point. Not to bad for an 8 month old pup that has only had 2 days worth of contacts with quail.

Everyone seemed to be impressed and the judge told me I should have had her entered in the gun dog class.

Time to really buckel down with her training.


Best part of the weekend though was watching a 10 year old girl work her dads dog in the open class with 10 other people in it and win. Then go back and get HER dog that was a 1.5 old that she trained and then win the gun dog class beating out 35 other dogs.

 

[*zap*]

^ awesome, congrats.

 

[loganwayne]

Just thought I'd update this. We ended up doing a training day once a month. Pup is becoming a hell of a bird dog. Still working on picking up and returning a bird to hand. But she's a year old so still a little early in my opinion to force fetch.

Training days always wear her out and she passes out on the 3hr drive home.

 

[johnnycake]

Just thought I'd update this. We ended up doing a training day once a month. Pup is becoming a hell of a bird dog. Still working on picking up and returning a bird to hand. But she's a year old so still a little early in my opinion to force fetch.

Training days always wear her out and she passes out on the 3hr drive home.

Way to go! There's a ton of different force fetch methods, so take some time on YouTube, and in person if possible, seeing what's out there and what you think will work best for you and her.

 

[loganwayne]

Way to go! There's a ton of different force fetch methods, so take some time on YouTube, and in person if possible, seeing what's out there and what you think will work best for you and her.

Ya the trainer is hopeful we won't have to. She is very ball/toy driven. But once a bird stops moving she's done with it

 

[Dos XX]

Just thought I'd update this. We ended up doing a training day once a month. Pup is becoming a hell of a bird dog. Still working on picking up and returning a bird to hand. But she's a year old so still a little early in my opinion to force fetch.

Training days always wear her out and she passes out on the 3hr drive home.

My brittany was a little over a year old before he started retrieving dead birds. He would retrieve Dokken dummies in the back yard fine. I then moved to frozen quail, and he was just ok at first. I then started throwing Dokken's twice then a frozen quail. Then a Dokken once followed by 2 frozen quail tosses. Then I moved to 3 frozen quail tosses. He was still tentative about picking the frozen birds up and would often pick them up and drop them or carry them 1/2 way back to me.

We went on a pheasant hunting trip. The first day we had a least 5 dogs on the ground and sometimes 6 or 7. Every time we shot a bird, their was a dog mob running to the downed bird. They would compete to see which one got it. On the second or third bird on the first day, my dog dog came out of the mob with the pheasant in his mouth and he wasn't giving it up to any of the other dogs. He didn't retrieve it to me, though. I think he was intimidated some by the other dogs. He did however, freely give me the bird when I walked up to him. This went on for 3 days. He would run out there with the other dogs and pick up the dead bird with enthusiasm like I had never seen from him. He ended up with 3 or 4 birds in his mouth every day.

The next weekend after we got back from the pheasant hunt, I took him up to a preserve and shot some quail. He ran out to the first one I shot and picked it up and brought it half way back to me. I walked out to it and picked it up and threw it. I could see the light bulb go off. He ran to it, picked it up with no hesitation, brought it back and dropped it at my feet. He retrieved the next 2 birds like he had been doing it all his life. It was like he finally got it. It was awesome.

You might try getting her in a position to be with some other dogs that will retrieve and see if the competition will get her picking them up with enthusiasm.

 

[loganwayne]

@Dos XX thats what im hoping for at first it was only a tennis ball then we went to a cloth bumper then a dokken then I've been injecting the dokken with bird scent

 

[ianpadron]

Ya the trainer is hopeful we won't have to. She is very ball/toy driven. But once a bird stops moving she's done with it

I had a similar issue with my now 2 year old Britt (who enjoys the same belly up position riding shotgun btw lol).

Just like the fellas dog above, my pup decided one day to start fetching birds and bringing them to hand.

Up to that point he'd be lights out until the bird was dead, then straight off to find the next live target.

Was just about to start him on FF when he figured it out all on his own during a quail hunt just before his 1st birthday.

He's 2 now and is more excited about the retrieves than my 6 year old field Golden (unless cold water is involved haha).

Keep at it, and good on ya for learning how to train your dog...they are so dang naturally talented, it really doesn't take much to have one helluva bird dog.

 

[CobraChicken]

I know this is old but for what it's worth, we have two bird dogs. They bond with you quick. We sent our first dog for 6 months and the new one for 5. They remember you and love toy even more, especially when you bond while hunting.

 

[loganwayne]

I know this is old but for what it's worth, we have two bird dogs. They bond with you quick. We sent our first dog for 6 months and the new one for 5. They remember you and love toy even more, especially when you bond while hunting.

my wife got covid right after we got here so they were together 24/7 for three weeks.

She has slowly moved to wanting to be by my side now because we are always training doing "something fun"

 

[loganwayne]

@Dos XX @ianpadron
Yall got me thinking. Shes competitive with our other dogs and always trying to beat them to the ball. so i switch the ball with a quail. first time she got to it she just stopped and stood over it, old dog caught up grabbed it and brought it back. next three times she grabbed it up and was playing keep away from the other dog.
I'll take that for now. i got plenty of kill quail to keep working on it.