- Joined
- Jan 23, 2016
- Messages
- 2,143
Hello and good "morning" from Scandinavia 
So exited that you girls are asking about the dog training!! No one ever asks! Or... they don't get to asking before I start talking about it, more likely... lol. Even able to sneak it into a few business meetings - but only if I know they are interested in dogs and are active training their own, I promise
So. Basics first. There are two different types (not breeds) of bird dogs. One that is "setting" the bird, and one that is just frightening the bird. Here, we are talking about the "setting" type. These you often know as English setter, Irish setter and Gordon setter. However, Pointers, German shorthair/wirehair/longhair (Vorsteh) and others are similar in the way that they hunt. They (are supposed to) run in a wide S formation across the path that the hunter (i.e. me) walks. Depending on wind direction, the dog should cross from left to right to left etc to search the terrain on 200-500 meters on each side of the human. (If there is a tailwind, the dog should first run straight forward for approximately the same distance, and then cross back towards the hunter, so that the dog always has the wind in its nose to catch the scent of any birds hiding there). (If there is a sidewind, the dog should first run out away from the wind, and then cross back and forth in the same direction that the hunter is walking, so that the wind is still in its nose whilst searching).
So - first search. That is key - both for points/prizes, and also for finding birds.
Second - finding the bird and stopping - rather fast so that the bird is not scared away - and "setting" the bird by "pressuring" it to hide. The bird is programmed by nature to hide or fly. We want hide at this point. If the dog goes in too fast and / or gets too close, the bird will fly off. The hunter will see the dog looking like a statue and start to walk towards the dog.... (daddaddada... scary movie music begins in the background...)
Third - raising the bird. When the hunter has found the dog and huffed and puffed his/her way up to it (you can bet the bird is in some remote location that is almost a climb to access and you will be very very out of breath before you get there...) So - the dog - stands there (hopefully!!) waiting for the hunter and the bird (fingers crossed !!) is "set" hard enough by the dog to stay there also... Until the hunter gives the dog the signal ("YES!!") to run forward, scaring the bird into flight. Hopefully. Some dogs refuse sometimes, as they prefer to stand there looking at the bird to the bird disappearing..
Four. Here comes our problem. Sitting. As soon as the bird is airborne, the dog is supposed to SIT. Or stand, but remain where it was when the bird started flying. As opposed to FLYING AFTER THE BIRD... as my little bird dog prefers.. she has misunderstood the "bird" part of bird dog... Also - a shot must be fired to prove that the dog remains still at the shot. If there is a national championship (once a year), the shot is for real and the dog should also remain still whilst the bird drops and then retrieve the bird at command. However, we are not there... LOL. So for us, there is only a mock shot with a start revolver, like they use for the 100meters for humans
So no dead birds, just for fun. And for using and training the dogs for what they are made for. There are other tests and competitions too, that involve retrieving, also in water etc, but we are not doing those.
The competitions send out two and two dogs, they are to take no notice of each other. Also important to avoid an early lunch.. Normally two judges, to be more fair and to be able to follow both dogs if one of them finds a bird and the other is going off somewhere else.
So - last winter we were sooooo close. First day - she accidentally sent a bird flying by running in too fast - and I did not see her do it, she was on the other side of a hill, so I could not ask her to sit. One of the judges was on the top of that hill however, accompanying the other "hunter" who had to go look for his dog because it had been gone a bit too long and they wanted to see if it had found a bird and that was why he was not returning. Nope. My baby found the bird.. So that was that, as they say... Early lunch.
Next day. One accident coming in too fast and scaring a pack of birds into flight. She sat down but a few meters too far. But only one judge that day, and he was a bit behind me so he did not see that. So far so good in other words. Then - I forgot to shoot. My friends will never let me forget that. Never. I thought that she had run too far so I gave up and then the judge said "why did you not shoot and ask her to sit??" Oh my. Third day. No birds before lunch so not sent home early, LOL. Actually, far into the afternoon without seeing anything for any of the dogs. Then my little baby found something faaaaaaar up a mountain side. Climbing more than skiing to get to her. Had to give the gun to the judge because it was dangerous enough without that in my hand. Bird. Flying. Sitting. A shot. then more flying. By the dog after the bird.... Even the judge yelled "sit you bad bad dog, SIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTT". I think it is not a good sign when even the judge calls for her to sit...
He was almost as disappointed as me, as she was the only one with a chance at a prize that day and - oh just horribel. I'm not a good looser. I should have yelled SIT as the shot was fired, but she has NEVER cared about that before, so I just said "good girl" because she was sitting there so beautifully when the bird took flight. STUPID ME.
So - that brings us to the training and renting the training terrain and me getting a start revolver for my birthday... LOL
Never give up!!!
EDIT: have you heard the joke about what to do when the dog misbehaves? Role up a newspaper and hit - YOURSELF - really hard in the head for not being a very good trainer!
So exited that you girls are asking about the dog training!! No one ever asks! Or... they don't get to asking before I start talking about it, more likely... lol. Even able to sneak it into a few business meetings - but only if I know they are interested in dogs and are active training their own, I promise
So. Basics first. There are two different types (not breeds) of bird dogs. One that is "setting" the bird, and one that is just frightening the bird. Here, we are talking about the "setting" type. These you often know as English setter, Irish setter and Gordon setter. However, Pointers, German shorthair/wirehair/longhair (Vorsteh) and others are similar in the way that they hunt. They (are supposed to) run in a wide S formation across the path that the hunter (i.e. me) walks. Depending on wind direction, the dog should cross from left to right to left etc to search the terrain on 200-500 meters on each side of the human. (If there is a tailwind, the dog should first run straight forward for approximately the same distance, and then cross back towards the hunter, so that the dog always has the wind in its nose to catch the scent of any birds hiding there). (If there is a sidewind, the dog should first run out away from the wind, and then cross back and forth in the same direction that the hunter is walking, so that the wind is still in its nose whilst searching).
So - first search. That is key - both for points/prizes, and also for finding birds.
Second - finding the bird and stopping - rather fast so that the bird is not scared away - and "setting" the bird by "pressuring" it to hide. The bird is programmed by nature to hide or fly. We want hide at this point. If the dog goes in too fast and / or gets too close, the bird will fly off. The hunter will see the dog looking like a statue and start to walk towards the dog.... (daddaddada... scary movie music begins in the background...)
Third - raising the bird. When the hunter has found the dog and huffed and puffed his/her way up to it (you can bet the bird is in some remote location that is almost a climb to access and you will be very very out of breath before you get there...) So - the dog - stands there (hopefully!!) waiting for the hunter and the bird (fingers crossed !!) is "set" hard enough by the dog to stay there also... Until the hunter gives the dog the signal ("YES!!") to run forward, scaring the bird into flight. Hopefully. Some dogs refuse sometimes, as they prefer to stand there looking at the bird to the bird disappearing..
Four. Here comes our problem. Sitting. As soon as the bird is airborne, the dog is supposed to SIT. Or stand, but remain where it was when the bird started flying. As opposed to FLYING AFTER THE BIRD... as my little bird dog prefers.. she has misunderstood the "bird" part of bird dog... Also - a shot must be fired to prove that the dog remains still at the shot. If there is a national championship (once a year), the shot is for real and the dog should also remain still whilst the bird drops and then retrieve the bird at command. However, we are not there... LOL. So for us, there is only a mock shot with a start revolver, like they use for the 100meters for humans
So no dead birds, just for fun. And for using and training the dogs for what they are made for. There are other tests and competitions too, that involve retrieving, also in water etc, but we are not doing those.
The competitions send out two and two dogs, they are to take no notice of each other. Also important to avoid an early lunch.. Normally two judges, to be more fair and to be able to follow both dogs if one of them finds a bird and the other is going off somewhere else.
So - last winter we were sooooo close. First day - she accidentally sent a bird flying by running in too fast - and I did not see her do it, she was on the other side of a hill, so I could not ask her to sit. One of the judges was on the top of that hill however, accompanying the other "hunter" who had to go look for his dog because it had been gone a bit too long and they wanted to see if it had found a bird and that was why he was not returning. Nope. My baby found the bird.. So that was that, as they say... Early lunch.
Next day. One accident coming in too fast and scaring a pack of birds into flight. She sat down but a few meters too far. But only one judge that day, and he was a bit behind me so he did not see that. So far so good in other words. Then - I forgot to shoot. My friends will never let me forget that. Never. I thought that she had run too far so I gave up and then the judge said "why did you not shoot and ask her to sit??" Oh my. Third day. No birds before lunch so not sent home early, LOL. Actually, far into the afternoon without seeing anything for any of the dogs. Then my little baby found something faaaaaaar up a mountain side. Climbing more than skiing to get to her. Had to give the gun to the judge because it was dangerous enough without that in my hand. Bird. Flying. Sitting. A shot. then more flying. By the dog after the bird.... Even the judge yelled "sit you bad bad dog, SIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTT". I think it is not a good sign when even the judge calls for her to sit...
He was almost as disappointed as me, as she was the only one with a chance at a prize that day and - oh just horribel. I'm not a good looser. I should have yelled SIT as the shot was fired, but she has NEVER cared about that before, so I just said "good girl" because she was sitting there so beautifully when the bird took flight. STUPID ME. So - that brings us to the training and renting the training terrain and me getting a start revolver for my birthday... LOL
Never give up!!!
EDIT: have you heard the joke about what to do when the dog misbehaves? Role up a newspaper and hit - YOURSELF - really hard in the head for not being a very good trainer!
sending you caring thoughts and hugs and warmth. 
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