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Help your bird dog: Get to the point … the right way
Here’s a lesson I’m learning almost weekly this time of year. Maybe you, too. You trudge up the hill to find your dog on point. He’s steady. Birds cooperative. Until you take over, that is. Once he’s...
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Acoustics and obedience
Whistle blasts, yells, nothing was getting Buddy back to me. It looked like he was actually running away – each command got the opposite reaction from what I wanted. One more toodle on the whistle and...
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New year’s resolutions, done right
The traditional version comes at the wrong time of year. We are putting things away and reminiscing about past months when we are encouraged to reveal our hopes for the coming 12 months. Thanksgiving,...
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Frozen birds … the downside
Ice cream headache. Did you ever think your dog might have one? If you train with frozen birds, he might. He’ll never admit it, but the outward manifestation might be lousy retrieves. Thanks pro...
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The best advice you’ve ever been given
“Never give away a bowl of dog food.” That’s what a grizzled old trainer said, almost off-hand, decades ago. Being a bit slow on the uptake, I asked what he’d meant with that tossed-away comment. His...
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Expand your vocabulary: V-W
Terms from the world of training, trials and hunt tests … Viszla: Shorthaired versatile breed from Hungary. Wachtelhund: German spaniel originally bred to hunt quail. Weimaraner: Shorthaired versatile...
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Q&A … maybe one for you?
Your questions, my answers, such as they are: Q: What is the best method to convince your children to not undo your dog’s training? Every bit of progress seems to be undone, for instance, by the kid’s...
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Find your way back to bird camp
While a GPS can be a lifesaver, map and compass skills will bail you out when batteries fail. At a minimum, know how to find a “catchline” that will lead you back to a known location: Study, then bring...
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Stop to …
Along with the other things we’re practicing, Manny is now learning that a gun shot means “whoa.” Yep, I sometimes shoot birds that fly wild, nowhere near my dogs, especially on a slow day, the first...
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Steady to wing & shot: Is less more?
You’ve heard the phrase “less is more.” Does it have relevance to dog training? Manny and I are deep into preparation for an upcoming NAVHDA Utility test (www.navhda.org) and our latest challenge is...
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Actions speak louder than (some) words
Your dog is constantly watching you, and learning from your movement, your tone of voice, what you put up with, and what you simply won’t tolerate … whether with him, other dogs, or your first-born...
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Actions speak louder than words, but they’re loud too
At its most fundamental level the idea is to shoot birds over your shorthair’s point or within gun range of your lunging Springer. Maybe it’s putting a sneak on feeding mallards or decoying honkers to...
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Give him the once over. Twice.
This is the best time of year for humans, but the worst time of year for our dogs. Maybe I’m not telling you anything new, but just in case … Everything out there can cut, irritate, scratch or...
View ArticleTraining plateaus, peaks, valleys … how to get through them?
Two steps forward, one back. It’s a familiar cliche’ in the dog-training lexicon. Actually, I’ll bet if you think about your own life, your teachers moved you both directions as needed: guitar lessons,...
View ArticleThose questions just keep coming …
About 4,000 per month. That’s how many questions I get from Facebook, Instagram, email, and when you enter my Take Your Friend Hunting contest here. Some are just too good to leave alone – they beg for...
View ArticlePraise deflation
I had an enlightening conversation with well-known trainer George Hickox recently, and he’ll certainly be a guest on the upcoming (debut, August) Upland Nation podcast. Of the many topics we discussed,...
View ArticleWhat do dogs want?
Whether this works for you, you’ll have to decide. If a more experienced trainer has an opinion, I’m sure I’ll hear via Facebook. But at least one of those, pro trainer George Hickox, thought enough to...
View ArticleWhy I don’t hunt public land on TV
Time to address the 800-pound gorilla once and for all. Please bear with me while I drill down on an issue important to all of us: where we hunt on Wingshooting USA. Thanks for reading the entire essay...
View ArticleWhat’s left before the opener?
Admit it, you too woke up in a cold sweat one recent night. “MY GOD! There’s so much left to do and there’s only (blank) weeks until opening day!” Here, it’s polishing Flick’s steadiness: when he hits...
View ArticleThe practical application of “place learning”
At the time, I thought it was a red herring … an excuse … a pro trainer’s nomenclature to make us feel um, well, less professional than them. But time and time again, I am reminded (and often humbled)...
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