Harley is starting to get the whole concept. His retrieve is excellent, did not lose a single cripple this past season. Harley will be three on March 17th. His last bird of the season was perfection from start to finish. There had been a light snow and he worked that bird hard. Always more fun when you can see the tracks. He had it pinned under a big old spruce canopy as I got into position. It was a quick shot and I pulled the trigger as the bird went out of sight behind another spruce. He found it and did his usual retrieve. His retrieve is a compromise, as he still would like to keep the bird, he drops it near the ATV if that is close or on the nearest trail. One day he may figure it is OK to actually hand me the bird. A vast improvement over when he would decide to take them all the way home with him. A very satisfying end to the season, there were two more hours of daylight left but we chose to end on that note; headed home. So next day we are putzing around outside and he ends up parked under an alder with six birds in it. He is frantic for me to do what we have been doing everyday for the past two weeks. Hunting season is over. Always figured it must be pretty confusing for a bird dog the day after the season ends. Any thoughts on this?
How to teach Harley to read ?
- Thread starter Bland
- Start date
Dont tell my wife
New member
- Location
- Kitchener / Waterloo
You could always shoot crows or starlings to keep both of you in practice.
Just a thought.
Jeff.
Just a thought.
Jeff.
It is of interest to me how a dog copes with this. A person expects a lot from a bird dog during the season. Ok, you are out for a walk without your gun, should he realise you are not hunting? What should you do on your end when a your hunting partner decides to start working a bird at an inopportune time? In or out of season. We live in the bush so there are no suburban walks for Harley. We generally see birds all year round. Watching the hens take him for a run when protecting their chicks is interesting. So far their success rate is 100%. I will steer clear of that area for a bit on his walks to protect the chicks. So can a dog tell when it is game on and behave accordingly? Bird dogs are hard wired to work birds is a given.
Teach him to come with treats.
It may work if he has a bird in his mouth.
Our old pup just wouldn't give you the ball no matter what was offered.
Then ignore her and I find myself tripping over the ball.
I always wondered how she got it there without me knowing.
Some dogs just have traits that are hard to tease.
If your pooch is getting the birds out of the bush and leaving them where
you can find them......not 100%, but better than losing the feathered fiend.
It may work if he has a bird in his mouth.
Our old pup just wouldn't give you the ball no matter what was offered.
Then ignore her and I find myself tripping over the ball.
I always wondered how she got it there without me knowing.
Some dogs just have traits that are hard to tease.
If your pooch is getting the birds out of the bush and leaving them where
you can find them......not 100%, but better than losing the feathered fiend.
I have decided to accept the compromise about the retrieve as he never misses a bird. Bringing along a bird dog is a fine line as you know. They need independent thought but also must answer to you. His check backs are good and he generally does not range too far. That last day he put me onto three coveys in a very short time. He also takes me places I would never go otherwise. A lot of fun. I tried trading treats with him but his response was to drop the bird far enough away, come for the treat and then grab the bird again. This was the first season for the 16 ga. double and that was a success story.
