On another note....My mutt's first foray into the wild - Chase

'All it took was a pkg of cheap wieners to use as a reward and he was whistle broke, easiest command to teach I found'

Good idea! And if I get lost, we can fight over the scraps till daylight arrives!

'Don - when he wonders away, give him a beep and hide from him. Let him start using his nose to find you, or - let him panic and watch him running around looking for you. Do this on all your walks, until you see him turning his head and checking on you. My Maxi keeps an eye on me all the time - he knows i "might get lost".'

Another good idea!

terrym, this is my mutt I brought back from Boise, on my other threads. He does like to roam out naturally. I walked about fifty yards to the trail, and he was at least another thirty or so on the other side. I hear it's easier to reel them in, then get them to roam out. Only our first grouse hunt so we both have much to learn! He's seven months old.

Thanks,

Don.

I've found that when my dog "disappears disobediently", I am the only one worried ; the dog isn't lost and knows exactly where I am.:)
,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Last week I "lost" my dog . Kept beeping and heard nothing. Went back to the parking lot to wait. 1/2 hour later a guy approaches the parking lot with my dog on a leash. He thought the dog was lost; he said he had to hear that $%^& beeper for 1/2 hour. :)

The dog was mad as she was enjoying her no- permission given run.(At 13 1/2 years old it's not likely I am going to give her trouble.)LOL

Have you checked out those amazing gps collars. What a fantastic way to keep tabs on hunting dogs.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by trkyhntr21

It sounds like your pup took a deer or rabbit. I run a Garmin Astro and a bell in addition to an ecollar. The Garmin is good insurance and for most hunting I just need the bell.
Also remember that this is your pups first season and he is learning proper bird cover and how to work birds, let him run at this stage hacking on a pointer to stay within 35yards isn't good unless you want a pointing flusher.
As long as he is working good cover and going with you even out of sight and you can find him on point thats the goal.
Don't forget to check your e collar on your self every time you put it on your dog.

It sounds like you got some good cover have fun this season and good luck!!!!

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x2


I agree it sounds like he took a deer or a rabbit. If your PP is bred right, and from your earlier posts it sounds like he is, you won't have to teach him to hunt fur he will do that on his own. If he is out hunting and a rabbit or deer gets up in front of him he is probably going to go with it. You just need to make the decision on what game you want him to hunt and what you want to break him of.


As far as using the ecollar when the dog is out of sight, we wouldn't get much training done in the woods if we didn't do that. The trick is to use a bell so you know what the dog is doing. A bell gives a constant read on a dog so you can tell if he is stopped or moving. With experience the bell can tell you if the dog is hunting, chasing a deer, or has stopped. If you hear that bell start to fade, it's time to get on him. Set a distance on your dog that you are comfortable with. If that distance is 100yds then when that dog gets to 60 yds you need to start handling him to get him to turn. If you wait until the dog is at the limit you won't get him turned in time and he will get out of the "pocket" (between 10 and 2). A beeper is good for finding a dog but not handling, a dog can travel quite a distance in 5 seconds.


I would look at a quality Sunkaze (Flewelling) Bell in any of the finishes.


http://www.gundogsupply.com/medium-nickel-bell.html


I believe Tim Tufts has them from time to time as well.


It always takes young dogs some time to get accustomed to the sound in the woods but they figure it out soon enough.


If this is his first season in the woods I would look at getting him into some woodcock. Young dogs have a a much higher chance of success on them than grouse. It will also let him know that you are hunting birds and he will start looking for them. If you continue to take him grouse hunting and only find rabbits and deer he will probably start hunting them especially since he is a versatile dog.


Before you start the hunt come up with a routine for taking him out of the truck in a controlled manner and make him do something like heel around the parking lot or whatever. You should be able to open the door of the crate and he doesn't come out until you give the command. The idea is to get inside his head, get him thinking about you as well as his training and set the tone of the hunt. He has a job to do, this isn't fun time, it's time focus and go to work.



My dogs always have a bell, e-collar and garmin on when I run them except during competition.

How old is this dog now?

He's seven months old.

All good food for thought!

D.

From the title of your thread I can only assume that your dog is less than a year old and that the 2014-2015 season will be his or she's first. If I could offer my opinion it would be:

Just allow the dog to have fun and let it get used to running in heavy bush with you out of sight. When most of us train our dogs it would be in some form of a low cut field with planted birds, allowing for he or she to see us at almost all times.

I run my dogs with a bell, e-collar and beeper. With time I have been able to recognize when my dog is working for scent or chasing rabbits, deer or what ever else they may choose. I gauge it by how much the bell is ringing

But if your dog is not recalling properly with the whistle then the next option would to be a light nick on he or she. I believe that this is the purpose of the collar. I also found that relaxing and letting the dog work within my boundaries allows us to both have a great time in the bush. Good luck with your season and remember to have fun

NAVHDA does use tracking for testing in both NA and UT. Blood tracking is not practiced with this organization

After my dog wrecking every cheap bell I bought I ended up buying one from Tim Tufts as recommended above. This thing will outlast the dog unless I lose it. Money well spent.

At 7 months I don't have many rules for a dog.

Don't run off
Come when called
no chasing off game.

Other than that I let them do whatever they want and just be a dog. There are no rules around birds at this age, they can bump, chase, rip em up, bark or do whatever I don't care. If they find a bird I do my best to kill it for them.

[QUOTE=Jakezilla;824251]x2


I agree it sounds like he took a deer or a rabbit. If your PP is bred right, and from your earlier posts it sounds like he is, you won't have to teach him to hunt fur he will do that on his own. If he is out hunting and a rabbit or deer gets up in front of him he is probably going to go with it. You just need to make the decision on what game you want him to hunt and what you want to break him of.


As far as using the ecollar when the dog is out of sight, we wouldn't get much training done in the woods if we didn't do that. The trick is to use a bell so you know what the dog is doing. A bell gives a constant read on a dog so you can tell if he is stopped or moving. With experience the bell can tell you if the dog is hunting, chasing a deer, or has stopped. If you hear that bell start to fade, it's time to get on him. Set a distance on your dog that you are comfortable with. If that distance is 100yds then when that dog gets to 60 yds you need to start handling him to get him to turn. If you wait until the dog is at the limit you won't get him turned in time and he will get out of the "pocket" (between 10 and 2). A beeper is good for finding a dog but not handling, a dog can travel quite a distance in 5 seconds.


I would look at a quality Sunkaze (Flewelling) Bell in any of the finishes.


http://www.gundogsupply.com/medium-nickel-bell.html


I believe Tim Tufts has them from time to time as well. " Quote Jakezilla

....................................

One of the best posts I've ever read on the use of the bell.