I was able to get out over the weekend and work dogs with some friends. Great time preparing dogs for upcoming field trials. You can see Lola during the first two minutes. We’re working on getting her ready for some trials later this spring. She’s doing great and looks like a million bucks on point.
I like to introduce young pups to birds early. It is key that this be a fun experience for the pup. I generally let the pup have his way with one bird any somewhere around 9-10 weeks old. I don’t care if he chases, catches, or even eats it. I just want the pup to be excited about birds. After this one time of letting the pup do what he wants, subsequent bird contacts will be more controlled and on a check cord.
Here’s our newest pup Otis (from Lola’s recent litter) with his “First Bird”. He’s plenty bold. I’m excited about this one.
First Bird from Ashby Kennels on Vimeo.
Lola pointing a planted bird.
Most of the yard work is done, the Family Vacation is over and it’s hot. 95 degrees was the high today and we’ll be over 100 by the weekend. For me it’s time to get serious about the dogs. I’ve been trying to work the dogs right before sundown. I can accomplish a lot with short evening sessions this time of year.
Lola will leaving in one month to spend 3 months in Montana working on wild birds daily with Keny Glasscock. This will be a good tune up for fall and hopefully she’ll be ready for some field trials. We’ll be making preparations for our new litter of puppies. Now is the time to get the work in for a successful fall hunting season.
Keep those dogs cool and it’s always fun to involve your best helper!
Today I set out birds in my Treads and Tracks launchers. I am working on getting Lola broke so that we can enter some trials later this spring or in the fall. I planted 3 birds in the same spot, hoping to teach the dog that there might be more birds than just one after a flush. I decided to grab the camera and try to film it. I found it very hard to work a check cord, E-collar, blank gun, and camera all at the same time. Lola did very well considering I haven’t put her in this situation before. I wish I could have had a bit more intensity, but I believe that will come. She stood through it all on her own. I didn’t have to hold her back or nick her with the collar at all.
I got a chance to get out and train dogs with some top notch guys and some really nice dogs. We set up a mock trial coarse and gave each dog a chance to work 4 birds. It was fun to get out and give the dogs an opportunity to run, learn, and work birds. We saw some good things and each dog made some improvements. It was a great day to get out and enjoy the warmer weather. Thanks to Chris Rhea, Brandon Downs, and Landon Beard for a very enjoyable day.
Click on a thumbnail to see the photo and a description.
Check out a new online community of Upland Hunters, Gun Dog Trainers and Bird Dog enthusiasts in the West. Wild West Gun Dogs was launched 02/03/2010. Come join us!
Come spend the day learning from one the Nation’s Premier Gun Dog Trainers, Ronnie Smith.
Keny Glasscock of Lost Arrow Gun Dogs along with Wasatch Wing & Clay will bring Ronnie Smith to Utah for a three day training seminar. This is a great opportunity to learn from the Pros. Keny is one of only 6 trainers to reach Gold Level Certification with Team Huntsmith. This will be a fantastic opportunity for anyone looking to improve their training skills. Seminar will be held May 21-23, 2010.
Contact: Keny Glasscock at (801)918-7451 or keny@lostarrowgundogs.com
Cick here to view or print a flyer about this event.
I have been trying (key word there is “trying”) to become a half decent photographer. I like taking pictures. Todays group of photos I think is not quite as good as the last set at the pond. I used a different ISO setting and I think it was the wrong choice. I did get a couple of fairly nice ones.
I had a couple of hours to kill in Bountiful tonight, so I loaded Spooner up and we hit the pond. He is getting really good at his water entries. Some extreme air time. We had a great time.
