Dog nose is broken when it snows!

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Loganmike
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Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by Loganmike » Thu Dec 15, 2016 6:32 pm

Hey Gang,
Lucy is an amazing dog when there is NO snow and it is not real cold. However, as soon as the birds go in thick cover (cat tails), she avoids it. I call her a cover snob. With that, she also bumps birds in open cover and generally seems to not care when the snow flies or it is too cold.

Just wondering if anyone else has a dog like this? If you do, what did ya do?

I know the birds are still stinky as my buddy's dog still gets the points.

Just curious.

Cheers
Me

BTW: Lucy is a small setter!

mnaj_springer
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by mnaj_springer » Fri Dec 16, 2016 1:49 pm

How old is Lucy?

Loganmike
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by Loganmike » Fri Dec 16, 2016 2:06 pm

Hey!
She is gonna be 5 in January:)

Me

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llewellinsetter
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by llewellinsetter » Fri Dec 16, 2016 2:53 pm

My brothers GSP has a similar issue, he bumps birds all day if its cold and snowy. all we can figure is that his nose is cold. the dog is a smaller GSP and can't go very long in the cold.

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greg jacobs
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by greg jacobs » Fri Dec 16, 2016 8:12 pm

rsz_20161216_145737-1-1.jpg

No problem with the cold here today.
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twistedoak
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by twistedoak » Sat Dec 17, 2016 6:26 am

snow does not promote good scenting conditions .
but bad conditions occur without snow too...

my question would be is the dogs nose drying out?
moisture is needed for the dogs nose to process smells.cold air holds less water vapor
my dog does not want to drink as much in the cold so I force many small sips throughout the day.

I also throttle the pace of the hunt back to avoid letting the dog pant.
a panting dog is mouth breathing and incoming air is bypasses the nose

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CDN_Cocker
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Sat Dec 17, 2016 7:49 am

Is this nose, an aversion to cover or low drive? From your original post it sounds more like she isn't driven to get into the thick stuff. I would say my dog's nose is better in the snow - and we get a lot of it. This could be an experience thing more than anything. I'd be hunting her as much as possible in the snow and in thick cover. If it's cat tails that are killing your vibe then try to get her success in cattails. That may mean you have to get in there with her.

Loganmike
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by Loganmike » Sat Dec 17, 2016 10:11 am

Thanks everyone!

She has had success in cat tails but literally avoids em like the plague regardless. I get in w her and she goes out, even if getting birds. In the fields she is a machine. However, with snow and cold she blows the field up as well. Busts Huns and is a real dipshit. I agree about her aversion to cat tails but the cold shenanigans are annoying. Getting her success in cold and snow usually means she is busting birds and being a full on disaster.

I would cord her but in the cat tails we all know that's impossible. It sucks to be walking cat tails only to see 12 birds fly over head as your dog is running around like a ding dong! Ha.

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Me

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Sharon
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Re: Dog nose is broken when it snows!

Post by Sharon » Sat Dec 17, 2016 2:51 pm

Which proves the point that no matter how careful one is in choosing a dog, they are all different and all will have behaviours you would prefer they didn't.

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