chasing birds
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2020 10:28 am
Hi All -
My setter Levon is 7.5 months old. Due to my own two back to back leg injuries last fall I have not been able to be out in the field with him much - my better half has been getting him out to run on the weekends when she has time and there is daylight (unlike weekday evenings, but that's changing:). He otherwise goes on Wonder Lead walks in the neighborhood 2-3 times a day - I can do this. I have also been doing yard work with him 1-2 times everyday and in the yard he whoas and recalls nearly perfectly. He responds to these commands by voice, whistle (recall anyway) hand signal and collar tone/vibrate. But when she gets him into the field (I have to watch forlornly from the truck with binos:() he loses his head completely. Its like you strapped him into the cockpit of a fighter jet - fun to watch, but kind of scary - always seeming on the edge of some sort of catastrophe. We have a nearby training ground that's always good for a few wild bird finds (mostly huns with some sharptails) and he usually pulls off at least one beautiful point or more a trip and holds them until she gets there and flushes - sometimes as long as several minutes - he rarely busts his birds. He has tons of drive (I honestly think he'd chase a flock of migrating geese over the horizon) and she has a hard time reigning him in. He is ranging 100 - 500 or so yards when he is casting about and not chasing birds of whatever species. When chasing he might go .5 mile. I don't want to blunt his drive on birds too much but I am trying to figure out a way to reign him in on basic commands. Other than deer chasing he has not had much intro to the e-collar yet. He is a very sweet dog and one I would not want to lean on too hard. Should I start e-collar intro very gently on the commands and continue to let him chase birds at will? He doesn't give any reason to use the e-collar in the yard, so check cord/e-collar in the field? My impression from these pages is that he will finally figure out he can't catch birds and horned larks are not the name of the game. I have one more surgery to get thru and then I hope to be able to get into the field with him full time in late spring (about the time we have to quit and wait till August). Is that too late to take charge and reign him in? My better half doesn't hunt and is not a firm hand at all (to her overall credit!) so she is no disciplinarian I'm afraid.
As many of you know this is my first bird hound. He will be a hunting dog/pet only and I do not have access to penned birds, just lots of wild ones. Polmaise - be easy on me - I'm crippled
My setter Levon is 7.5 months old. Due to my own two back to back leg injuries last fall I have not been able to be out in the field with him much - my better half has been getting him out to run on the weekends when she has time and there is daylight (unlike weekday evenings, but that's changing:). He otherwise goes on Wonder Lead walks in the neighborhood 2-3 times a day - I can do this. I have also been doing yard work with him 1-2 times everyday and in the yard he whoas and recalls nearly perfectly. He responds to these commands by voice, whistle (recall anyway) hand signal and collar tone/vibrate. But when she gets him into the field (I have to watch forlornly from the truck with binos:() he loses his head completely. Its like you strapped him into the cockpit of a fighter jet - fun to watch, but kind of scary - always seeming on the edge of some sort of catastrophe. We have a nearby training ground that's always good for a few wild bird finds (mostly huns with some sharptails) and he usually pulls off at least one beautiful point or more a trip and holds them until she gets there and flushes - sometimes as long as several minutes - he rarely busts his birds. He has tons of drive (I honestly think he'd chase a flock of migrating geese over the horizon) and she has a hard time reigning him in. He is ranging 100 - 500 or so yards when he is casting about and not chasing birds of whatever species. When chasing he might go .5 mile. I don't want to blunt his drive on birds too much but I am trying to figure out a way to reign him in on basic commands. Other than deer chasing he has not had much intro to the e-collar yet. He is a very sweet dog and one I would not want to lean on too hard. Should I start e-collar intro very gently on the commands and continue to let him chase birds at will? He doesn't give any reason to use the e-collar in the yard, so check cord/e-collar in the field? My impression from these pages is that he will finally figure out he can't catch birds and horned larks are not the name of the game. I have one more surgery to get thru and then I hope to be able to get into the field with him full time in late spring (about the time we have to quit and wait till August). Is that too late to take charge and reign him in? My better half doesn't hunt and is not a firm hand at all (to her overall credit!) so she is no disciplinarian I'm afraid.
As many of you know this is my first bird hound. He will be a hunting dog/pet only and I do not have access to penned birds, just lots of wild ones. Polmaise - be easy on me - I'm crippled