Brittany is perfect when close, then wild

I never imagined I would get the kind of help you folks have been kind enough to provide. I agree that this has become a wonderfully informative thread and hopefully other people will come along with the same question and find this thread and be helped the way I have been.
I left my new collar at a friend's, so I don't know the make and model now. However, I don't think it had a nick option. I'll check. either way, like someone above said, I'd never shock more than a second or less. You can be sure that I'll be patient and gentle- too gentle if anything.
Like many of you, my new dog is my best friend and my pet first, my hunting dog second. I've had people tell me that won't work...that a good hunting dog needs to be kept outside in a pen and not in the house as a family pet. I sure hope that isn't true but what I've read on various threads here it sounds like many of you treat your dogs as pets as well as bird hunters.
I'm thrilled to hear that a 1 year old is still considered a puppy and is very teachable. I've literally cut and pasted all the posts in this thread so that I can keep and review them more later. SO for now thanks for all the help!
 
Thanks for that. I suspect people claiming you can't have a good bird dog and treat it like a family pet just don't know how to properly train their dogs! If I had to make a choice between family pet or hunting dog, I'd opt to have him as a pet since I love him and having him around. But hopefully that is a choice I don't have to make!
 
My Britts and Labs have always been house dogs. As I've gotten older and with family the rules of the house have changed. My dogs need permission before they can get on any furniture. In grad school, I lived in a share croppers shack in SC with not heat other than my kerosene heater, my two britts were my warmth in the winter, I was the middle of a Britt sandwich at night. I don't think it has any effect on the dogs I think it builds a stronger bond. You can look at prior post from me and see that I even have birthday parties for my dogs and they are seated around my kitchen table. My be a bit over board, but they bring so much joy to my family and are very much a big part of our family. I also have a very understanding wife!

My dogs do have outdoor kennels are they are used often when we are away, I also have the invisible fence system. I don't think I could ever just have a hunting dog that stayed only outdoors.
 
Miforester said:
The "nick" is a quick shock, today's collars typically have a tone button - no shock just sound, nick button when pressed quick shock and a button that shocks as long as you hold but will stop after a set time mine is 8 seconds. I could never imagine sshocking my dog for 8 seconds. The nick usually does the trick.
Regarding being a pup I consider them a pup till they turn 2. Your pup is still very trainable in my opinion, mine is almost 2 and she is still very trainable and will be for some time. Not sure what range you wanting him to range out, you might consider whistle training him, he might hear the whistle better than your voice. I've never cared for whistles, I do run mine with a bell or a beeper depending on the cover I'm hunting. My Britt is in the small size just at 30lbs so she disappears rather quickly so I need something on her so I know her location. I use a bell in grouse woods and beeper in pheasant country.
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Right on what he's saying about the nick. The 8 second shock is the serious anger button. To hit that the dog better be fighting another dog or have a child by the ass! Careful on the noise making collars though. In the pheasant field you want to be as quiet as possible. Get a shock collar that has a "bump" button that just lets out a vibration. The dog will turn and look at you at which point you can start walking the way you want it to go or use hand signals. Different opinions though. Some people think that the noise makes them hunker down. Ive found that the more noise, the more birds you scare. And they are way too loud if the object is to just get the attention of the dog. I've had guys blow whistles in the field too and wonder why we cant find birds. Some guys want their dogs close to them, at their feet. Some people, if they see their dog more than once every 20 minutes, they are pissed! Different strokes for different folks! My friend has a brittany. "Not Brittany Spaniel"!! It gets about 10-20 yards away from him at the most. When my dogs go on point, it runs up and usually busts the bird. And he thinks the dog is awesome. All it does is look for other dogs on point then go flush the bird. The way it flushes, it is a Brittany Spaniel. When he goes alone, he rarely finds birds unless he walks on them himself.
 
jonnyB said:
Can someone explain: why let dogs roam 100 yds.? Isn't there a risk for bumping birds (pheasants)?

And should we let the dogs roam 100 out in a corn field, sorghum field or tree grove, when we can't see them?

At 100 yds., I'm sure the dog isn't walking but still running/chasing, if the bird(s) are on the move.

I don't understand the rationale...
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This is a question of do you want the dog to hunt right next to you or do yo want it to hunt for birds on its own. I prefer to let my dogs out and I follow them. After all, they got the nose not the humans. In thick cover it does get tough but there are locator options. GPS collars, orange vests, direction training your dog.... When im hunting my dog checks in and locates me wherever im at. But when i see her pointing and creeping slowly through milo or tall grass I know I need to stay on her flank and I may get a pheasant. Hunting with your dog is like hunting with your human buddy. You get used to each other; habits, tendencies, how to two man hunt a draw.
 
ecollar and use of tone

Hi

Glad you are enjoying your new hobby. I have a Pudelpointer that just turned one. I bought a Tritronic Pro 550 it has the tone option as well as constant stimulation ( never used it ) and "Nick".

First thing you need to do and I haven't seen anyone address this is to find the level at which your dog notices the stimulation. And this could be as insignificant as a look as if he heard something, twitch of his ear, thinks he has an itch, a blink of his eye etc. At no time should he whimper or yelp. I reserve that for when he sees deer and takes off in pursuit.

Some guys use the tone as a warning and I thought about that but have instead been using it for whoa, sit or stop ( I don't care what he does ). IF he gets on birds and they right in his face and running I can't stop him without it. If he doesn't stop he gets tapped. This is how Iam keeping my dog in range. I use multiple tones in threes for positive things like keeping him coming while retrieving.

You have a fantastic reference here use it a lot!
 
Lots more great info.....just because I'm not replying to each entry doesn't mean I'm not reading, taking notes and appreciating all this help. I was hoping to get out there this weekend, but it's just too cold for me! (not for my dog, though, he doesn't seem to mind one bit!)
 
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