how far away should a dog point

C

CIL hunter

New member
i have a one year old GSP that i am attempting to train. I have been working with live pigeons so far, and she has no problem retirieving the live birds and i have her steady to flush and am just begininng to work on pointing. I am planting birds out in the field tied to posts. then i am bringing the dog in across the wind and as soon as she smells the bird i put her on point and make it stay while i launch a bird from the grass. My main question is how far in should i be bringing the dog across the scent of the bird. In other words how far away from the bird should the dog be going on point.

If it makes any difference i am in central illinois and will be hunting mainly water way and crp fields with waiste high grass.

Thanks
 
what do you mean by "making the dog point" i dont think i have ever heard that before. first of all its all about the dogs nose. once the dog smells the bird the dog should get "birddy" or point. the next thing that comes into play is the conditions. my dogs point the birds on a good day probally about 25 - 35 feet away if the conditions are good. the other is the wind. if there is no wind its really diffucult for the dog to smell the birds from a distance.
 
i guess when i say making her point i only mean giving her the whoa command so that she doesn't creep up on the bird. But the other day we had a very slight wind and the dog was stll sented two of the planted birds 25 yards away or better and then ran straight towards them. I let her get within ten feet of the planted birds and then gave her the whoa command and she then went on point. Should i have stopped her as soon as she scented it even at 25 yards or should I let her get closer to the birds
 
yeah you should of. let the dog go on point by itself, then you give the whoa command. when you are out hunting in the wild, you have no idea where all the birds are, so really you are confusing the dog. let the dog do what it does naturally. like i said let the dog do its thing with the pointing and once the dog is solid on point then you give the whoa command. once you give that command the dog shouldnt move a inch. and if it does,, what i do is pick up the dog by the collar and tail and put it back in the spot where you told it to whoa. it may take some time but be patient with the dog. but once you make the whoa command make sure the dog takes you serious
 
Let the dog point naturally. Getting the dog on a lot of birds is key. If hunting pheasants this can get real tricky. Pheasants love to run out from under a point. My dog will lock up on point when she gets the scent. However, when the bird starts to run out from her point she will begin a stalk and hopefully be able to pin the bird down before it flushes. If the bird is holding tight I can always tell because she will not move as I approach. Just look in their eyes. When that bird is under their nose the eyes are burning a hole through the cover.

If the bird has run out I prefer that my dog start to creep/stalk as I approach. I then know the bird is running and the dog will attempt to pin it down for me. But this may come down to personal hunting style.
 
When Tony hits a point, I can tell by reading him if the bird is near him or far away, from his head position. If it is out there 20-35 feet his head will be high. If it close 5 -10 feet his head is down and close to the ground. His eyes will tell you if it right or left of his nose. He actually looks at me and moves his eyes in the birds direction. I say this because, if you let the dog do what it is bred to do. They will do and tell you more than you could ever dream. I rarely "whoa" Tony when I approach on a point. He will stay put if the bird has not moved. If it has moved he will creep in that direction, which I prefer. Like George said it is all what YOU want......Bob
 
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NEVER whoa a dog into a point. The whoa command should only be used if the dog moves after it has established a solid point. Let the dog establish a firm point first. If he's making scent or "birdy" as some say, just let him be. Once he's established a point, if he creeps or moves in then whoa him.

That said if the dog is just bent on taking the bird out that you have planted, then launch the bird if you cannot stop him. By continuing to launch the bird if the dog moves in, you are teaching him that he must stay put or the bird flies away. But before all of this make sure you have engrained in him the whoa command AWAY from birds. This is especially true if using an e-collar for enforcing commands. There must be no connection that the stimulation or correction came from the bird. Once you have established that then correction around birds will be well understood.

FWIW
 
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