I need tips to help me train my young dog for pheasant hunting.

J

Jake12345

New member
I have a 10-month old German Shorthaired Pointer that I am trying to train for pheasant hunting, but we are having some issues. When I play regular fetch with her (mostly with pheasant-scented dummies and tennis balls) she will retrieve with no problem, but whenever I take her out to the field she doesn't want anything to do with the bird dummy and won't retrieve or find the dummy, even won't put it in her mouth if I try to give it to her. I would like some helpful tips and/or information to help me train her.

Thank you
 
You gotta keep throwing the unknown and the dummy at her. Once she gets used to the change of scenery , she will get interested in the dummy again. It takes time , lots of time. The first time you take her hunting this year she will do the same thing , maybe even all year. It usually takes a lesson year to get a dog ready. Keep taking her. Keep taking her to different places. If you have to go to the store to get a gallon of milk , take her. She will eventually get past the changes. If you are training her in the same area of your yard every time , find a different spot in your yard. Don't put unrealistic expectations on her. We have all been through it. Some will chime in here and tell you about killing birds over their 5-9 month old dog. It may be true , I've seen it myself. Not a realistic expectation though. Give her that education year and then worry next season if she's not where you want her to be.
 
I say (probably too often) IS PUPPY!

Play, laugh, reassure, scratch, rub, and celebrate everything you can with the pup.

You may do this already, but almost everything your dog sees you do gets catalogued as data to be interpreted. Give good data. :)

When you play fetch inside, whoa the pup, hide the tennis ball (or whatever) and then tell the pup to fetch. make it a game---joy-filled and celebrated. Use the retrieving dummy inside as well, the pup will file the activity as something that makes you happy and will eventually get in on the party.

Eventually, the pup will learn that it's not working, but being rewarded and look forward to the activity.

You got time. Is puppy.
 
Thanks

esetter said:
You gotta keep throwing the unknown and the dummy at her. Once she gets used to the change of scenery , she will get interested in the dummy again. It takes time , lots of time. The first time you take her hunting this year she will do the same thing , maybe even all year. It usually takes a lesson year to get a dog ready. Keep taking her. Keep taking her to different places. If you have to go to the store to get a gallon of milk , take her. She will eventually get past the changes. If you are training her in the same area of your yard every time , find a different spot in your yard. Don't put unrealistic expectations on her. We have all been through it. Some will chime in here and tell you about killing birds over their 5-9 month old dog. It may be true , I've seen it myself. Not a realistic expectation though. Give her that education year and then worry next season if she's not where you want her to be.
Click to expand...

Thank you for this, you really seem to know what you are talking about. Thanks so much!
 
What have you done so far with introducing her to birds?
To be honest, hiding the dummy or having her find anything other than birds isn't really doing a whole lot. I wouldn't worry at all about her retrieving the dummy right now. If you want her to gain interest in it though, start using it as a reward after yard training. Tease her with it, give her a few short tosses and let her do what she wants to with it. I strongly recommend the Perfect Start/Perfect Finish/ Perfect Retrieve videos from Jon Hann at Perfection Kennels. You can't make a bird dog without birds, so that's where I would start.
 
Jake?

I don't presume to be an expert, but there's a couple of threads which may be of service to you.

One is about Mick, my field ESS. Here: http://www.ultimatepheasanthunting....hp?7919-Baby-Steps&highlight=kitchen+training

The other is about Young Bert, the not-right dog, originally posted in 2011. Use the "search" function, and the title is Young Bert, the not-right dog, authored by me (if you are using the advanced search.)

Have fun. PM me if you have specific questions you'd prefer not to ask on the open forum..
 
When I was training mine at home I zip tied a pheasant wing to the dummy so she is used to the feathers in her mouth. Once you've shot a bird in field or at game farm use the same bird over to simulate retrieves..I Also brought some different treats in the field than I used at home example I used cut up hot dogs so in the chance she did pick up a bird and bring it back to me it was greatly rewarded
 
I'll second the cut-up hot dogs - my dog loves them!

And the wing tied to the training dummy is good practice for a young dog. I used "dead bird" if I had hidden the dummy. If thrown in the open, "fetch".

Some dogs catch on faster than others - same with hunters!

Good Luck.
 
Thank you

JeremyS said:
What have you done so far with introducing her to birds?
To be honest, hiding the dummy or having her find anything other than birds isn't really doing a whole lot. I wouldn't worry at all about her retrieving the dummy right now. If you want her to gain interest in it though, start using it as a reward after yard training. Tease her with it, give her a few short tosses and let her do what she wants to with it. I strongly recommend the Perfect Start/Perfect Finish/ Perfect Retrieve videos from Jon Hann at Perfection Kennels. You can't make a bird dog without birds, so that's where I would start.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the advice, I will definitely use it. Where do I go to find these videos?
 
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