Lab quartering range

PairOfLabs

PairOfLabs

Active member
While following my 9 mo. old lab pup through the fields on Friday and Saturday I got to thinking about two questions (besides when are we going to see more birds)

1. What do you consider the ideal quartering range from you in yards and why? I'm thinking that 10-15 yards seems ideal if I can train him to do that.

2. Suppose you're hunting with 4 friends in a line (no blockers) and your lab is the only dog. Do you want him/her quartering just in front of you or the whole line like a hot pointer will do? Let's assume that the cover is such that you can see your dog all the way across the line. My pup instinctively wants to hunt for the whole line and I have mixed feelings about that--after all, I pay for his dog food. I had a recent situation where the line was 8 guys and Parker was the only dog. In heavy cover I couldn't see what he was doing once he got past the guy on my right and left.

Thanks for any advice.
Tom
 
Strictly my personal opinion...

10 yards out front is great, but I liked my golden to do about 2-3 times that to each side. I mean, 10 yards ahead and 20-30 to each side. If you're going into the wind, you have plenty of time to cut left or right towards the dog if he starts getting birdy when he's out to one side or the other. Just my personal taste.

If I was in a group of 3-4 people with only my dog, I would expect my dog to focus on (and check in with) me. If he works the whole line (10 yards out front) that's great as long as I'm with a small group. Not great in the situation where there are 8 people spread out pretty wide.
 
I have been fortunate to have my primary lab work very close (she cut her teeth in heavy grouse cover) usually not more than 20 yards out. The other one tends to range further out, maybe 30 to 40 but with more side-to-side. It's like having high and low beams on a car at the same time.

My suggestion would be to wait a bit, work the dog downwind of the rest of the line and let the pup scent and pursue across the front of the group. The pup should be checking back from time to time as well, but that may be my personal preference coming through.

Good luck, have fun.
 
PairOfLabs said:
While following my 9 mo. old lab pup through the fields on Friday and Saturday I got to thinking about two questions (besides when are we going to see more birds)

1. What do you consider the ideal quartering range from you in yards and why? I'm thinking that 10-15 yards seems ideal if I can train him to do that.

2. Suppose you're hunting with 4 friends in a line (no blockers) and your lab is the only dog. Do you want him/her quartering just in front of you or the whole line like a hot pointer will do? Let's assume that the cover is such that you can see your dog all the way across the line. My pup instinctively wants to hunt for the whole line and I have mixed feelings about that--after all, I pay for his dog food. I had a recent situation where the line was 8 guys and Parker was the only dog. In heavy cover I couldn't see what he was doing once he got past the guy on my right and left.

Thanks for any advice.
Tom
Click to expand...

I try to keep my Labs to 20 yards or less in front, and maybe a little longer on sides. I also like to keep the dog in sight and usually won't let him range to far to the sides if hunting with others. My reasoning is I don't want him to get used to hunting too far away from me. I hunt with a guy that has a Lab that has always had a ranging problem, he will push the limits out front. So far I have not had this problem with my current Lab of 2.5 years, my last one it was a constant struggle.
 
I have hunted labs for many years and it is personal preference basically. In front of me I like to have them no farther than 15-20 max otherwise you will be taking long shots all the time. I also have times that on occasion my dogs will work the line across in front of other hunters. I normally only like them to work to the hunter that is directly on either side of me but no farther than that. Beyond that it is difficult to monitor them while you are hunting trying to watch them and also watch near yourself for flushes. Having a dog near you is like having a bird detector constantly on ready. I bag more birds keeping them in to where I can monitor when they hit scent and get birdy. Having them too far away in front of other hunters defeats this altogether. Good luck out there :cheers:
 
bird buster hit it out! he is right to my way of thinking, why wear out the dog? if you want others to to take a shot you can wave others over to wear your dog is birdy. Teach you dog sit whistle, so you dont have to run after your dog, and hot running roosters too!
 
Thank guys for the advice. I'll put it to work in my training plan. You confirmed my suspicions that I'm not being selfish by having Parker hunt primarily in front of me, or between me and the hunter immediately on the side(s). That will allow me to monitor the dog better. I did plan to train for the whistle-sit, had not got there yet. I'm going to shoot for 15 yards in front and 15-25 yards on the side, or up to the next hunter.

Tom
 
i believe you trust your dog's nose if he goes right , and shows birdiness, talk to your group beforehand, and let them know that they all should follow, safely paralell. The dog knows!
 
The tone button on an e-collar can also be used as a silent whistle if that's an option. Hunt in the middle of the line , use the tone as a check back if the dog hunts the far end.
 
PairOfLabs said:
Thank guys for the advice. I'll put it to work in my training plan. You confirmed my suspicions that I'm not being selfish by having Parker hunt primarily in front of me, or between me and the hunter immediately on the side(s). That will allow me to monitor the dog better. I did plan to train for the whistle-sit, had not got there yet. I'm going to shoot for 15 yards in front and 15-25 yards on the side, or up to the next hunter.

Tom
Click to expand...

Another reason to keep your dog in sight when you are hunting with a big group is because inevitably there will be somebody there you don't know or trust. You watch the dog because he's yours and you're a dog person. That's not the case for everybody...

I once (ONCE) went on a hunt with six guys who had no dogs at the invitation of a friend. I was joining their group and didn't know anybody except my friend. When the first bird went down, my dog went to retrieve it and the shooter took off running towards the downed bird. The hunter and dog got to the bird about the same time and the hunter yelled, "NO!!! GET AWAY!!!", snatched the bird away from my dog while continuing to yell and cuss at him. :eek: I asked him, "WTF?", and he said that he was afraid my dog ran over there to eat his bird.:confused: I said, "He's a retriever, dumbazz, he was going to fetch your bird." Luckily I had driven my own truck, so I got the hell outta there. Some people...

Anyway, you never know if other people are going to take low shots, or try to give your dog commands, or do any number of other things that non-dog people tend to do. It isn't selfish to keep your dog in front of you. It's in the best interest of your dog.

When I am hunting in a small group that I trust, I don't mind letting the dog hunt for my friends. But I cap my hunting parties at 4 people... (This was while Rusty, my golden, was still alive and hunting) Now that I have versatile breed dogs I expect them to cover more ground and be farther out, which makes choosing your hunting partners even more important.
 
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Anyway, you never know if other people are going to take low shots, or try to give your dog commands, or do any number of other things that non-dog people tend to do. It isn't selfish to keep your dog in front of you. It's in the best interest of your dog.-quote.

Couldn't have said it better. The only thing another hunter is allowed to say to my dog is "Good Boy". I will handle the rest.
 
Toad said:
Another reason to keep your dog in sight when you are hunting with a big group is because inevitably there will be somebody there you don't know or trust. You watch the dog because he's yours and you're a dog person. That's not the case for everybody...

I once (ONCE) went on a hunt with six guys who had no dogs at the invitation of a friend. I was joining their group and didn't know anybody except my friend. When the first bird went down, my dog went to retrieve it and the shooter took off running towards the downed bird. The hunter and dog got to the bird about the same time and the hunter yelled, "NO!!! GET AWAY!!!", snatched the bird away from my dog while continuing to yell and cuss at him. :eek: I asked him, "WTF?", and he said that he was afraid my dog ran over there to eat his bird.:confused: I said, "He's a retriever, dumbazz, he was going to fetch your bird." Luckily I had driven my own truck, so I got the hell outta there. Some people...

Anyway, you never know if other people are going to take low shots, or try to give your dog commands, or do any number of other things that non-dog people tend to do. It isn't selfish to keep your dog in front of you. It's in the best interest of your dog.

When I am hunting in a small group that I trust, I don't mind letting the dog hunt for my friends. But I cap my hunting parties at 4 people... (This was while Rusty, my golden, was still alive and hunting) Now that I have versatile breed dogs I expect them to cover more ground and be farther out, which makes choosing your hunting partners even more important.
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lmao he was going to retreive it dumaz lmao thats what i wouldve said to lol toad i went with a buddy of mine whoo invited this goofball so i said ya i will go my pointer which is dead now had prob the best weekend ever i mean point after point his gsp never had one single point and was a freakin shoe shiner well my dog was out a ways and he starts yelling at my dog hear hear not so far out i just kinda ignored it but then he looks over at me and says can you reel your dog in i said no when you learn what a fu&%^ bird dog is you can say something and by the way how do you like shooting over my dog that has had over 20 freakin points for you and no lost birds cause of great retreives i told my buddy you know what its a privaledge to hunt over my dog make sure your fag^$# buddy knows it!!!!!! sure wish i had that dog i sure am struggling now without him
 
You said it! Hunting over a good dog is a privilege. My dog does not owe you anything.
I used to hunt with a guy who thought it was cute to let my dogs do all the work,while his dog just walked the edge of the cover waiting for a bird to be shot so he could steal my dog's retrieve. He would then brag about how much "better" his dog was,than mine. So I kenneled my dogs and let this "expert" and his dog have at it. Didn't take long for the party to tire of not seeing dogs working cover. One guy asked me to please let my dogs loose. He then asked the other guy to kennel his. He refused, so this guy thanked me for the good dog work and drove away in his truck.
 
Toad, i totally agree. Just this last year, while in sd, a guy we were with shot at a bird my dog was chasing. I came freaking unglued. He is lucky that I have mellowed a little in my middle age. This is even after we had a safety meeting before the hunt that specifically adressed not shooting birds on the ground. If the bird is running where you can see it, my dog is not letting it go. I also don't care for other guys running my dogs. Also once you teach whistle sit, it should be fairly easy to transition to sit on tone. I really try to control my dogs without the use of a whistle. I think those roosters start equating whistles with geting shot at, especially as much as some hunters use it. Hell half the time on public I feel like i am at a football game:D
 
The guy who runs Shooters Valley Guide Service,(great choice for those who pay for their hunt BTW) is also the local Sheriff. Told me one of his best clients killed his top spaniel a couple weeks ago. I told him I would have arrested him for..... well for something. Definately would have invited him to hunt with the joker down the road.

www.shootersvalley.com/
 
Thanks again guys. I'll be watching the training DVD that came with my new E-collar so that I can get Parker conditioned and hopefully use the "tone" feature to cut down on my whistling.
P.O.L.
 
The tone button on an e-collar is great for checking a dog & when I ran Labs, 20-yards out was max range.
 
PairOfLabs said:
While following my 9 mo. old lab pup through the fields on Friday and Saturday I got to thinking about two questions (besides when are we going to see more birds)

1. What do you consider the ideal quartering range from you in yards and why? I'm thinking that 10-15 yards seems ideal if I can train him to do that.

2. Suppose you're hunting with 4 friends in a line (no blockers) and your lab is the only dog. Do you want him/her quartering just in front of you or the whole line like a hot pointer will do? Let's assume that the cover is such that you can see your dog all the way across the line. My pup instinctively wants to hunt for the whole line and I have mixed feelings about that--after all, I pay for his dog food. I had a recent situation where the line was 8 guys and Parker was the only dog. In heavy cover I couldn't see what he was doing once he got past the guy on my right and left.

Thanks for any advice.
Tom
Click to expand...

20 yards away is plenty for me why start bad habits to please others. i always tell people that they can walk close to me if they want. another thing to think about on a multi day hunt is the more ground they cover the faster they wear out.
 
There are to many variables for me to set a 20 yd max range. Although the majority of the time mine stay inside 25, I don't reel them back in until about 40. Wind and cover play a role in how aggressively a dog works and how comfortable the dog is in its hunt. I think the most important thing to consider is the bond formed between yourself and your dog. It's a joy to watch a dog work, knowing the two of you are working as a team. There is no place for a self hunting dog or over controlling master. Trust the dog, let him work. Pat him on the head when he's doing good, give him a dirty look when he screws up.( Look at his body language, he understands.) When the time comes ( in hot pursuit) when he stops, looks back at you, lets you get back into range and then puts that rooster up the two of you just trailed 150 yds you get it.
I'm not being disagreeable, I just thought some things were left out.
 
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