Whoa training

B

bones

New member
How is whoa training done. My girl, a 6 month old GSP is fired up about the doves and pigeons in the back yard. Believe it or not she has even gone on point about three times now for pigeons in the neighbors backyard that is behind a 9 foot privacy fence. Pup is pointing well and seems to listen to whoa or easy but some times gets a wild hair and just dives at birds.

Would holding her on a check cord help when she starts creeping?

She has no formal training yet so I am not all that worried. She heads off to school in September for two months. Just looking to improve her learning curve. Trying to do some on my own, just won't gun break on my own, seen too many ruined dogs. I want the best dog I can have in the field come November. I hunt with a bunch of friends and hate those dogs that won't listen and have birds flushing 200 yds out. Course thats all on the handler but don't want that outta my dog.
 
Pretty cool video. My pup is further along than that I think. Her points are not that stylish but she will hold them for an "on the clock" 1 1/2 to two minutes. She charges or creeps bad when the birds start to move or when the door first opens. She'll creep until the birds sit still and then hold for another minute or so then I guess it is just to much for her to take and pounces them.


Have a Good 'Urn,
bones
 
Check out a video called perfect start perfect finish. He teaches whoa with a leash and a choke chain. I have also used food as a way to teach whoa. Put there food down and say whoa don't let them get it until you release them. Whoa is a yard command not a bird command.

Greatlawn
 
Greatlawn makes a good point. "Whoa is a yard command" and to paraphrase a George Hickox quote your dog should be "responding with excellence" in the yard before you try to use the command in the field. You also mentioned she "heads off to school" in September. I would let her point and chase birds to her hearts content and let the trainer introduce the Whoa command and have the trainer teach you how to work with your dog to reinforce/refresh the command in yard training sessions and how/when to use it in the field, just to make it simpler for the dog.
 
I never even considered "holding steady" training last year (Hank is coming 16-months now), but as last season progressed, he started backing & holding steady on his own (I did hunt him with an experienced dog & she was an excellent teacher; Hank learned a lot by watching her.). He hunts well, finds birds, and retrieves; I'm good with that. Up until he was 8-months old & started joining me on hunts, apart from basic obedience & retrieving, I introed him to live pigeons at 4-months and then just continued to enhance his prey drive. I wanted him to be obsessed with finding birds & so far that has served us both well. Good luck!
 
May want to consider hooking up with
bones said:
How is whoa training done. My girl, a 6 month old GSP is fired up about the doves and pigeons in the back yard. Believe it or not she has even gone on point about three times now for pigeons in the neighbors backyard that is behind a 9 foot privacy fence. Pup is pointing well and seems to listen to whoa or easy but some times gets a wild hair and just dives at birds.

Would holding her on a check cord help when she starts creeping?

She has no formal training yet so I am not all that worried. She heads off to school in September for two months. Just looking to improve her learning curve. Trying to do some on my own, just won't gun break on my own, seen too many ruined dogs. I want the best dog I can have in the field come November. I hunt with a bunch of friends and hate those dogs that won't listen and have birds flushing 200 yds out. Course thats all on the handler but don't want that outta my dog.
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May want to consider hooking up with NAVHDA CHAPTER IN YOUR AREA(Parker?), if that's close to you. They work with you, help train you and your dog at the same time. More rewarding for me to know I had a part in progress of my dogs. May even make a few new friends along the way with common interest.
 
May give the NAVDHA a try. Still sending her to school a want a really polished dog. One that everyone talks about and not behind our backs if you know what I mean.
 
I know what you mean. Sent my first dog away for six weeks. Second dog 4 weeks. Hooked up with North American Versatile Hunting Dog Assoc. when I began training my boys as pups. Kinda like raising your kids yourself and the personal satisfaction of a job well done.
 
it's a nothing. forget about it.

you said she's creeping on doves and pigeons in the back yard. she's sight pointing these birds. it means nothing. let her chase. don't even use whoa or consider it training. she's just playing.

i have a 2 year old broke pointer that still stalks and chases robins at the bird feeder. it means nothing.
 
bones said:
May give the NAVDHA a try. Still sending her to school a want a really polished dog. One that everyone talks about and not behind our backs if you know what I mean.
Click to expand...

you can have a dog trained out the you know what! get him in a field full of pheasants and see how they handle them or even better yet highly pressured ones you get him to handle birds like that then you have a bird dog i had a little female pointer not that great on quail but excellent on running pheasants she would hook around in front of them and pin there ass! a buddy has her now it takes lots and lots of birds to make a dog even the best trial dogs struggle with wild birds good luck
 
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