Quite a few people hunt ducks with Springers. Be thorough with your training, as well as patient.

EvanG

So Ruby is getting settled in and overall doing wonderful with crate training and learning puppy commands. But she's decided to eat the flower bed. I use "leave it" for anything I want her to stop eating/biting etc. And that works well forest things but this flower bed deal, I have to go reinforce ...

All of us has a way, or several ways to train for what is commonly called 'diversions'. How do you define what a diversion is, and how do you prefer to train for them?

EvanG

To offer my own summation on what a handling dog is I offer the following.

Yes, "handling dog" is a subjective term; too subjective in my opinion. That was why I started this topic in the first place. One person uses the term, and those who hear it perceive a variety of images. I'm attempting to ...

What is too soon? Doesn't T teach and reinforce go as sent stop and cast? This is the foundation for doing the things referred to in the replies. Thanks Brett. You've offered some of the common notions about this. Yes, T work builds the foundation by instilling the basic tools that handling is ...

When the dog can be handled off a mark, and then run a blind with compounding factors (poison bird), then it is a handling dog, versus a "casting dog." Its no great shakes to teach one to "cast." Teaching one to the point it will "handle" is a different animal. YMMV. Opinions are like elbows but ...

72 views and no one with a clue?

EvanG

At what point in development do you feel a dog becomes a "handling dog"? 3-handed casting? Mini-T? Single or Double T? Swim-by? When? What attributes do you need to see to make that assessment?

EvanG

....I would presume having someone at 9 throwing to say 2 would be more ideal as the dog wouldn't have to stop to move/watch. With birds going straight overhead (12 to 6), he'd go back to watching the ground for the fall. A 9 to 2 would/should keep his attention throughout the whole mark? May try ...

Shoot more flyers, throw more shackled live birds. Give your dog a reason to watch the entire fall. A gun barrel can be no more than a distraction away from the fall unless the dog first has a desire to remain fixed on it.

EvanG

Congratulations!

EvanG

I understand if you don't want to hear this. You may have your heart set on having a non-mainstream breed. But my best advice is to do all you can to get a top quality dog regardless of breed or color. Best performance, best health, and the credentials to back it up. There are a host of reasons why ...

cvines wrote:What can be done about a whining dog it is driving me crazy

Shoot me an email and I'll send you an article I wrote last year for The Golden Retriever Journal - Field Issue. It's been effective many times for many trainers. rushcreekpress@aol.com .

EvanG

99beers wrote:Typical plug.

Typical brain dead post. Never here to help/always here to hate.

EvanG

My question here is this how do you get a dog to do a transition to live birds? She does good with a bumper but will not pick up a duck at all. I have never had this problem with any of my dogsand he is wanting me to work with her. Like this.

http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/xEiZFkUSO58/mqdefault.jpg

The ...