Training Pages – Bird Dog
Nationally recognized as one of today’s top professionals, George Hickox has owned and campaigned numerous field champions and Dog
of the Year.
Training Page
Putting A Handle On Your Dog
When is the correct time to put a handle on the dog?
This has been the subject of intense debates for eons. Dogs have been brought to the prairies of Canada and the West beginning in the early years of the last century. Dogs and trainers originally traveled in trains’ freight cars before travel was more accessible by vehicles. Today dogs and trainer/handlers trailer dogs and horses to the bird rich prairies of the west for the summer for a multitude of reasons. The temperatures and humidity are more conducive in the west than in other parts of the lower forty-eight in the early mornings. The day’s work schedule begins before daybreak with the loading of dogs and horses before turning dogs loose at first light. Temperatures are normally cooperative, and hopefully the prairie winds are not too big of a handicap for the bird finding. Getting the dogs to run and giving them the opportunity for multiple bird contacts in cooler temperatures is the big motivator for trainers to make the trek. Trainers are not in the prairies for the fine restaurants and night life. They are there to train and get a lot done with the canine proteges.
Written by: George Hickox
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Pups are running in the prairies in order to gain confidence, develop intelligent hunting with wild bird contacts, and learn to go with the handler. Older dogs may be in a regimented conditioning program to make them well conditioned athletes with great stamina for the upcoming field trial and hunting season. Developing bird finding abilities and stellar bird manners on wild birds is an integral objective of effective training programs.
Putting a handle on the dog is one of the primary reasons trainers go to the prairies with their four-legged pupils. Developing a dog that goes with the handler in the appropriate range for the arena the dog will field trial or hunt in is accelerated in the wide-open prairies. It is extremely difficult to develop a ten to two in front pattern for the pointing breeds in the grouse woods or the piney woods of the South’s bobwhite country. It is more than a little challenge to develop the proper patterns for upwind, crosswind, or downwind wind directions in the woods for the foot hunting or horseback dog, whether the canine student be a flushing upland hunter or a pointing breed. A flushing dog that quests in the desired range and manner to the gun is simply going to give a shooter more opportunities to pull the trigger. Whether owners elect to send their dog/dogs to the prairies with a professional trainer, have the time, available grounds, and ability to train their own dogs themselves, or remain close to home to get the training done there is still the question of ‘When should I put a handle on the dog?” By handle I am referring to the dog recalling upon command when hunting, going with the handle at a desired range, and running a proper pattern in control.
In order to develop a handle in the field there will have to be some necessary negative reinforcement for a dog purposely giving the owner the proverbial finger. Putting a handle on the dog before the dog has had bird contacts, demonstrates a keen desire to quest and hunt, has no apprehension with the flush or shot, and exhibits confidence in the field can be detrimental to the training process. I do not believe if is beneficial to developing intensity on game, style, and a dog that looks forward to learning and school if the program is all pressure orientated or by not adhering to benchmarks. That said, there is no better program to developing a dog that quest with style while responding to commands/cue with tail wagging obedience the by incorporating the e-collar into the program, done correctly. I strongly recommend that the proper e-collar conditioning that teaches the dog how to turn off stimulation and avoid stimulation be accomplished in yard training before generalizing the dog in the hunting arenas.
On the other hand, if the process of putting a handle on the dog is done too late success will be harder and inevitably will require more pressure. In my opinion any program that is guaranteed to increase the amount of pressure put on the dog in order to gain compliance is not the best program. Pressure put on at the proper time and for the proper reasons is a necessary part of dog training but more pressure does not create more style or a better learner. More pressure than is necessary may degrade the style of the dog and create on the dog’s part an attitude of “I am afraid to give it a 100% effort for fear of failing and being corrected.” It is also possible the dog may become case hardened and react with “I can take whatever you try to give me.” Neither a dog that is apprehensive and lacking confidence or is a case-hardened renegade makes for a better student. The badge of honor is not to have the youngest dog ever trained. The button popping pride comes from developing a great bird finder who does the job with class while in control and maximizing the dog’s genetic potential.
When a dog is demonstrating drive and quest, has no problem with cover, the flush, shot, and begins responding to going with the handle with a deaf ear it is probably time to put a handle and accountability into play. The determining benchmark in the development of a dog is not so much a question of age but rather how the individual dog is responding to your training program.
Nationally recognized as one of today’s top professionals, George Hickox has owned and campaigned numerous field champions and Dog of the Year. 23 X Champion Chelsea Thunder Bolt is the winningest dog in the history of Open Shooting Dog Field Trials, having won the Purina Dog of the Year four times & the Us Open Shooting Dog Invitational 3X. For over three decades, George has conducted clinics, private one-on-one training, and Bird Dog Schools for owners and their dogs. He has guided from Alaska to Georgia, appeared on TV, written articles for magazines, worked with elite Special Forces canine groups, and produced award winning dog training DVDs. The George Hickox School of Bird Dog Training has helped thousands of owners and their dogs across the US.
In addition to being an Emergency Medicine physician, Debbie is a professional bird dog trainer. Debbie currently owns and campaigns Silver W JillZ, the winner of the Purina Open Shooting Dog of the Year & 6 X Open Shooting Dog Champion. Debbie”s expertise and passions centers around developing puppies and young dogs into bragging rights companions and hunters. Debbie incorporates clicker training and implements initial canine behaviors with positive reinforcement. She is responsible for the the conditioning, health, and training program for the dogs of a private wild quail plantation. and guides wild quail hunts.. Together, George and Debbie offer one on one training for owners and their dogs at their facility near Thomasville, GA. in the winter and in the prairies of North Dakota during the summer.
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Training Pages – Bird Dog Training
When it comes to dog training, the well-worn phrase “Timing is everything” is especially true. If two dogs were DNA clones, had identical environmental exposures, and were trained by two separate owners who taught with the same training program, one of the dogs would most likely be better than the other. The reason would be based on th
Training Pages – Training With the E-Collar
Training with stimulation has become much more accepted today than it was in prior times. There are still holdouts that say “No way am I going to shock my dog. I love him and do not want to hurt him.”
However, a much larger percentage of dog owners and trainers recognize the huge advantage of incorporating the use of a low-level stimulation e-collar into their training program, IF THE E-COLLAR IS USED CORRECTLY!