Observations of a Novice Dog Handler

I was walking my 2 year old German Shorthair Pointer last Tuesday night when I met Tony Marquez. It was a remarkably pleasant evening after the 110 degree June scorcher.

He called form across the street. “Shorthair? Right? I can tell by the walk. Can I see her?”

“Sure,” I replied. “If you are brave. She is a wild one.”

“They all are.”

Turns out that Tony, besides being a really nice guy is an experienced dog trainer and he and a buddy go out most Saturday mornings to work their dogs.  He liked the looks of my dog and we were welcome to go. I really wanted to see how my Millie would do. The ol’ “opportunity knocks but once” adage was circling around in my brain but opportunity wasn’t knocking it was banging down the door.

Millie knew something was up when the alarm went off  in the middle of the night the following Saturday. She was too excited to eat and so afraid that I would leave without her. I loaded a very happy dog into the truck and we were off. There was not even a hint of light to the east.

Ten minutes later  the blackness was cut by two high riding headlights. Ryan Crockett pulled up with two dogs, Millie (a Lab mix) and Drake (an English pointer).

Ryan ready to go

He also had the all-important pigeons.  I watched, enthralled as they loaded Tony’s three dogs, Hank and Sam (both GSP’s) and Gauge (a Lab). Their kennels were placed in the back of the pickup and one dog at a time was brought out. On command (kennel) each dog jumped into the back of the truck and into his kennel. My Millie watched from the jump seat of our pickup.  She has never been in a kennel. I must have looked kind of sheepish and Tony assured me that it wouldn’t be long and my dog would do that too. (yeah. Right.) It was 4:15.

 
All packed up

We drove west of town to a field on private land and that they use often.  The goal for each dog was different. Hank and Sam were the old pros. Saturday mornings for them is reinforcement. Millie the Labrador is also a “finished” upland dog. She points and retrieves upland birds. Drake is a young dog and he needed work on holding his point until after the bird flew. My Millie? Well, she just got to have fun. Tony and Ryan just wanted to see how she would react to the whole situation.

 
Summer training means early mornings

The e-collars were checked to make sure that they didn’t cross. It was just about light and we were ready to start.  Drake was first. A pigeon was fitted with a “card” and placed in the back pouch of Tony’s vest. The EP was let out of his kennel and he madly raced around the field. I feel sorry for folks who cannot feel the pure joy a dog has when he gets to run. We all walked into the field leaving the rest of the dogs to make the most amazing racket. They all wanted to go hunting.  Millie was watching intently from her perch in the jump seat of my pickup. Ryan and Drake went one way and Tony and I went the other to plant the bird. Once the bird was placed we waved to Ryan and the lesson began.  Drake was brought around upwind and locked into a beautiful point once he caught scent. Ryan stood close ready to hold him steady to point while Tony flushed the bird. The bird flew and the dog as was expected broke point. Ryan brought him back to point and the bird was flushed again. This scenario was repeated until Drake got the idea that he was to hold point while the bird flew.  Then the bird was flushed one more time and Tony shot it. Drake was rewarded with the retrieve.

 
Hank

Next it was my dog’s turn.  I assured Tony that she will come on command and she was fitted with a check cord and let loose in the field. She didn’t care that she was trailing a long rope it was just fun to run. Then she was given a pigeon. Tony explained that he needed to see if she was “birdie”. I told him that she was birdie and that pigeon was in serious trouble. She caught a dove in the back yard once and plucked the feathers from it. When I got home she proudly showed me the pitiful naked thing, Even as I spoke Millie had that bird in her mouth and was having her way with it. A blank was fired and my pup looked up momentarily before she returned to abusing the bird. She carried it around for a while and sure enough feathers were soon flying. Tony was amused by her antics and asked me if she would retrieve. I just shook my head. He picked up the check cord and coaxed her in until she was arm length away and I’ll be darned if that dog didn’t give up that bird. Then he gave it back to her. We called her and she started to come but she didn’t want to leave her bird. Tony said to just walk away and see what happens. Sure enough, once we did that she came bounding up bird and all. The emphasis of course was to make the experience as pleasant as possible for the dog so that she will want to do it again. ‘Always end a session on a positive note, even on a bad day’ Tony counseled. 

 
Gauge

Millie was put in a kennel and we moved on to the experienced dogs. Her cries and yips were added to the dog din as we walked away with Hank or was it Sam? I must confess that these two dogs look so much alike that I cannot tell one from the other. They are not litter mates but they come from the same line. Ryan planted the pigeon while Tony reinforced field commands. The running dog was brought to a total stop on a “whoa” command. Then he was brought back from the far edge of the field with the whistle. The e-collar was there for reinforcement if necessary. Once the pigeon was planted  the dog was brought to where he could catch scent, the bird was flushed and Ryan made a beautiful shot downing the bird. Hank (Sam) held steady, marked the bird, and made a forty-yard retrieve to hand. WOW! AWSOME! To watch a well trained gun dog is poetry in motion. Tony was satisfied.

  
Sam Poses for the rising sun

“These are just pigeons,” he explained. “ Just wait a few weeks when we get some bobwhites, then you’ll really see something.”

We put Hank up and got Sam. (or visa versa) The whole thing was repeated with little variation. This dog was younger and he didn’t always retrieve to hand. Sometimes he breaks on shot, which is OK but the dog might have to look longer for the downed bird.  I cannot imagine any quail hunter not being happy with the performance of this dog.  Tony complained of sloppy points but then again these are just pigeons.

The pointers were done for the day so the two Labrador Retrievers were brought out. (Millie and Gauge) Each owner practiced with their dogs throwing dummies into the field and perfecting commands.  The dummy was thrown while the dog watched. Then it was released to retrieve with a head tap. Sometimes a whistle was blown interrupting the retrieve. The dog would stop, turn and sit, looking to the handler for direction. With a hand wave the dog was either sent left or right.  These dogs live to retrieve and today they were loving life.

 
Tony and Hank

All too soon the sun was rising higher in the east with promise of another blistering day.  It was almost time to go.  Millie was let out of the borrowed kennel  and she went right for the birds. Luckily they were in their own kennel. She pawed and whined and whimpered in frustration as she tried to get at them. She flipped the little kennel over and over giving the birds a wild ride. This seemed to please the two trainers. “Birdieness” is not an issue with this pup.

Ryan and Tony are avid bird hunters, upland and water. These dogs are hunting dogs, their partners of the hunt. Keeping them fresh and motivated in the off season decreases mistakes during the season.  Thus making the hunt more fun and successful for all. To do that in the Arizona desert requires getting up at three o’clock and like the commercial: these two guys JUST DO IT!

 
Ryan and Drake

So begins our formal education. (Millie’s and mine). We will be out there again next week and the week after as long as they will let us. Millie has a kennel now and my job this week is to get her aquatinted with it.  I have bribed her into it with dog treats and she is sleeping there even as I type.  From her first session we know that she is birdie, not gun shy and can be taught to retrieve. The first two things are especially difficult to deal with.  Look for regular posts of her progress in the gun dog section of AZOD in the weeks to come.

Linda Dightmon

Team AZOD