What a Day

I’ve been doing basic hunt training with Maple and Alder.  I’ve never done hunt training, but diving in headlong with no idea what I’m doing has never stopped me before.  I’ve been learning from videos, books, and helpful tips from email lists. 

Up until today, training has largely been limited to me throwing marks using bumpers.  “Throwing marks” means to toss an object while the dog maintains a stay, then send the dog for the object.  Sometimes, George throws the bumpers.  Usually, it’s me putting the dog on a sit-stay, walking out 30-100 yards, tossing the bumper, and releasing the dog at that distance by yelling its name.  A couple weeks ago, I cautiously introduced the dogs to a gunshot at a long distance, with George firing as he tossed a bumper.  Maple has been completely unfazed by the gunshots, but Alder the poodle is still a bit rattled by them.

I’ve had a few dead birds to work the dogs with, but the dogs don’t get much time on each bird.  Repeated freezing and thawing, being slung around and falling on the ground, and being slobbered on by dogs takes a lot out a bird in a short period of time.  Foolish me, I’ve always disposed of the birds when they start to look shabby and before they get really smelly.  Among the many things I learned today is that I’ve been much too finicky with my bird supply. 

Today, I went to my very first training day, put on by the Spokane Bird Dog Association.  The dogs got to see a real hunt test set-up, with bird boys throwing ducks and pigeons, gun shots, and lots of very excited labs and goldens.  None of the other dogs were more excited than Maple.  She could see birds being thrown while she waited in line and she was absolutely certain that she deserved them all.  I thought she might be hesitant to run towards strangers firing guns.  Ha ha. Not a chance. She sees a bird drop and she motors out like her tail’s on fire.  She rarely breaks at home, but I had to hold her collar today.  I thought she might have trouble with real birds, since she mostly picks up bumpers. No problem with the pigeons, except that she tended to stop just before she got back to me and drop the bird.  Something to work on.

The ducks were tougher. They’re a lot bigger than pigeons and I’ve only recently gotten a duck to use at home.  She did two ducks. She wasn’t bad on the first one.  She didn’t want to pick it up at first, but did it with some encouragement. The second one was another matter entirely.  She raced out to it…and started having a wonderful time rolling on it.  I got her to pick it up and bring it partway back, when she dropped it and commenced with another roll-fest.

The duck, as it turned out, was beyond rank.  Any self-respecting maggot would have bypassed this duck.  Evidently, I am not the only dog trainer that has limited access to ducks.  Ducks are so cherished, they are used, frozen, and reused until parts are rotting and falling off.  It was a wonder this duck still had two wings (what was left of them) and a head.  Bleech. Double Bleech.  I say this as a vertebrate museum curator that has skinned many a road-killed specimen that has lain on black asphalt in July sunshine for many hours before being picked up and generously donated to the museum.  That duck had been ready to become fertilizer many months prior to this training day.

Alder, the poodle boy, I am afraid, did not make poodledom proud.  He looked good for the first few seconds.  To my surprise, even with the gunshot, he bounded out with enthusiasm to the thrown pigeon, but then realized that a) it was a bird instead of a bumper and b) THE MAN SHOOTING THE SCARY GUN WAS HIDING OUT THERE.  No way was Alder getting near that guy, and when the guy tried tossing the pigeon around to encourage Alder to get it, Alder was out of there.  It is unlikely that any of the lab or golden owners who watched Alder will be rushing out to buy a poodle as their next hunting dog.  Luckily, I have shown Alder in obedience long enough to become immune to embarrassment.

Afterwards, we went to another part of the training grounds and took a walk with the dogs.  They had a great time.  Retrieving in water was not part of this training day because it was windy and cold, but George threw the Dokken (a foam-bodied “duck” that the dogs love to retrieve) into a shallow pond for Maple.  Alder, now that he was out of sight of witnesses that might get the impression he had actually had some training, demanded his turns, too.  He especially liked that the water as so shallow, he didn’t have to get his tummy wet.  Alder hasn't read the memo that says poodles are supposed to be water retrievers.

All in all, a long, cold, windy day in which me and Maple learned a lot.  I was given two pigeons that I would have described as rank and smelly before dealing with the infamous duck.  By comparison, my two pigeons are fresh as daisies, but I am under stern orders to keep using them until their feet fall off and they morph into zombie pigeons.