took 18 months to get their

[hily 380]

Statement fact I'm not a dog trainer no way but the latest ess i bought has had me round the bend trying to get her to be at least some good when out shooting .Problems you name it shes had it except gun shyness!. Running inn not picking fur, spitting out retreives before coming to hand and the most flustrating habit of stoping in mid hunt and looking skyward at nowt.Now then somthing's clicked the last three sats out hunting bunnys with her she's got better and better first she stopped running inn still just stands and keeps an eye on the flushed game but not running in given me a chance of a shot or two.Then last week she bumped one after another bunny out for me to shoot at managed to kill a few and i picked them up myself then she flushed a lovely going away rabbit and i shot it at about thirty yards out (thats in old money) sent her out for retrieve straight out and back to hand and she held it untill i took it from her then next even better she was hunting a big clump of reeds and out poped a wee little bunny i stoped her on the whistle and as she was coming back to me she took a sly glance towards the direction where the little rabbit had made of to, seen this i told her to leeeeve it she then promptly spat a small bunny out that she must have picked up out of the cover she then sat down and watched it run away could not have ended the day any better than that!.THEN TODAY bloody windy but had to get the dog out hunting to see if it's realy sunk in hunted her down a wood no flushes but pals dog bumped a bunny out and accross to us it nearly ran into my dog the dog spied it but did't move on it she just froze it was to close to shoot so i told the dog to hunt on and she moved the bunny it dropped down a hole and was away. No more action in the wood now out into a gully full of cover reeds white grasses and plenty of little burns with cover on each bank. The dog flushed a rabbit from the bankside as soon as i had made sure she'd stopped i dropped the rabbit over forty paces away but as i fired the dog moved so i made her sit and i collected the rabbit . The next one was flushed by my pals dog and he shot the rabbit as it headed in my direction as my dog had marked it he let me send her out to retrieve it wich she did in text book style.At this point i think i relaxed a bit and i stopped useing the whistle as much and let the dog hunt on she just kept her head down and twisted and turned in the cover snake like body low she realy got on with the job of pushing out rabbits for me to shoot and for her to collect and although she had one or two hot seats when she sat bolt upright thinking she'd bumped out a bunny she just moved on when told and it seamed to me that we where now working as a team.Last flush bunny out like a rocket dog sits bunny runs up and over a bank out of the dogs view i bowl it over then send dog out on a blind retrieve now baring in mind its blowing a hoolly she gets onto the foot scent right away and collects the rabbit me i'm chuffed! then me pal says you and the little dog are jelling your more relaxed and even shooting better and the dogs looking as if she's realy enjoying herself touch wood i hope he's right the next few outings will be interesting mebe not for anyone who's had the staminer to read my ramblings but for me after all its taken 18 months to get here

Edited May 10, 2009 by hily

[coursing_lad 45]

withing working dogs , if its lurchers to terriers to gundogs , patience really is a virtue ,

 

glad shes starting to come good ,

 

CL

[Geoff.C 0]

Nice story hily, you need patience and a sense of humor for training dogs, particularly those like ESS with strong character. At 18 months old, she is still a "teenager", and you know what they can be like! Just keep up what you are doing, she will be learning and gaining experience all the time. You should have a good shooting companion for 7 or 8 years at least. All the best mate.

[hily 380]

Nice story hily, you need patience and a sense of humor for training dogs, particularly those like ESS with strong character. At 18 months old, she is still a "teenager", and you know what they can be like! Just keep up what you are doing, she will be learning and gaining experience all the time. You should have a good shooting companion for 7 or 8 years at least. All the best mate.

Geoff shes 2 1/2 years old didn't start with her untill she was about 1 .thanks for comments.

[Geoff.C 0]

Nice story hily, you need patience and a sense of humor for training dogs, particularly those like ESS with strong character. At 18 months old, she is still a "teenager", and you know what they can be like! Just keep up what you are doing, she will be learning and gaining experience all the time. You should have a good shooting companion for 7 or 8 years at least. All the best mate.

Geoff shes 2 1/2 years old didn't start with her untill she was about 1 .thanks for comments.

 

You have still done well, if she had no real training until you started at a year old. She is nowhere near mature really. Lots to learn yet.