# What A Week



## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

We went up north for the holiday, and took all the dogs and had a great time. However I want to tell you a little that we did. 

First of all, before we left, I got Gabby over to our trainer Sue and we did some more FF work with her. She introduced us to stick and collar fetch. It always amazes me when Gabby gets stubborn. However now I know it's how she shows confusion. After the initial session and she has had a time to think about it, she dose it right. At the end of the training she wanted me to have Gabby pick up the bumpers we had placed around. It took her a moment, thinking she was going to be corrected, but she got it and did better with each bumper. Sue said to do this stretching her out to picking up bumpers for 100+ yards. Prepares her for FTP and blinds in her future. I enjoyed my session. 

Quinn hubby's lab didn't go we usually train together but Sue wanted him to see her trainer. Quinn has a 'noise' issue and she wanted her trainers opinion. So on our way up north last Wed we stopped at her trainers. OMG he had a really nice facility. Not sure how big, but he had a pond that I WANT!!!! If I could only work on that for a couple weeks.... Anyway, Quinn was being her squeaky self, but we wanted to escalate the issue so the trainer told me to get Gabby out. Up the ante. He fell in LOVE with my Gabber Goo!!! He does hunt tests and field trials, he does run labs, but he has run, and is running a couple Speaker daughters and grand daughters. He told me stuff about Gabby that I think I noticed but did not realize. She too can be noisy, when she wants to play especially if Quinn is playing. Sibling rivalry I suspect. He said that is Speaker. Once I put Gabby's work collar on she was all focus. He told me to, that just because you 'think' she is trained completely be sure you finish all the steps. He says his Speaker dogs have strong opinions, and unless you complete the training steps, you may find they find the hole and take it. They are very smart. I do know Gabby is smarter than I am. 

I asked him about Gabby not holding birds. He commented he finds it to be rather common in Goldens, and she needs to work with shackled birds to get a proper grip. I said 'great when can I come back!'. He does not have any birds at the moment, hopes to have some in a couple weeks and told us to call him and come back. I do love the lady who helps us, she is awesome, but she trains in her back yard, she has 20 acres I think and a pond. However she is limited to what we can do there too. So this was a great opportunity. And the fact he has run goldens, understands they are not labs is also a great thing. He is about 2+ hours away. Can't go weekly but maybe once a month? Hoping anyway. 

Then up north we did some more field work with the two younger dogs. We went to the high school, and did marks 100 yards or more. I was pleased how well both dogs did. Quinn was straighter and cleaner, but she has been doing this a year longer too. Gabby does need to focus on the fall a bit better but practice I think will improve that for the long marks. Short ones she is all over it. We introduced Gabby to doubles too. Much shorter, we need to work on the memory bird. She would watch that fall, then the go bird. She would run straight out to the go bird, run slower coming in knowing there was another bumper out there, and would veer slightly toward that fall. I would call her in. Then when I set her up for the memory mark, she would be straight and I would think she was looking in the direction, I would release her, and she would head towards where the go mark had been. Yes we did singles on the memory first. They were her first doubles. We can do some here at home with her. She will be fine. 

I also did some FF work with her, and had her pick up her bumpers. I like that game. So does Gabby. Oh and we brought ducks up north! We kept all Gabby's duck marks short so we could correct any behavior that was not acceptable. Remember she was trying to eat the duck. However that was gone. She also decided she could hold one too! We did land and short water marks. On the water we had her on a line, mostly because we are teaching her to come to heel, let me take the bird, then shake. She is doing very well on that training. It amazes me how they figure it out. When we are dock jumping, she shakes out of the water, when we are working with water retrieves (ducks or bumpers) she figured out to come to me, heel, sit, let me take the bumper (or duck) and then if she wants... shake. 

We did some fun things up north too, I am just glad I got some good training in. It's hard when you live in suburbia to do some real field training. Hubby and I decided we are going to try real hard to get to the training grounds every Thursday (after this week) after he gets out of work. We will have to watch the heat, but we could still do something. He has homework for Quinn, and I am optimistic I can get Gabby to JH by the Marshbanks test in Aug. I so hope to run her. Sue says 'pond work'. So my home work is to work all 4 ponds at the training grounds. I also need to find a pond where we can do land/water/land retrieves. Not sure any of the ponds at HRC allow that. I think they may be too big.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Sounds awesome - you have 4 ponds at your training grounds ?? That is cause for jealousy LOL


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## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

What a great road trip! It is so cool you husband enjoys training too. What was the game you used with force fetch?


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

DNL2448 said:


> What was the game you used with force fetch?


 Having her pick up all the bumpers. I just stay in one spot and have her go get each one. Now if I can transfer that to the toy box in the basement. LOL


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

it all sounds so wonderful!! I'm sure Gabby Goo is going to be awesome in field, considering how awesome she is already in obedience


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

Glad you had a good week! I love to hear about your dogs!

I can not believe how much Gabby and Filly are alike, when you describe her, the more and more I hear, the more I can replace Gabby's name with Filly's. It is amazing that even with a different dam, how consistand the Speaker daughter/Hootie breedings are. I guess we will have to give eachother our notes from what has worked, and not worked training wise. I really wish I could meet you guys!


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

Speaker pups are plenty smart and I know all about finding the holes in training. They usually prefer tests to show it though. They particularly like figuring out casts on blinds for you.


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

Radarsdad said:


> Speaker pups are plenty smart and I know all about finding the holes in training. They usually prefer tests to show it though. They particularly like figuring out casts on blinds for you.


Funny you should say that about casting. The trainer said he knew (or ran) a dog a Speaker daughter, who was being sent to a left cast. She did NOT want to go, she did but the whole time she was verbally arguing. He said it was really humorous. She was growling the whole way. 



> I guess we will have to give each other our notes from what has worked, and not worked training wise. I really wish I could meet you guys!


I am game!!! I really want to meet you and Filly too!!! I have a friend who is slowly contemplating a lab pup.... if I can talk her into Captain's Kennels... Maybe I can come to MN. Of course you need to come to MI.... I know we WILL meet at Golden Nationals in 2012 but I don't want to wait that long.


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

> Funny you should say that about casting. The trainer said he knew (or ran) a dog a Speaker daughter, who was being sent to a left cast. She did NOT want to go, she did but the whole time she was verbally arguing. He said it was really humorous. She was growling the whole way.


Yep,
Radar was a Speaker son, trick to him was to stop him from "shopping" and Indirect pressure on wrong casts. The biggest thing was to wait him out after you blew the sit whistle. Make sure he was *sitting straight at me no sloppy sits* to break his train of thought and wait till I had his full attention. I could tell if he was going break the wrong way by watching his shoulders.

He would stop with his mouth closed. Then if he opened with that silly grin you knew he had already made the decision which way he was going. If it was closed you had a chance. To his credit the test before the accident he was running awesome blinds and in training out to about 400yds. He had learned if he would listen he would get there faster.


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

WOW I may need to talk more with you too. That way I know what to watch for with Gabby. The trainer I saw, did not discount Speaker but did say, he was not as good as most of his offspring. Guess he is a better sire, not that he was a bad field dog at all. Not with his accomplishments. 

Gabby has a grin... not sure it means anything yet. Her daddy Hootie is known for his smile, and she has it too.


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

Maxs Mom said:


> Gabby has a grin... not sure it means anything yet. Her daddy Hootie is known for his smile, and she has it too.


Here is a mellow worn out version of Filly's grin. I have found it sometimes means she is about to do something(usually somewhat naughty).


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

They give away their intentions once you learn their expressions and they have a lot of them. 
Anytime Max's Mom just yell. 
I forgot the little quick tail switch on sit on a blind means he's about to move. Which means autocast coming up. Make them sit long enough and they will give themselves away.


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

I would love to hear more about Radar. He sounds like he was quite the guy!


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

He was,
Little one here, (Gunner) is 16 weeks and taking back casts in water and puppy sight blinds on land. He has big shoes to fill


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

Radarsdad said:


> He was,
> Little one here, (Gunner) is 16 weeks and taking back casts in water and puppy sight blinds on land. He has big shoes to fill


Wow, what an impressive little man you have! Must have a good trainer


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

Stretchdrive said:


> Must have a good trainer


Radar might, and probably would take issue with that statement.


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

Radarsdad said:


> Radar might, and probably would take issue with that statement.


LOL Each dog teaches us so much and we are so much better with the next dog. I don't have a recent smile picture of Gabby but I love this one from when she was a young pup before I met her. I think she looks just like her dad.


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

This one befits him


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

Radarsdad said:


> This one befits him


LOL I call Gabby a devil dog! One minute cute and innocent, the next a possessed demon!


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## Radarsdad (Apr 18, 2011)

This is after his Senior title


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