# June 2013 Field



## Claudia M

hahaha - May is not over yet! - we got 6 more hours!!!


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## goldengirls550

I have been away from GRF for awhile, but Jade is entered in his first WC test in a few weeks My first field event as well!


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## Vhuynh2

Just wanted to share.. this is Molly's first bird.. "part two".. taken just this past Monday. It's her first real hold on a bird. She is still tempted to pick it up by the wing if I don't hold it for her or put it on the ground just right with the bird's stomach or back facing up. I know it's not a big deal, but I'm glad to be finally going forward with her.










We had been working on FF with just bumpers for a long.. long.. long time. It wasn't fun but I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and things are starting to look up. We are at the end of week 2 of collar conditioning..


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## MillionsofPeaches

yay to Molly on her first bird and good luck to everyone~ exciting!

We are finally back from Disney and got our girls on Tuesday night. We missed them terribly, I mean, terribly.
Wednesday was a down day at the beach and we did nothing with them but enjoy them! It was fun.
Thursday was a very long day of training. It was very hot so I'm glad it was water. It was fun, Peaches' littermate was there getting a feel for it and that is always fun to get the puppies together. The girls did great. I was very pleased. Peaches is heeling while holding which is amazing to see. She is really doing well with the early steps towards fetch and it seems to help rev her up. Katniss is now ready to move forward and we are cleaning up the finishes. Friday was land and she did everything well, it is just a matter of getting her to stop swirling around me from the back when she gets into heel. So we're working on that. 
But all in all it was good to get back to work. I missed them!


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## hollyk

hotel4dogs said:


> A new month. Almost half-way to Christmas already!
> 
> Just wanted to be sure to start this thread so I could say GOOD LUCK HOLLY AND WINTER this weekend!!


Thanks!
Not sure if we will pass today. I don't have that something crazy has to happen for us not to pass feeling but this test is so close to home it was hard to pass up. I'm only entered today. We have been training hard, she is marking well, land blinds are pretty strong, water blinds are getting there and have done a ton of work on keeping her from breaking. Winter would have a much better chance today with a stronger handler but she is stuck with me. 
Time for us to eat breakfast, camo up and head out. :--appalled:


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## Claudia M

Good luck!


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## gdgli

Good luck!


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## Claudia M

I finally got the cord for the camera so I can post some pics from the cabin. And the tripod came in. Hope to have better videos from now on. I think I doubled up with the sig pic.


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## AmbikaGR

goldengirls550 said:


> I have been away from GRF for awhile, but Jade is entered in his first WC test in a few weeks My first field event as well!



GOOD LUCK!!!! :wave:


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## Vhuynh2

hollyk said:


> Thanks!
> Not sure if we will pass today. I don't have that something crazy has to happen for us not to pass feeling but this test is so close to home it was hard to pass up. I'm only entered today. We have been training hard, she is marking well, land blinds are pretty strong, water blinds are getting there and have done a ton of work on keeping her from breaking. Winter would have a much better chance today with a stronger handler but she is stuck with me.
> Time for us to eat breakfast, camo up and head out. :--appalled:


Good luck! 


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## boomers_dawn

I thought I posted this morning, Dee Dee jumped on the keyboard and I thought she posted for me, but she must have only hit preview 

We'll be working on SH stuff all month. We didn't do anything the past couple of days due to the heat and chronic headache. We have large group training tomorrow but I opted out to go to smaller group training to work on blinds instead of huge set ups. I'm not sure we're having it now, but if we don't, we'll just go someplace and work on water baseball. 

Dee Dee is working on puppy manners, retrieving and coming back, and getting in the water. I'm supposed to put the collar on her to eat, but the collar is enormous and she's a scrawny little midget so I haven't been putting it on her :-(

Have to miss weekday group training this week, so will try to do something every evening. 

Happy training to all, stay cool, be safe.


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## AmberSunrise

I received a text last night that the session is still scheduled.. it could change but lets hope for the best 

Hoping it cools down since it is way too hot to be doing anything not involving water; well may not for our southern buds but we still had snow no so long ago and the dogs still have their winter coats on!



boomers_dawn said:


> I thought I posted this morning, Dee Dee jumped on the keyboard and I thought she posted for me, but she must have only hit preview
> 
> We'll be working on SH stuff all month. We didn't do anything the past couple of days due to the heat and chronic headache. We have large group training tomorrow but I opted out to go to smaller group training to work on blinds instead of huge set ups. I'm not sure we're having it now, but if we don't, we'll just go someplace and work on water baseball.
> 
> Dee Dee is working on puppy manners, retrieving and coming back, and getting in the water. I'm supposed to put the collar on her to eat, but the collar is enormous and she's a scrawny little midget so I haven't been putting it on her :-(
> 
> Have to miss weekday group training this week, so will try to do something every evening.
> 
> Happy training to all, stay cool, be safe.


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## hollyk

Winter passed what I was told was a pretty tough Finished test yesterday. We were not the prettiest team in the water but she was solid on land and we got it done.


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## AmberSunrise

Woohooo  Congratulations


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## Vhuynh2

hollyk said:


> Winter passed what I was told was a pretty tough Finished test yesterday. We were not the prettiest team in the water but she was solid on land and we got it done.


Congratulations! Awesome news!


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## hotel4dogs

Way to go Holly and Winter! You go girls!! Proud of you guys!


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## Alaska7133

Wow someday I hope to do as well!


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## Alaska7133

I took Miss Lucy to learn how to swim yesterday. There is a lake in town with a man made sandy beach for swimming. So I got her to finally swim chasing bumpers. She would have gone all day. I didn't do any far throws for her. I tried to make it a fun game. The water was ice cold, especially since it was frozen over only a week ago. I walked out with my waders on and we played. It wa fun. 

Today I took her for a picnic hunt test. The test was one 50 yd uphill bird and 2 water birds. Lucy did great on land. It was the water bird that threw her. She got to to an island part way to the bird and panicked. She wouldn't to get the bird. So we brought her back and threw 2 birds from shore at about 10'. She did just fine. She's just never swam until yesterday. She has waded a lot only. Plus the water is still ice cold. We need to keep working on swimming. Hope the summer gets started soon!


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## Alaska7133

Duplicate post


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## gdgli

I had a great day yesterday training with SBGRC. Buffy and I had a learning opportunity since the scenarios were new to us. These were set up as triples. I did these all as singles so as to simplify.

First area
1) Running through 3 1/2 high brush, crossing water, then up on a point (120 yds.)
2) Running through same brush, cross some water into lillly pads (70 yds.)
3) Running through brush, crossing water, up onto a hill, behind a blind for a poorly hit flyer(120 yds.)

Second area
1) Water retrieve of maybe 70 yds.
2) Water retrieve of 35 yds. that presented an opportunity to exit the water early. Tough for us because Buffy is not completely shore broken but she did it right.
3) Short retrieve through lilly pads to retrieve a duck in open water.
Then I was asked, "Will your dog pick up that duck that the puppy wouldn't get" I said "Yup". I ran back to the car, got Buffy, and sent her for the Dead Bird, maybe 30 yards. And she did it quite well.

I don't usually post this detail but this kind of water work and this much water work is a treat for us and I am very pleased. We have limited opportunities on Long Island for this kind of work.


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## hotel4dogs

we actually went out and trained yesterday (!), taking advantage of the fact that it was only 50 degrees out and a bit drizzly. We went to a new field, and did some interesting land marks, with rolling hills. Hadn't encountered that before, with multiple hills and swales. Another interesting factor there was that, because of all the rain we've had (think monsoons here) all the swales had standing water in them, varying from just ground water to several inches deep so he had to cross thru a lot of water swales to get to the bird, which was about 175 yards out on the longest one.
Also worked on running right thru an old fall to get to a blind. Didn't seem to present a problem.
Then went to a new pond, it has some neat shorelines where we could do a REAL cheaty mark that also required getting out on a point, then back in. Tito has seen a lot of that stuff at Dan's, so he wasn't phased by it.
A good day.


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## Alaska7133

175 yards is excellent! I can do 75 yds with Lucy and hope someday to expand farther. do you ever go farther than 175 yds?

One thing I enjoyed about our picnic hunt test yesterday was the amount of finished dogs out there chasing birds and having fun. One girl has just gotten her GCh and already has her JH. She ran her 3 birds (1 on land and 2 in water) as a triple. I think she might get her SH this year. It's so good to see our breed returning to its roots. Our GR club has been very actively involved in hunt and field work.


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## sterregold

My retriever club's hunt test was this weekend, so I am exhausted today! We are a small club with about 7 active members (3 in their 60's and up!), so even with only running 2 stakes, a combined JH/SH and a MH each day, it was a lot of work that would not have been possible without multitasking and help from friends in other local clubs. In the course of the weekend, on top of recording results and processing moveups and the like(I am HT secretary, and we don't have Entry Express!), I ran test dogs and bye-dogs, ran a winger station, threw marks from a canoe, planted a blind from a canoe, and used my waders to stand on a floating island in a stick pond and throw marks and plant a blind in a rainstorm with what felt like gale-force winds!

Maybe it is just my exhaustion speaking, as I am likely preaching to the choir, but if you enjoy running these events, I hope you belong to at leat one club who is holding them, and give some time back to the game by working at a test in whatever capacity you are physically able. Without working club members these events will not happen, and there will not be tests for our dogs to run. 

We had some excitement as well. There was a air show in the area, so in the afternoon each day we were getting buzzed by fighter jets--the sonic boom of which scared one dog who was in the midst of running Master water marks. We had a Junior dog go through the window of his owners car to attempt to retrieve another dog's mark resulting in a showdown over the bird (this is why your dog should be in a crate!!!!), a snapping turtle who had to be relocated out of the junior land test, and a very unlucky pair of handlers who left the event with their station wagon on a flatbed after they drove over a rock in a field and tore off their oil pan. Bonnie, running as test dog for the land marks in SH ran into a miound of earth that looked like a clump of grass and went ass over teakettle--she was visibly stunned, but got up and managed to hunt down the go bird, but then needed help with the memory bird. She seems to be okay today, but my heart was in my mouth!

The interesting pattern I noticed from last weekend through this weekend was the pass rates between Saturday and Sunday. The pass rates were significantly higher on the Saturdays (and this weekend, one of the judges was the same both days in both MH and SH--so it is not like the tests were significantly more difficult--actually I think the Saturday Senior test was more challenging!). We had 5/6 juniors pass Saturday, vs 4/7 on Sunday, 5/9 SH on Saturday and 3/8 on Sunday, and 11/19 MH on Saturday, and 7/22 on Sunday (which included a dog who had titled SH on Saturday and moved up to MH!!) I think that one of the side effects of our smaller tests being able to have a double test at all levels on a weekend, is that the dogs get a lot looser and more independent by the second day. We lost dogs to breaking in Senior and Master, and to control on the blinds--so that really makes me think about only running my dogs in one day of a weekend (which is hard to do in our limited test season). Two Master dogs, one Senior dog, and two Junior dogs also finished titles with us.


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## hotel4dogs

I generally don't take him past about 250 yards, because there's no real reason to since we don't plan to run field trials. Unlike there, we have lots of hot, humid weather and heat stroke is a very real threat for us, especially if the dog has to do some hunting in heavy cover. There's something like about 1750 yards in a mile, so if he's running a 250 yard mark, he has to run 500 yards to get there and back. That's over a quarter mile, and do it a few times...well, you get the picture.
I much prefer to run shorter (like 150 yards and under) marks with lots of interesting factors than long marks on a flat, featureless field, which seems pretty pointless once a dog can run a straight line. But throw in some hills, bushes, cover changes, ditches, roads, etc. and a short mark can be really, really meaty!
I'm so glad to hear you say that people in your area, too, are trying to return the breed to its roots. I see more and more of it here, too!




Alaska7133 said:


> 175 yards is excellent! I can do 75 yds with Lucy and hope someday to expand farther. do you ever go farther than 175 yds?
> 
> One thing I enjoyed about our picnic hunt test yesterday was the amount of finished dogs out there chasing birds and having fun. One girl has just gotten her GCh and already has her JH. She ran her 3 birds (1 on land and 2 in water) as a triple. I think she might get her SH this year. It's so good to see our breed returning to its roots. Our GR club has been very actively involved in hunt and field work.


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## hotel4dogs

Wow Shelly, those are small entry numbers. Around here they are trying to limit the entries to 90 Master....


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## sterregold

The game is much smaller here and we do not have many HT pros. When I started we would routinely have 20-25 dogs in Junior, and 15-20 dogs in Senior. So that is the big change, and the troubling change. Our Master entries remain pretty consistent at between 20-30 dogs. We had tests with over 30 dogs last year but the Master National was also in the province. Many experienced handlers are also skipping SH and JH and there just do not seem to be as many new people coming into the game. It is troubling.


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## sterregold

Some pictures from the weekend taken by one of our judges (they have Labradors, but she has come over to the fluffy side and has a Red son!)

The dog trucks on the hill at the land test, me running Bonnie as test dog on the SH land marks, and the pond where the water series was--a ducky stick pond with floating islands.


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## K9-Design

Yippee skippy well Bally had some firsts today...

1- He met his first live duck! Wooooooo that was fun. He went crazy over it and chased it all over the place before he wrestled it down then brought it straight back to me like his butt was on fire. YAY puppy! He got to fetch it several times and did AWESOME 

2- We threw marks with dead birds and he actually picked them straight up and brought them back. This is the first time we've tried marks with birds as before with hand thrown birds he would just run to them and start pulling feathers. Bally did super today and picked them right up and ran in! Yay puppy!!


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## hotel4dogs

did you ever wonder if your dog has serious brain damage?
Today I sent Tito for a nice 175 yard mark. He couldn't seem to find it. It was weird. I walked A-L-L the way up and walked along with him, telling him to find the bird.
He literally (I mean LITERALLY) stumbled on it and kept on going!!! It got caught under his feet, he stumbled, but kept running.
DUH.
Now in all fairness, we NEVER train with dokkens, and it was a dokken. I can only figure he didn't know what he was looking for. So weird.
Re-ran it with a black/white bumper, he was fine.


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## sterregold

K9-Design said:


> Yippee skippy well Bally had some firsts today...
> 
> 1- He met his first live duck! Wooooooo that was fun. He went crazy over it and chased it all over the place before he wrestled it down then brought it straight back to me like his butt was on fire. YAY puppy! He got to fetch it several times and did AWESOME
> 
> 2- We threw marks with dead birds and he actually picked them straight up and brought them back. This is the first time we've tried marks with birds as before with hand thrown birds he would just run to them and start pulling feathers. Bally did super today and picked them right up and ran in! Yay puppy!!


Good baby! Is Bally-hoo coming on the Sarnia part of your northern circuit? Gotta meet the little guy!


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## MarieP

Well, Riot and I have been working on the full T for a few days now. We had a bit of trouble on one of the over piles yesterday, so we went back to review three handed casting. Today was a bit rough in the beginning, because Riot really wanted to go "back" to the over pile, not the back pile. Just worked through it. He was trying, just a bit confused. The last 8 or so sends were great, with him able to go straight back, stop and cast back, and stop and cast over. Good boy!! Hopefully it will carry over to tomorrow's session. I need more bumpers. I only have 9, so that will make it really hard to do TT. Off to search the net for some!!


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## K9-Design

sterregold said:


> Good baby! Is Bally-hoo coming on the Sarnia part of your northern circuit? Gotta meet the little guy!



Yes Bally is tagging along 
I entered the show, I just entered Fisher in breed, not Slater too.


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## FTGoldens

Summer is here and that means WATER! Lots of water work is in store for my crew. For my all age dog, I'll just do my best to keep her in shape for the fall field trial season. However, for my guy that ages out of Derby this summer, well he has a pretty long list of stuff to learn: Basics > Transition > Advanced ... hmmm, wonder if I can get him through all that in three months??? 

hollyk, congratulations on Winter's pass! That's a great way to start the summer.

hotel4dogs, I know the feeling of "how could he have missed that mark?!" Sometimes they simply baffle me.

FTGoldens


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## EvanG

FTGoldens said:


> Basics > Transition > Advanced ... hmmm, wonder if I can get him through all that in three months??? Summer
> 
> hollyk, congratulations on Winter's pass! That's a great way to start the summer....
> 
> FTGoldens


Swim-by, diagonal entries, "stay-in's", re-entries, bird placement...oh year! Summertime!

EvanG


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## GoldenSail

Scout has been with the pro since Thursday and I miss her, but tomorrow I leave. I finally called Pete to see how things were going. She's fine, although he threw her some marks and she didn't want to bring them back or heel for him. He says right now she thinks he is a toy that takes her out to play :/ I told him she was born that way--always got to test the waters to see what she can get away with. Anyway, he says that won't last long...


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## hollyk

Lisa have a wonderful time! Best wishes to you!


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## MarieP

Riot and I just got in from a full T session, and I just had to post, because it went GREAT!!! We did two round with my 9 bumpers, and he picked them all up. It looks like things are really starting to click. We will probably spend tomorrow doing other things, but I'm really happy with where we are. Once I get my new bumpers in the mail, we should be on to TT.


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## FTGoldens

EvanG said:


> Swim-by, diagonal entries, "stay-in's", re-entries, bird placement...oh year! Summertime!
> 
> EvanG


It'll be great fun ... I love watching and helping young dogs learn and improve. Although my young boy has a lot to learn, some of the elements which you mention are already in the bag through early training ... (i.e., I do things a little different). Although he's not been through basics as we generally know it, "diagonal entries, 'stay ins' and re-entries" have been taught and are well understood. And swim-by, well it's optional for me ... it depends on the dog. My current all-age dog went through a modified swim-by, but the one before that did not (both dogs are/were pretty competitive in trials). Whichever way we get there, both the journey and the destination are to be enjoyed!
FTGoldens
ps: I'm not sure that I understand what you meant by "bird placement." Heaven knows that bird placement is as important in derby stakes as the major leagues, so he's seen birds put in some pretty tough spots. And we have begun work on triples and retired guns.


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## Alaska7133

Building a pigeon coop this week with our field chair. She's willing to put it on her property. Someone gave her some white pigeons which unfortunately can't be used in competition only training due to the color. But we can use the white ones to draw the wild ones into the pigeon trap we bought. We've found a warehouse that has collected a few pigeons, so we're going to try trapping a few. Since none of us have ever trapped pigeons it should be interesting. We're going to use chicken feed since they really seem to like it. We need live birds for the WCX our GR club is holding in August. We're hoping to have 25 pigeons by then. Hope we can capture enough. We've looked all over the state to see if anyone has some to sell, but so far no luck. Shipping birds up from the states is just so amazingly expensive.

Anyone have any insight to trapping pigeons? Too bad we can't use seagulls, we have tons of those.


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## EvanG

Perhaps we approach the elements of bird placement differently. But as the pup gets through formal Basics, my set ups and concepts not only get more technical, but distances increase, as well as contrasts in distances in my multiple set ups. Bird placement means more and more relative to those concepts. So, as my youngsters get beyond Basics, and move through Transition, they also acquire greater acumen relative to bird placement. 

A bird dropped in a ditch at 50 yards can be a challenge in some circumstances. But it's a different mark at 350, especially coupled with other marks in some conceptual arrangements. High School > College, that's all.

EvanG


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## gdgli

Alaska7133 said:


> Building a pigeon coop this week with our field chair. She's willing to put it on her property. Someone gave her some white pigeons which unfortunately can't be used in competition only training due to the color. But we can use the white ones to draw the wild ones into the pigeon trap we bought. We've found a warehouse that has collected a few pigeons, so we're going to try trapping a few. Since none of us have ever trapped pigeons it should be interesting. We're going to use chicken feed since they really seem to like it. We need live birds for the WCX our GR club is holding in August. We're hoping to have 25 pigeons by then. Hope we can capture enough. We've looked all over the state to see if anyone has some to sell, but so far no luck. Shipping birds up from the states is just so amazingly expensive.
> 
> Anyone have any insight to trapping pigeons? Too bad we can't use seagulls, we have tons of those.



I have a NWCO license which permits me to remove nuisance wildlife, including pigeons. Get that, a trap, do HW, and get pigeons.


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## Alaska7133

Thanks for heads up. Up here I only need a nuisance wildlife control license if I'm dealing with wolves or bears. So I checked the regs and I'm good to go. I don't even need a trapping license since pigeons are non-fur bearing. My office is around the corner from that state fish & wildlife office, I can always stop in and check. I hope that we catch what we need, there aren't a lot of pigeons up here. We ordered a trap from Cabela's and we have chicken feed.


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## FTGoldens

EvanG said:


> Perhaps we approach the elements of bird placement differently. But as the pup gets through formal Basics, my set ups and concepts not only get more technical, but distances increase, as well as contrasts in distances in my multiple set ups. Bird placement means more and more relative to those concepts. So, as my youngsters get beyond Basics, and move through Transition, they also acquire greater acumen relative to bird placement.
> 
> A bird dropped in a ditch at 50 yards can be a challenge in some circumstances. But it's a different mark at 350, especially coupled with other marks in some conceptual arrangements. High School > College, that's all.
> 
> EvanG


Yes, I'm certain that our approaches to teaching bird placement (or how to handle difficult bird placement) differ (I've read some of your materials ... good stuff!). In fact, my approach varies quite a bit. 
While I won't bore folks with detail about my method, I will say that my derby dogs don't go through basics until their derby days are in the past. I teach them how to deal with the elements by showing them how to negotiate the factors by running short marks. I will isolate the particular factor that I'm teaching ... once it's learned, I will put factors together and/or stretch them out. Since I am an amateur with only a couple of dogs, I have the time to do it this way. I have also found that momentum helps them overcome some factors, or at least makes it easier for them to deal with some factors. This is not forced momentum (i.e., no FTP yet), but instead is momentum created through their developed desire.
Indeed, my training includes long distances and technical marks, including all concepts seen in trials. And even though I train differently, my pups are still fairly competitive in derby stakes. And they've done okay in the big-dog stakes too.
And I certainly agree that a bird dropped in a ditch at 50 yards is significantly different than a bird thrown in a ditch at 350 yards (such as in the 5th series of the 2007 National ... a mallard hen, as I recall, in a ravine at around 400yards, retired ... a tough bird).
Different ways, same destination.
FTGoldens

ps: I have used the education analogy as well, however I include an additional degree: ... College > Ph.D. (this is for national caliber dogs).


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## FTGoldens

Alaska7133 said:


> Thanks for heads up. Up here I only need a nuisance wildlife control license if I'm dealing with wolves or bears. So I checked the regs and I'm good to go. I don't even need a trapping license since pigeons are non-fur bearing. My office is around the corner from that state fish & wildlife office, I can always stop in and check. I hope that we catch what we need, there aren't a lot of pigeons up here. We ordered a trap from Cabela's and we have chicken feed.


Good luck with the pigeon trapping! Hopefully the white decoys will draw them in like flies!
FTGoldens


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## boomers_dawn

No big training this week but did some land and water blinds and drills.
I'm happy with the results, Gladys has been sitting on the whistle, looking, and taking casts. She could use more confidence but there is definite improvement in that and momentum and teamwork in general.

As if finding decent water wasn't hard enough, I re-found a pond I went to ages ago, with access on 2 sides. Unfortunately, it borders a mildly urban neighborhood which I was sad to see gone downhill since we were there last. I wanted to plant a couple water blinds but someone fishing and a family with children were in the way. So I just flung out an orange bumper, got Gladys, and sent her for it; then I sent her in 2 different directions and flung stuff over her head. She went, that was about all I could think of to do given what I had to work with. Next I took Dee Dee for a swimming lesson. I told Boomer he could go for a walk in the water, but then some drunken gangsta rolled along with his fishing rod, stood in front of our car swaying back and forth, lit a cigarette then closed his eyes, swayed back and forth awhile ... took out his cellphone and dropped his cig out of his mouth ... all with his eyes closed ... I had to say "not today Boomer" ... don't think we'll be going back there to blow the whistle and draw attention to ourselves any time soon. What a waste of good water. Sigh.


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## gdgli

Sounds like your spectator might have been "luded out" on Quaaludes (I don't even know if that's out there anymore.)

Not a bad idea to have someone with you in the downhill urban training situation.


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## hotel4dogs

Sadly, Tito may be out for a while.
He's been coughing for a couple of days. I took him to the vet yesterday, and he did some chest xrays just because he always does in dogs who do field work that turn up with a cough. Suspect blastomycosis, etc.
There was a "strange" spot on the right lobe on Tito's lung, so the vet sent the xrays out to have a board certified radiologist take a look at it. 
So my vet called and emailed me at 8:30 last night (isn't he awesome??). On the voice message, he said that it could be fluid, scar tissue, or we can't rule out cancer but that would be WAY down the list of suspects at this time. He said we CAN rule out blastomycosis, it doesn't resemble that at all. He said that if it doesn't clear up in 10-14 days, we will do a scope and possibly a biopsy to see what's going on. Needless to say, I'm not too happy about this, but trying to keep a positive mind frame. Here's what his email said:

_"...The radiologist report came in. I left you a long voice mail on your cell.
They did agree with the "funkiness" of the right lung lobe. It appears to be a "focal 
bronchopnuemonia" I can't tell you where it came from, or if it's associated with the 
cough at this point, but it's a hell of a coincidence if it's not. I do want to add in some 
antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, then touch base in 10-14 days.

If you have it, I would like him to get 1000mg Cephalexin twice daily for the next 10 
days. I also want you to give him some of that Doxy you stockpiled... 300mg once 
daily. 
I would also like him to get 125 mg Rimadyl daily (this can be given once daily or split 
in half and given twice daily). If you need prescriptions for any of these let me know.

I would like to recheck a chest x-ray in 10-14 days (if the recheck appointment is 
closer to 14 days, keep all the meds going until I see you).

I'm out of the office until Monday. Email me if you need me. I'M NOT WORRIED! 
(well a little worried...but about you..not Tito).

Jay ..."
_


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## Claudia M

poor Tito; I hope the meds will kick in and get him back to normal in no time!

Here it is raining, pouring down heavy rain - can barely get in some walks and runs with her. Not sure if we are still under a flood warning.


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## sterregold

Poor Tito--this has been such a bad year for dogs fgetting sick. I just spent a whack load fixing a corneal ulcer with my CKCS, and that was without going to an opthomologist...


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## FTGoldens

hotel4dogs said:


> Sadly, Tito may be out for a while.
> He's been coughing for a couple of days. I took him to the vet yesterday, and he did some chest xrays just because he always does in dogs who do field work that turn up with a cough.
> [/I]


I don't know if it would show up on an x-ray, but I'd also want the vets to be looking for a "bad seed" in the lung. Tito could have inhaled such a seed, or it could have migrated from somewhere else and lodged there. 
FTGoldens


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## hotel4dogs

Thanks, that is one of the things on his differential diagnosis list, especially since a year ago Tito had a polyp on his vocal cord that *might* have been caused by something like that. 
The plan is 2 weeks of antibiotics, then re-xray. If it's clear, then 2 more weeks without antibiotics, and check again. If it's a foreign body, the spot should re-infect (and reappear on the xrays) in those two weeks.
Thank Heavens for dog insurance.




FTGoldens said:


> I don't know if it would show up on an x-ray, but I'd also want the vets to be looking for a "bad seed" in the lung. Tito could have inhaled such a seed, or it could have migrated from somewhere else and lodged there.
> FTGoldens


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## hollyk

Barb I hope the antibiotics clear things up for T. How is he feeling?
I love that your Vet said that he is more worried about you.


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## gdgli

FTGoldens said:


> I don't know if it would show up on an x-ray, but I'd also want the vets to be looking for a "bad seed" in the lung. Tito could have inhaled such a seed, or it could have migrated from somewhere else and lodged there.
> FTGoldens



That was my thought.


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## hotel4dogs

Tito feels just fine, other than a mild cough. 
Even though my vet isn't worried, I can't help worrying.


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## Max's Dad

Hope Tito is back to normal soon!


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## MillionsofPeaches

oh wow, I'm hoping everything clears up for Tito real soon.


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## Ljilly28

I hope Tito recovers right away, so you don't have that worry. How did you treat the polyp?


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## hotel4dogs

Thanks Jill. 
The polyp was cut off of his vocal cord, and sent out for biopsy. The vet warned me at that time that he didn't get all of it, he didn't have the right tool to do so, but wanted to get the biopsy off. He was afraid that it might grow back. He cauterized the spot where he had removed it in order to prevent any bleeding. 
The biopsy came back benign, inflammatory changes consistent with previous trauma. Vet thought at that time it might have involved a grass awn or similar, and Tito's body formed a *pearl* around it per se.
Sure enough, 4 months later it had grown back almost, but not quite, to the original size. 
In the meantime, my vet had ordered the proper instrument to remove it more thoroughly. So he went back in and did the same thing a second time, this time removing more of it. Sent it out for biopsy a second time, just to be ultra cautious. Biopsy came back identical to the first time, which of course was a huge relief.
With this recent bout of coughing, he sedated Tito and checked the vocal cord. The great news is that, 8 months after removing it for the second time, there is no sign of it growing back. There's a very small amount of scar tissue there, but nothing else. At this point, my vet "strongly doubts" it will grow back again. 
So it isn't outside the realm of possibility that, if there was a grass awn/seed in his vocal cord, there could be one in his lung. 
Or it might be totally unrelated.





Ljilly28 said:


> I hope Tito recovers right away, so you don't have that worry. How did you treat the polyp?


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## Alaska7133

Gosh tough time of the year to have a sick dog. I've heard of heat inspiring pneumonia or other respiratory illnesses, but you've been pretty mild temperatures right? I'm sorry I have no advice, I hope all is well soon.


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## Alaska7133

Getting the puppy out for swimming after bumpers this week. She does wonderful in the water. I'm surprised she'll do bumpers in the water but not on land.

Yesterday we went to our new training location. Got to watch nice triples being performed. One by a 9yr old sugar face golden, one GCh golden girl, and one field trial lab. The lab was of course the fastest. Everyone complained how hot it was, it was 71 degrees! All I could say is, hey at least it's not -15! People are funny we complain no matter what. Lucy is back on bumpers. The forced fetch training is coming along, I think that's why she's on bumpers again. So we threw some pigeons for her, what made her oh so happy, and she didn't try to eat them! We were doing 50 and 75 yd marks, Lucy did wonderful not matter the length. We had a larger group than we had planned for. 4 people with 6 dogs grew to 10 people and a lot of dogs.

I did learn about chesies yesterday. I learned they bite people aggressively and eat birds. Why would anyone want to own a retriever like that? 

Today is our CCA event and I'm the photographer. None of my dogs are in it. One too young, one too tall, and one with an underbite. We have a total of 24 dogs. Should be lots of fun!


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## sterregold

Not all Chessies are like that. There are a lot of them in my area and most of them are very nice dogs and fabulous hunting companions--more protective instinct, yes, but not just random aggression. I know a few Goldens who are just as likely to bite....


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## EvanG

Among field trial pros, Goldens are more feared for aggression than are Chessies. Most folks don't know that, but there are many stories to back up that concern.

EvanG


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## AmbikaGR

hotel4dogs said:


> So it isn't outside the realm of possibility that, if there was a grass awn/seed in his vocal cord, there could be one in his lung.
> Or it might be totally unrelated.



Here's hoping that whatever it is they can first identify it and second that it is easily and quickly treatable. :crossfing


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## MarieP

Well, Riot is brilliant  Ha! But seriously, he did such a great job on T today. I couldn't have asked for a better session. I got a few chances to make a correction, but overall, he is really doing well. He even did a great over cast running right at two boxers who were being walked a few feet from the pile. My bumpers should arrive Monday, and then it's on to TT and swim-by! Holy crap, I'm going to have a handling dog! Never thought that would happen...


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## gdgli

mlopez said:


> Well, Riot is brilliant  Ha! But seriously, he did such a great job on T today. I couldn't have asked for a better session. I got a few chances to make a correction, but overall, he is really doing well. He even did a great over cast running right at two boxers who were being walked a few feet from the pile. My bumpers should arrive Monday, and then it's on to TT and swim-by! Holy crap, I'm going to have a handling dog! Never thought that would happen...


Keep it up and be patient with handling.


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## MarieP

gdgli said:


> Keep it up and be patient with handling.


Thanks  I will certainly be patient. I know that we have a long way to go, but I'm just glad to know we are making progress.


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## hotel4dogs

Marie, one comment about handling dogs. Be sure to continue to throw a lot of marks, too. They can get out of balance in their training if you work too much on handling and let marking go completely.


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## hollyk

hotel4dogs said:


> Marie, one comment about handling dogs. Be sure to continue to throw a lot of marks, too. They can get out of balance in their training if you work too much on handling and let marking go completely.


What she said. 
Not only did we throw a few fun bumper before and after a session, I was told throw lots of singles to relieve the pressure of learning handling and to keep attitude up.


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## Ljilly28

EvanG said:


> Among field trial pros, Goldens are more feared for aggression than are Chessies. Most folks don't know that, but there are many stories to back up that concern.
> EvanG


That is such a shame, as temperament is such an important part of the standard.


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## Vhuynh2

When I first started, someone told me to be wary of all dogs, but to be especially wary of the chessie that we often see.


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## AmbikaGR

Ljilly28 said:


> That is such a shame, as temperament is such an important part of the standard.



Well it does not just happen in the field lines, it occurs in obedience and conformation lines as well. To some it apparently is about the "accomplishments/titles". I recently heard of someone considering using an old stud (frozen goods) who was known for his not so Golden temperament and passed that lovely trait on to his offspring. And it is someone that many consider very responsible. Guess they feel their good temperament will override the boy's not so good. :doh:


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## Claudia M

hotel4dogs said:


> Marie, one comment about handling dogs. Be sure to continue to throw a lot of marks, too. They can get out of balance in their training if you work too much on handling and let marking go completely.


We have been doing mostly that with Rose; Back to basics, just single marks and then play. Rose has been regressing in everything and figured she needed some time off. I rather take time off than create and allow developing of bad habits. The time off was not hard to accomplish since we have been having heavy heavy rains followed by humid heat. Her exercise has been limited to shorter walks in the rain and lots of runs in the back yard. The cake and ice-cream created some extra need for runs in the rain as well.


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## KathyG

Barb, sorry to hear Tito is under the weather. Hope the meds do the trick quickly.
Kathy


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## hotel4dogs

Hank, go stand outside the conformation ring some time and listen to all the (goldens) handlers telling other handlers not to let their dogs get too close, and listen to all the dogs snarking at each other. It is certainly NOT unique to field lines! It's found in all venues, and it's very very sad.
Thanks Kathy, Tito feels just fine. I guess the main concern is what caused it to happen? Grass seed?


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## sterregold

We had a club training day in the morning yesterday before our meeting. One of the participants had her camera along and got some nice shots of the dogs working. Blue collar is Bonnie, black collar is Breeze, and red collar is Wings


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## gdgli

hotel4dogs said:


> Hank, go stand outside the conformation ring some time and listen to all the (goldens) handlers telling other handlers not to let their dogs get too close, and listen to all the dogs snarking at each other. It is certainly NOT unique to field lines! It's found in all venues, and it's very very sad.
> Thanks Kathy, Tito feels just fine. I guess the main concern is what caused it to happen? Grass seed?


Barb, I think the temperament problem is worse than most people know. You would be very surprised at which dogs, which lines, I think have issues. And I mean I am a witness to this, it's not hearsay.


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## AmbikaGR

sterregold said:


> We had a club training day in the morning yesterday before our meeting. One of the participants had her camera along and got some nice shots of the dogs working. Blue collar is Bonnie, black collar is Breeze, and red collar is Wings



Beautiful photos of BEAUTIFUL dogs!!! :dblthumb2


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## sterregold

gdgli said:


> Barb, I think the temperament problem is worse than most people know. You would be very surprised at which dogs, which lines, I think have issues. And I mean I am a witness to this, it's not hearsay.


I know there are lines I steer clear of in my breeding precisely because of the temperament issues--in both field and show lines. I have also unfortunately witnessed it first hand as well. I have helped handlers show some of the nasty show line dogs (with explicit instructions to keep the head under control and away from other dogs) and had my dogs be the victim of attacks by nasty dogs from the field lines I avoid. They are unfortunately descended from BIG names in both venues, and too many people overlook the temperament issues to get a dog who can win big.

When Breeze was running MH in the states there was a pro there from the south who had grown up with Goldens and he just loved her because he could tell she was sweet as well as birdy. He no longer wanted to train Goldens because too many of the field bred ones he had been getting had tried to bite him or picked fights with other dogs in the airing yard.


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## K9-Design

Oooooo great pictures Shelly! I am DYING to go up north -- just 3 more weeks!!
We are now averaging 90 degrees and 93% humidity where I live -- e v e r y d a y....


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## Vhuynh2

sterregold said:


> I know there are lines I steer clear of in my breeding precisely because of the temperament issues--in both field and show lines. I have also unfortunately witnessed it first hand as well. I have helped handlers show some of the nasty show line dogs (with explicit instructions to keep the head under control and away from other dogs) and had my dogs be the victim of attacks by nasty dogs from the field lines I avoid. They are unfortunately descended from BIG names in both venues, and too many people overlook the temperament issues to get a dog who can win big.
> 
> When Breeze was running MH in the states there was a pro there from the south who had grown up with Goldens and he just loved her because he could tell she was sweet as well as birdy. He no longer wanted to train Goldens because too many of the field bred ones he had been getting had tried to bite him or picked fights with other dogs in the airing yard.





gdgli said:


> Barb, I think the temperament problem is worse than most people know. You would be very surprised at which dogs, which lines, I think have issues. And I mean I am a witness to this, it's not hearsay.


I know it would not be appropriate to publicly mention which lines and dogs that have temperament problems (I am not asking who they are) but -- how are the general public supposed to know when purchasing a puppy? If one were to ask a breeder about the temperament of the parents of a litter, would the breeders be honest if there were known issues? I assumed all reputable breeders bred for temperament and that it isn't something I should even worry about. 


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## AmbikaGR

Vhuynh2 said:


> I know it would not be appropriate to publicly mention which lines and dogs that have temperament problems (I am not asking who they are) but -- how are the general public supposed to know when purchasing a puppy? If one were to ask a breeder about the temperament of the parents of a litter, would the breeders be honest if there were known issues? I assumed all reputable breeders bred for temperament and that it isn't something I should even worry about.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


Likely you would not get an unbiased answer from the breeder. I would compare it to when a breeder asks a puppy applicant for some kind of references. Before getting a pup I would do my best to inquire information from folks that participate in the same venue as the breeder and stud owner. Just like clearances, maybe even MORE so, temperament should be checked all the time and never assumed. At least IMHO.


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## sterregold

K9-Design said:


> Oooooo great pictures Shelly! I am DYING to go up north -- just 3 more weeks!!
> We are now averaging 90 degrees and 93% humidity where I live -- e v e r y d a y....


Yuck--we have not had any super-hot weather yet. It was a very nice day yesterday--the first nice one we have had in a week! Raining again today. It has been quite a late spring this year. Reminds me that I have to get my Sarnia entries in the mail....


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## sterregold

Vhuynh2 said:


> I know it would not be appropriate to publicly mention which lines and dogs that have temperament problems (I am not asking who they are) but -- how are the general public supposed to know when purchasing a puppy? If one were to ask a breeder about the temperament of the parents of a litter, would the breeders be honest if there were known issues? I assumed all reputable breeders bred for temperament and that it isn't something I should even worry about.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


Tough I know. There are breeders I will not refer people to because of these issues--they are breeding for the win, rather than temperament. A real tell on these breeders who seem reputable on the surface is that you will get a whole lot of silence when you ask for references about temperament. It is one reason I think it is important to go and meet the breeders dogs in person, as well as to see them in public situations like at a show or hunt test--if they are going to great efforts to keep them away from other dogs, or seem hyper vigilant about their interactions, it would have me wondering why. I would not want to see grumbling between the dogs, nor would I want to see excessive shyness or timidity when having some one on one time with the dogs--some of the problem is fear-biting rather than dominance aggression. When someone comes to visit me they do not see a bunch of dogs in crates or individual kennel runs unable to interact. Unless my girls are in season, the whole pack is together--intact boys, intact girls, all clamouring to see who gets to be first to see the visitors! My guys all eat together in a line of six, and when we go field training, they can go for a run with my friends' intact boys when we are done.


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## Claudia M

sterregold said:


> We had a club training day in the morning yesterday before our meeting. One of the participants had her camera along and got some nice shots of the dogs working. Blue collar is Bonnie, black collar is Breeze, and red collar is Wings


Beautiful/Gorgeous pictures!


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## MarieP

sterregold said:


> It is one reason I think it is important to go and meet the breeders dogs in person, as well as to see them in public situations like at a show or hunt test--if they are going to great efforts to keep them away from other dogs, or seem hyper vigilant about their interactions, it would have me wondering why. I would not want to see grumbling between the dogs, nor would I want to see excessive shyness or timidity when having some one on one time with the dogs--some of the problem is fear-biting rather than dominance aggression.


Meeting in person, at the breeders place, to see their dogs interacting with each other and people, makes good sense. However, I wouldn't want to judge temperament too much at public events. I am "hypervigilant" about Riot's interactions when we are in public anywhere, especially dog shows. I'm worried about OTHER dogs, not my own. You never know how another dog is going to interact with your dogs.


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## AmbikaGR

While going to the breeder's home to meet the dam is a great idea in many, if not most, breedings the sire is not theirs and thus not there to see. And if the sire is no longer alive it is even more difficult.


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## sterregold

mlopez said:


> Meeting in person, at the breeders place, to see their dogs interacting with each other and people, makes good sense. However, I wouldn't want to judge temperament too much at public events. I am "hypervigilant" about Riot's interactions when we are in public anywhere, especially dog shows. I'm worried about OTHER dogs, not my own. You never know how another dog is going to interact with your dogs.


Yes, true, and I am also far more worried about what others' dogs will do given that I have had experience with attacks. But you will see me watching other dogs, not holding my dog's muzzle to keep him from starting something, or reining in an obviously reactive dog--that kind of vigilance is quite different!

And of course as Hank notes, in this modern era of fresh-chilled and frozen breedings, we often cannot see dad in person. And that is when you need to have people in the breed you trust who you can talk to to get the scuttlebutt on some of these past dogs. With some of the really notorious ones (at least in field) even people with other breeds will know about them if they ran dogs on the same circuit. At my club's test last weekend, I was chatting with a Chessie breeder from Quebec and he was asking about the lines that I use, and he told me about what he had seen from a particular notorious dog who ran the FT circuit up here years ago--a top performer who is now proliferate in field pedigrees!


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## Alaska7133

I'll move this discussion over to a new thread. I'll call it Nature vs Nurture Temperment. How does that sound?


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## gdgli

Vhuynh2 said:


> I know it would not be appropriate to publicly mention which lines and dogs that have temperament problems (I am not asking who they are) but -- how are the general public supposed to know when purchasing a puppy? If one were to ask a breeder about the temperament of the parents of a litter, would the breeders be honest if there were known issues? I assumed all reputable breeders bred for temperament and that it isn't something I should even worry about.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


If you really want to get the skinny on a particular breeder/lines, ask some other breeders, go to some events to see dogs work, and watch handler's behaviors. A handler often gives away what a dog's problems are---just watch how the handler/dog combo act outside the ring or with a group of fellow hunt testers.

Also, if you hang around a bit before you purchase a puppy you will learn a lot.

I would never say anything specific on the internet but I must say that I have seen consistent problems with two different lines of goldens here on Long Island, dogs from very popular breeders. The owners themselves admit to the problems but the breeders won't admit to a thing.


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## Vhuynh2

What if I wanted a puppy across the country and am not able to observe their dogs at hunt tests and dog shows? Would it be rude for me to ask the breeder and the stud dog owner for references to prove their dogs' temperament? It seems like an awfully rude thing to ask. One could meet the dam, but I am sure that many dogs with temperament issues are comfortable in their own home but will react to stimuli outside. 


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## gdgli

Vhuynh2 said:


> What if I wanted a puppy across the country and am not able to observe their dogs at hunt tests and dog shows? Would it be rude for me to ask the breeder and the stud dog owner for references to prove their dogs' temperament? It seems like an awfully rude thing to ask. One could meet the dam, but I am sure that many dogs with temperament issues are comfortable in their own home but will react to stimuli outside.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


Unfortunately, you will be buying a pig in a poke.

Try to find out what you can second hand from reliable people or have someone else get a look at the parents. 

Buffy is from North Carolina. I had a long phone conversation with the person who is Mioaks kennels. Over the phone she discussed 5 listed litters with me and recommended the one that Buffy came from. She had told me which dogs in the pedigree she had judged in FT's and gave me opinions on everything she could. Then she said to call that breeder immediately.

I had help with my last golden from friends that had gone to Georgia. They located litters and saw the mother and pups.

My friend asked me to go to Montreal with him to get a puppy. We went there, saw the litter, and then got to see a half brother work in the field.

This is my preferred way of getting a puppy.


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## AmbikaGR

Vhuynh2 said:


> What if I wanted a puppy across the country and am not able to observe their dogs at hunt tests and dog shows? Would it be rude for me to ask the breeder and the stud dog owner for references to prove their dogs' temperament? It seems like an awfully rude thing to ask. One could meet the dam, but I am sure that many dogs with temperament issues are comfortable in their own home but will react to stimuli outside.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App



The problem with asking the breeder for references is that they will not put you in touch with anyone that would say something negative about their dogs. I would not put much faith in it personally. But talking to 3rd parties who are familiar with the dog(s) and /or the pedigree(s) would give a better idea. Again this is nothing more then MHO.


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## hotel4dogs

It's a very tough call. Even getting opinions from 3rd parties can be confusing, as you never know who has an "agenda". 
His dog beat mine in a field trial......therefore I will say bad things about the dog's temperament
His dog's owner is a good friend of mine.....therefore I will say great things about the dog's temperament, even though I know they are not really true.

Another possible source is the dog's trainer(s) and/or handlers. They may be more honest and upfront with you.
I have had breeders as well as prospective puppy buyers contact Tito's field trainer, my veterinarian, and his show ring handler about his temperament.


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## sterregold

Vhuynh2 said:


> What if I wanted a puppy across the country and am not able to observe their dogs at hunt tests and dog shows? Would it be rude for me to ask the breeder and the stud dog owner for references to prove their dogs' temperament? It seems like an awfully rude thing to ask. One could meet the dam, but I am sure that many dogs with temperament issues are comfortable in their own home but will react to stimuli outside.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


A good breeder with nothing to hide should actually welcome that question. If they get defensive about it you probably have some of the information you need, if you get my drift.... It does not bother me to be asked this as I know I can provide you with a list a page long of my puppy people, their vets, and their training partners, not just a name or two.

That said, unless you are looking for a competition dog, there usually is not a need to go across the country to find a Golden--and if you are that seriously involved, or interested in that kind of involvement, then I would hope that you are going to events and seeing dogs work and interact. There is a definite concentration of certain lines in certain venues, so you are going to be able to get an idea about those dogs--get a catalogue and take notes. For HTs and FTs, most clubs use EntryExpress now, so the running order is published online before the event, giving you a chance to see who will be there. Print pedigrees off K9data and look for trends. I travelled 10 hours and took 4 unpaid days off work to go to a GRCA national years ago specifically so that I could meet potential stud dogs and their extended families in person. I wanted to see them work, interact with them, and gets hands on with their structure. 

Finding a mentor in the breed whose dogs you like and has been around a while is also invaluable. I know I have information about dogs long gone, who I would never have been able to meet, that mine did. I also know the owner of the very successful FT dog up here who had a less than stellar temperament--he admits it quite openly(as does the pro who ran her). Others, not so much, so that is where you have to keep your eyes and ears open. It really just takes time--which is one of the things that worries me about people titling the first GR they ever got, and then deciding to breed. They often just do not have the time in the breed to have gathered this data.


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## boomers_dawn

Oh boy I learned a lot again this week. Will try to nutshell it.

First of all, it was tropical storm something or other and raining sheets. No one was training but dog skool teecher said he was going out to do drills. I thought of dog skool teecher's success rate compared to the rest of us and decided I did not want to leave myself open to the possiblity of my next failure being a result of me not getting out and training to our full potential b/c it was raining.

So I dragged us out to the soccer field and set up a weird extended baseball. I wanted it to be bigger than just the soccer field, so I set up first base at the edge, third base at the edge of the bleachers on the next field, second base to the left of the goalie net (to be center), and home plate way behind and to the left of the other goalie net. It created a weird phenomena where the close goalie net blocked the view of first base. Interestingly, once Gladys figured out where first base was, she had a tendency to want to go there once she passed the net, even though it wasn't visible from home plate. 

So her lining was horrible, but she stopped and took every cast I gave her. 
I was happy with it, it sure was interesting and different!

Here's what I learned:

1) in moving back and forth between blinds, try not to let the dog see another dog working in the area of a blind, or they might think they should be working over there, maybe when you don't want them there .. yet

2) if you give a dog you cannot see an OVER cast assuming they will know which over you mean based on where you were trying to get them, but they pick the wrong way, it's considered a refusal. the judges aren't looking at the handler, they're looking at the dog. progress away from the direction of a blind is a refusal. Dog skool teecher said as dogs get experience in handling, they learn if they can't see you, to come out and sit where they can see, because they know to look at your for some direction. Obviously it's best if you can stop them before they end up where they can't see you or you them.

3) honor off leash unless told otherwise, don't ask or assume

4) watching other handlers doing "down the shore blinds" got an eyeful of the farther you let your dog get too close to the shore, the more the dog gets committed to getting out of the water! It gave me an acute appreciation of stopping them before they get to the point of no return.

We did a down the shore blind and some of the other handlers were really excited and said we were "awesome"!!!! I felt like I was in some alternate universe. 

We've gotten into a kind of a groove where I stop her when I see her looking like she's committing to going the wrong way, and she mostly takes my direction. Sometimes she doesn't sit, for example, at the edge of shore, will get out first then sit promptly on the edge. 

I also feel somewhat more adept at lining her up and setting her up for success, for example, looking at things like decoys and clumps when given a choice of where to set up, knowing which way to aim her for memory bird vs breaking bird. 

I know we have plenty more learning pains ahead of us, but this week we had learning gains and I sure am enjoying it! 

This week, will try to get together with one of our training pals who wanted to get ready for a field trial. If he can't, Gladys and I will just work on drills and blinds and hope we can get to some group for marks, as I think only blinds and drills might be kind of boring and demoralizing. Large group trainings are over, that's kind of a bummer :-( 

But Gladys still seems to enjoy blinds, her tail wags every time  I think it might even wag during drills, I'll have to look next time.

Happy training everyone and I hope the Tito monster is getting better.


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## hotel4dogs

Thanks, I hope so too!
When he had the bout of vomiting early May, the e-vet took abdominal xrays. My vet pulled them and looked, the lung was visible on that xray and it was clear then. So at least we know it's not something that's been festering for a long time. 
He feels great. We're just continuing the meds. until our re-check xrays on June 18.

About the down the shore (or any water) blinds, one thing that I learned that might help others as new as I am is, when getting yourself set up for the blind, lining the dog up, etc., pick a spot on the shore where you will allow the dog to get out. Have that in your mind. Then there is no question in your mind whether or not to stop him/her and handle, you can see if he/she is going to get out before your pre-selected spot. 
It helps me, anyway.


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## gdgli

If I am in the teaching phase, I don't want the dog to be out of my sight. I want to see what the dog is doing and why.


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## hollyk

hotel4dogs said:


> About the down the shore (or any water) blinds, one thing that I learned that might help others as new as I am is, when getting yourself set up for the blind, lining the dog up, etc., pick a spot on the shore where you will allow the dog to get out. Have that in your mind. Then there is no question in your mind whether or not to stop him/her and handle, you can see if he/she is going to get out before your pre-selected spot.
> It helps me, anyway.


I'm instructed to have my accepted line to the blind decided before I send her, otherwise I run the risk of hearing "You are just wishing and hoping she finds that blind. Put a whistle on your dog!" 

I bet Gladys does like learning blinds. Winter loves all of her blind lining drills and will try to hurry me along in kicking her off running blinds if I let her.


----------



## MarieP

We got to do marks and birds and water today. All things Riot enjoys. We did our first real double (getting into the big leagues ). He was a bit confused on the go bird and needed help, but pinned the memory bird. We also did a water mark where he had a BIG run up on the entry, about 75 yrds. No problems there. He seems to be running much straighter on the water marks this week, not looking to cheat. We did a back to back slightly cheating mark, where on the first one I sent him right from the shore. Then we backed up about 25 yards and redid the mark. He ran a great line, no cheating! Good boy!!! 

There is a WC/WCX in my area that two of my training partners are judging. I thought about entering, but I don't think I will yet, just because we won't have enough time to get many more doubles in before then. 

Completely off topic, but I decided that I need to buy a new hat. I'm thinking this one will be perfect... Life's Golden Baseball Cap by lifesgolden


----------



## MillionsofPeaches

ugh, so down here in the deep south we have to get up early to beat the heat. By 10 am it is too hot. 
But I have to say I can deal with the mosquitos, heat, ect. but the ducks are so gross!!! yuck on summertime training, ha ha!


----------



## hotel4dogs

I think you can tell we both train with pros who are big into HRC!



hollyk said:


> *I'm instructed to have my accepted line to the blind decided before I send her, otherwise I run the risk of hearing "You are just wishing and hoping she finds that blind. Put a whistle on your dog!"*
> 
> I bet Gladys does like learning blinds. Winter loves all of her blind lining drills and will try to hurry me along in kicking her off running blinds if I let her.


----------



## boomers_dawn

Our dog skool teecher also has very high standards too, no hunting or happening across the bird allowed on blinds.

That's why I thought I was in an alternate universe when the other handlers said we were "awesome" He was like "she gave you some refusals at the end" ... ha ha Sunrise can appreciate the tone LOL. Then I start worrying about a point off for each refusal and get an ulcer. 

I have to let go of worry about the judges pencil and just do the best we can.

Thanks for this tip: pick a spot on the shore where you will allow the dog to get out. Have that in your mind. Then there is no question in your mind whether or not to stop him/her and handle, you can see if he/she is going to get out before your pre-selected spot. 

I will ask dog skool teecher about that next time we work on blinds. 
Well I don't think our training buddy wants to train and it's supposed to rain again for another 2-3 days. Gladys smells like mildew from working in the rain and/or water almost every day ... I hate to give her a bath because it involves getting wet again and seems counter intuitive.


----------



## hotel4dogs

At the suggestion of some "old school" field people, I use a mixture of 1/2 liquid antiseptic hand soap (the gold stuff) and 1/2 white vinegar to bathe Tito during the swimming season. Even the vet approves.
Keeps down both bacteria and yeast!


----------



## AmbikaGR

hotel4dogs said:


> At the suggestion of some "old school" field people, I use a mixture of 1/2 liquid antiseptic hand soap (the gold stuff) and 1/2 white vinegar to bathe Tito during the swimming season. Even the vet approves.
> Keeps down both bacteria and yeast!



Nothing mixed with the hand soap and vinegar, just 50/50?


----------



## sterregold

hotel4dogs said:


> I think you can tell we both train with pros who are big into HRC!


That is not just an HRC thing. Nothing annoys me more than someone who lets their dog hunt it up on a blind. Bad news if I am holding the pencil in AKC or CKC....


----------



## sterregold

hotel4dogs said:


> At the suggestion of some "old school" field people, I use a mixture of 1/2 liquid antiseptic hand soap (the gold stuff) and 1/2 white vinegar to bathe Tito during the swimming season. Even the vet approves.
> Keeps down both bacteria and yeast!


I just make a dilute rinse with Apple Cider Vinegar in a 2L bottle. Breeze seems to be the only one of mine that needs it, but it makes a difference.


----------



## hotel4dogs

Just hand soap and vinegar, yes, 50/50. Rinse well. Works amazingly well!




AmbikaGR said:


> Nothing mixed with the hand soap and vinegar, just 50/50?


----------



## hotel4dogs

You need to come judge here!!! 
It is probably area specific (because it's probably judge specific) but I've been pretty amazed by some of what I've seen pass. 
In my limited experience, in this area the HRC judges have been much less lenient than the AKC judges when it comes to hunting on a blind, and especially on cast refusals. 





sterregold said:


> That is not just an HRC thing. Nothing annoys me more than someone who lets their dog hunt it up on a blind. Bad news if I am holding the pencil in AKC or CKC....


----------



## Alaska7133

So I had a problem with Miss Lucy last night I was hoping you all could help me with. Last night Lucy and her sister Daisy were at the lake. We threw bumpers and made it fun for them. There were lots of people, dogs, rubber rafts, etc. the pups were oblivious to all of it and were totally focused on the bumpers.

Until Lucy noticed the swim area rope/float line. It was one of the dividers to let the swimmers know where the edge of the swim area was. After several throws, Lucy decided that she needed to retrieve those floats. The float line is anchored to the bottom. She swam over and grabbed ahold of the line between the floats. She must have swam in place for 5 or 10 minutes. Being in a rush when I had gotten to the lake I had forgotten to put her e-collar on or grab a whistle. I stood there kicking myself as I watched her swim and swim. She had a glaze on her face. She would not respond to anything. We threw bumpers by her and yelled, but she was oblivious to anything but bringing that line of floats to shore. Finally one of the kids swam overand pried her jaws off the line and pushed her away. She really didn't want to give up. At that same moment we threw another bumper next to her. She grabbed the bumper and came to shore. We did stay little longer and throw more bumpers. After a flew clean retrieves we felt we were leaving on a positive note. Lucy did start to swim a couple of times back over to the rope, but I was able to call her back.

So now that I have defined the need for an e-collar and the total lack of experience a handler can have, what should I have done?


----------



## K9-Design

hotel4dogs said:


> You need to come judge here!!!
> It is probably area specific (because it's probably judge specific) but I've been pretty amazed by some of what I've seen pass.
> In my limited experience, in this area the HRC judges have been much less lenient than the AKC judges when it comes to hunting on a blind, and especially on cast refusals.



No way, total opposite here. You can get away with murderous blinds in UKC, not AKC.


----------



## hotel4dogs

yep, that's why I said it's probably area specific depending on the judges. Have seen some pretty amazing stuff in AKC. (Including a dog at a MH test get out of the water on a water blind, go visit the bird boys who were planting the blind, roam around on the land for a while, and passed that series! Didn't pass the test, though, for other reasons).



K9-Design said:


> No way, total opposite here. You can get away with murderous blinds in UKC, not AKC.


----------



## hotel4dogs

It's more a question of what you should do now than what you should have done. Sometimes they just plain blindside us by doing something we never expected them to do, so we just get out of the situation and then think about what we need to do "for the future".
I would work really hard (on land) on the "drop it" or "leave it" command, or whatever you use. I use both, they have 2 different meanings. Drop it means let go of it, leave it means don't even think about touching it let alone picking it up!
Make sure she is totally reliable on the commands before allowing her to swim in a location where there might be anything to distract her like that again. 
She should be willing to drop a piece of food out of her mouth if told to do so. A toy, a bird, anything you tell her. Or to leave it alone if told to do so, no matter how appealing it might be.
Address the issue on land, IMO, not in the water. 



Alaska7133 said:


> So now that I have defined the need for an e-collar and the total lack of experience a handler can have, what should I have done?


----------



## AmberSunrise

Oh I can sooooooo hear the tone LOL

Faelan showing in Senior has been pushed off - that stupid, stupid woman on Sunday scaring my boy (and me) half way to Rhode Island has carried over into field with a lack of confidence. Now Utility & field are broken since he cannot understand how to correct something he has not done

Sheesh, if you need to sound like you will kill your dog and any dogs around you to get him to take it or drop, perhaps you shouldn't be in the ring???????????????? 




boomers_dawn said:


> Our dog skool teecher also has very high standards too, no hunting or happening across the bird allowed on blinds.
> 
> That's why I thought I was in an alternate universe when the other handlers said we were "awesome" He was like "she gave you some refusals at the end" ... ha ha Sunrise can appreciate the tone LOL. Then I start worrying about a point off for each refusal and get an ulcer.


----------



## sterregold

Alaska7133 said:


> So I had a problem with Miss Lucy last night I was hoping you all could help me with. Last night Lucy and her sister Daisy were at the lake. We threw bumpers and made it fun for them. There were lots of people, dogs, rubber rafts, etc. the pups were oblivious to all of it and were totally focused on the bumpers.
> 
> Until Lucy noticed the swim area rope/float line. It was one of the dividers to let the swimmers know where the edge of the swim area was. After several throws, Lucy decided that she needed to retrieve those floats. The float line is anchored to the bottom. She swam over and grabbed ahold of the line between the floats. She must have swam in place for 5 or 10 minutes. Being in a rush when I had gotten to the lake I had forgotten to put her e-collar on or grab a whistle. I stood there kicking myself as I watched her swim and swim. She had a glaze on her face. She would not respond to anything. We threw bumpers by her and yelled, but she was oblivious to anything but bringing that line of floats to shore. Finally one of the kids swam overand pried her jaws off the line and pushed her away. She really didn't want to give up. At that same moment we threw another bumper next to her. She grabbed the bumper and came to shore. We did stay little longer and throw more bumpers. After a flew clean retrieves we felt we were leaving on a positive note. Lucy did start to swim a couple of times back over to the rope, but I was able to call her back.
> 
> So now that I have defined the need for an e-collar and the total lack of experience a handler can have, what should I have done?


I would not have used a collar correction on a young dog in that situation. She was showing a ton of perserverance, and she was trying her darndest to comply with you. That is not something I would want to punish!!

Doing a few bumpers after to refocus her was a good thing.

In future, the lesson for the HANDLER is to be aware of hazards in the area. We tend to be conscious of natural dangers, but now that she has shown you this determination you will also have to be aware of this factor in the surroundings when you have her retrieving.


----------



## hollyk

The toughest standard for me is the Pro's. If I had a nickle for everytime I heard the voice behind me say "Your Killing Me......". 
I have loved learning the process of teaching a dog to handle from the very start. The connection you have is just so cool.
We are starting to gel and I'm beginning to have that quiet conversion with her at the line. I'm trying for smaller head adjustments and have started to be able to detail her longer for a better line before she gets frustrated and wants to be kicked off. It's not perfect but you can see what it can be.
But we need alot of water blind work, still down loading those pictures in her brain. LONG shoreline blinds are killing us right now.
Anyway, I have been coached to remember it is never about picking up the blind.
It's about The Go-kicking off with momentum, The Stop-quick butt planting whistle sits, and Taking the Cast-correctly. 
I have faithfully done our handling drills and still do them. I think they keep us sharp and gives us a base to work from. Right now I'm using a lining drill similiar to wagon wheel to work to getting those smaller line adjustments, what we call detailing. She knows the drill and where those bumpers are, so we can work on communication of the line.


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## boomers_dawn

Sunrise said:


> Oh I can sooooooo hear the tone LOL
> 
> Faelan showing in Senior has been pushed off - that stupid, stupid woman on Sunday scaring my boy (and me) half way to Rhode Island has carried over into field with a lack of confidence. Now Utility & field are broken since he cannot understand how to correct something he has not done
> 
> Sheesh, if you need to sound like you will kill your dog and any dogs around you to get him to take it or drop, perhaps you shouldn't be in the ring????????????????


Well I'm certainly no expert, but as someone recently down and feeling like they can't do anything right, maybe Faelan could use some fun high success and confidence stuff for a week.


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## FTGoldens

Alaska7133 said:


> So now that I have defined the need for an e-collar and the total lack of experience a handler can have, what should I have done?


I would consider this to be an obedience issue, not really a retrieving-related issue. She failed to respond to "here." In that situation (i.e., no collar) I would have tried to eliminate all other stimuli in the area ... no yelling, no other dogs in the water, no movement on the bank, then tried to get her attention and repeated the command. 
However, because she had that "glazed" look, I'm not sure that anything would have re-focused her ... except a wake up call from the collar. (Does anybody remember the "Thanks, I needed that" commercials for Aqua Velva? It would be something like that.)
FTGoldens


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## AmberSunrise

Ahh, you've been talking to teacher LOL That is exactly what he is getting. Teacher's plans were back pedalled for fast & fun drills - I have given him 2 days off, and when I start back tomorrow it will be fun, fun, fun!!

I scheduled a rental for the noisiest place I could think of this coming weekend where her & Towhee will be partying as well



boomers_dawn said:


> Well I'm certainly no expert, but as someone recently down and feeling like they can't do anything right, maybe Faelan could use some fun high success and confidence stuff for a week.


----------



## sterregold

hotel4dogs said:


> yep, that's why I said it's probably area specific depending on the judges. Have seen some pretty amazing stuff in AKC. (Including a dog at a MH test get out of the water on a water blind, go visit the bird boys who were planting the blind, roam around on the land for a while, and passed that series! Didn't pass the test, though, for other reasons).


That completely undermines the standard and the value of the MH title. 

Here's how I look at it: 
There is a line between the handler's toes and the blind stake. That is the ideal path to that bird. Get more than a couple yards off to either side of that line in Master (there is a biot more leeway in Senior because the dogs are not as polished yet) and you need to be stopping and handling your dog. If there are natural hazards across that line en route to the blind, you need to attempt to put your dog through them, not let the dog go wide around them. 

In Master, I like to set a blind where if the dog leaves the acceptable corridor, you lose sight of the dog. If forces people to challenge the blind or they cannot see the dog to handle it. Generally that is a pretty generous corridor before the dog is lost, but it does tend to make it black and white for handlers who have the tendancy to try to cheat the factors.


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## MillionsofPeaches

oh wow someone else that does the vinegar shampoo! I have been doing that since about the second month of having them because mine are always in stick ponds. But I only dilute it 50 percent with 50% of water. So .25 dial, .25 vinegar, and 50% water. It works really great for me. I have to say that I haven't pulled a tick off of them since I started this and I've pulled three off of me this past month. I posted about this a long time ago in the main discussion forum and a couple of people shunned me!!! Said I shouldn't be using hand soap on a dog, blah blah blah, but it didn't stop using it. Now, I'm getting some of my training friends to switch over because of the muck in the ponds now. 

Today was the best training day we've had so far!! Well, Peaches is back with the training because we are trying something out but Katniss! Wow, I was so proud of her, she tried every mark that even the master hunt dogs were doing and she did them all wonderfully!! 
She was even just a tiny bit cheating and all I said to her was this weird err noise I make sometimes. It was just an odd noise I make to stop her at home sometimes when I see her about to sneak food or something. I'm usually silent with her take offs, so it startled her just a bit to go back on my line but not make her lose focus. From that point on she never cheated again. I was proud of myself. I did it on my own and knew my girl well enough to know it wouldn't break her concentration. The trainer was pleased! I love that now he can sit back and watch rather than have to stand by me and walk me through it. We also were able to use "other side" for the first time in action. I've been practicing with her at home and then she was able to pull it off for me today! All her finishes were much better as far as heeling and sitting and 25% of them were perfect. She finally broke through the dropping of the bird as she was heeling and holding. Now she never drops it, not even when she was shaking off. 
Sorry this is such me me me post but I'm so excited to see the headway we are making!! It is so rewarding to me to have them and work together as a team and see what we accomplish together.


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## hotel4dogs

That is exactly the sentiment that I, and the person watching with me, expressed. 



sterregold said:


> That completely undermines the standard and the value of the MH title.


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## K9-Design

It does get frustrating seeing crappy work pass at MH. Same as in obedience or whatever. Oh well, nature of the game.


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## sterregold

Here is an awesome MH water blind. This was the blind in the final series of the Canadian National Master last year. Breeze ran it as setup dog the night before. Lots of temptation from that shore on the right--about three tempting little points and coves they had to pass, including the running line for the marks, and a bubba gunner they could not see until they were partway to the bird.


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## hollyk

sterregold said:


> Here is an awesome MH water blind. This was the blind in the final series of the Canadian National Master last year. Breeze ran it as setup dog the night before. Lots of temptation from that shore on the right--about three tempting little points and coves they had to pass, including the running line for the marks, and a bubba gunner they could not see until they were partway to the bird.


Nice meaty blind. That's the type of blind if your dog does it you know they get the concept. If not you hope you can get access to the grounds to run it again later. 
It looks like it would be a good blind to use to teach with too. You could break it up by starting from the closer points and build it back. 
I may be hooked on this dog thing, looking at that blind makes me want to go train my dog.


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## hotel4dogs

<<sigh>> my dog is still on injured reserve.


----------



## K9-Design

Eventful day. Went and groomed the landowner's goldens at Lazy J (both QAA dogs). As I'm bathing, someone spots a freakin rattlesnake like 20 feet away in the mowed lawn! UGGGGGGGG!!!! It was about 4 feet long. They shot it. I have NEVER seen a rattlesnake in all of my days tromping through fields and woods. YIKES!

Bally got to fetch a live duck, he is BANANAS for it. He is so fast. Super puppy! 

Slater did our setup and freakin nailed everything, his blinds were lovely, 1 whistle to each. Go Squeeds! 

Sophie (Bally's mother) is a week into being in season, she was super duper flirting with Slater and we're like, hmmm....let's put you up before Slater has progeny....


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## MillionsofPeaches

the snakes are something I'm very nervous about! I even made my son wear jeans in 95 weather yesterday by the stick ponds. Glad you guys got that bugger!


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## gdgli

MillionsofPeaches said:


> the snakes are something I'm very nervous about! I even made my son wear jeans in 95 weather yesterday by the stick ponds. Glad you guys got that bugger!


M o P

I went to place in Florida called Reptile World and watched someone milk a rattlesnake for its venom. Out of the snakes that he milked, the rattler was the most aggressive and had some pretty wicked fangs. If you had seen this milking you would have been very surprised. I would not feel confident in having my son wearing jeans in snake country as being adequate protection.


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## MillionsofPeaches

thanks! I know it isn't the best but in my mind it helps at least. These water moccasins are what I'm extra nervous about. eek!


----------



## Alaska7133

Gosh no snakes in Alaska thank you very much. We also don't miss the raccoons, opossums, cougars, etc. 

Just snuck out of the office for an hour to train Lucy. She was thrown live pigeons for the first time. We did 4 retrieves. 2 short at 20' to see how she would do. Then one through deep cover at 50 yd. Then through open cover at 75 yd. She was wonderful. I wish I had filmed it. She had such style. She is super fast and has wonderful enthusiasm. She didn't chew the birds, clamp down or anything. The birds were able to flutter around and she wasn't scared at all. Very good on recall and easy to get her to return to hand. She was so happy and excited. Her marking could improve, she did have to hunt in the deep cover, but she hunted up that bird and brought it back without a problem. Her FF and CC is going well. Hope to be done with that training soon, but it will probably take a bit longer. She just turned 1 year old this week.

I've decided to not compete with Reilly. We're going to stick with hunting him only. He's great on all retrieves. Don't think I'd ever have to force fetch him. His CC is just fine. He's all there. Just his joints are still giving him the blues. So fall hunting only for him. He will be so happy to go. I have a young girl down the block that comes over and handles him for me when I throw bumpers. He's so good with anyone. He just sits and pops his jaws waiting to go. Always returns to hand and does a nice flip on the return with his sit. He just can't do the distances necessary for competition. Wish I could bottle and sell his enthusiasm and good nature and sell it. I could make a fortune!


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## MillionsofPeaches

wow that is awesome to read about Lucy's reaction to the live birds! Sounds like she is awesome!


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## Alaska7133

Thanks, for a show breeding, you just never know how they will do. We train with other puppies from the litter and it's been very educational seeing how the various puppies have reacted to bumpers and dead birds and different kinds of birds. I thought the puppies would all be the same, their reactions have all been very different. I'm very happy with getting Lucy versus one of the other pups. She will make a fine hunting dog. Not all the pups from the litter would make good hunting dogs.


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## MillionsofPeaches

yeah I'm learning a lot about my show breed dogs and I feel lucky my girls have the drive that they do. I am eyeing my trainer's field golden and I like what I see!


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## gdgli

MillionsofPeaches said:


> yeah I'm learning a lot about my show breed dogs and I feel lucky my girls have the drive that they do. I am eyeing my trainer's field golden and I like what I see!



Field golden: Click to see video


----------



## Alaska7133

This is my first golden Tiger. She was field also. She was a descendent of Barty. She had drive and determination like no other. Super lean and hard muscles. Very high energy. You could never wear her out. Awesome dog. We would love another field breeding, but good litters are hard to find up here.


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## gdgli

Alaska7133 said:


> This is my first golden Tiger. She was field also. She was a descendent of Barty. She had drive and determination like no other. Super lean and hard muscles. Very high energy. You could never wear her out. Awesome dog. We would love another field breeding, but good litters are hard to find up here.


I also had a Barty descendent. I think Barty was his grandfather. My boy's name was Dasher. Awesome dog.

I love the pictures.


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## MillionsofPeaches

wow beautiful!


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## sterregold

I judged a MH yesterday for MVRTC. It was a long day!! We ran the first dog at 9am (were supposed to start earlier but had some "late" manpower issues!) We had 26 dogs start the day, we took 19 dogs to water, and had 12 qualifiers in the end, including three of the four Goldens who had started the day! 

The land test was a walkup into the marks with the left bird thrown first and landing on the edge of a group of goose decoys. Then the dogs had to swing right, and the long mark on the right was thrown, followed by the short wipeout bird thrown across it into a group of goose and duck shells. Dogs had to pick up the three marks and if they did it cleanly, they were invited to run the blind. Once they were done the marks, the dogs still in went right to the upland test as if they were cleaning up after the hunter on the left, with flush being a cripple that jumped. On land, for the dogs dropped we had one dog fail with a controlled break on the marks, a couple of dogs with double handles, one with two monster hunts on the key marks, one with a big hunt on a mark and then a poor blind, and two who broke on the flush in the upland test. We also saw some terrific work A couple of dogs lined the blind.

The water test was run from the bank of a creek with a marshy point and island opposite; the marks and blind we all placed in or on the edge of the marsh grass so the current could not take them away. The test was three marks, with a blind and an honour. The left hand mark was thrown first by a gunner sitting in a canoe in the marsh grass on the point. The long middle mark was thrown by another gunner in a canoe in the reeds, and the final bird on the right was thrown from the bank across to the edge of the marshy island. Dogs picked up the marks, and then ran the blind which was hot and required them to go past the edge of the point where the first gunner was placed. A few dogs had trouble with the blind, wanted to scallop left into the back bay once they passed the point. A couple of the others who failed got into trouble by getting out of the water early on the long bird, and then getting themselves lost in the reeds. We also had one dog break on the honour. We did have one dog line this blind, too. She was pretty spectacular--it was like she was on a string.


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## boomers_dawn

Gladys went in season, sooo bummed. Had to scratch from 2 events and agreed to honor my work committment at one of them - YUK!! 
Well I guess we'll be doing lots of land work for the next 3 weeks 
:'( wah wah wah waaaahhhh


----------



## gdgli

boomers_dawn said:


> Gladys went in season, sooo bummed. Had to scratch from 2 events and agreed to honor my work committment at one of them - YUK!!
> Well I guess we'll be doing lots of land work for the next 3 weeks
> :'( wah wah wah waaaahhhh


Too bad. Next time.


----------



## hotel4dogs

we're off to the vet in a few minutes for the recheck chest xrays on the Monster Boy. Fingers crossed that the pneumonia is all cleared up and we get the go ahead to return to normal activity (slowly of course).


----------



## hollyk

Good luck Tito and Barb.

I'm working on water blinds here, shoreline, over a point, by a point, everything I can think of to throw at her. It's coming along but we're not quite there.
The other thing I'm working on is long water marks. In multiples when there is a really long 3rd mark down Winter seems to have a lost of confidence when going for it and I end up handling. Usually once I give her one back cast she goes right to it, so believe she is marking it and it is just a confidence problem. I think it is a training hole. I have not run her very often on LONG water marks. Always making the excuse of the waters too cold for long swims, especially multiple entry and long swims take a longer time at run. Well it's summer and we're are playing with the big dogs, time to raise our game. So Winter will be seeing a lot of long water singles. In multiples I'm running three singles or the long mark as a single first and then coming back and running the multiple. I think this is just a matter of stretching her out and giving her a little confidence.


----------



## sterregold

hollyk said:


> Good luck Tito and Barb.
> 
> I'm working on water blinds here, shoreline, over a point, by a point, everything I can think of to throw at her. It's coming along but we're not quite there.
> The other thing I'm working on is long water marks. In multiples when there is a really long 3rd mark down Winter seems to have a lost of confidence when going for it and I end up handling. Usually once I give her one back cast she goes right to it, so believe she is marking it and it is just a confidence problem. I think it is a training hole. I have not run her very often on LONG water marks. Always making the excuse of the waters too cold for long swims, especially multiple entry and long swims take a longer time at run. Well it's summer and we're are playing with the big dogs, time to raise our game. So Winter will be seeing a lot of long water singles. In multiples I'm running three singles or the long mark as a single first and then coming back and running the multiple. I think this is just a matter of stretching her out and giving her a little confidence.


That sounds like a good plan. And praise the heck out of her when she does it so she gets that reqard as well. I know with Breeze I have to be very careful about handling on those sorts of marks--she likes running blinds too much, so it seems to send her the message that she doesn't have to think about it because she can just get me to help her. So I would rather have the gunner give a momentum splash with a rock if she is breaking down or caving to factors on a big water mark. We are in a rehab process right now, so we are only doing singles and it is all about going and working it out.


----------



## sterregold

boomers_dawn said:


> Gladys went in season, sooo bummed. Had to scratch from 2 events and agreed to honor my work committment at one of them - YUK!!
> Well I guess we'll be doing lots of land work for the next 3 weeks
> :'( wah wah wah waaaahhhh


Ahh, the joys of running bitches. At least she came in before you got to the test with her. Afriend's girl came in at a test, after the land series. He went to get her out for water and saw the first drops of blood. Had to scratch her mid-test, and then figure out what to do with her as he had another dog running that weekend, so could not just go home.


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## hotel4dogs

you just described Tito perfectly....



sterregold said:


> I know with Breeze I have to be very careful about handling on those sorts of marks--*she likes running blinds too much, so it seems to send her the message that she doesn't have to think about it because she can just get me to help her.* So I would rather have the gunner give a momentum splash with a rock if she is breaking down or caving to factors on a big water mark. We are in a rehab process right now, so we are only doing singles and it is all about going and working it out.


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## hotel4dogs

Back from the vet, and all news is good! The pneumonia is totally cleared up, and there doesn't appear to be any scar tissue from it. The vet didn't expect any, as it was quite mild.
So we're off injured reserve, and free to get back to training, with the warning of not jumping right back in 100% this week, work up to it a little. 
We are, however, going to finish the course of doxy. He's done 2 weeks of it, we're going to finish 2 more weeks of it. Other than that, life as normal!


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## Alaska7133

That is so wonderful! Being sick in the summer is no fun for everyone especially the dog.

We are finishing up forced fetch training on Lucy. She is super resistant. I blame myself for not being more consistent in obedience training at home. I let her get away with too much. We are finally turning the corner. 

We have added roadwork to our training. We've been taking the dogs out on the trails on our mountain bikes. When we walk off leash they can go at whatever pace. On our mountain bikes they really fly down the trails. We have them at 8 miles at a good run. We put 2 water stops where they came swim during the runs. Awesome exercise for them all. Lucy flies like the wind. This should all help improve their speed in the fields. The dogs were all in good shape before we started with the bikes, so now they are really super lean and fast. Nice group of 3. 

The mosquitos are horrid this year. The yellow jackets are feeding on them and their populations are up too. I'm beginning to believe bug spray is an aphrodisiac for the little buggers not repellent! But the 20 hours of daylight makes up for it.

The girl in the photo is a GCh out of Chaos the #1 conformation male GR in the US (Rush Hill Kennels). For a show dog she is wonderful with birds. Already has her JH at 2 yrs old. Nice to see a kennel paying attention to what goldens were originally bred for!


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## hollyk

sterregold said:


> That sounds like a good plan. And praise the heck out of her when she does it so she gets that reqard as well. I know with Breeze I have to be very careful about handling on those sorts of marks--she likes running blinds too much, so it seems to send her the message that she doesn't have to think about it because she can just get me to help her. So I would rather have the gunner give a momentum splash with a rock if she is breaking down or caving to factors on a big water mark. We are in a rehab process right now, so we are only doing singles and it is all about going and working it out.





hotel4dogs said:


> you just described Tito perfectly....


Some times it seems like it takes her a nano second longer to zero in on the mark. I don't think she is expecting them to be that far out and then doesn't get a good look at them. So when she does that calculation and saves it to memory it's just is not that solid. My mantra will be once again "dogs learn to mark off of singles" and I need to not just throw long but mix it up.
For Winter too, I find lots of praise for something like this works and then once she has it down she doesn't need it. 

Hey Barb, I don't think we are doing the two steps forward one step back dance anymore. I think the steps forward just take longer, not so much backsliding. 
Of coarse my next post will be the sky is falling.


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## MillionsofPeaches

I'm so glad that Tito is doing better!!


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## goldengirls550

Jade had a group lesson Saturday morning, and I was very happy overall with his performance. He definitely gives 110% effort every time. We did land singles, a land double, and back to back water singles in preparation for our WC test this coming Sunday. Jade is a great marker, and runs full speed out and back in to me. I had actually never seen him retrieve in the water. There is nothing better than a Golden working in the field or water. His water entry was beautiful, and I was surprised at what a strong swimmer he is. He was throwing a royal fit while we watched the other dogs work in the water after his runs! My only complaint was that he did not retrieve a few birds to hand- he dropped them in front of me. Our trainer gave us a duck, so we have some work to do this week :


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## boomers_dawn

We had our bitch check and scratch letter 
I am sooo bummed to miss the test we entered this weekend.
But everything happens for a reason ... soooooo..... time out. 
Next time as gdg said.

We were able to go to our Tuesday am group training that work usually interferes with. Thankfully we were able to do land b/c another dog was in season and almost everyone else cancelled so majority ruled. We did 2 senior doubles and Gladys did awesome for a squirrel on the rag.

After group, Dee Dee did puppy singles getting out in high cover with silent re-throws. She's learning to perservere and look for something, and now comes when called by me waving another bumper around, throwing it over my head, and catching her when she comes for it. We are not in a race with her ... or anyone for that matter.

Will continue land drills with Gladys, puppy marks and getting in the water with Dee Dee. Prob skip weekend group b/c they'll be doing water scenarios.

Next Tuesday group should be back to water .. except us. I'm going to propose I go and help them throw on the water, then they set up a senior blind on land for me and whoever feels like it can "score" me ... that way I can learn from everything they tell me I do wrong. At least one of them will agree to that.

Glad Tito's better, happy training to all.


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## AmberSunrise

I heard Faelan was very, very good - trying to impress the girlies he was sandwiched between 



boomers_dawn said:


> We had our bitch check and scratch letter
> I am sooo bummed to miss the test we entered this weekend.
> But everything happens for a reason ... soooooo..... time out.
> Next time as gdg said.
> 
> We were able to go to our Tuesday am group training that work usually interferes with. Thankfully we were able to do land b/c another dog was in season and almost everyone else cancelled so majority ruled. We did 2 senior doubles and Gladys did awesome for a squirrel on the rag.
> 
> After group, Dee Dee did puppy singles getting out in high cover with silent re-throws. She's learning to perservere and look for something, and now comes when called by me waving another bumper around, throwing it over my head, and catching her when she comes for it. We are not in a race with her ... or anyone for that matter.
> 
> Will continue land drills with Gladys, puppy marks and getting in the water with Dee Dee. Prob skip weekend group b/c they'll be doing water scenarios.
> 
> Next Tuesday group should be back to water .. except us. I'm going to propose I go and help them throw on the water, then they set up a senior blind on land for me and whoever feels like it can "score" me ... that way I can learn from everything they tell me I do wrong. At least one of them will agree to that.
> 
> Glad Tito's better, happy training to all.


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## MarieP

This weeks training group went really well, mostly because Riot decided to do everything wrong. Haha! But seriously, it was very productive. The first mark, beautiful, pinned it. Second mark, he didn't go. He got about half way, jogging slowly, then turned around and started loping back. The gunner tried to help, but Riot ignored it. So I got to chase him out to the bird. Then I cut the mark in half; same thing, and I chased him out again. Ugh. I certainly got my exercise. My training partners and I had a discussion about whether he was getting intimidated by the marks and needed things simplified, or if he was just deciding he didn't want to. Based on his attitude and the length of the marks that he had been running just fine, I thought that it was probably an issue of him refusing, rather than being confused. I like to give him the benefit of the doubt most of the time, but even after I shortened the same mark to about 50 yds, he was still being a brat. 

So, before the next set of marks, we set up a short FTP session, goal being making it very clear that "you HAVE to go." Riot refused to even look at the pile, so I sent and forced. He tried running to the car, running then stopping, etc. We finally got two good retrieves, then transitioned over to the marks. Two great water marks. Immediately after the water marks, we did a very short land mark in no cover, annnnnnd got a no go. Forced him out. Did the same mark, he bolted out there and retrieved the bird. GOOD BOY!!! 

Whew! It was a long, frustrating day, but I think Riot learned some good lessons, which is the most important part. Our new mantra is: it is better to try hard to be successful than to simply be successful. 

We will be starting swim-by next week. YAY!


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## gdgli

We had a good day yesterday. We started with a walkup scenario, two birds thrown. Buffy sat as the bumpers were thrown and did the double with a very tight angle. Next we ran a couple of blinds which she did but she needs some work. We finished with a long retrieve which required a run through a row of trees, the bumper passing a narrow opening and landing behind the trees. 

Then we headed to the pond. I just wanted to do some heeling to the water which for her is a big distraction. Good heeling to the water's edge, 25 yards, earned her the reward of a retrieve in the water. Success for now. I need to add more distractions. Add some people and a duck call and there's a big difference.

All of the above done off lead and no need for corrections. Big step for us. And she looked pretty good to me.


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## boomers_dawn

Sunrise said:


> I heard Faelan was very, very good - trying to impress the girlies he was sandwiched between


Ha ha Faelan was awesome! His marking was excellent. Being surrounded by bitches on the rag doesn't phase him LOL. He wasn't even distracted in the field at all. He was a joy to watch.


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## hotel4dogs

Sharon, does Faelan still get to go play with the pro a few days a week? Are you sending Brady, too?


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## gdgli

Sunrise, which training group is Faelan in at Newburgh, who leads the group?


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## hotel4dogs

YAY!! We are heading to Dan's today! Got the all-clear from the vet to go back to training---SLOWLY. It's pretty hot and humid here today, so I won't do *too much* with him. But it will be great just to get back to some light training!


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## sterregold

We had an awful training session on Tuesday. Dogs were awful. Wingers malfunctioned. Clouds of mosquitos were swarming. Tried to go out again last night to do land work as farmers have been getting the hay off around here, and the farm we intended to train at had only started to just cut the fields! Went home and did some drill work on the school yard instead.


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## Alaska7133

Finally getting somewhere on FF training with Lucy. I had no idea a dog could be so resistant to FF. The trainer said dogs are all over the board on how they take to FF. Lucy is finally getting the hint.

Now we're trying stock our pigeon coop. But we can't find any pigeons! They're somewhere else in town and we're striking out. All our normal locations are empty. So the traps are bare. Need to find some soon. We need about 25 live flyers for our WC/WCX event in late August. Hoping to find some soon! Shipping up here is off the scale expensive. I've posted on Craigslist looking for pigeons and I've picked up a few from people that have some in cages they want to get rid of. Be we're nowhere near 25 live pigeons. Darn!


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## gdgli

Alaska, I heard there is 80 deg weather up your way. T or F?

You will need A/C.


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## Alaska7133

Yes we hit 80 for the first time in years! It is supposed to be in the 70's today. Last year we hit 70 a total of 9 times. This year has been fantastic! But I wish I had a nickel for every darn person that tells me how hot it is. I'll take 75 and sunny over -40 and snowing any day. But people will all complain no matter the weather. Up north they get so much hotter than Anchorage does. It's been in the 90's in Talkeetna and Fairbanks. But it's super dry and windy. We're below 30% humidity and many places are below 20% humidity. So we have fires all over the state burning.

Yes we have a window type A/C at my house. We turn it on in April when it gets above 35 degrees at night. My husband thinks it's too hot to sleep. Yes really. Right now it's 65 degrees, my A/C is blasting, we have it set for 60 and the fan is on high. Hoping to have a cool house when I come home! Tonight the dogs are swimming to cool them down.


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## hotel4dogs

FINALLY back to training today!
Did some simple water doubles, we were going to run a real long water blind but the Monster Boy decided to pop on the memory bird of one of the doubles, so no blinds for him on water today.
Then on to land. Today's lesson was navigating the side of a hill. It was a really neat set up, the marks were at various lengths and angles. The first one, shortest, was almost straight down the hill. Then they got longer, and the angle across the face of the hill (pretty decent hill, btw) got so that on the last one he had to run about 150 yards on the slope of the hill. Hard to explain, but fun marks. He did a good job, it was really obvious to both of us that he's feeling MUCH better, even in the heat and humidity today he was much more energetic than last time.
Finished with a long blind. We were going to run 2 more blinds, we normally do 3, but he was really hot so we called it a day. It was 90 and humid out, almost no breeze.


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## Laurie

This is my first time posting in this forum and I wish I had something to contribute!! Just wanted to say how envious I am of all of you. While we have a local retrieving club (45 minutes away), there is nobody to teach classes for us newbies. I even put an ad in the local classifieds looking for someone to work with us but no takers. It seems as though the experienced people don't want to be bothered with those of us who are trying to learn.  For the time being, I do a lot of "googling".

I think Lexx would be awesome in field work...he loves the water and loves to retrieve. I took him swimming yesterday for the first time this year and he was crazy for his dokken. Next time I will take a real bird to see how it goes. 

Thought I would add a pic of Lexx and his "bird"!!

Thanks for letting me vent!


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## K9-Design

Alaska7133 said:


> Yes we hit 80 for the first time in years! It is supposed to be in the 70's today. Last year we hit 70 a total of 9 times. This year has been fantastic! But I wish I had a nickel for every darn person that tells me how hot it is. I'll take 75 and sunny over -40 and snowing any day. But people will all complain no matter the weather. Up north they get so much hotter than Anchorage does. It's been in the 90's in Talkeetna and Fairbanks. But it's super dry and windy. We're below 30% humidity and many places are below 20% humidity. So we have fires all over the state burning.
> 
> Yes we have a window type A/C at my house. We turn it on in April when it gets above 35 degrees at night. My husband thinks it's too hot to sleep. Yes really. Right now it's 65 degrees, my A/C is blasting, we have it set for 60 and the fan is on high. Hoping to have a cool house when I come home! Tonight the dogs are swimming to cool them down.



Holy crap, this is some sort of cruel joke, right??? WAHHHHHH


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## K9-Design

Hmmm today it was 93º and 94% humidity until 6:30 when the temperature dropped 10 degrees and it stormed. Perfect for dog training in the garage! WAHHHHHH
Ohio next week....Ohio next week....Ohio next week....


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## Alaska7133

Laurie
It's too bad you don't have anyone close. Have you checked with your local GR club? They might have a field group. You could always check with other breed groups too. Does your dog's breeder have any suggestions for you, sometimes they are well connected. 
When you say train with a real bird, is the bird live or dead?

Hope everyone is having a good summer!


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## hotel4dogs

Laurie, are there any pros in your area? Perhaps you can work with a pro an hour a week, and you might meet some people there who are also just starting out and willing to train with you.
Or, you could come to Chicago


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## gdgli

I had a good day at Pinelands RC yesterday. It was a free training day and free food gor those who worked the hunt test.

Buffy did three singles on land followed by a blind.

At the water she did two singles, one of them included a long swim, up on land over a point, and then into the water again.

Buffy and I stayed late to take advantage of the water and did angle entry and exits which were excellent.

The bad: It took 5 hours to get home---heavy rain and traffic.


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## gdgli

Miserably hot but we trained at 10 AM. My group met and we were able to run our dogs from a shaded area. We then went to water.

We all did some water blinds. It ended up being a good day.


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## hollyk

We were entered in a HRC Finished test last Sunday. 
Water was a neat flooded timber scenario triple, with a blind that was in line with the Go bird and a diversion. Winter pretty much nailed it, but was not amused by the sucking mud she had to slog through. Can't say I could blame her she was in it to her elbows/ hocks and then would have a leg randomly sink to the shoulder/hip. Winter is a run out, trot back, kind of girl. On Sunday it was the slow death march back which was fine by me. We were the 22nd dog to run and it was getting slippery too. The 1st series took a long time it was slow going through the mud.
Land was a left to right triple, 75, 120, and a 25 yard wipe out mark. The blind backsided the 1st mark down,  then you honored. The terrain was fairly flat and not much cover just over your ankle to maybe mid calf. Piece of cake right? First mark goes up I shoot it and then jam the gun, I was told later in trying to clear the gun I swung past the long middle mark toward the 3rd mark and Winter swung with me. 2nd bird goes up, still working to clear the jam, clear it but I know she didn't see the mark. This is HRC so no noise makers at the winger, except it going off itself. Plus Winter had locked on the 3rd winger station as soon as I swung past middle line because it was practically in our lap. 3rd mark goes off I have cleared the jam and shoot at it. I send Winter for the Go bird, she picks it up. Turn and send her for 1st mark down and she nails it. I know she she did not see the 2nd mark so I line her up to run a blind and for once I know exactly where this bird is. I send her on "back" and she carries the line. I know she is on line but I did blow one safety whistle. Winter picks up the blind and we are through my mistake. She 3 whistled the real blind and held her honor. Finished leg #2. Two more to go.


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## Vhuynh2

Congrats again, Holly!


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## hotel4dogs

Congrats again from me, too! You guys are awesome!




hollyk said:


> We were entered in a HRC Finished test last Sunday.
> Water was a neat flooded timber scenario triple, with a blind that was in line with the Go bird and a diversion. Winter pretty much nailed it, but was not amused by the sucking mud she had to slog through. Can't say I could blame her she was in it to her elbows/ hocks and then would have a leg randomly sink to the shoulder/hip. Winter is a run out, trot back, kind of girl. On Sunday it was the slow death march back which was fine by me. We were the 22nd dog to run and it was getting slippery too. The 1st series took a long time it was slow going through the mud.
> Land was a left to right triple, 75, 120, and a 25 yard wipe out mark. The blind backsided the 1st mark down, then you honored. The terrain was fairly flat and not much cover just over your ankle to maybe mid calf. Piece of cake right? First mark goes up I shoot it and then jam the gun, I was told later in trying to clear the gun I swung past the long middle mark toward the 3rd mark and Winter swung with me. 2nd bird goes up, still working to clear the jam, clear it but I know she didn't see the mark. This is HRC so no noise makers at the winger, except it going off itself. Plus Winter had locked on the 3rd winger station as soon as I swung past middle line because it was practically in our lap. 3rd mark goes off I have cleared the jam and shoot at it. I send Winter for the Go bird, she picks it up. Turn and send her for 1st mark down and she nails it. I know she she did not see the 2nd mark so I line her up to run a blind and for once I know exactly where this bird is. I send her on "back" and she carries the line. I know she is on line but I did blow one safety whistle. Winter picks up the blind and we are through my mistake. She 3 whistled the real blind and held her honor. Finished leg #2. Two more to go.


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## gdgli

gdgli said:


> Miserably hot but we trained at 10 AM. My group met and we were able to run our dogs from a shaded area. We then went to water.
> 
> We all did some water blinds. It ended up being a good day.


BTW, I will be buying rat traps for the water. I wonder how the group thinks we will be using them.


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## Alaska7133

5 hrs in traffic! Wow can't imagine that. What a really long day.

Lucy is not doing well on FF. The person doing the training has done well in the hundreds of dogs. She FF's most of the dogs in town whether its for obedience competition or hunt tests or field trials. She's been FFing dogs since the 70's. Lucy is her most difficult client to date. Nothing seems to get to her. If she doesn't want to do it, she just won't. She is almost impossible to convince otherwise. She'll do the first few "take it" ok, then she starts to resist and want to do something else. We have been working on this for weeks and we still aren't on getting her to pick up a dumbbell off the ground. We are using ear pressure and now a slight collar twist. Short of all out pain, I'm not sure how far this dog is willing to go. She just turned a year old. If I were to walk up to Lucy right now, I could offer her a dumbbell and say take it. She would take it. But if I put it on the ground a few feet away, no chance. She's just such a hard head. We need to get her through this, it's just taking too long. She's a very birdy girl, so I wouldn't go to this much trouble otherwise. Any suggestions out there? We've tried short sessions and long sessions. Mostly make sure it's early in the day when it's cool and she's not tired. 

In a couple of weeks, we're going to our first NAHRA hunt test with both Lucy and Reilly. Started dogs are 5 singles. 2 on land, 2 on water and 1 wherever the judge wants it. How many times do they have to pass a NAHRA hunt test to get a title? What is their started title?

Our pigeon trapping is going terrible. We haven't seen any pigeons or if we do, they aren't interested in our trap. Looks like we might be buying chukars for our WCX in August.


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## sterregold

Nasty hot in Southern Ontario right now as well. Pop up thunderstorms nearly every day. Even the water is bathtub-ish. Haven't done any serious training in a week and now they are calling for rain right into the beginning of next week.


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## KathyG

Your comment "it's just taking too long" woke me up!

There is no set time that any training procedure 'should' take. It is what it is. Patience and persistence and maybe a new technique would be my choice before I would up the pressure.

Small increments (baby steps). Taking from your hand to the ground requires many steps in between.

Kathy


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## Alaska7133

Kathy,
You are right. I just want to not bother the person doing the FF training. She has the patience of a saint to continue doing this every day week after week. Her and I have also discussed the different levels of FF training. Some dogs only go so far. She does a lower level of FF for obedience competition dogs than she does for a field trial dogs. I'm not up to speed on how it all goes. Last night we moved into using a bumper and away from the dumbbell. It's all a learning process for me, I've never FF'd a dog before. My goal is hunt tests, hunting and obedience competition, no field trials. I'm just so happy to have someone that has FF'd so many dogs successfully. I'd say most people in town use her.


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## hotel4dogs

hot, humid training today, 92 degrees with almost 90% humidity. We used live pigeons to keep him "up". Even so, couldn't do a lot.
There are some HRC finished tests coming up in August that I had thought about entering him in. I say "had thought" because after his water blinds today, that thought left my mind!


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## gdgli

Hot and humid. Tomorrow will be OK as we will go to water.


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## MillionsofPeaches

Stacey, do you practice FF at home with Lucy? 
I know that I get a ten minute "lesson" at training that I take home with me and work on with the girls. It was a four week process which started with the basic hold and then hold and heel. Then it moved to eye teeth and then later on to the base of the ear. 
Now, I have three steps I do all at once at home. Kat definitely understands, fetch, hold and drop now. It was pretty smooth with her. Peaches spent two weeks with the trainer so he did all the work with her but I do have her homework now to keep up what she learned and further her development. 
I do this 4 to 5 times a day for a few minutes at a time. 
Everytime we were firm on their understanding of new material we move on to a new step which he teaches the both of us.
Perhaps if you are not working at home you could try it and it would move things a long? If you are already doing this, hang in there, my trainer said he's had dogs that take six weeks in house training!


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## gdgli

MillionsofPeaches said:


> Stacey, do you practice FF at home with Lucy?
> I know that I get a ten minute "lesson" at training that I take home with me and work on with the girls. It was a four week process which started with the basic hold and then hold and heel. Then it moved to eye teeth and then later on to the base of the ear.
> Now, I have three steps I do all at once at home. Kat definitely understands, fetch, hold and drop now. It was pretty smooth with her. Peaches spent two weeks with the trainer so he did all the work with her but I do have her homework now to keep up what she learned and further her development.
> I do this 4 to 5 times a day for a few minutes at a time.
> Everytime we were firm on their understanding of new material we move on to a new step which he teaches the both of us.
> Perhaps if you are not working at home you could try it and it would move things a long? If you are already doing this, hang in there, my trainer said he's had dogs that take six weeks in house training!


I used six weeks for my FF. I am very methodical, 2x a day, and work in baby steps. I also FF to each bird I will hunt. Patience is needed.


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## MillionsofPeaches

yep we have to FF for each bird for sure with Katniss. She has an aversion to birds, ha ha.


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## Alaska7133

Yes it's been awhile since we started I just had hoped it would take less time. We are patient. I don't do much work with Lucy myself, the trainer doesn't think I understand the process enough to trust me to do it correctly. The one thing I have to say is that Lucy is super birdy. Doesn't matter how old the bird is and how many times it's been frozen and thawed, if it's a bird she will fetch it up. The problem is still retrieving bumpers. Today we worked single bumpers and definitely she lost interest pretty quickly. So tomorrow we're doing double pigeons and she'll be just fine I'm sure. Little bugger!

Last night I took the crew on an off leash walk for 2 hours. They ran and played and swam. It was great until we got back to the car and Reilly could hardly walk. I had to pick him up to put him in the SUV. He's totally lame. We gave him tramadol last night and again this morning. I just let him overdo it. I'm so disappointed that I let him get that wild. Poor guy now I don't know when I'll be able to get him back outside again. So no training for Reilly for awhile. I really wanted to get him ready for a hunt test in mid-July, but I don't know now. So sad to see such a young guy with such bad joint problems. A 2 hour walk shouldn't be so painful.


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## sterregold

Torrential downpours and flooding here today. One of my friends joked that I could have gone out and done blinds in parking lots at the local mall and the RIM (Blackberry) tech HQ from the pictures that people have been posting of it on Facebook!


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## Alaska7133

How many cm of rain did you get?


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## sterregold

There was 52.5 mm yesterday according to the weather service--during the worst of the storm we got 30mm in three hours. It was fine out in the country, where the fields could absorb a lot of it--the problem was in town with all the pavement--the only place the water had to go was the storm sewers and they were overwhelmed. One picture in the paper was of kids canoeing down their residential street!!

It is overcast today, but thank goodness the long range does not look like there is anything more that heavy coming along.


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## Alaska7133

Water is an amazing thing to see how much devastation it can do in a short period of time. Hope it all goes away soon.


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## K9-Design

Hung out at the Hambden OH test today and yay happened to be in the gallery with Slater at the right time; he got to be bye-dog on the master land series and they even let him run the blind. He picked up his triple clean and lined the blind. Yay Squeedoo!
Here's three cheers for not training! LOL


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## MarieP

UGH. Long story short of my training last week is: Field training is really frustrating!!! I am thanking my lucky stars that I have really experienced people to train with. We have decided to back waaayyy up with little Ri-butt, at least on marks. Walking singles on land and short water singles. Lots of fun and no pressure. We have moved onto baseball in the yard, which he seems to really like. No swim-by for now. We are heading out to train again tomorrow. We will see how things go.


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