# Another ?? AOF



## Jige (Mar 17, 2011)

Swampcollie said you have to be realistic in the size of your AOF I agree but what do you consider a decent size?

I train with one guy that has a HUGE AOF...I mean it is usually 50-60ft or more. I dont think that one that size is practical. I train with another guy that has a smaller AOF but still on teh big side if you ask me maybe 30-40ft. 

When I send Jige out on both singles and doubles I want him in an area no more than 20ft if he is in an AOF over that size I consider the run no good and I will redo it. Now do get me wrong Jige hunts and he doesnt give up he never has since we started this training. I just feel that the AOF should be small. 

One guy let his dog run all over the place it was no where near the AOF and he said his dog was young and doing alright.... If that had been Jige I would have been calling him back in for a resend.

So what is your size AOF?


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## Swampcollie (Sep 6, 2007)

It isn't a fixed diameter. In general the longer or more difficult the mark, the larger the AOF becomes. The converse is also true, the shorter or easier a mark is the smaller the AOF becomes. You also have to take the quantity of marks into account. A single is easier than a double, a double is easier than a tripple, etc. 

So, if your mark is less than 30 yards, a 15 foot AOF might be generous. If the mark is out to 100 yards, a 15 foot AOF might be kind of harsh.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I use as a VERY ROUGH guideline the AOF is 10% of the length of the go-bird, 15% of the length of the 1st memory bird, 20% of the length of the 2nd memory bird, and so on.
So on a 150 yard single, the AOF is 15 yards. If the 1st memory bird is 100 yards out, the AOF for it is 15 yards, too. If the 2nd memory bird is 60 yards out, the AOF for it is also 15 yards.
But on a 30 yard single, the AOF is only about 3 yards (less than 10 feet). 
Unless, of course, there is some extreme factor. And these are just guidelines.


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## FTGoldens (Dec 20, 2012)

There is NO definite answer to the question of the appropriate size of the area of the fall. You must take into consideration the length, the factors that the dog must fight, the visibility of the gunner and the mark, the cover, scenting conditions, stand-out v. retired, etc. Generally, in the case of multiple marks, the AOF for each successive retrieve can be expected to be bigger, but it really depends on the difficulty of the mark. The only true gauge is, if in a test or trial, you want your dog's AOF smaller than every other dog's!


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Also it's not always the best thing to call a dog back just for marking the bird poorly. Sometimes they need to figure it out on their own.


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## Jige (Mar 17, 2011)

I only call Jige back if he is "playing" yes I can tell if he is hunting or just goofing off or if he is way out of what I think is the AOF. I do take into consideration the terrain. Like right now I am working in a field that has lots of rolling small hills so if he thinks it is on the one hill but it is actually back on the next one I let him work through that.


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