# Hunt and Field Training Plans for the Week of July 29 - August 4



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Wow, August already!! And we have done nothing this summer .

What is everyone training this week?

Now that I know the growth in Tito's larynx isn't malignant, and it's been removed and the grunting/groaning is resolved, we can get back to thinking about some serious training. What with one thing and another, we haven't done anything at all this summer. Now National is almost on us!!

He's supposed to be on limited activity until Tuesday so that the sore inside his vocal cords doesn't break open, then we are released to train again. So here are my plans...

Tuesday....drop in obedience, followed by swimming at the cold pond. My main aim there is to just get him some serious exercise, since he will be heading into the breed ring at National and he sure isn't in what I'd consider "hard working condition" after lying around on the floor in the A/C for the past 8 weeks or more. I will also do some disciplined casting with him in the water there if I have time.

Thursday...we HAVE to get to Dan's, even if it's 1000 degrees out. I entered Tito in 4 HRC seasoned tests in August, and the dog hasn't done anything at all. I know Dan wants to do some multiples with him, which would be a good thing before we try to run a WCX at National.

How about everyone else?


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

Wednesday, we get to finally make big group training. Thursday I will travel south to work with Pro a second day. We have been learning shoreline blinds, Winter seems to get staying in the water is the right choice. She has been taking them fat so I have spent the last week getting her to take less water. Next up, on and off a point work. I have a funny feeling we will be seeing a lot of Andy in the next few weeks.
I'm struggling a bit in keeping the water balanced with land. The weather has been so great for water, the ponds haven't gotten too yucky yet, we need to get though water blinds.......

There are a bunch of tests in August here. I will have to decided soon if we are really ready.


----------



## Jige (Mar 17, 2011)

Not sure how much training I will get done this week or even the month of Aug. I have to help my sister and son get their dogs ready for the sept hunt test. I really want to get out and do some berry picking I am tryng to save us some money buy putting up our own jellies and sauces. I need to work Jige for our first rally competition the first week end of sept. oh and the fair is in 2 weeks and I dont have all of my stuff ready to enter. Hummm I wonder how Jige will feel about training on the fly?


----------



## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

We had fun training today with birds. Threw another tight double with both birds being thrown toward each other as Scout is having some trouble with these. Ran them as singles, put her up, then ran the double but she still struggled a little. It didn't help that my BF came along and was throwing the go-bird though because she was really, really stuck on him. Even when we did the third mark which is a single. She managed it all well enough though and I felt like we did a good job training not testing. Her blind was pretty decent...actually I would say she handled it better than the veteran dog with a few MH passes and the dog who just finished his SH. 

Speaking of stakes...the blind that I did not run was very close in line but beyond one of the marks. My friend's lab took off on a mark straight to the stake. It was a good thing the blind was cold.

EDIT: Afterward took her to the river and skipped a few rocks. I was surprised to see her actually put her whole head under water looking for the rocks. Going to the store to by diving rings


----------



## KathyG (Nov 21, 2011)

OK, 8:30 at night the temp cooled off enough to go outside and run a wagon wheel. That's the extent of my training. Would love to get marks, birds, water etc but that will happen this weekend at the hunt test. Yikes!!!

Kathy


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Good luck this weekend, Kathy (and to Chris, too), I hope you guys bring home some orange! I sure wish we were running with you. But that would require having done training over the past 8 weeks...


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I was a good dog mom today.
Tito came off injured reserve today, so we did a few things. We went to drop in obedience, and while I was there I took the opportunity to take him outside and run 2 cold blinds with him. Nothing spectacular, but the first he's seen in ages and he did a good job. No complaints.
After obedience we went to the cold pond for some "muscle building swimming". I swam him on a big water mark, around 100 yards, then several 40-50 yard marks across the pond. Threw a bunch of shorter marks just for him to mess around with his "big air" entries, and then did a bit of disciplined casting in the water to round out the morning. He swam for almost an hour, and didn't seem winded when he was done so I was pleased. He needs to get back into "hard working condition"!


----------



## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Training today at L pond. Two marks, two blinds, not easy. Slater had a little trouble on the tough blind but I felt we really worked it out and perhaps he learned something 
Everything else he was spot on. Fisher did a very nice job as well, no complaint. Weather was wonderful today, rained early then stayed overcast, it was 76º at 6:00!!!! WOW


----------



## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

We were going to train today but last night came home to diarrhea (poor girl had pulled at the door mats in an attempt to get outside). I about fainted when I found a spot of blood and realized she was having bloody diarrhea. My sister is a vet and she saved me from panicking and running to emergency vet. Then I found white wriggly things in fresh stool this morning...not sure if they are maggots or tapes. Fecal results tomorrow hope it is a simple fix. Vet was leaning toward giardia :/


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.....


----------



## sterregold (Dec 9, 2009)

Got ins some real training today. Breeze did her first water triple since her surgery followed by a a big blind.
Bonnie did a blind first and then a double with a challenging go-bird that she had to dig out of the bushes. No problem remembering her memory bird. 

Good girls!


----------



## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Cute stuff Shelly I like the wipeout bird, something I don't think Slater's ever seen. Hmmmm. Gives me an idea for next time 

This afternoon Kristin & I drove down to Wayne's to train with our friend Clint who has a choc lab working on master. Set up 4 singles through a large U-shaped pond where only one arm had water the other had a mudhole and real sandy, steep banks for the rest. Lots of cover on land, longer grass and dog fennel. Marks were basically two sets of inlines, did them as singles, the first one was short first then long, 2nd one was long first then short. Then we went over and did a water blind over a point in a different pond. Just took Slater. It was an OK training session, nothing earth shattering and nothing bad, sorta "paying your dues" training. Best news was, the Mexican restaurant we stopped at afterward, had 99¢ margaritas! LOL woohoo!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

LOL, you crack me up Anney. 99 cent margaritas sounds like a perfect addition to any training day!
Just got back from Dan's. I've asked Dan to run Tito in some seasoned tests coming up soon. I don't want to run him myself for a couple of reasons, and Dan is happy to do it so that will be fine.
Anyway, this is the first time Tito has done anything in ages and he was rusty for sure. His singles were great, blinds were actually wonderful, but the *issue* that we had before on the double *almost* showed up again. Tito headed out slow on the memory bird, and you could see the confidence just wasn't there again. Dan ran him on some very difficult singles after that to finish up, and he did great with those. So we have our work cut out for us in the next couple of weeks. If the weather cooperates...


----------



## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

I've never posted in this Forum before!!!

Does this count as hunt and field training plans.......Lexx being introduced to a duck for the first time?????


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Go Lexx! Get that bird!!! Great photo


----------



## Kmullen (Feb 17, 2010)

I think I can join back now  Those of you that had read my thread last week and wanting to know how Remi is doing...(drum roll). To me, she is doing sooo much better! I restarted her over on short back with praise. She is so much more energetic about going back. She is not lolli-gagging out. Of course, it is not as far as she was going just yet. But, her attitude is completely different. I am very happy. I have not had to reinforce the "back" pile yet. I am sure as we get farther and farther, there will be a time to reinforce with the collar.

I have even started Cannon on hand signals and pile work. He is doing great with a great attitude.

So, we will see how long it last. I am going to try and upload a video of Remi now...wish I had one before.


----------



## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Trained land today at Lazy J. Thought I had set up a tricky scenario but the dogs all rocked it. Short mark with short blind off the backside of the gun, a keyhole between two trees.
2nd mark was long up a slope, with a wipeout bird in your face with the bumper boy, FUN! Long blind off the left of that up in the trees. The long blind/mark were probably 150 yds.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

ya know Anney, it always amazes me how bad I am at reading the set-ups. I will set up something that I think is VERY tricky, and it turns out to be stupidly easy. Then I will set up something that I think is so easy it's a joke, and the dogs all fail. I need to work on that. I think I don't realize all the things that can throw a dog off.


----------



## KathyG (Nov 21, 2011)

Okay, i will try and describe our training.

A friend and I had a lesson last night. Two young dogs just out of senior, starting to run master and one experienced naughty master dog.

Land water set up. Water kinda of a 'smile' shape..best I can describe. Run from the center about 40 feet back from shore. One gunner standing in front at the waters edge throws all 3 marks.

First up, run the blind which will be between marks 2 and 3 when we add the marks. Angle entry, up on a small island, through a narrow slot, back in, maintain the angle, get out carry it on land. About 150 yards.

Then throw a double, first mark across the water, landing on the far shore in cover. Second mark, exciting little mark to the dogs left landing in water. No them off the marks and re run the blind, which is to the right.

Come back with the blind and a third mark is thrown, to the right over the line to the blind landing in the water. Pick up, right, left, middle.

Repeat the set up, throw all 3 marks, no off the right hand bird and send for the blind.

Well, the young dogs bit on the right hand mark when they should have been running the blind. A teachable moment. It was very close to the line to the blind.

They got to repeat again. You could see their little brains processing and trying to be good. My young dog flared a little on his initial line to the blind, trying to open up the set up for himself. He corrected himself and finished up the set up nicely.

The naughty dog said, can't fool me, and did a nice job on the concept and all the marks.

Hoping there might be a poison bird at the test this weekend!

Kathy


----------



## sterregold (Dec 9, 2009)

Duplicate post


----------



## sterregold (Dec 9, 2009)

K9-Design said:


> Cute stuff Shelly I like the wipeout bird, something I don't think Slater's ever seen. Hmmmm. Gives me an idea for next time
> ... Best news was, the Mexican restaurant we stopped at afterward, had 99¢ margaritas! LOL woohoo!


The way I ran it it was really two birds under the arc as that big breaky throw was the first bird down. Then the left Marg and then the long bird up the middle as Go. If I had thrown the marks in reverse order it would have ben a wipeout. I ran it this way with Breeze as she was struggling with the long bird past short concept this spring before her surgery. She would often cave in and want to get the short bird first, instead of taking the long go bird and then would have difficulty pushing deep. The first bird down was just off the line to the long bird so it was tempting for her, but she stayed honest , chugged out to the long bird, took the left bird second, and picked up that tempting bird last.

Wish your Margarita place was closer. It has been so ****** hot up here that is tempting!!


----------



## sterregold (Dec 9, 2009)

hotel4dogs said:


> ya know Anney, it always amazes me how bad I am at reading the set-ups. I will set up something that I think is VERY tricky, and it turns out to be stupidly easy. Then I will set up something that I think is so easy it's a joke, and the dogs all fail. I need to work on that. I think I don't realize all the things that can throw a dog off.


That can happen to even very experienced judges. A friend of mine did a Master with a judge who has done a FT national, and they had a mark that no one could do and they could not figure out why!

I think though that the more you run dogs, and the more you set up training scenarios and consider what you are trying to teach your dog, the better you get at reading the influence of factors like terrain, cover, wind, etc.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

One of the marks we ran at Dan's yesterday was much harder than it looked. It was 150 yards out, hidden winger, no "noise" in the field (HRC rules). 
The area the dogs had to run down was a tilled field, which had the till lines in it. They only had to cross a slight angle of the till lines to get to the mark, it was only about 30 FEET off of straight down one of the lines, over 150 yards.
Dan said if it had been more of an angle, the dogs would have no trouble. But he set it up this way so they would learn not to run down the line even when it's a minor angle.
Interesting stuff, and so much to learn.
Side note, it's so dry here it looked like a dust storm going down the field, not a dog...


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

hotel4dogs said:


> ya know Anney, it always amazes me how bad I am at reading the set-ups. I will set up something that I think is VERY tricky, and it turns out to be stupidly easy. Then I will set up something that I think is so easy it's a joke, and the dogs all fail. I need to work on that. I think I don't realize all the things that can throw a dog off.


It's nice to know I'm not the only one that is horrible at setups. My specialty seems to be unbelievably bad backgrounds so the dog has little chance of seeing the mark go down.

I trained with the Pro this week and most of the notes were for me. My whistles need to be shorter snd sharper and casting stronger. I needed a better command presence.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

ha ha Holly, you and I have the same specialty! I'm also good at forgetting to factor in the wind.


----------

