# Scout in the Field



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Sounds like Scout is doing great!!! I hope you keep posting progress reports about how your training is going.
A couple of suggestions (from someone who is as new to this as you are!!!)...on the doubles, have her run them as two singles first, then repeat it as a double. That's how we're learning the doubles.
Also a question, when you said, "I was so impressed with her front and delivery...." did you mean she does a "front" when she returns, like we do in obedience? The reason I ask is because my trainer told me not to have Tito do a front, just have him get right into heel position so he's lined up for the second bird right away. What Dan suggested (which is working great) is that I do a "swing" finish in field and stick to a regular "around" finish in obedience. When Tito gets near me I motion for him to swing finish, and take a step back and then forward while he does the swing, which is to help him differentiate between this and obedience, where of course you can't move your feet. Not that he can't tell an open field from an obedience ring, but I was concerned that he'd start going right to heel without fronting first in the obedience ring, so that was the trainer's suggestion.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Yeah, we don't do fronts anymore with field training, but not all of the pieces were put into place at that point in time (that was ~2 months ago)--so I was taking the bumper from the front until we finished FF and practiced more with her going to the side. She goes to the side automatically now, we need to clean it up though because she is so excited to go for the next throw that she scoot-sits forward as I am reaching to get the bumper.

We have been learning doubles a little different than what you said, but it works for us. They called it building a double. The memory bird is thrown first and retrieved as a single. Then you do the double--no single retrieve on the go bird.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

sigh, I wish that's what we were out doing. I'm at work.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Well, I am very tickled today. We went out training this morning and this time I un-thawed my duck and held my breath. She charged out there brought it back and held it!! Ok, there were a few bobbles, but she is not lacking desire at all. Bobbles are minor and will be cleared up--she doesn't always grab it in a good spot so she might drop it and pick it up coming back. So, we have a project and need to practice hold with a bird now.

We did walking doubles which was ok but I need to be a better handler. I guess it comes from watching obedience but I tend to want her to mark of my hand and I've been told to quit flailing it around and just set her up in the general direction and tell her to 'mark', 'good dog' when looking, and 'Scout' to send. Phew. But, we really are just starting on doubles so it is ok having a few bobbles during the learning stage. She still gets out there, just not as smooth or straight as desired.

In just a few months it is tremendous to see how far we've come though. If you remember, she stuck her nose up at her first duck, needed encouragement to pick up a pigeon which she then ate. :~) Stinker! It felt good to get a compliment on how fast and well she is picking this up and how driven she is. She charges out there and back like a lab and keeps wanting more~~amazing that a little old fun bumper can go such a long way too as a reward.


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## rappwizard (May 27, 2009)

Thanks so much for the update on Scout! I enjoyed reading her training journal too.

I have the same concern that you do about the ducks--that they are just much more heavier than a bumper, you wonder how the dog is going to be able to pick it up? 

Do you also use "couplers" on your bumpers to encourage good form in retrieving? When Mac was a pup, I was a bit crazy about her "cigar-etting" the bumpers most of the time (this was just throwing them in the backyard--nothing fancy). She is better, but once in a while will pick up a bumper and return it with the end hanging from her mouth. 

Scout obviously has made a lot of progress! Looks like we have another huntin' retriever on our hands!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

I am not sure what you mean by couplers, but I did not use anything extra with the bumper to encourage good form. If it isn't held well I might knock it out of her mouth (cause she isn't holding well) and ask her to pick it up again, lots of praise if done right, or I might reposition the bumper so she is holding it better and praise, then test by pushing on it to see if she is gripping it well. Praise more!


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

great job scout!
The one I'm worried about is if they give him a cock pheasant to go get. Ducks are relatively small, only a few pounds, but those cock pheasants can be mighty heavy


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Pheasants have a lot of feathers but are no heavier than a mallard.
A properly FF'd dog will have zero trouble with the weight of a duck. An 8 wk old puppy can pick up a mallard, and a full grown dog can tackle a 20 lb Canada goose.
Sounds like you're having great fun with Scout!!!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Working on the hold and in the right spot is quite the challenge. While she really really likes the bird, I am having a hard time getting her to take it from my hand or to hold it when I put it in her mouth. She's certainly capable and was retrieving it, going to heel and holding it this morning.


















(Psst, I trimmed her front feet, don't the look good?)










She's a pretty good girl~


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

gorgeous photos, she's looking great! (and yes, her front feet look wonderful  )


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Well, just got back from some more training and I am so thrilled at how well Scout is doing! We've been working on steadying the past 1.5 weeks and she was very good on land. The last few throws I didn't even hold on to her collar. Her lines and marking have gotten a lot better and she is clean on going straight to heel and holding the bumper until I take it from her. We've cut back to doing singles for now as her marking went down a little bit when I started steadying her (she likes to raise that butt in the air when the mark is thrown). Singles today were awesome so maybe we will do doubles again soon.

Water hasn't been as clean. We are working on that urge to drop the bumper and shake off before coming in. I've gotten to the point where she does it *most* of the time but it still isn't solid yet. I've also been working on pushing her back to the land beyond the pond instead of just the bumper in the water. She can and has done it, but the pond has some pretty steep banks for the dogs to climb out of and sometimes we have to help them out. I think that is part of the problem. I also have to be careful because she has walked all around that pond and has cheated once before but we try and set it up to where the bank is less steep and more in the middle to avoid this.

In talking to my training group they said they think she would be ready to get her JH sometime this year (I was optimistically asking about the spring--hard for an inexperienced person to know when your dog is ready). Still waffling on whether or not I should hold back on debuting her in obedience save fun matches, so maybe I will do a few hunt tests instead! I don't know about us getting or working toward a WC. There is no golden club in Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, I don't think there is one in Montana....there is something in Oregon and Washington so maybe if we wanted to try WC out sometime we could look westward....


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

Scout is adorable! I love the pictures and her pretty feet! :

It is fun to have a bunch of people starting out doing all this together. I am not really doing it, DH is with Quinn, but I am working Teddi at the same time just no ducks for her only bumpers. Next year when I have MY new puppy (I can't wait) I can turn to all of you. 

Ann


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I sure wish we could train together! Scout and Tito sound like they're just about at the same place in training, we could have such fun!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Yeah training together would be fun! Then we'd get to be around more golden crazy people!


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## rappwizard (May 27, 2009)

This is great reading these training journals! I love Scout's photos too and I have to comment about her ears! Can you come over and trim Mac's? I still have a difficult time with those fluff's around and behind the ears.

Good luck at your future JH test, whenever that will be! Sounds like it will be soon.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Well, I have to be honest about the ears I haven't trimmed them since May and even then I actually had a little help. I think because she doesn't have hardly any coat that makes her looked trimmed and neat longer because the hair isn't growing :

But sure, if I lived there I could do the ears. Practice makes perfect--I think maybe it is good that I have little coat right now to practice on so I can take it one step at a time.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

So more training today. Fun fun fun. Had some people join our small group today--yellow lab (typical) and flat coat puppy! Boy, the flat coat was a cute and goofy little 9-month old. His trainer is not sure she really wants to get into field work....Found out that two of the labs I train with are from show lines which is cool. The owners wanted that put together show look but have a dog that works too--one went out of his way to VA to get a Ch MH sired pup. In fact, this show lab is a very nice working dog at the senior level and is only 1.5 years old.

Scout did her land singles very nicely. We didn't get to do any water because there were other dogs in the park and it is just unfair to expect her to work around them. So, we did doubles again which were so-so. On one of the throws she was having a hard time finding the go bird even though she was in the area so the BB threw another bumper. Well, on her way back in with that bumper she found the other bumper and brought that one back instead. So, when it came time for the memory bird she decided to go back to get that other bumper (which had been picked up). Uh, yeah. She eventually got going in the right direction. O.O

So I also learned of a danger today to that I thought I would share. I can't remember what they are called, bot those cement pipes by ponds are apparently very very dangerous to dogs and people. They suck air/water in them and have been known when not covered to take dogs or people and injure or kill them. So, if you are training in ponds look to see if they are there and be careful!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

I was going to add that I got offered to road trip with a training buddy to a hunt test in September that will be up in Washington (Loon Lake?). I am going to think about it and kind of see how Scout is doing as it gets closer. 

I am inexperienced at this so part of me thinks if I climb no higher than JH the first time around that is ok--but a bigger part of me thinks I want to go as far as possible especially considering how young Scout is (16 months) I only have time. And maybe it would be better to have her further along on Senior stuff before doing Junior (or skipping it altogether...) Choices choices choices. I just don't want to find myself ready to trial in everything at the same time!


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I wouldn't recommend skipping junior if you're a first time handler. Of course I'm not anybody to be giving that advice as I've never titled a dog in field, but I'm thinking that the experience of showing in junior would be valuable for you. Kind of like if a Novice A obedience person could go straight into open - the dog might be able to do it, but the newbie handler would be missing out on learning from showing in novice. It's different for the experienced handler who's done it all before.


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