Lizzy is coming along nicely in her bird dog training. She is standing her birds nicely and pointing with a lot more style. We have a pretty good group that gets together to train dogs with the Utah Bird Dog Club. Training is a lot more fun when you get a group together to help each other and to share information. Lizzy has gone through the gun introduction and is even going to a conformation show in Blackfoot, Idaho this month. We feel like Lizzy is our best shot at owning a dual champion. She is a joy to be around and shows such confidence and style in the field.
The snow has finally melted and it is time to get outside and train puppies. Lizzy is working on being steady to wing. She is a very birdy dog and loves to get out and hunt. I have 50 wild pigeons coming in this week for training birds. Also, there are about a hundred quail in my pens that will be flight ready in a couple months. This should give us plenty of birds for spring and summer gun dog training.
Had a great day dog training with Lizzy this week. Put a few hen pheasants out in some cattails and just wanted to see her use her nose. She has a very strong prey drive and loves birds. She has been exposed to pigeons, quail, pheasants and chukar. She did very well and dug right into the cover to find these two hens. We let a few go, but when the situation was just right we shot a couple for her. Her first retrieve was excellent. She picked up the big fat hen pheasant without hesitation and brought it to hand. Needless to say I was very pleased. I thought it was a good first hunt for a 7 month old brittany puppy.
We got these pics via email of Bailey and her holiday adventures. Bailey spent christmas with her family in Kansas City where she got her first introduction to snow. Anita says Bailey is settling in nicely and loves to play outside. She mentioned a problem about biting. It is important for puppies to have chew toys that they are encouraged to bite and chew on. Anytime a puppy tries to bite a person or something they are not allowed to chew, a correction should be made. They key is to set your puppy up for success not failure. We know that when puppies are excited they are more apt to bite or play rough, this is when we should have their chew toy handy to direct their attention and sharp teeth.
Bob had to wait until Christmas to find out what his daughter had purchased him. This little Brittany female was my personal favorite of the litter. She had a lot of prey drive when I put her in front of some quail and chukar. But, she was still enough of a people lover to crawl up into your lap for a nap. We are excited for her to be in her new home in California where she will be a hunting/companion dog. We hear that their are some decent quail populations near where Bob lives. It is always a joy to see our brittany puppies placed in just the right homes. We recommend that new gun dog owners subscribe to the excellent magazine titled “The Pointing Dog Journal“. Steve Smith and his team publish the most respected magazine geared specifically to hunting upland game with pointing dog breeds like the american brittany.
The last two brittany puppies are going to their new homes tomorrow. One is headed for Nevada (Freckle face) and the other (Brown face) is headed for California. Alyssa helped me give the puppies a bath and comb out their coats. Just if they could stay clean for more than 24 hours. We were thrilled to find hunting homes for all 5 of these females. Only one stayed here in Utah. The other two went to Wyoming and Arizona families.
In bringing a young hunting dog puppy along, the bird introduction is one of the funnest places to start. You can use a clipped wing pigeon, quail or chukar. I like to use the quail or pigeons on young pups because the size of the bird is not too intimidating. You can trim the flight feathers on one wing, or simply pluck them out. They will grow back with time if the bird doesn’t get chewed up too bad. I start by waving the bird in front of the puppy and let them get a good sniff. Then I toss the bird a few feet and see if the puppy will give chase. Typically they can’t stand the bird running and flapping and their prey-drive will kick in. The main goal of this drill is to get the puppy excited about birds. Being interested in birds is the foundation for building a bird dog.
This training drill can also be turned into a retrieving introduction. For best results you should do this in an enclosed area or with a lead fastened to the puppies collar. It is very natural for a dog to pick up a bird in his mouth, but bringing it back is the trick. Once they pick it up reel them in slowly with the lead and give the “fetch” or “here” command. When they get within reach, don’t take the bird right away. Pat them down good and pile on the praise. Let them hold the bird for a minute or two while you really build them up. Then get the bird and throw it again for another try. Do it a few times and put it away. Training should be fun, as well as short and sweet.
This weekend the pic of the litter went home to her new family in Wyoming. Forrest (Necha’s Father) drove more than 20 hours in a weekend to surprise his daughter Necha with the new puppy. The liver and white puppy was the pic of the litter and Necha decided to name her “Maple”. We are thrilled that she is in a loving home where she will be with a family who enjoys hunting gamebirds. Necha is getting ready to take hunters safety and is excited about hunting next year with her own pointing dog. This puppy seemed to be the most well-balanced of the litter. A real people lover but also quite adventurous and bold.
We took another puppy to meet her new family this week. They have chosen the name of Bailey for this fine little brittany puppy. She will be living in Arizona with the Perez family and I have a feeling she will be spoiled rotten. We look forward to seeing Bailey’s progress and have been promised pictures and updates from her new owners.
