gundogblog

Training day - with Quail

2010-09-26T07:26:00.000-07:00

We decided it was time to shake things up and use quail instead of pigeons - give the dogs something else to scent. We tracked down a local guy who said he had pen raised quail that would be strong fliers - really all we needed to do was have them fly up and away and Rocky was going to shoot them and we'd work on retrieving with the dogs. We purchased 10 bob whites from this guy and set off with three dogs - Chuck (GSP), Roxy (Pointer) and a new comer - Comet (Setter).

The dogs knew the quail were in the crate and we were excited to work them:

We headed to the regular training area and George (owns Comet) wrangled the three dogs - good luck!

So we setup 3 launchers and put in the quail. It was warm, no wind, but lots of mosquitoes. Dogs wanted to get onto the birds and we wanted them as well.

First up was Chuck - shorthair. He was on point quickly

Next up was Roxy - Pointer. Like Chuck, she was on the quail very quickly.

Unfortunately, the quail didn't cooperate - they wouldn't fly. The launcher would shoot them up in the air but then gravity would take over and they'd fall to sky like a rock. Frustrating because our goal was to steady the dogs to the shot and then have the dogs retrieve the birds. Needless to say the hopes for shooting quail didn't quite work out like we hoped. We won't be purchasing birds from this guy again. Rocky kept the quail and is fattening them up so hopefully they will fly so we can shoot them over the dogs.

Unfortunately we ran out of daylight once Comet started to run so there are no pictures. Sorry George.

One good positive thing for myself and Roxy is that I learned she does retrieve birds. I purchased her two months ago as a started dog so I wasn't sure if she'd retrieve. I asked my friend if I should buy a bumper and he said she wouldn't retrieve it.

Rocky threw a quail in the air and Chuck snatched it like a center fielder and bit down on the quail killing it. I picked the bird up off the ground and showed it to Roxy then I threw it. She ran over to it - picked it up and brought it back. I'm thinking that it was luck - so I did it a few more times and she brought it back a few more times.

My friend Rob - who I purchased Roxy from - took her to Wyoming on a sage grouse hunt and said she had a good retrieve on a sage grouse. This picture is her at his feet with the grouse - he was too busy shooting at grouse that had just flushed but I'm pretty excited that she did this on a wild bird:

2010-08-28T12:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Rob for renting us some homers - we took Chuck and Roxy out to a vacant area and setup some birds.

We set up launcher in two different spots in this field - you'll notice the houses in the back ground

Chuck ventured out without the check cord and did a great job - didn't rush the birds.

Excellent work by Chuck - 1st time off the check cord and was really patient with the point and was looking directly at the pigeon in the launcher and didn't rush.

Roxy on point:

Bird flew like a rock and landed back on the launcher :lol:

Roxy stayed on point - watching the bird - very nice to see her not rush in on the bird

I'm glad we found a spot pretty close to where we both live - easy access!

New to gun dogs

2010-08-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

I've been hunting upland game for years - but without a dog. Sure, I would tag along with those that had dogs, but it became nearly impossible to coordinate so I finally picked up an English Pointer (Roxy) from a friend of mine. She is a year old - very well trained and very birdy. She stays in the house and blends in quite well with the family.

I've been working with Rocky Watt and his shorthair - Chuck. Chuck has made some great improvements since we first met up. He's now holding his point very well.

Here is a picture of Chuck:

Here's Roxy - very intense on her points:

This was just a quick trip to a small lot - maybe 4 acres - in West Haven - we put out two pigeons each using launchers - very fun to see the progress the dogs are making!