Nov
12
Sportin’ Dog or Family Pet: We Owe Them; A Guide to Dog Training
Historians speculate that between 10,000 and 20,000 years ago, a loose association developed between primitive man and wolves, or wild dogs. The specific how’s and why’s of this association’s beginning may never be clear. Maybe man watched as packs pursued and killed animals. Opportunist Man then may have scavenged the remains or leftovers after the pack ate its fill. Or, as Man gorged on charred meat by his campfire, a wolf ventured ever closer, near enough to grab scraps tossed to him.
We know from hieroglyphs that the Egyptians bred and trained hunting dogs. The royal Romans’ elitist lifestyle also gave them the time and opportunity to develop different breeds for their sporting pursuits. Their conquest of the known world spread their whole philosophy of life-including their leisure activities-all over the European continent.
By the Middle Ages, hunting with dogs was widespread, and specialized breeds for hunting different game species had been developed. Our modern breeds are the result of the selective breeding and cross breeding done over the centuries.
‘Way back then, and equally true today, the “Three P’s” (Patience, Persistence, and Perspiration) must be the ever-present, or omnipresent(?) mantra of a dog trainer. Make that “Dog Owner”, rather than just “Dog Trainer”. Whether grooming and teaching a sleek, stylish sporting dog for field trials and/or personal hunting, or instructing the family pet in obedience and “manners”, these 3 P’s are super important.
Years ago, when I first trained a retriever, my training aids were leads, leashes, a Thunderer whistle, boat bumpers, an old starter pistol, and a bottle of duck scent. The primary training ground was my fenced backyard. Later, as she and I each became familiar with the other, we advanced to shooting and retrieving blackbirds that came in to roost at a friend’s house in the country. His house was in a pecan grove. Every evening, the huge flocks of migrating blackbirds swarmed into the trees. He shot his Diana grade Browning Superposed, and his big, long-legged lab “Klinker” did the honors on the nuisance birds he downed. I had my Belgian Browning A-5. “Light Twelve” model, and my “Smokey” learned of feathers and bird smell as she worked my successful shots. Then, through numerous-almost daily-dove shoots we finally graduated onto the Big River for ducks.
My friend was a devotee to, and a disciple of James Lamb Free, and his book (“the retriever trainer’s bible”) “TRAINING YOUR RETRIEVER”. He insisted that I buy and read a copy of Free’s book “right now, before you go any further”. I immediately complied. Later, I discovered Richard Wolters’ book “WATER DOG”. Both were interesting and informative, though somewhat contradictory. Free insisted that a retriever should not be trained-except for obedience work-until at least one year old. Wolters espoused that training could begin as early as three weeks of age. Between my friend’s suggestions-and instructions-and the books’ information, something worked. Smokey retrieved ducks, turkeys (shot incidentally in the fall season while duck hunting), tracked wounded deer, masterfully worked dove fields, and guarded our house, myself and my family. She was a family member as much as any of us humans. My friend said she became an accomplished retriever in spite of my training. Maybe so.
Were I to do all that training over, starting today, I’d still read the books, and likely others, before starting. Garnering the knowledge and information of others’ experience and education is an invaluable jump-start. With the advent of, and advancements in electronic training aids, I’d likely go with a Retriev-R-Trainer Dummy Launcher Kit, the SportDOG SD1825 electronic collars. They are waterproof/submersible, have no external collar antenna to hang in brush or limbs, and have an advertised 1 mile range. NO choke collars, or chains. I lost a promising young retriever when, wearing a choke chain collar, he tried to jump a kennel fence, hung the ring on the fence, and strangled before he was found and could be freed. Costly lesson-in money, time and affection-learned!
In most any situation of training, be it for sporting dog or family pet, the electronic training and control aids should be considered. There are electronic devices designed for most every need, from electronic fences, barking controls, GPS and radio telemetry trackers, beepers (for upland dog use), and a myriad others. Name a pet situation/problem, and most likely an electronic device exists for that application.
Valued hunting companion, potential field trial champ, or a loved–and love returned–family member, we owe it to them all to keep them safe, and under control.
All of the products mentioned here and a wealth of information can be found at Gun Dog Supply.
March 2nd, 2010 at 2:44 pm
Lots of Great information in your post, I bookmarked your blog post so I can visit again in the future, Cheers, Lissa Dimitri