ZERO TO HUNT

Off The Post

2010-02-13T20:30:00.001-08:00

Breeze is doing very well with her Whoa. She is now off the post and just working off the check cord. She is also holding pretty well off the place boards. I can no whoa her almost anywhere.

She spent the afternoon chasing birds and playing with some other puppies. Every day she amazes me at how well she understands what I want her to do.

Tomorrow she and I will take some time off and check out a new hunting property. In the afternoon we will be back at it again!

Wednesday!

2010-02-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

Haven’t had much to add the past few days. We are still traveling down the same path. Breeze is progressing well and seems to get smarter each day.

I can’t even begin to tell you how bird crazy she has become. This morning in our training I finally had to just quit and let her go over to the pigeon coop. She was so distracted and obsessed with getting over there.

She stands there and points and points. I think she would stand there for an hour if I let her.

She had some time out running the yard and is now crashed out. We’ll be back at it tomorrow!

A Day Off & Back At It

2010-02-08T17:52:00.001-08:00

Breeze and I took Sunday off and spent the day hanging out and a little play.

Today we are back at it. We got snowed on yesterday and today and the field is covered with little paw prints. We worked on our whoa drills, pointed and chased some birds. All in all a very positive day.

Now she is wrestling around with some of the big dogs. Don’t know where all that energy comes from.

Working Hard!

2010-02-06T16:04:00.000-08:00

Breeze and I have been working pretty hard the last couple of days. She is still on the whoa post with both lines and with slack in both.

I can now move her off the boards and whoa her in place almost anywhere. I still need to steady her up a little but that will come with time.

We have also continued with the gun breaking and the .22 has no effect on her at all now. I will move up to some shotgun shells with primers this week. She is pointing a lot now and is running the field with all the energy a 4 month pup can muster up. She seems to be always looking for that bird!

On Track

2010-02-03T18:01:00.000-08:00

We are right on track now. We are still working off the whoa post. Breeze is doing really well and is still working with slack in the back line. We will soon try removing it all together. She is working hard each day and has a real desire to please.

She is just bird crazy now. She runs the field, nose to the ground looking for birds.

She and I will be hard at it again tomorrow!

Whoa Post - Day 2

2010-02-01T16:10:00.000-08:00

I am almost shocked at how well Breeze is catching on. Today we moved off the platform, on to just a flat piece of wood on the ground. She was staying in place.

Then I moved the piece back so there was some slack in the back rope and it was lying on the ground behind her. As I pulled on the front lead she pulled back keeping herself on the board. This demonstrates that she understands the command and knows if she stays on the board she is safe and more comfortable. Same drills for tomorrow.

We have finished up for today and she is out back tussling around with Maya, Rio and Willow.

Whoa Post

2010-01-31T13:25:00.000-08:00

OK, here we go. We start out with a post or something to tie off to. I am using a tie out steak. Our back rope is about 40 feet long. You can use shorter if you need. Use a fairly thick rope so it doesn’t cut into your dogs waist. Here I am bringing the back rope around her waist with a half hitch and then running it up and hooking it to her collar.

Then I am hooking a check cord up to her on a second collar that I have put above the other.

Here you can see the second collar.

Now I have set her up on a small platform and basically stretched her between the two leads. She did fight me for a minute or so but learned very quickly that if she stayed on the platform the tension would go away and she would be more comfortable.

Here you can see that I have some tension on her to hold her in place. I gradually lesson the tension as she complies with the command.

Here you can see the slack in the line as she stays in place.

If she gets off the platform I go over and place her back on. As she starts to do what I want of her, then I move further away and start moving around.

At the end always give her praise and a treat.

This is the first time I used this method with Breeze and what you are seeing here took place in real time over about 10 minutes. She really responded well, so we will continue down this path. As we progress I will show you how we change it up.

See you tomorrow!

Change Up!

2010-01-31T05:08:00.001-08:00

Today I’m going to change to a different method with Breeze to teach her “Whoa”. I’m going to use a whoa post to see if we can speed up the process a little. Sometimes different methods will work better for different dogs or puppies.

Here is what is involved. I have a post in the ground. I have a long lead tied to the post that runs out to Breeze. That lead has a half hitch around her waist and then runs up to her collar.

I will have a second lead on a second collar stretched out in front of her. Basically I am setting up so I can gently pull the two leads into a straight line with her in the middle.

Dogs are place oriented, so I will have a short box in line for her to stand on and as we progress just a piece of plywood on the ground.

You can also use this method in your backyard on a smaller scale. Tie your lead to a fence or tree to accomplish the same thing.

I will post some pictures up a little later today so you can see this method in action.

Super Saturday!!

2010-01-30T17:31:00.000-08:00

Breeze and I had another great day! As we have been, we spent some time on the barrel working on our “WHOA” command. Then we spent some time with some live birds and gunfire.

Here she is holding her point pretty well. She held it for a pretty long time.

When the pigeon finally flushed she went into full chase mode. As it flushed and she chased, I fired 8 shots from my 22 blank pistol. Never fazed her. Just what I wanted to see.

She was so bird crazy that I was unable to call her off of it. We will now need to go back to the check cord again to gain control in this kind of situation.

Very exciting day and one tired puppy.

Plugging Along

2010-01-29T19:31:00.001-08:00

Nothing really new to report. We are still on the barrel every day and slowly making progress.

Tomorrow on top of our barrel work we are going to get a little bird work in and see where we are there. She is showing a lot of interest in live birds and I am having a hard time keeping her away from the pigeon coop, so it’s time.

Moving Down The Road!

2010-01-27T18:52:00.000-08:00

Today was just more of the same. Every day we keep advancing just a little more.

If you’re wondering if you can use these training techniques with an older dog, the answer is YES. I have another dog that is 8 months old that is going through the same training. You can even use these techniques to brush up your dogs skills.

Tomorrow Breeze and I will continue to travel down the road to Kansas!

Two Days of Hard work!

2010-01-26T20:52:00.001-08:00

Breeze and I have been hitting it hard for the last 2 days. Lots of time up on the barrel and out in the field.

At times she is doing well on the barrel and at others she is distracted. Part of that is puppy and I expected this to be a longer process than the other commands. All in all though she is doing well.

Out in the field she is getting bolder and casting out further each day. In the mornings when I am out training other dogs I can hear her barking and yelping for me to come get her. She is looking forward to coming out and training every day. She is so eager to please. The bond she and I are developing is very strong.

It all starts over again tomorrow!

Sunday Off

2010-01-24T17:02:00.000-08:00

Breeze and I had a day off today. Just a little couch time and play.

Back at it tomorrow!

Productive Saturday

2010-01-23T14:52:00.000-08:00

Kind of the same thing going on. Breeze and I spent time on the barrel, and chasing birds. Lots of time out in the field and a few visitors today to stroke her ego. All in all a productive Saturday!

The one thing I did notice today is that when we had the distraction of visitors she was not as solid on her commands as I would like. We will have to work on adding more distractions.

Moving Along!

2010-01-22T16:25:00.001-08:00

Today was a little laid back for Breeze. Although she did get up on the barrel and did well, we spent a fair amount of time just running and playing. Chased a few birds and had a few pops of the 22. All in all a good day!

Back On Track

2010-01-21T16:55:00.000-08:00

Well after a little tussle this morning we are back on track. Breeze settled back into our routine. She is back to holding as still as a 13 week old puppy can.

Actually, she does pretty well until a distraction comes along. Distractions are welcome. We want our dogs to whoa even if there are distractions.

I have also started introducing her to gun fire. We have started using a cap gun and firing it during a fun time while she is running around or chasing birds. We want the gun fire to be associated with something fun, not scary.

Tomorrow we will be back at it again.

Little Step Back

2010-01-20T17:05:00.001-08:00

Today it seemed like we took a little step back. When I got Breeze up on the barrel she just didn’t want to stay. She seemed preoccupied and just didn’t want to work today.

This will happen from time to time and I am not too worried about it. She is still doing well with “SIT” & “COME”.

I have received a couple of e-mails from people wanting to know how long this process takes. I have spent as long as 6 or 8 weeks sometimes with a dog.

If you’re trying this and not having success yet, DON’T get discouraged. Remember the key to any training is repetition and patients.

We’ll be back on the barrel tomorrow and the next day until she gets it!

Oops!

2010-01-20T05:16:00.000-08:00

I fell asleep last night and missed writing, but there is not much new. We are still doing the same thing with the barrel and will be for about another week.

The one new thing that I am noticing about Breeze is that she is starting to become a little more bold and adventurous. She is starting to stray away a little more every day.

Well time to get out and train some dogs and get Breeze back up on the Barrel.

Back To The Barrel

2010-01-18T19:07:00.001-08:00

Back to the barrel today. We will be just doing the same thing for a few days until Breeze really settles in. She is doing pretty well, but it takes her a little bit to settle in and be still.

What we are working for is for her to be still as soon as I put her up there. I am still not giving her the command.

Another Good Day!

2010-01-17T18:18:00.000-08:00

What a day this little dog had! That bird switch that we were talking about started to switch on today. She chased flying birds around in a circle for a half a mile. Then I couldn’t get her away from the pigeon coop. She sat in front of it for 15 minutes pointing.

We then moved on to the task at hand.

Here we are on the barrel working on “WHOA”. At this point I am still just getting her up on the barrel and getting her to stand steady. Keeping her in place for a few minutes and then letting her down to play. Then back up on the barrel. We are doing this about 3 times. Again, I never allow her to get up or down herself. I am very excited at how well she is doing.

WHOA!

2010-01-16T17:35:00.001-08:00

Breeze and I started her next command today. We started our day with a drive into town to the meat market. After that it was out to the field for a run through the grass. She is getting a little bolder and adventuring out further away every day. We worked on “COME” & “SIT. At this point it is all just reinforcement as she has both commands down.

Then we moved over to the barrel to start on “WHOA”. We start by just getting up on the barrel and holding her in place. I am not using the command yet, just putting her up on the barrel. At first she was a little nervous. That is to be expected. Wasn’t long and she was feeling right at home. I place her on the barrel and set her down. She is not allowed to get up or down on her own. We will continue doing this for a few days, until she is comfortable and steady. When we get to that point then I will introduce the command “WHOA”.

If you don’t have a barrel to teach your dog this command, don’t worry. Just drop me a note and I will give you some other options.

I am going to try to get some pictures up of this tomorrow. Now it’s off to the couch for some rest after a long day. I will see if Breeze will join me if she will get out of her bed. She is all tuckered out!

Big Day Coming!

2010-01-15T19:49:00.000-08:00

Today we still are just working on “SIT” & “COME”. It’s becoming old hat to Breeze. She seems to have both down pretty good.

Tomorrow we are going to start “WHOA”. I will also start to gun break her so when the bird light turns on, Breeze will be ready to go. Should be a big day and a lot of fun.

For now, she and I will have some more of that couch time!

Couch Time

2010-01-14T19:14:00.000-08:00

Today we were a little informal and spent most of our time on the couch. Breeze is doing well with her commands. She is about ready to add another.

Working Away

2010-01-13T19:03:00.000-08:00

Not much new. We are just working away on "SIT" & "COME". Breeze is getting better each day.

Keeping On!

2010-01-12T19:56:00.000-08:00

We're just working on the same. The key here is to just keep doing it all over and over. I want it to be second nature to her.

This weekend I am going to officially start introducing her to gun fire. Keep checking back to check our progress.

Plugging away!

2010-01-11T17:39:00.000-08:00

At this point it’s all about repetition.
We are just going over and over “SIT” & “COME”. She is doing great! Breeze is such a smart little dog. I can’t believe how attached I am getting to her already. (YES, I can! )

We are going to continue down this same path for awhile until we hit the 20 week point. This is when the bird light will really turn on for her.

Progress!

2010-01-10T18:40:00.000-08:00

We started out today on the check cord, but didn't seem to be doing too well. Breeze was more interested in playing with it and wrapping it around me that doing anything else.

I decided to take it off of her and see what would happen. When I called "COME" she came right to me. She has progressed a lot faster than I thought she would. We will keep working on it for a couple of days and then I will add a whistle to the mix.

Going back to "SIT", she is sitting like a pro!
We had some time today out in the field also. Watched a couple of pigeons flap around and fly off as she chased them.

Breeze is doing great and making a lot of progress!

Great Day!

2010-01-09T14:56:00.000-08:00

What a great day Breeze and I have had. She is doing so well so far.

Today we had a romp out in the field, played with some birds and worked on "COME"

She is at the point now that she only needs a little tug on the check cord and the command and she is coming right to me. I don't expect it to be much longer and I will be able to take the check cord off.

She is doing great on "Sit". Doesn't even need the treat!(I slip one in there once in a while anyway)
In a total of 8 days she is doing great. If your following along and wondering, can I do this with my puppy, the answer is YES! These are all things you can do right in your own home or back yard or park. You don't need access to large pieces of property to get your pup on track with it's yard work. A good foundation now makes for good hunting later.

Breeze spent a lot of time out today hanging around the kennel and watching some other dogs with their training . I could even see her hanging at the back fence as I was gun breaking some other dogs. I suspect that she will have gun broke her self before I even get to that with her.

She is all tuckered out now and is crashed in her bed. Don't think I will here much from her the rest of tonight.

Took A Break Today

2010-01-08T17:26:00.000-08:00

Today we took a break. Only activity we had was a little playing and some couch time. She had some time playing with the big dogs also.

Back at it tomorrow!

OK, Come!

2010-01-07T21:29:00.001-08:00

Today we are working on "COME".

To accomplish this command we use a check cord. A check cord is a long leash. In this case I am using a 12 foot check cord.

What I am doing is letting Breeze out on the cord about 10 feet and then telling her "COME".
As I give her the command I start to reel her in and repeat "COME".

When she gets to me I tell her she is a good girl and give her a treat. I will keep doing it until she comes with out pulling her in and then with out the cord and then wean her from the treat. I think it should take about a week.

We Sit!

2010-01-06T19:04:00.000-08:00

Alright! We sit on command with out the treat. She is doing pretty good on "NO" and will usually stop when you tell her "NO". As a puppy it is the command that seams to get used a lot.

Tomorrow we are going to get started on "COME". As we move on to new commands I will continue to reinforce the old ones at the same time.

Tune in tomorrow and I will share how we will learn to come. It will again involve some treats (all puppies love treats) and a check Cord.

Thank's for the notes from those of you following along. You can also leave any comments you like right on the blog. Click and write!

Back on track!

2010-01-05T17:38:00.000-08:00

Last night, after she settled down a little she did end up sitting.

She is now outsmarting me. She is sitting, anticipating that I will give her a snack. She is also sitting when I tell her to.

I have also noticed that she has exposed her self to gun fire. As I am out in the field gun breaking another dog, she has been coming out into the yard. Guess she is trying to get ahead of the class!

Gone a little backwards

2010-01-04T17:35:00.000-08:00

Today, Breeze and I didn't have a chance to get out in the field today. She has seemed to move backwards a little with her sit command. That could be due to just not working enough energy off of her. She seems to be pretty wound up tonight and is playing pretty hard.

The lesson I think is she needs to burn some energy before we work on our commands. I'll be sure to get her out tomorrow.

A Little Success!

2010-01-03T15:05:00.000-08:00

Today we had a little success! Breeze is starting to sit on her own when she is told, looking to get that treat!

After our romp out in the field today she is pretty tired. We had an introduction to birds today while out there. She was a little startled at first but then became very interested and gave a chase as one of the pigeons flew off.

Maya gave her a lesson in the assesits of the open dishwasher and how to clean up on a snack as Jenni was doing the dishes from supper.

We're still worling on "NO". Always the tougher of the two.

As she is cuddling up with me, she smells a little stinky, so I think we will head in for a bath.

Getting Started!

2010-01-02T16:05:00.000-08:00

At 10 weeks old, Breeze does not have much of an attention span. Everything that we do at this point is fun and games. We spent a while today just walking in the field. Everything is new and an adventure and even a little scary at times. We'll spend some time out there everyday. We want that to be a place associated with fun.

We are also working on some basic commands. The first one a new puppy needs is "NO". This is a command that you want to use a stern voice and I use a tap on the nose. We're going to keep working on this one as she isn't getting. Time and consistency will bring her around before too long.

The second one we are working on is "SIT". She is a little more receptive to this one, as it involves a treat. She will see the treat and I will tell her "SIT" as I push her rear end down. After a couple of seconds I give her the treat and tell her she is a good girl. We'll keep working on them. Should get a little better every day.

Last night Breeze had a little bit of time up on the bed with me. She and I fell a sleep and all was well until Jenni came in about midnight. At that point everyone was up (Maya & Rio were on the bed also) and all the ruckus was just too much and Breeze had to go back to her kennel. Maybe we'll try it again tonight.

Well, it's out to the kennel to start serving up supper.

The Journey

2010-01-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

Today I am embarking on a new project. A journey. It starts with a small puppy named Breeze. Breeze is the daughter of our male Murphy and our female Rio. This was a breeding we had been planning for several years and would produce some of the finest bloodlines and puppies we have ever had.
(http://www.rangeviewkennels.com/PedigreeView.asp?DogID=20705)

Unfortunately things went wrong at the birthing and this was the last litter Rio would have.

The end result was a female puppy we would keep and add to our kennel and in time hopefully she will continue the line. Range View's Colorado Prairie Breeze. "Breeze"

This is where the project begins. A kennel owner & dog trainer and a 10 week old prodigy puppy!

As we get started we hope you will follow our progress as we work everyday toward our goal. A hunt on opening day in Kansas, November 2010.

The project: "ZERO TO HUNT"

We welcome your coments and questions. Maybe you will train your puppy along with us.
Please send your questions to bob@rangeviewkennels.com

See you in the field!