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Thread: Blind Spread

  1. #1
    Senior Dog TuMicks's Avatar
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    Blind Spread

    Well, it's day #2 of our getting-back-to-business training routine. Hunting season break then Christmas break, then lots-of-snow break are mostly over. Dogs are not in their most athletic shape so we are not running great distances. Just trying to give them a bit of mental challenge.

    Yesterday (day #1) we put out a typical 6 blind spread... long-short-long-short-etc. The dogs were running basically uphill (gentle slope.) Because we're in the Red Rock desert, the vegetation is thick and intimidating and there just is no straight line to nothin'.

    Bridget did a superlative job. But she's a MH and this is really ho-hum for her.

    Rocket Dog was another kettle of fish. I thought I was ready for her, but yikes... she is so fast. I'll admit, I didn't have the whistle clenched between my teeth to start with. But she did what you'd expect a young high-roller to do. She was slow to sit on the whistle. So a whistle... whistle-nick pretty much served as a reminder about what that whole tweet-tweet stuff is all about. Her major problem yesterday was getting up from her sit and becoming self-directed, so to speak. So second whistle-higher nick. I'll admit, we had to keep upping the ante yesterday. I also had to keep walking out to her, because she was beginning to ping and pong.

    Today... blind #1 was rough. Her sits were quick. But she wanted to get up when she didn't get handled right away. I cannot let her run-and-gun me. The pro said to just get slower, not faster. Also suggested I move around a bit on the line so she learns that not all movement or change in posture is a handle. That made a huge difference. As I went slower, you could see her beginning to think about what I was going to tell her to do and by blind #6, she was looking pretty good.

    It's good to be back with the gang. A lot of the fun of field sports is the people... AND the dogs.

  2. #2
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    Wow, what a difference a few days makes. Again, we are doing short distances because we've got dogs that are somewhat de-conditioned. I can't believe how far RD has come since day #1, which just means she's remembering what she learned last year, not that we've really taught her anything new. Today, she only became self-employed once, and then only because she didn't want to sit and wait for a handle. She got corrected for that, then got a bit flustered. She started ping-ponging. I leaned that when she starts doing that, I have to go back to straight backs and overs and limit my body motion. It also helped to just slow down and will her to think.

    -blind-spread-2-12-16-jpg

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    Wish we could get out and do some training. it was -23 here without the wind chill, our darn ground hog saw his shadow. Guess we are paying for the mild Dec and Jan. You are right about the slow down with a fast dog and speed up with a slow dog. When we first started training with a field trial group they were always telling me to slow down and to hold my casts a little long to make sure the dog so them. Movement on the line was another thing that I had to get under control. Bill was always telling me to stand still. He also wouldn't let us put our hands down to show the dog which side to come in on. He called it helping the dog and he wanted the dog to make the right decision for coming to heel. I really like your spread on that pond. You get a bit of everything to review. We will have to start with some tune up drills as soon as the snow goes and then the pond warms up. I am thinking I may try to convince Don to come up just before the weekend of the 9th of April. We could do some tune up drills and then I might con him into setting up the marks for the field trial portion of our picnic trial. Today is the first day I have really felt that I want to get back into training.
    M can get into auto-casting when she thinks that she knows better than me. I use attrition on the first time calling her back to where she auto-cast and making her wait till I give the cast I want. If she moves on her own again the it is a whistle sit nick sit. Bill always gave the dogs one chance to correct before applying the collar correction. This approach really worked for decheating.

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    -blind-spread-2-13-16-jpg

    Another warm day with some large puddles (12" or so max depth.) The longest blind(s) around 100 yards. Breeze from right to left. It took a really big dog to handle number 3. Rocket Dog did it with much hacking. On the other hand, she lined #5 and #6. D@mn she is so fast! This wildlife area is closed from 2/15 through to 8/15. When we come back it will be dry as a bone. I guess we should be grateful we had the chance to work it when we did.
    Last edited by TuMicks; 02-14-2016 at 11:05 PM.

  5. #5
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    Another great set of tune up blinds. You have in and outs, cutting a corner and that #3 looks like a good up the shore or channel blind. Lots of temptation to get out of the water there. We had a judge once that set up what he called "balance blinds". They were set up on a dike that was just a little wider than the width of a pickup truck. It had a road way on it and a slight curve. The land blind was set so that it angled slightly with the road. The water blind was set up so that it paralleled the dike on the left hand side. What a performance! It was an Open and being field trial trained dogs they knew the drill was to get into the water. So the land blind was a major problem for most. Talk about ping pong. My friends dog was in and out of the water on the right side several times. Many handlers were not impressed with the set up. The water blind presented less of a challenge because the dogs knew get in the water and swim parallel.
    Must be getting to that time of the year. I was dreaming this morning that they finally got digging on the front pond. It was massive. There was water everywhere and what set ups we could have done. Hope this is the omen that they will have the time to get at it this spring. It's that or we are going to have a major flood.

  6. The Following User Says Thank You to Anna Scott For This Useful Post:

    TuMicks (02-15-2016)

  7. #6
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    These were all just running water. Very shallow pools that were probably from snow melt. But they presented the dogs with the concepts and were useful. Don't you just covet having real, honest to gosh technical water like this every day!

    We were all sort of wistful about the fact that this wildlife area is closed to all as of today and we were talking about which one of us was going to buy acreage and dig a nice technical pond or two. I told them I'd already been on the internet looking for a farm to buy... the problem was, the only place I could afford was in Alabama. (Seriously... I saw a gorgeous 4 bedroom home on 34 acres... much of it pasture... with modern outbuildings and two small lakes fully stocked and spring fed. It wouldn't take much to get those ponds sculpted to fit our needs. This property was being sold for what my little 3 bedroom 2 bath suburban tract home is valued.)

    But, alas... none of us want to move to Alabama.

    We are about done with this warm weather. Temps will drop today and another storm system is coming through. If we can get out to train at all this week, it will be land again... However, if we are too wet, most of our favorite land places will be too muddy to get to. No matter. I have to rejoice about getting these storms to break our historic drought.

    Anna... hope you are out of the deep freeze soon. If I had that farm in Alabama, I'd invite you down.

  8. #7
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    Yetch! No training today. Winds are howling outside. This is a fast moving storm system. Should be warmer by the weekend so I'll just crank up the furnace and hunker down. Make me some hot cocoa. Maybe study that Hunter Safety stuff I want to get done before I apprentice judge.

    Big sigh.

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    If you had that farm I would take you up on it right now. Our weather is crazy. Went from -23 on the weekend up to around freezing Monday and Tuesday now it is going to drop back down to -17 tonight and then climb again for the weekend. Tomorrow morning we are going to do an inventory of the birds in the freezers to see if we need to order any. No fliers here in Canada all frozen. After we will meet as a committee to go over the premium for the FT and set the budget. Things are beginning to come together. I finally got the judges I wanted and now just have to wait for final approval from the CKC. I don't anticipate any problems as they are all experienced. I am so glad that I have friends willing to take on the feeding of the masses. We just have to figure out what and when now.
    One of these days we will get out to do some training but not for awhile yet. M is getting a little shack whacky today my husband noticed her scratching at her mouth when he checked her she had a small stick wedged in her teeth. Obviously they are finding sticks in the snow out side. I will have to keep a closer eye on her.

  10. #9
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    Boring, boring, boring. Can't turn on radio or TV because we're having Presidential caucuses here next week. I will caucus, don't get me wrong, but the advertisements are making me crazy. Can't get out and train. Every time I shift in my chair or leave the room, RD is up and ready to race me to the truck.

    Anna... when we're out there this summer in hot humid weather throwing stinky ducks, we'll have to remember we whined about this winter stuff in February.

  11. #10
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    Your political system fascinates me. I don't know how you can put up with the length of the process and the constant bombardment of "information". Our last election campaign was 83 days, one of the longest ever and I was sick of the rhetoric. If I had to put up with 2 years of it my TV's remote would be worn out from switching channels to get away from the commercials. I tend to be ADHD and things need to keep moving to keep me focused. You have an interesting race going on there.
    Well of to count birds, almost as exciting as counting votes.

 



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