Training my first hunting dog.
I mostly lurk, but have been reading Coalman's thread on Bay and Belle for quiet awhile. It has been strongly suggested to me that I keep some kind of "diary" about my training with Hailey to look back on and mark our progress. So I thought this seemed as good a place / way to keep that information as any.
Some background / intro.
My family has always had a dog, though never more than two. Around 1990 (I would have been about 6) my Uncle asked us to take in his Lab puppy bc she was destroying his apartment, just until he could find a new home for her...and the rest, they say, is history. My Dad fell in love with Petra, took her to obedience classes (I used to go and watch) and I know he did some upland hunting with her (bc I went at least once, I remember playing with the birds, oddly enough). Petra became the standard by which I measured all other dogs. Her obedience was amazing (to me) and it wasn't just when my Dad handled her, I could take her or my Grandfather could take her, and she was just as good.
When I was 9 (1993) my family added a second dog when they got me a Beagle puppy, Daisy Mae. I had many fantastic years with that dog. Over 15 of them actually. She never hunted as she turned out to be horribly frightened of gunfire, thunder, etc. but we used what my Dad had learned in basic obedience and while it took a lot of work, I had a Beagle that heeled off leash in public, which I thought was pretty impressive. That was the last time I had a puppy, at quite honestly, at 9, I doubt I was doing much of the training, lol.
When I started dating my (now) husband, he had a 3yo Lab, Katie. Spoiled rotten hellion. My husband is one of those who thinks dogs should just be left to be dogs, so there wasn't much I could do with her - but I did put some manners on her and she turned out to be a pretty wonderful dog (despite her early years, lol). Loved her to pieces. We lost her in March 2013 to lymphoma.
Fast forward, husband and I decide we're ready to get another puppy and make plans to purchase one in Spring 2014. Researching, contacting breeders, etc. I'll spare any readers all the details on that adventure. Not having raised a puppy for over 20 years, I started doing a lot of reading. I am also into horses and know from my experiences over the years how information and the way of doing some things changes. Plus at 9, I just wasn't an informed child and didn't care to be on what dog food was best and why, etc. You trust your parents at that age. :)
March 15th we brought home a 7 week black female, Hailey, or formally known as White Oak Hallelujah (whelped 1/28/14). While we wanted a field type, she was always just meant to be a companion, but it became evident to me early on how keen she is on birds. And she's been ridiculously easy to train (not that there haven't been difficulties and frustrations).
About 9 weeks ago I started with a obedience class. My first mistake was, I found a local trainer who offered Saturday morning classes and just signed up without observing first. The people are wonderful, but it's not the "traditional' training I watched my Dad go through with Petra. This is much "softer" (not that I'm about abuse or anything), but they think choke-chains are evil (and they are bad if abused) and don't teach heel and we walk our dogs in martingale collars with "leash wraps." Not that there haven't been benefits, but it wasn't quite what I was wanting. Many of the things I've taught Hailey already I've done from reading online (about needing to be steady on the line, honoring retrieves, etc).
This whole time I was searching and struggling to find some kind of group willing to take in a novice wanting a train her dog for waterfowl and at least a JH title. Last week I finally found some local people, two of them quite by chance. And the amazing thing is, one of them is the lady who taught the obedience class my Dad took Petra to all those years ago - and she *remembers* Petra and my Dad. And not as in, I said the name and it rang a bell. Once she heard my maiden name she asked about the dog by name. I thought that was neat. She is into obedience/rally/agility. Her husband is a hunter has trained dogs for hunting (though he's never run a hunt test) and the third individual I've met is into obedience trials and hunt tests (but doesn't hunt).
Right away I've started collecting pointers.