RU-CH Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017)
As the sun rises on a recent morning, Atlas points with style and confidence on a covey of sharp-tailed grouse. He is on a training run before the fall field trial season begins. Atlas is owned and handled by Greg Johnson of Wisconsin.
Mama, an 18-month-old female setter, shows excellent style and composure due to training the Natural Way.
No old-fashioned equipment such as boards, barrels, posts or rope slings. Also, no yard training. Other key elements include no dominance, no talking and no pressure on the dog as indicated by licking, swallowing or looking away.
These are all parts of our Natural Way to teach steadiness.
In the field, I plant pigeons and use low-level, linear ecollar stimulation on the flank and as a motivator. For bird dogs, that motivation is birds.
Combining dog psychology, birds and ecollar stimulation, the dog is taught a behavior without knowing it’s being trained and, therefore, no pressure.
The Natural Way works for the toughest and softest dogs; there are no failures.
In July, I trained Mama the Natural Way. Mama is an 18-month-old female setter owned by Josh Matel of Minnesota. Mama is a sensitive young dog with lots of desire but when trained with our method, her composure and confidence on birds is outstanding.
*** The Natural Way is a term Betsy and I dreamed up to describe the method of training I developed over decades in the field. We introduced the concept in a March 2, 2023, blog post, “A Different Approach to Steady Your Dog.” On July 26, 2023, we followed with The Natural Way: Puppy Development. This post includes videos of marker training, first bird encounters and letting puppies learn on their own how to cross a creek.