In excellent sharp-tailed grouse cover, pointer Hannah Montana points a covey and Northwoods Fuzzy Navel backs.
August is a busy month! Dan, Jeff and I meet at the kennel early and then head off for our particular duties.
We’re finishing up this year’s Gun Dog training using wild-acting bobwhite quail that are flushed into grouse cover. In our Puppy Foundation program, we start young dogs on pigeons and bobwhite quail. We train older dogs on local sharp-tailed grouse and take a select group to the prairie each weekend for work on sharp-tails, pheasants and Huns. We also begin serious conditioning and tune-up training for the coming hunting season.
Setter female Charly points a covey of bobwhite quail that have take cover.
Pointer female Coal points a covey of sharp-tailed grouse.
Composed and intense, Gordon setter Choo points a covey of quail in the woods.
Four-month-old Northwoods Rolls Royce (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice) loves to retrieve and proudly carries a carded pigeon.
Is it a grouse? Woodcock? Neither! Lucy (CH Westfall’s Black Ice x Northwoods Prancer) points a quail in the alders.
These two dogs–a pointer and a setter–have 14 championships and runner-up championships between them in horseback and cover dog venues.
Much attention—too much, in my opinion—is focused on the tail of a bird dog. I refer not to what the tail indicates about a dog’s thoughts or emotions but rather how the tail looks when a dog is on point and, in particular, how straight and vertical it is.
“Poker straight,” “I like a straight stick” or “My dog points with a 12 o’clock tail” are familiar phrases used by those fixated on tails. Usually, they are inexperienced or demand little of their dogs. I recently spoke with a successful handler of horseback shooting dogs about a prospect. In our entire conversation, he never once asked how the dog’s tail looked on point.
In my experience, when bird dogs are used to pursue wild birds, whether in the open, the grouse woods or the southern piney woods, birds are rarely plentiful. In addition, the terrain can be rugged and the conditions tough. Most of the dog’s time is spent in the search for game. In these places it’s not the tail that finds birds.
On a dark, damp day in October, the pointer lead my guiding clients and me from grouse to grouse to grouse.
Instead, what finds birds is:
1) intelligence combined with experience that chooses the most likely places;
2) an efficient gait that allows the search to continue over long periods of time through punishing cover and circumstances;
3) a superb nose that draws the dog towards the faintest scent of birds and allows it to locate and point accurately.
Finally, at the conclusion of all that work and for a brief time, I see the dog on point. I notice its posture, intensity and focus on bird location. And, oh yeah, I look at the tail. Very often and especially under trying field conditions, the tail isn’t “poker straight” or “12 o’clock.”
And it doesn’t have to be. The tail needs to be good enough so it doesn’t detract from the essential qualities that brought the dog to that place. On the other hand, if the dog has the intelligence, the gait, the nose and a beautiful tail, then that’s like the cherry on an ice cream sundae.
The setter has it all–intelligence, gait, nose and perfect tail……like a cherry on a sundae.
Jerry softly commands, “Whoa,” to Northwoods Chardonnay while stroking her.
Every now and then, I meet pointing dog owners who don’t use WHOA as the command for their dogs to stop and stand still. They prefer HOLD, STAY or HUP instead. They further explain that they use NO to tell their dogs to stop an unwanted behavior and since WHOA sounds similar, they don’t want to confuse their dogs.
The theory is good and the explanation reasonable. The last thing pointing dog owners want to do is impart a negative association with birds. Even George Bird Evans, author, grouse hunter and breeder of the “Old Hemlock” line of setters, used HOLD for the same reason.
But I have another idea. Since the vast majority of owners use WHOA, choose another word—other than NO—to stop unwanted behavior.
Betsy and I like QUIT. A little wordier is STOP IT. Cesar Millan uses TSSSST.
Photo above by Chris Mathan, The Sportsman’s Cabinet.
A bird dog can never be too good at bird finding. In general, better bird finders have greater desire and focus to find a bird. That said, however, listed below are some random thoughts on bird finding.
→ Some dogs find more birds than others due to a combination of good genes and plenty of opportunities. I have known many hunters who have owned few bird dogs but each became an outstanding bird finder. These owners maximize—and maybe even over-achieve—the genetic potential of their dogs.
→ There are both “bird pointers” and “bird finders.” The former look like they’re hunting but usually point only those birds they come upon while “bird finders” are totally focused on looking for birds and purposely go where they think the bird will be. When birds are plentiful in early season, in the peak of a grouse cycle or with boom bobwhite quail , it can be hard to distinguish the two. But when those birds thin out in late season or in low population years, it will be obvious which dog is the “bird finder.”
→ Some bird dogs just have a knack. They always seem to know what direction the handler is headed, continually show up in front and hunt the right areas, all at the same time, without, seemingly, undue effort.
→ While desire to find birds and wider range frequently go hand-in-hand, it’s not always so. Some dogs have a tremendous desire to hunt for birds—just at a closer range.
→ Dogs that are hunting and want to find birds adapt their range to the terrain. In open or sparse terrain, these dogs run fast to a good spot, slow down to hunt the cover and then speed up to hunt the next likely looking area. In dense terrain, they’ll naturally hunt closer.
→ There are dogs that, when turned loose to hunt, just go to birds. Dogs like this seem to know where birds are even if they’ve never been on that ground before. Whether it’s exceptional scenting ability, intelligence, experience or a combination of them all, I’m not sure of the reason. Maybe there’s even some aura birds put out that good dogs sense. Or maybe the dogs have associated the smell of certain vegetation preferred by specific birds with the scent of the birds themselves. This talent isn’t necessarily associated with experience because I’ve had dogs with only one or two hunting seasons exhibit this ability. One certainty is that these dogs can be harder to handle because their desire to find birds is stronger than their desire to keep track of handlers….which also, though, doesn’t mean they are self hunters. Rather these dogs check in with handlers less frequently than might be comfortable.
→ Dogs remember areas where they’ve found birds. One time might do it. I think this ability is deeply rooted in their genes and is associated with the finding of food, the most basic survival instinct. When starting puppies we put pigeons out in the field for them to find. At the following session, the pups commonly go to the exact place from the time before. This happens with adult dogs, too, when hunting the same coverts multiple times.
→ All birds run to escape predators. It takes time for dogs to correctly follow birds. Inexperienced dogs usually follow the trail into the wind…which might be the bird’s back trail instead of the direction it was headed.
→ Hunting into the wind is always best as dogs get the most efficient use of their scenting ability. Hunting into the wind is also more important in open country with low vegetation. There are many obstacles in the woods to deter the wind.
Blue Shaquille (Houston x Blue Silk) on the prairie of North Dakota. Photo by Chris Mathan, The Sportsman’s Cabinet.
On average, the most likely division is one whereby half the chromosomes in any gamete (reproductive cell) come from the sire and half from the dam but all possibilities will exist ranging from 100% of paternal origin to 100% maternal. ~ Malcolm B. Willis, Genetics of the Dog, 1989
Averages. What do they mean?
Weather forecasters, statisticians, sports announcers and insurance underwriters all make decisions—some of which are extremely important—based on averages. They are a slick way to slice and dice large sums of data in order to draw conclusions, theorize, forecast and make assumptions. But they might mean nothing when it comes to a specific occurrence or individual.
The “average” July day is sunny and 84 but what does that matter if your wedding reception is held under a tent due to a downpour and temperatures is the mid 60s? Or if LeBron James “averages” 25 points per game but only scores 12 in Game 7 and the Heat lose, his average becomes a nonfactor.
In the dog breeding world, if half the pups in a litter are more like the sire and the other half are more like the dam, then they “average” out to have inherited about half of their traits from each parent. But if the dam was mentally unstable or had a major fault, it certainly matters which parent the individual pup took after!
Most tools used by dog breeders—things like pedigrees, coefficient of inbreeding and percentage of blood calculations—all rely on averages. They show what genetic traits could be carried by certain animals. Those tools provide a place to start, but once a specific dog is standing in front of you, those averages cease to matter. Now we have an individual with its inherited attributes, strengths and weaknesses. It might be similar to others in the litter…but it isn’t the same. Each dog is unique and could be more like a parent, a grandparent or possibly even a great-grandparent.
Choosing which individuals—not averages—to breed will make or break a breeding program. First-hand knowledge and careful evaluation about a specific dog’s traits are crucial.
During a training session, young Tana pointed the pigeon but then moved in and caused it to flush. This is a knock. (Photo by Brad Gudenkauf.)
Proper work around game by a pointing dog involves accurate location of the bird before it points. Sometimes, though, things go awry. There are two possible explanations: a bump or a knock.
When a dog accidentally causes a bird to flush, that’s a bump. It usually happens when the dog is in motion and, as long as the dog stops at the flush, no violation has taken place. In my opinion, the occasional bump is similar to the occasional unproductive—not preferable but also not a serious problem.
On the other hand, when a dog is fully aware of the location of the bird and intentionally causes the bird to flush, that’s a knock. This is a not acceptable and the dog should be corrected.
How does a handler tell a bump from a knock?
If the dog is on point, jumps in and causes the bird to flush, that is definitely a knock.
A knock is when a dog speeds up towards the source of bird scent and puts the bird in the air.
Even if a dog slowly creeps in on the bird and puts the bird in the air, it’s still a knock.
If birds are put in the air more frequently than they’re pointed, those are probably knocks.
Knowledge also comes from experience. A handler who knows his/her dog, understands subtle body language and remembers previous bird encounters should soon be able to discern the difference.
This book was published in February 2013 by the married couple Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods. Hare is an associate professor in Evolutionary Anthropology and the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Duke University. Woods works there as a research scientist. Both are both dog lovers.
The authors set out to scientifically prove the intelligence of dogs and to find where this intelligence originated. They define intelligence in animals by how successfully a species has managed to survive and reproduce in as many places as possible. By this definition, it’s easy to argue that dogs are the most successful mammals on the planet.
The book is divided into three parts. The essence of Part One is that dogs are inherently able to read human gestures and signals to solve various intelligence tests. In addition, dogs have communicative skills that are amazingly similar to human infants. They traveled the world studying wolves, silver foxes, New Guinea singing dogs and bonobos, a species of chimpanzee.
They concluded that dogs domesticated themselves by becoming friendlier to humans and learned how to communicate and work with us.
Part Two discusses how dogs communicate with humans. Hare and Woods prove scientifically that dogs are pack animals and that “dogs are best in a social network.”
In Part Three they compare breeds to determine intelligence levels. Ultimately (and intriguingly), Hare and Woods concluded that it can’t be proven scientifically that one particular breed is smarter than any other. One significant finding was that working breeds are better at reading human gestures than non-working breeds.
Here, the questions of how to train a cognitive dog is posed. They never really answer it but they do discuss Pavlov’s classical conditioning and B. F. Skinner’s operant conditioning. In doing so they resolve that neither completely addresses the best way to train a cognitive dog.
Hare and Woods also “prove” several things:
• Strictly using reward-based training is not a good, long-term training solution as rewards lose their effect unless frequently increased.
• Dogs learn better and faster in short sessions spaced over a period of time than in long, frequently repeated sessions.
• Dogs can learn by watching others of their own species and other species.
• Dogs know when you are paying attention to what they’re doing.
• Petting a dog, especially gentle strokes in a smooth, calm matter, has a positive effect.
All in all, the book spends a lot of time trying to scientifically prove many aspects about dogs that have been anecdotally known and used by astute trainers for many, many years. While dogs can be trained to react to various stimuli and respond accordingly, there is much more than that to dog training. Being able to read the dog, communicate with it and adjust the training on the fly are just a few pieces of the “art” of dog training.
Hare and Woods write, “Hopefully, we can transform the art of dog training into a science.” I say: Good luck.
Bottom line: Nothing in this book is new and I don’t recommend it. A much better book is The Dog’s Mind by Bruce Fogle.
Northwoods Parmigiano shows lofty style and precise bird location on point along a fence row.
The ability to find game is directly related to the scenting powers of the dog. It’s the most important natural quality. You can train a dog to come when called, point, back and retrieve but you can’t teach a dog to have a better nose.
There are a lot of dogs with a good nose and occasionally one with what may be called a “superb” nose. Of course, such a dog is a rarity. ~Er M. Shelley, 1921
Shelley was a bird dog trainer in the early 20th century. He also spent five years in Africa hunting lions and leopards with hounds and game dogs and knew about scenting ability. The hounds were hunted in packs of 20 to 30 and comparisons were simple. It was easy to determine which dogs had the best noses.
Often though, it’s difficult to differentiate between a good nose and a great one unless dogs are hunted in pairs. Too, one outing doesn’t prove anything. But if, over a period of time, certain dogs just find more birds than their bracemates, it’s logical to conclude that they have better noses.
The dog that points his birds with exact location, always going to them at a fast pace with his head up into the wind and getting as close as possible to the birds without flushing them, indicates that he has the better nose. ~ Earl C. Crangle, 2000
Some think a dog that points from the farthest distance has the best nose. I agree with Crangle. It’s just the opposite. The dog with the best nose points its birds as close as possible without flushing them. This dog smells the birds from afar but discerns the distance and then pinpoints their locations.
To be most useful, the scenting ability should work with the rate of speed at which the dog hunts. The faster the dog hunts, the better its scenting should be. In other words, I’d always prefer a 5 mph dog with a 10 mph nose. This also explains why, as some young dogs mature, they begin to find more birds. They finally hunt at a pace that allows their noses to work out ahead of them.
Another common belief is that certain weather conditions affect a dog’s scenting ability. Actually, bird movement, or lack thereof, is the culprit. Studies of radio-marked bobwhite quail show that high winds, high temperatures, low humidity, rain and the proverbial east wind cause quail to be less active.
Hard-core dog people and serious bird hunters know which end of the dog points the birds. They will always choose to live with other, perhaps minor faults in their dog if it has exceptional scenting ability.
Between about 4 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, April 21, Northwoods Vixen whelped nine puppies by CH Elhew G Force. There are two males (one liver and one orange) and seven females (four black and three orange). The birth process was about as smooth as we could hope for.
Within an hour after all were born, Jerry shot some audio and video. We’ve always liked the tiny peeping, squealing noises newborns make. The whelping process is a messing thing—with plenty of fluids and liquids—and the dam spends a lot of time licking and cleaning her puppies.
By late morning, every puppy was shiny white. And Vixen and her litter were sleeping.
CH Houston’s Blue Diamond (Houston x Forest Ridge Jewel) is posed by his owner Ross Leonard, on left.
Congratulations to Ross Leonard for handling his setter male, Houston’s Blue Diamond (call name Sam), to first place in Region 4 Amateur Shooting Dog Championship held recently near Berea, Kentucky. Most of these horseback trials are dominated by pointers and this was no different—18 pointers and eight setters competed.
Sam was whelped in 2006 out of Houston (via frozen semen) and Forest Ridge Jewel at the kennel of Paul Hauge. This was a repeat breeding for Paul…and for a very good reason. The first litter in 2004 produced multiple champion and extraordinary dam, CH Houston’s Belle. Sam is a handsome dog with a blocky head and the distinctive “Houston” mark around his left eye.
Sam was one of five puppies. Two of his siblings, Fireside Fleetwood and Fireside Blue Zephyr, are also field trial winners.
I developed and trained Sam for Paul that first year—on the North Dakota prairie, in the grouse woods and in Texas on bobwhite quail. Ross bought Sam from Paul in 2007 and, after furthering his training, has successfully competed in various field trials.
