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Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) #6448502 09/12/16 01:43 PM
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slymer Offline OP
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I have a 16 month old BLM that is a retrieving machine but I think I have waited to long to introduce him to birds. This weekend I shot a dove and tried to get him to bring it back and he didn't want anything to do with it. Cut off the wings and ziptied them to a bumper. He grabbed the tag end of the ziptie instead of grabbing the bumper.

What steps can I take to get this fixed?

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448505 09/12/16 01:44 PM
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Force Fetch



Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448587 09/12/16 02:48 PM
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Originally Posted By: slymer
I have a 16 month old BLM that is a retrieving machine but I think I have waited to long to introduce him to birds. This weekend I shot a dove and tried to get him to bring it back and he didn't want anything to do with it. Cut off the wings and ziptied them to a bumper. He grabbed the tag end of the ziptie instead of grabbing the bumper.

What steps can I take to get this fixed?


What's a BLM

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448591 09/12/16 02:50 PM
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black lab male



Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448596 09/12/16 02:56 PM
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slymer Offline OP
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Thanks i'll start working on that. When he wouldn't retreive it after several attempts I stuck the bumper in his mouth and had him hold it for a while. He kept trying to spit it out but I made him hold it.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448705 09/12/16 04:15 PM
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Get a live pigeon and let him chase it. NOT a dove. Dove are not good for training. Too feathery and small.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: triggerbowtx] #6448707 09/12/16 04:17 PM
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Originally Posted By: triggerbowtx
Get a live pigeon and let him chase it. NOT a dove. Dove are not good for training. Too feathery and small.
2x



Shopping with your husband is like hunting with the game warden.
Experience is what you get, when you didn't get what you wanted.


Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448784 09/12/16 05:26 PM
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Has he ever been force fetched?

If he's not force fetched and you intend to force fetch him I'd skip the birds until you're done with the process.

Some dogs also don't like doves as the feathers fall out easily. Force fetch should help with that though if done to completion.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448848 09/12/16 06:10 PM
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BradyBuck Offline
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He knows hold?

Might try putting the dove in his mouth and make him hold it. Start with just very short a time. If he'll just hold it for a few seconds take it and give praise and then build up from there....or force fetch but if you've never done it you need to get some help from either someone who's done it or get a good program DVD and follow it.


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Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6448871 09/12/16 06:35 PM
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slymer Offline OP
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No force fetch as of right now.

We just started with hold.

Last edited by slymer; 09/12/16 06:35 PM.
Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: kindall] #6449645 09/13/16 02:05 AM
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Originally Posted By: kindall
Originally Posted By: triggerbowtx
Get a live pigeon and let him chase it. NOT a dove. Dove are not good for training. Too feathery and small.
2x
Originally Posted By: kindall
Originally Posted By: triggerbowtx
Get a live pigeon and let him chase it. NOT a dove. Dove are not good for training. Too feathery and small.
2x
Originally Posted By: kindall
Originally Posted By: triggerbowtx
Get a live pigeon and let him chase it. NOT a dove. Dove are not good for training. Too feathery and small.
2x

X3

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6450219 09/13/16 03:24 PM
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BAS Offline
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Unless you plan on not hunting dove or teal, just take him to the field and praise if and when he does retrieve shot birds. Once you start force fetch, you need to finish it and not operate in a grey area somewhere in between given the pressure and inability to enforce in the field.

Keep it fun for now and give lots of praise. Try letting him chase and carry pigeons or ducks. Shoot a few and worry about force fetching once he's bolder and more confident on birds.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: BAS] #6450323 09/13/16 04:45 PM
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Originally Posted By: BAS
UUnless you plan on not hunting dove or teal, just take him to the field and praise if and when he does retrieve shot birds. Once you start force fetch, you need to finish it and not operate in a grey area somewhere in between given the pressure and inability to enforce in the field.

Keep it fun for now and give lots of praise. Try letting him chase and carry pigeons or ducks. Shoot a few and worry about force fetching once he's bolder and more confident on birds.


I am not a pro dog trainer but have received a lot of advice from pros and I am only training my second dog at this point but I cannot agree with ALL (really only the first sentence I disagree with) of the quoted advice. But keep in mind, it's different strokes for different folks and I don't know what your plan for your dog is. If you don't really care that your pup doesn't care about the dove then yes, you can just take your dog to the field and praise him when/if he retrieves the shot birds. And hopefully he "catches on."

However, if it were ME and MY dog, then I would take a different approach. I would want to address the problem NOW and get that figured out NOW before ever taking him to the field for another real hunt. To me, it's concerning that he wanted nothing to do with the bird but I would be willing to bet that with a little work with a live pigeon, that can be fixed quickly (since you stated he's a retrieving machine...I would be shocked if he isn't birdy).

Anyway, all of this may not matter to you and that's totally normal if it doesn't... and you can take you pup out hunting and hopefully he will catch on. But I would encourage you to get him excited about birds and let him figure out that he likes birds and do all of this in a non-hunting environment. Then it will make the "catching on" part much easier.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6450331 09/13/16 04:51 PM
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The reference was meant to express finishing force fetch before you hunt more dove this season and possibly teal. If you want to hunt what's in season or about to be, its a little late to start force fetching a dog in my opinion. If he continued to reject dove, I wouldn't put my dog in that situation until force fetched.

Re: Introducing dog to birds(Help me fix my screw up) [Re: slymer] #6450358 09/13/16 05:17 PM
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If it were me and my dog, I would stop hunting him and start on force fetch and continue that through completion. Takes about 3-6 weeks if you do it correctly, but it will pay big dividends for the next 11 years or so. Next to obedience, FF is THE most important part of training for a retriever in my opinion. Put in the time and effort to force fetch your dog and you will be glad you did. Trust me, I wanted to hunt my lab so bad last year when he was 9 months old but elected not to after several trainers on here told me otherwise. Now, my lab shows up older dogs with much more experience.

If you do it correctly, you may have the opposite problem (called sticking). Your dog will want to have something in his mouth at all times, be it a bumper or bird. All he will want to do is retrieve, doesn't matter if its a bird, bumper, or golf club. It is also the foundation for blind retrieves, which is paramount if you hunt birds over thick vegetation or if you bird hunt with other hunters, as the dog will not see every bird that falls.

Once he is force fetched, then switch over to pigeons, dead ducks, or anything else with feathers. He may be timid the first time or two, but if he is, you give him a nick and say fetch and I guarantee you he will pick it up and bring it back. Dogs that aren't FF will not do that, they'll stand there and look at you and give up on the bird. Nothing more frustrating than having a retriever that won't retrieve.


Last edited by hunting_guy; 09/13/16 05:24 PM.
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