Problem Gun Dogs How to Identify and Correct Their Faults

by Tarrant, Bill

• ISBN13: 9780811726399
• ISBN10: 0811726398
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-07-01
• Publisher: Stackpole Books

Summary

Veteran trainer and hunter Bill Tarrant goes beyond simple gun dog training and teaches handlers how to correct flaws in a dog's behaviour in the field. He first explains how to 'read' a dog -- how to identify faults such as hard mouth and gun shyness -- and then prescribes solutions for problems specific to each of the three major classifications of gun dogs -- bird dogs, retrievers, and flushers.

Author Biography

Bill Tarrant has helped thousands of hunters train their dogs with his books.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction to the Gun Dog	1	(7)
PART ONE: THE DOG
Getting Started	8	(6)
Analyzing What We've Got
Laying out a Plan
Knowing the Dog
Physical Characteristics	14	(8)
Feet
Forearm
Length of Leg
Hips
Neck
Eyes
Nose
Ears
Bite
Skin
Tail
Teats and Testicles
Great Heart Girth
Brains and Trainability
High Pain Threshold
Endurance
Conclusion
PART TWO: THE BIRD DOG
Correcting the Bird Dog	22	(13)
The Basics
Whoa and Come
The Whoa Post
Back to the Power Bar
Turning the Power Bar Around
Wing and Shot	35	(15)
Hobbling the Bird
The Bird Boy
The Chain Gang
The Walking Chain Gang
So Where Are We?
Honoring Another Dog's Work
Kenneling
Bird Dog Problems	50	(26)
Heel
Sit
Stay
Come
Hie On
Blinking
Pointing Unproductives
Bolting
Cutting Back
Ranging Too Far
Bush Pointing
Trailing
Gun Shyness
Running Trash
Water Shyness
Hard Mouth
Eating the Bird
Refusing to Retrieve or Running Away with the Bird
Fighting
Horse Shyness or Horse Defiance
Catwalking
Relocating
Stop to Flush
Running Livestock
Dropping on Point
Pointing Nongame
Stealing Point
Chasing Cars
Cribbing
Digging
Barking
Bump and Run
The Magic Table	76	(13)
Building the Magic Table
Introducing the Dowel
The Nerve Hitch
The Dummy
Introduction to the Bird
The Good Earth
Pup Fetching Afield
So That's About It
Wrapping Up	89	(3)
PART THREE: THE RETRIEVERS
The Retrievers	92	(6)
Heel, Sit, Stay, Come
Problems with Marks	98	(14)
Breaking
Honoring
Mismarking
Switching Dummies
No-Go or Balking
Refusing to Watch a Mark Down
Overmarking and Undermarking
Noise on Line
Chewing the Bird or Hard Mouth
Running Away with the Bird
Running out of Control
Water	112	(11)
Introducing Pup to Water Marks
No-Go
Running the Bank
Heading for Another Shore
Spitting the Duck Out
Leaving a Diving Cripple
Retrieving Decoys
Retrieving from a Dog Box
Going to Land
Conclusion
Land Blinds	123	(10)
Refusing to Take a Hand Signal
Refusing to Answer a Whistle
Refusing to Fetch the Bird
Unable to Handle Cover
Problems with Cold Land Blinds
The Pop
Water Blinds	133	(19)
Going to Land
Swimming against the Wind
Handling the Diversion Bird
Running Water
Hunting versus Trialing
Knowing When to Handle
Running a Straight Line
Marking off Guns
PART FOUR: THE FLUSHERS
The Flushing Dogs	152	(23)
The English Springer Spaniel
The English Cocker Spaniel
The Total Training Program
Fetching
Happy Timing
The Cast
Review
Range
Pointing
Blinking
Cast Refusal
From Head to Tail	175	(2)
Index	177