Tok Mostert, a Professional Hunter from South Africa, now living in Sweden,  is sharing his writings on dog training with us. You can start reading them from Part 1 here.

We are Losing Legendary Methods (Obedience and Discipline) – By T. Mostert

This is purely my opinion, what I believe and have experienced, there are many other opinions and beliefs when it comes to training obedience. Clickers, treats, positive conditioning, e-collars, positive – negative training, in the end there are as many methods as there are dog breeds. Everyone sells their method as the gospel, as the only way to train a dog. Then you have the other side of the coin where trainers believe the dog should be as raw as possible, sticking close to his instinct and breeding as possible, with little human interference.
Now I can tell you that the best bird finding dog I have ever seen is a English Pointer that had non existing obedience, the only time the dog would stand still was when pointing, he was wild!
Blood trackers do not care if the dog pulls or pushes, as long as he is tracking and finding game, no recall or stop signals are needed because the dog is restrained all the time.

Unfortunately, if you have a HPR dog and you will use it in all the disciplines he was bred for, you cannot afford to have little, or no obedience. You may get away with it competing in young dog classes, but you will never, I repeat, never make it to the top 10% of elite dogs without proper obedience. To be at the top of every discipline consistently, you need a dog to listen and obey commands. To have a dog hunt in areas with main roads and rail tracks, you need obedience; to ensure your dog does not go after game you may not hunt, you need obedience and discipline. In short if nothing else to keep your dog from getting hurt or killed you need obedience.

As said before, I spent many, many, hours with Jeppe Stridh and I believe in his methods. My own conclusions run parallel to his training and the 95% – 5% rule (praise- correction ratio) is what I stick to, in all my training, not just obedience. As Jeppe clearly states, dogs see a red or green light, there is no amber warning light for them, it is yes or no, keep it simple. A leash is a restraint, when you start training a leash is a great tool but, unless the dog learns that you are a mental and physical leash right out to beyond where the dog can see, you will never have full control. Your ” presence” needs to extend to the limit of where you are willing to let the dog go, this is also the limit at where you should work the dog! If you cannot control the dog at 20 meters off leash why, why try and control it at 300 meters? You are simply allowing the dog to say fuck you!

Mistakes, or inappropriate behaviour, shall be corrected immediately and swiftly, is everything. Do not hang over the dog or extend the corrections, it places more pressure on them and has more negative effect than correction attributes. Also once the correction is done, give the dog space, take a step sideways away from the dog. He will close that gap up by himself, which is exactly what you want! Always, always be friendly with the dog right after any corrections, always!
I have a problem and I have had it for a while, I am working on it and I try to keep it in mind everyday. I want to keep touching Flake to reassure her and calm her down, it is wrong. Your voice ,attitude and general body language should be enough to do all of these things, save the touching and stroking for when you are not training (you are always training, I know).

Flake was a unsure puppy and needed more encouragement than most other dogs. Lucky we got over that quickly, but the touching habit has not been broken by me. A dog is low, or insecure, when his tail is tucked, ears and whole demeanor are low, won’t look you in the eyes, keeps exposing his stomach to you and follows behind you. Then you need to be extremely careful and give him all the support you can. Opposed to that, is the strong bullhead dog that needs progressively harder correction until they toe the line.

It is all a balance, fine adjustments in voice, movements and commands both positive and negative should be made all the time, until you find what is best for you and your dog. Repeated useless corrections are only going to make things harder for both you and the dog. When the dog does something right, praise him immediately and excessively, once he understands, tone the praise down bit by bit until a simple click of the your tongue is all the praise the dog needs, I don’t even do that anymore a simple nod, and silent good dog is all she needs to acknowledge me and know that she did well.

I get asked how often I train discipline and obedience My answer is always the same ,I don not train it I live it, it never stops. Feed the dog, sit, stay, okay you can eat now. Door open dog still waits for a command to indicate it’s okay to go out, finished outside door still open, dog sits and waits for my command to say she can come in. Open her crate in the back of the car, she waits for a command to get in, same for when she gets out. It is a never ending process. Why? The dog keeps evolving, new experiences, new places,new faces and hormones as they age, but they need to understand the same rules always apply.

Now for a crucial part that relates directly to field work and obedience. It is a contradiction, but a vital part of turning a well trained HPR into a bird machine! You cannot have a good field dog if you have too much discipline! The two do not go hand in hand! It is no use having a remote operated dog that will only do what you tell it to do on a field, for a dog to find birds it has to rely on its senses and experience, not on the handler. Here and only here do you need to back off on the obedience! Your dog needs freedom to make the correct choices and gain experience.

Example 1:

Trainer and dog arrive at a field test. Dog has no leash from the moment he gets let out of the vechile. Trainer and dog follow after the pairs being released, dog is never more than a arm length away from the trainer, never. Time comes for the pair to run their beat on the field. Dog is released/sent out to work the field, runs left 50 meters, switches, runs right 50 meters switches, goes out 30 meters, cuts back to pass a meter from the trainer. This continues for 5 minutes, until the dog is maybe 70 meters deep and 50 meters wide, dog stops looks back at the trainer and waits for a command. Same scenario plays out the whole 15 minute beat, often accompanied by the trainer blowing on the whistle every minute. This dog is focused on getting it right, it is getting it all wrong!

Example 2:

Trainer arrives at a field test, gets out of the vehicle with a leash, is forcing the door open, but also blocking it at the same time until he can slip the leash on the dog. From there he is a weight being dragged after the dog until he and his dog have a beat to run. Leash off dog runs up down, left right finds a hare and 4 hours later the retainer still has not managed to get hold of the dog. This despite blowing himself blue in the face for at least 2 hours on a whistle that has never worked on the dog.

They may be two extreme examples, but they are real examples of both too much and too little obedience and both end the same way, no birds no score.

There is so much more I want to write on this topic, but it is better to find a Legend and train with him.

While testing dogs may be hard, hunting with them is going to multiply any lack of or excess of obedience. No matter how much of a simulation you do while training, it is nothing compared to the real thing. I have picked up more mistakes under high pressure hunting situations than I ever will simply training, if your HPR is just going to do the circuit of trails you have it easy. If however you are going to use the true potential of the dog and take yourself and your HPR to the limit of your and their abilities, make sure you have a solid foundation in obedience and discipline. You cannot let go something you never had, you can only let something go if you have it, simple rule for obedience and discipline.

More on fieldwork here.

Questo articolo nasce dalla passeggiata in campagna di stamattina, le mie camminate in campagna sono sempre buona fonte di ispirazione!

Oggi ho pensato che, quando esci con un setter inglese, tutti i tuoi sensi devono essere attivi al fine di localizzare il cane che, come la razza comanda, appare e scompare. Lo puoi sentire quando è dietro agli alberi, o quando sta uscendo da un cespuglio; lo puoi vedere quando corre libero si terreni aperti. A volte, quando si rotola in “qualcosa”, ne puoi perfino sentire l’odore. No, non puoi sentirne il sapore, né toccarlo ma, negli anni, hai sicuramente sviluppato un sesto senso capace di dirti dove si trova il cane, cosa sta facendo e da che parte lo vedrai ritornare.

Mentre tenevo le antenne accese, ho incontrato un uomo con una golden retriever. Gli trotterellava accanto, mansueta, tenendo in bocca un grosso ceppo. Mi chiedo se sarei felice con un cane simile o se, al contrario, mi annoierebbe. Poi, quando Briony correva a tutta velocità in una risaia, abbiamo incontrato un runner con un cane corso e con un cane primitivo, più grande di uno shiba e più piccolo di un akita. È rimasto impressionato dal richiamo ma, ancora di più, dalla velocità e dall’ampiezza di cerca. I cani da ferma inglesi, fatta eccezione per il gordon – ogni tanto, sono i cani da ferma più estremi. È difficile per un proprietario di cani da compagnia riuscire a capirli. Restano perplessi quando il proprietario di un setter (o di un pointer) rifiuta di sguinzagliare il cane su un piccolo appezzamento di terreno circondato da strade, spiegando che è troppo piccolo e quindi non sicuro.

Non riescono a capire che quegli spazi sono piccoli: lasciate libero un pastore tedesco o un border collie, saranno sempre attenti, pronti ad obbedire agli ordini, nascono per questo; un dobermann o un rottweiler terranno sempre d’occhio il proprietario, perché il loro istinto gli chiede di proteggerli. Con un setter inglese le cose vanno diversamente: il regalo migliore che possiate fare a un setter è la libertà. Certo, a loro piace anche russare su superfici morbide, gli piace mangiare bene ma, se vuoi davvero far felice il tuo setter…  lascialo libero! Il suo muso simpatico diventerà un felice muso simpatico e lui inizierà ad esplorare. Un setter inglese libero non starà a preoccuparsi del padrone. Sono cani che guardano Discovery Channel, sanno benissimo che noi possiamo cavarcela da soli mentre loro sono impegnati a esplorare il mondo, trovare selvatici… ci sono un sacco di cose interessanti in campagna! Dare libertà a un setter inglese è un po’ come portare un maiale in un ristorante all you can eat, o regalare a una donna la carta di credito di qualcun altro! Così tanto entusiasmo mette a dura prova il controllo!

Un setter inglese libero può prestarvi più attenzione se portate un fucile: i cani usati a caccia sanno fare gioco di squadra e la maggior parte di loro è felice di andare a recuperare un selvatico abbattuto. È così che la maggior parte dei cacciatori controlla il proprio setter. Le cose diventano più complicare se non avete armi con voi: il setter (o il pointer), non trae beneficio dalla vostra presenza… ed è questa la parte che mi piace di più! Perché qui entrano in gioco la relazione, l’addestramento e la fiducia RECIPROCA.

Relazione: beh, è elementare, devi avere una relazione con il tuo cane! Lui deve avere fiducia in te (fiducia reciproca, vedi sotto), perché sa che non limiterai la sua libertà, per lo meno non troppo. Lui tornerà da te, o eseguirà i tuoi ordini, e poi sarà di nuovo libero.

Addestramento: l’importanza dell’addestramento non deve mai essere sottostimata. Insegnare a uno spirito libero un richiamo efficace non è facile. Ma sono la prova vivente che l’essere umano modello base può farcela.

Fiducia: sta alla base di tutto. È quello che ti permette di lasciare libero il tuo cane sapendo che tornerà. Devi davvero credere al tuo setter: alcune persone vanno in panico quando vedono quanto forte e lontano questi cani possano andare. Ma se davvero vuoi bene a “qualcuno”, e specialmente se “qualcuno” vive per la libertà… lascialo libero!

This article stems from this morning walk. My walks in the countryside are always a good source of inspiration.

Today I realized that, when you are “walking” an English Setter, all your senses have to be well alert in order to locate the dog who, as the breed demands, appears and disappears from your sight. You can hear him when is behind the trees, or coming out from a bush; you can see him when he is running free on a open ground. You can sometimes even smell him when he rolls into “something” and, no, you cannot taste nor touch him but, along the years, you have surely developed a sixth sense which tells you where the dog is, what is he doing and from which direction he is going to return.

While keeping all my antennae alert, I met a man with a golden retriever. She was meekly trotting by him carrying a huge log in her mouth. I am wondering whether I would be happy with such a dog or, if, on the contrary, I will be bored. As Briony was running at a full speed in a rice paddy, we met a runner trying to “Canicross” with a Cane Corso (a huge molosser) and another primitive dog, something bigger than a Shiba and smaller than an Akita. He was impressed with the recall, but most of all, he was astonished by her speed and deep castings. British pointing dogs, with the exception of Gordon Setters – sometimes, are the most extreme of the pointing dogs: they can hardly be understood by the average pet dog owner. They often look puzzled when the setter (or pointer) owner refuses to let their dog free on a tiny patch of ground surrounded by roads, explaining it is too small,  it would not be safe.

They cannot understand how small those places are: an unleashed German Shepherd or a Border Collie would always be alert, ready to obey an order; a Dobermann or a Rottweiler would always keep an eye on their owner, because they feel the need to protect them. With an English Setter, things are different: the best gift you can give to a working English Setter is freedom. Yes, they enjoy snoring on soft surfaces, they like good food but, if you want your Setter to be truly happy… Let him free! His cute face will become a cute happy face and he will start exploring. A free English Setter would not worry much about his owner. They perfectly know we can take care of ourselves when they are busy exploring the world, finding birds and so on… These guys watch Discovery Channel! The countryside has so much to offer! Giving freedom to an English Setter is like taking a pig to an “all you can eat” restaurant, or gifting a woman with somebody else credit card! So much excitement clashes with control!

A free ranging setter may pay more attention to you if you are carrying a shotgun: dogs actively used for rough shooting understand teamwork, and most of them are very happy to pick up and retrieve a fallen bird. This is how most of the Italian hunters “control” their setters. Things get more complicated when you do not carry any weapons: the setter (or the pointer) does not get any benefits from your presence and… This is the part I love the most! Because here relationship, training and MUTUAL trust enter the picture.

Relationship: well… Relationship, you need to have a relationship with your dog! No amount of training can make a dog can back to you if he does not want to. He shall trust you (mutual trust, see below) because he knows you are not going to affect his freedoom, at least not that much. He will return to you, of follow your directions, and then he will be free again.

Training: the importance of training shall never be underestimated. Teaching  a free spirited dog a reliable recall is not easy! But I am the living proof that the plain, basic, human being can do this.

Trust: it is the key. It what allows you to let your dog free, being certain he will come back to you. You really have to trust your Setter: some people panic when they see how far and how fast these dogs can go. But you really love “something”, especially something /somebody that thrives on freedom… let him free!

 Tok Mostert, a Professional Hunter from South Africa, now living in Sweden,  is sharing his writings on dog training with us. You can start  reading them from Part 1 here.

We are Losing Legendary Methods (Waterwork)– by T. Mostert

There are a few issues with water retrieves that you do not have with land retrieves. Some dogs enter water easily, others need a little encouragement and then some need a push. When to push will depend on where the dog is mentally, too soon and you may install a permanent fear of water in the dog. As stated before, the dog should enjoy training and you should make it a fun but structured experience. I want my dog steady and sitting by my side when I start him out, he should be as calm as possible. Arne always said it is a bad idea to cast and control the dog when you start, get a friend or your spouse, to do the casting. Make sure the dog can see the dummy or bird being cast and has a clear line of sight to the dummy or bird. The person making the cast should make bird or duck sounds before the cast to get the dog’s attention. The handler should focus on the dog only, make very sure the dog does not even lift during the cast, he should stay still.
Check that the dog follows the and cast, marks the dummy. Arne always started with a shallow cast, the dog would not need to swim more than 10 meters. This does not mean the dog only has to go 10 meters in the water, from the edge of the water the bottom should slope gently until the dog needs to swim the last 10 meters. If possible it works very well with a passage through reeds to get the dog straight out and straight in, always use the terrain to the dogs advantage to make the succeed. Arne taught me that once the dog is a meter away from the dummy, or bird, and it is clear that they will take it, give a quick yes, yes command, it works and I stick to it. Give the dog lots of encouragement on the way in to you, use the same bent at the knees method I described for land retrieves.
As the dog improves, increase the distance he has to swim, train in rivers with current and lakes where the dog cannot see the other side, expose the dog to multiple areas and entries.

Blind retrieves require a dog with skill and ability. It also requires a handler and a trainer that know what they are doing. The dog needs to have unwavering trust in what you are telling them to do, you cannot make a mistake, the dog will lose trust in you! There is no stop signal in water, the dog’s eyes cannot be on you all the time, so you better be sure when you give a verbal, whistle or physical command that the dog understands what you want. Do not start blind retrieves if you cannot get the dog to do the following, I say again do not start unless:

1. Your dog is comfortable spending time in the water and is confident in the water.
   2. Your dog can cross multiple types of surfaces under the water. Some areas will require a dog to wade from deep water to shallow water and back to deep water, mud and vegetation present problems for some dogs.
   3. Your dog can take a straight line out into the water and keep it.
   4. Your dog understands directional change commands and the out or back command.
   5. Your dog understands the search command.
   6. Your dog will not try and switch dummies or birds when there are multiple ones.

As Arne would tell me a hundred times, break it down. Entry,out, direction, search and delivery.
I have had judges stunned when Flake comes back with a completely dry bird, she is just comfortable in the water and does not panic when she has to stay out there. A few things to keep in mind.

Entrance into the water:
1. It is a careless dog that charges into the water, flying entries look great, but a dog that has never entered a body of water or is working virgin water and flies in is going to get hurt sometimes.
2. It is a careless owner that does not check the point of entry before he sends the dog out.
3. The dog should always, always take your line and go straight out. Do not let the dog look for another entry once you gave the out command. They lose the line and mark if they do, which makes it harder on them and you to adjust their new line to the old one.

Out:
1. Give the dog some indication that they are heading in the right direction.
2. Current will make the dog drift, keep it in mind.

Direction:
1. Your timing has to be perfect, especially if the dog has to go over an obstacle, cross a island and re-enter the water on the other side.
2. Remember the dog is not watching you, give the direction change command and once the dog looks back follow it up with a physical signal, you can even move your whole body in the direction you want the dog to go.
3. Use the wind, if you change direction with the bird lying upwind chances are greater for the dog to find it.

Search:
1. Once the dog is in or close to the reeds, grass, rocks etc where the bird is placed, I give the search command. Close to me is within 3-5 meters.
2. Give the dog time to locate the bird, resist the urge to direct the dog.

Delivery:

I do not want Flake to shake herself dry before delivery, neither do I want her to drop the bird.
Stand as close to the water edge as the judge would allow, Stay calm and positive, do not reach or grab for the bird, but be fast enough so the dog can shake itself dry if it wants to after delivery.

I have left out certain crucial bits of advice, like how to get a dog into the water, teaching it to swim and be calm and also the way to train a dog to take a straight entry on the blind retrieve.
It is simply because I believe you need a trainer to assist you here, so find a Legend and get going.

This concludes what I wish to share on retrieving. Before I start what is considered by many the Elite section of HPR’s I want to take a step back to obedience and discipline, because there is a correlation between obedience and field that needs to be clarified.

To read about obedience and discipline click here.

Le razze di cani da seguita non hanno le stesse peculiarità, e non credo tuttavia ve ne sia una che risulti essere universalmente in grado di sovrastare tutte le altre nella caccia alla lepre, tenendo conto delle differenti esigenze di ogni singolo utilizzatore e degli specifici quanto personali gusti che animano ciascun appassionato. Si possono al contrario individuare all’interno di ogni razza soggetti inetti, appena discreti, accettabili, buoni lavoratori, ottimi cacciatori e fuoriclasse. Credo comunque che rappresenti una ricchezza per il mondo cinofilo e segugistico il fatto di poter disporre di una pluralità di razze, che tanto nella morfologia quanto nel lavoro evidenzino delle caratteristiche precipue, tali da renderle facilmente riconoscibili ed agevolmente distinguibili dagli altri membri del sesto gruppo. Un’ulteriore ricchezza credo sia rappresentata dalla convivenza all’interno della stessa razza di famiglie di soggetti sommariamente omogenee tra loro ma al tempo stesso dotate di attitudini specifiche e distintive. Ma di ciò parleremo in un’altra occasione. Parlando ad esempio di lavoro e del lavoro del segugio italiano, una delle prime caratteristiche su cui vorrei invitarvi a riflettere è la tenacia. Dote peraltro che dovrebbe essere comune ad ogni inseguitore ma che credo trovi una delle sue massime espressioni nel segugio italiano. La tenacia rischia a volte di essere giudicata erroneamente come scarsa maneggevolezza o ridotta sottomissione ai compagni di caccia.

Talvolta qualche piccolo limite in questo senso potrà anche essere frutto di un eccesso di tenacia ed indipendenza. In ogni caso, dal momento che non ritengo che l’ambizione di possedere un segugio italiano di un certo tipo debba coincidere con una castrazione cino-venatoria, sono altresì convinto che questa tenacia in alcune circostanze sia foriera di successi insperati. Un segugio italiano che, pur mostrandosi applicato sul terreno, lascia con grande facilità il suo lavoro per agganciarsi al compagno di muta, od un soggetto che si lascia facilmente manovrare in fase di seguita, oppure ancora un cane che torna indietro con disinvoltura dal punto in cui ha perso l’usta, senza applicarsi sull’ultimo riferimento utile, potrà anche essere un ausiliare utile in alcune circostanze, ma i suoi comportamenti non sono quelli che personalmente, magari sbagliando, mi aspetto di vedere da un segugio, per di più italiano. Auspico perciò che all’analisi delle differenti razze da seguita siano dedicati momenti didattici di confronto maturo e costruttivo, al fine di scongiurare lo spauracchio della monorazza da seguita.

Tok Mostert, a Professional Hunter from South Africa, now living in Sweden,  is sharing his writings on dog training with us. You can start reading them from Part 1 here.

We are Losing Legendary Methods (Retrieves 2)– by T. Mostert

A few more things I learned from Jeppe and Arne on training a dog to retrieve before I moved on to training for water work. Some dogs will try and move around you once they have retrieved the game (or the dummy), almost as if they want to circle around you, do not allow this. You can stop the dog from doing this by training against a fence, or with a natural barrier behind you, a corner fence works best for this. If you do not have a fence available, wait for the dog to come to you and once he is 2-3 meters away from you, coming towards, take a quick side step in the direction the dog is drifting and give the sit command. You have to be quick and precise, otherwise he will keep drifting and still circle you. The same goes for a hard charging dog that likes to pass you and then turns back. The dog should come in to your left, sit and present the dummy or game. Lots of folks do not mind if the dog sits or stands with the delivery, I want my dog to be planted and steady. I also want to be able to stop my dog on the way in without her dropping the dummy or game, she should sit and wait for me to give her the come command, same goes for sending her out. Stop, sit and then I can send her left, right, back, or over a obstacle.

On a side note, I want my dog to present the dummy or game with his head up, with the dog looking at me and not at the ground! Some game will be too heavy for the dog to do this, but even ducks can be presented this way. Bo Nilsson (great retriever trainer) gave me this little tip. Once the dog is on the way back to you, bend down in a kneeling position, arms open and call the dog in, be friendly! As the dog reaches the 2-3 metres mark stand up quickly. This will not only make the dog lift his head, but also help him to sit.

Do not ever lean over a young dog, or tower over a young dog when you start training retrieving or holds! Doing so, you are applying pressure on the dog mentally, they hate it and it is one of the main reasons dogs drop dummies or game at their handlers feet, or just out of reach! Coming in should always, always, be a positive experience for the dog! have seen countless people scream and repeat the command for the dog to pick up a dummy or game they have dropped at the handlers feet, it is utterly useless and creates even more pressure and negative connection to retrieving. If Flake drops a dummy( or game) on the way in, or at my feet, she already knows she is wrong, I do not need to say anything, or repeat a command, what I do is take a step or three away from the dropped object and from her, immediately relieving the pressure on her. 100% of the time she will pick it up again and deliver it as it should be.

Keep in mind this is only training, hunting is a whole different thing where the excitement and pressure is multiplied 2000 folds. If you have never seen a dog simply coming apart on a duck hunt because there is 100’s of shots going off and ducks raining down on and around the dog, you have not exposed the dog enough. More on that another time.

Points to ponder

1. Casting dummies in the beginning is a NO NO, sit the dog down, walk away place the dummy, walk back to the dog, give it a line and if you are sure it has the line give the retrieve command.
   2. Never start a young dog on a retrieve if they have not taken the line (= understood they are being casted in a straightforward line), start short, 5 meters.
   3. Do use a long lead when you start your young dog retrieving.
   4. Use clear and short commands. I have different ones for a simple pick-up and a long retrieve, I use the same command for back as for out.
   5. Always be positive when the dog is getting it right, to the point that you excite the dog! As you progress, tone it down. Dogs learn by positively reinforcing their behaviour!
   6. Retrieving only on sight will become a problem if you do not challenge the dog to use its nose.
   7. Bird dogs drift more than pure retrieving breeds, give them a bit more freedom.
   8. Break every training session down, from the sit to the delivery, work on them as separate exercises.
   9. Your dog will try and break and fetch the dummy without a command, if you are not fast enough to stop it, keep your mouth shut. Never stop a young dog going on to a retrieve unless you are 100% sure you can. Do praise the dog if it delivers the fetch correctly!
   10. You will laugh and you will cry, suck it up.

HPR breeds are not for everyone,

multiple disciplines, with contradictory commands and outcomes, phase many owners. I do not expect my dog to compete against a pure retriever when it comes to retrieving, but I train her with pure retrievers and she will be on pair with any average pure retriever any day I do not expect her to run like a English Pointer, but I run her with English Pointers and she may not go as wide and as deep, but she goes just as hard. HPR dogs are not the best at everything, but they are the best choice for everything. I cannot say this enough, you are investing time and effort into training a dog, make the wise choice and get a Old School Legend to help you!
No clickers, no treats just respect, discipline and loyalty.

Click here if you want to read about waterwork.

Tok Mostert, a Professional Hunter from South Africa, now living in Sweden,  is sharing his writings on dog training with us. You can start  reading them from Part 1 here.

Part 2: We are Losing Legendary Methods (Retrieves) – by T. Mostert

Arne played a major role in training Flake for water retrieves, but before a dog can retrieve in water, he has to be able to do this perfectly on land! So, let’s take a step back. Too many folks have opinions on which method is the best, force fetch or the natural fetch training method. Dogs react to movement: you throw a ball and the dog wants to chase, or catch, or fetch it (that’s why hare and rabbit are so hard to proof against), movement is a trigger, it is a natural thing for them. To me it breaks down to what works for a particular dog and I use a hybrid system between natural retrieve and a forced fetch.

Both, or a mix of the systems,  however, are useless if you cannot have your dog off leash sitting by your side without moving to a cast, or a false cast (I use false casts to steady a dog). One thing to keep in mind is that with a force fetch the dog will retrieve everything you tell him to retrieve, whereas a natural retriever will, at some point, refuse to take a retrieve, especially to pick up predatory animals.

Flake would sit on command and I would start with a wooden dummy wrapped in a towel in front of her, sometimes getting her a bit excited, or worked up. Some dogs need encouragement, others need to be held firm. On command I would give her the dummy in her mouth and tell her to stand steady. To release the dummy, I would simply say thank you and take it. Sounds pretty easy doesn’t it? Well, it’s not, I just skipped over hours of frustration and swearing (silent swearing). Make up your own mind on what works for you and stick to it. Once she takes the dummy there is no chewing or playing, this is not an option. A lot of praise (95% praise -5% correction rule) and stroking her under the chin while she holds the dummy. Some folks say never pat the head, as it encourages them to bite into the dummy, hard mouth dogs do not need any encouragement, but I can’t say yes or no, because I have not had a hard mouth dog.

Start slow, 3-4 seconds is a good hold for a young dog and work your way up to a time that suites you, I get bored after a minute. If Flake helds for a minute, I would start walking her on leash with the dummy in her mouth, only a few steps at first, then stop, sit and thank you. I did not let her drop the dummy into my hand, they tend to do that when your hand goes to the dummy. Only after I say thank you, she must release. I also took time to falsely take the dummy away without a thank you, to make sure she understood the whole process.

A few reminders:

1. Have fun training, if it is work for you or the dog, you are doing it wrong.
   2. Never end a training session with a failure, go back a step until the dog gets it right and finish there.
   3. A dogs mind gets tired before the body does, keep sessions short but focused.
   4. Dogs do not speak human language, but “fuck you” is “fuck you” even in dog language, do not ever let a dog say fuck you and leave it there, you will fail again and again.
   5. Sometimes you need to take a step back to go forward.
   6. If you get it right all the time, you are not doing it right.
   7. Even a bad trainer can teach you something, even if it is only the difference between good and bad. Take what you need from a training session and leave what you do not appreciate.
   8. A good dog will make a bad trainer look good, a good trainer will make a bad dog look good.
   9. It is never about the quantity of time, it is about the quality of the time.
   10. Protect your dog from dogs that have no discipline, it builds trust.

Final few words, a HPR dog does play games that are not some form of training. I smoke, and every time I went out of the house to light up Flake would follow.

I would send her out in the garden tell her to sit and throw a tennis ball at her to catch, simple innocent game? Wrong! The next time I sent her out in the field to search for a retrieve she sat down and waited for me to cast that bloody ball! Took me three weeks to break that habit I created.
Think, think, think, structure everything and plan it, then stand in front of the mirror and repeat it, if it still makes sense teach the dog. This brings me back to Legends like Arne, get help we are all blind to our own mistakes, even if we see mistakes done by other handlers or dogs!

To read the second part of the article click here.

Tok Mostert, a Professional Hunter from South Africa, now living in Sweden,  is sharing his writings on dog training with us. You can start reading them from Part 1 here.

Part 2:  We are losing legendary methods (Tracking)

By the time Flake was 8 months old, I could do a left or right retrieve on command, I could stop her on the way out to one retrieve and switch her to the other, Jeppe Stridh made extra effort with us, I figure it paid off. It was time to get her to track blood so we could work our way to getting her qualified as a Swedish Blood Tracking Champion. Time to call on another Legend in the HPR world, Arne Johansson. Arne flies under the radar, no Facebook, no Internet and he seldom carries a cell phone. What he lacks in visibility, he makes up for in pure experience and technique.

A few things Arne drilled into me:

1. Never set the dog up to fail when they are starting out.
2. Never use too much blood with any dog, especially young dogs.
3. Let the dog do the work, keep your mouth shut and your eyes open.
4. Read the dog.
5. Don’t let the dog work fast, slow is fast when it comes to tracking.
6. Let the dog figure it out for himself.
7. When the dog succeeds, drown it with praise, even if it was frustrating with mistakes made.
8. The dog can only do what you expect him to do if he understands what you want.
9. Heat is the enemy.
10. Do not over train on blood!

Most important, trust the dog, once you are on the track you are simply holding a long line, the dog is the one working.

Flake became a blood tracking champion eventually. I was not expecting much on that day, it was hot and she was not 100%, I was sweating, she was panting, heat and stress, I guess. She never quitted, I could read her every moves and hesitations, I could see when she was on the track and when she lost it, I gave her lead and time to find it again. I was pretty sure we were going to run out of time or just not make the cut, but it did not worry me, no matter what score we would get that day, I would have been happy. Simply because I knew she gave her best and that her and I worked as a team and we understood each other.

The same basics apply for rabbit drags, it is essential that the dog understands the difference between blood and drags. Get clear separate commands for each of these disciplines! Always start a drag by sitting the dog down and walking over to the drag start, the dog should watch you, kneel down, point at the drag start or scratch around in the dirt or leaves around the edge of the start, get the dog to focus on the spot. Go back pick up the long lead and once at the start, point it to the dog, bend down if you have to and give the dog the command to track. Congratulations you are now a spectator on a lead, keep your mouth shut and focus on the dog!

While training do not let the dog off the lead every time! Once every 5th or 6th time is enough! Only do this if you are 100% certain the dog is working the drag and not the wind, bird dogs love to work the wind, here it is wrong. Once again slow is fast here. There is no time that passes slower than when during a test you slip the lead after 5 meters and you stand and wait for the dog to return with or without game in their mouths. Part 2 will continue with water retrieves and how I trained the Flake to take a dummy, bird and rabbit in the mouth.

Arne has devoted much of his life to helping others train their dogs and still tests dogs especially for blood tracking, he has seen and done it all a thousand times. Not only does he test and help train for drags and water retrieves he also makes his water and forest available for us who don’t have testing grounds. Arne has trained double champion dogs and I still pick his brain every time we train with him. The bucket loads of knowledge and experience is what makes Arne a Legend. I am blessed to call him a friend. Find a old school gentleman like Arne , time is short and life throws you a curve ball every now and then.

If you want to learn on retrieves click here.

Brief intro: here at Dogs & Country we are often looking to publish good articles, articles dog people can benefit from. I (Rossella) was therefore very happy when Tok Mostert, from Sweden, accepted to share his writings with us and our readers. At the moment, unfortunately, I do not have time to translate them in Italian, but if anyone wants to help out with the translation, I’d be happy to share that as well 🙂 

Part 1:  We are losing legendary methods

Two years ago I came into the hunting dogs world, I knew nothing, I could not make a dog sit or stay, much less retrieve, track or hunt birds. Sure I tried and watched videos and read as much as I could, but it is not the same. I saw a man handle a dog in the field one day, and I understood that I needed help. Needed may be the wrong word, craved is more in line with what I felt.

You ask opinions on trainers and you get maybe 10 different opinions on every trainer, good, bad, asshole you name it, for everyone that had a good thing to say, there was 10 others with bad things to say. Screw it, I thought, I will find the right help by simply looking at whose dog I see doing what I want my dog to do and ask who help to train him or her. I did not ask for opinions anymore, I set a goal and found a trainer that suited this goal. When I wanted my dog to have discipline, I went to a man called Jeppe Stridh. Almost two years later, I still go to him, because a dog is never finished, you evolve, the dog evolves, you want to test the limits and see how far the dog will go, and most of the time it is the handler that holds the dog back by not challenging him more. This and reinforcing the old commands again and again is a never ending journey, get use to it and enjoy it.

A few things I remember, sure I forgot many:

1. Train the owner to train the dog, much harder than it sounds.
2. Learn how to read your dog.
3. 95% Praise,  5% Correction, always time the correction perfectly.
4. Make sure you understand the commands before you try teaching the dog, otherwise keep your mouth shut.
5. A collar and a leash are restraints, they can only control a dog by your side. Respect and trust are what makes an invisible leash that stretches as far as your voice, or whistle, carries.
6. Do not train with a attitude, dogs do not respond well to assholes (yeah, I heard that a lot).
7. If your dog keeps making the same mistake you are doing something wrong, not the dog.
8. If you are always doing something wrong, get help.
9. Different dogs need different touches while training.
10. No matter how good is the trainer you are working with, if you do not put in the effort yourself, you are wasting your time and a good dog!

I can write a hundred more points to ponder, but that’s not the point.

Men like Jeppe are few and far in between and we are not taking the opportunities to listen and learn from them. They are the here and now Legends of the dog world that we need to learn from, so all that knowledge will not disappear one day. Not to make us better, but to keep future generations at the top of the game. Yes, dog training evolves and people keep reinventing the wheel, but in the end its results that count and he is one of the Legends who’s methodology always works if applied right.

Books, DvD’s and video clips are great, but they lack the essential personal touch that a true Legend brings to training a dog. One Legend’s method may not fit you or your dog, but there is always one who’s method will.

The most common comments I hear from judges these days is that dogs lack discipline. This is where I started with Flake and thus Part 1, Part 2 will cover retrieving and tracking with a Legend that flies under the radar.

Between Dogs and Grouse – Originally Published in Sentieri di Caccia – November 2016

Disclaimer: This is the first of a series of articles I wrote for the Italian press. I wrote this article for Italian readers, this means that British people are not going to learn anything new from these pages and, whereas I did my best to be accurate, they may even find some inaccuracies. If so, please notify me.

I cannot tell when it all began. When I was a little child I used to refuse milk and kept begging for tea for tea to be put in my bottle, no wonder I could not sleep! At the age of four, I was given a Scottish kilt and a book on Queen Elizabeth, I still treasure both. At six, I began studying English and at 11 I asked for an English Setter. The setter came many years later, together with a master degree in British Literature. It was the Setter though, and not the books, that made me aware of the art of shooting over pointing dogs, of field trials and more. A mosaic tile, however, was still missing. I love the English Setter and I am sincerely happy that it is so popular in Italy (12.000 puppies were registered in 2015) but, at the same time, I have mixed feelings about how it is perceived, trained and bred by my fellow countrymen. The same happens when it comes to field trials. I have always felt there was something else, something hidden, something to be discovered. I was “feeling” rather than “thinking”, there was nothing rational about my perception. In July 2015, however, I had the opportunity to watch the Champion Stake and it gave me some little pieces of evidence that proved my emotional beliefs were right. I was not crazy, just a little odd, and there was a whole new world ready to be explored: British pointing dogs could be trained and used in a different way.
Once back home, I began training my dog according to what I saw. My training style was perceived by the Italians as “different” and more traditional, a very polite way to tell me it was outdated. The method I chose forced me to work hard but at a slow pace, I did not see any fruits until spring 2016. My original plan was very modest: I was going to use the British “enlightenment” to prepare Briony for Italian Field Trials, in the meantime I would have gone back to the UK to watch more trials and learn more. Things, however, took an unexpected twist which made me change my plans: in April the dog suddenly became very reliable and, one day, while I was driving back from the training grounds a light bulb went on: why not to go back with her and compete?

Only a few: shooting over pointing dogs
To better understand British Field Trials, it is useful to know something about indigenous wildlife management and about how pointing dogs are worked. The information you are about to read relate only to grouse and British pointing breeds, things for HPRs (Hunt Point Retrieve/Continental Pointing Dogs) are slightly different. People asked me about HPRs and grouse: there are grouse trials for them as well, but they take place during the shooting season. The only HPR I saw working on a moor was a GWP (German Wirehaired Pointer): she was fine, but I cannot get used to the sight of a HPR running in the heather. I know I am not going to be politically correct here but… these dogs look out of place! I am sure they can work grouse properly, but they do not belong to this world. The sight of an English Setter jumping fences with a fox in his mouth would trigger in me the same feelings. In Britain the interest in HPRs is increasing, and I am sure they would do very well on pheasant and other game.
Shooting over pointing dog, however, is fairly uncommon. Italian hunters are crazy about pointing dogs: the average hunter here owns one or more pointing dogs and leaves the house alone in the morning, a dog and a shotgun are his only company. They hope to bag a pheasant, a woodcock or maybe a hare: British people hunting in this manner (they call this rough shooting) are fairly scarce. Why? I do not know, maybe it does not belong to their tradition and perhaps the legislation discourages this. In the UK, the game belongs to the landowners (in Italy wild animals are considered a public good – we have private estates but 90% of hunting/shooting takes place on “common ground”) and to hunt on these grounds you need the landowner permission. Furthermore, most of the places in which you can find birds suitable to pointing dogs are private estates. Some of these estates accept paying clients, but can be selective on which customers to allow on their grounds: money is important, but proper game and land management are even more important and are therefore strictly regulated. Most of the estates offer shooting days (with beaters, pickers up and shooters), but are not organized to offer shooting days over pointing dogs. Before coming back to Italy last summer, I stopped in Kent and through a friend, I had the opportunity to run Briony on grounds belonging to a local estate. Well, she was the first English Setter who had put her paws on these grounds, they only offer formally organized shooting days with spaniels and retrievers. Scotland is slightly different, as some estates organize grouse shooting over pointing dogs, but the dogs at work are selected by the estate and professionally handled: it is uncommon to see shooters bringing their own dogs. I am not stating it cannot be done but, from what I could gather, gamekeepers allow only “safe” (well trained and obedient) dogs on their grounds. Italian shooters like to go abroad for hunting holidays with their dogs, I think British hunting tourism focuses more on men than on dogs.
How should a pointing dog behave to please the average British gamekeeper? The Brits want their dogs to be under control. A dog MUST be steady to flush, drop on command, obey orders and come back when recalled. These skills are vital if you run a dog on grounds rich in birds, rabbit, hare, sheep and maybe something else. Grouse are abundant, a whole covey can be scattered in a few square metres, followed closely by another one: a dog unsteady to flush, who likes chasing birds, would be a nightmare. Unfortunately, due to the lack of birds Italian dog lovers have to face, is very hard to train a dog to be biddable in these conditions. I eventually succeeded, but I spent one whole year working on obedience, it was incredibly demanding.

Grouse come first
Gamekeepers, those who rule on shooting grounds with absolute power, tend to be wary of dogs because… love their birds and want to protect them. Grouse are wild birds, they reproduce in wilderness and cannot be artificially reared. Their life cycle is intimately linked to climate and grounds. In spring the gamekeepers are busy counting adults birds which are going to mate. Difficult weather conditions in the spring can hinder the counts and, most of all, decimate births. Winter 2015, for example, was fairly mild but spring 2016 brought snow and much rain: these conditions negatively affected the newborns. Each moor is being cared by a group of gamekeepers: they pay attention to pest management; organize sheep presence; plan heather burning and more. A newcomer might think that moors naturally look like the way they do they but, in reality, moors are not so different from gardens and their features are the results of proper care. Small details can make a difference: an estate that was infested by ticks (Ixodes ricinus ticks, those that carry Lyme Disease) minimized its problem through sheep. Sheep were sent grazing on the infested areas, they picked up the ticks which later died thank to the products applied on the sheep. Removing, or at least reducing tick presence, on the moor is important as these arthropods they can infect grouse with deadly diseases.
In the spring, as already mentioned, producer birds are counted and in the summer other counts are carried out to assess the number of young birds: estates need to know the number of birds to plan the shooting season. Pointing dogs are often used to count birds, some estates also take in account “presence signs” such as grouse faeces and so on. Only biddable dogs are used for counting, they are trustworthy dogs, handled by trustworthy handlers. Some counts are very formal and demanding, therefore the handlers get paid; other estates have a more laidback approach and accept volunteers: they are given specific area to work on, but the counting schedule is less tight and more flexible. Dog lovers are really happy to go counting as this allows them to train the dogs and let them gain more experience on grouse. Sometimes handlers work in team with gamekeepers who take note of the birds found, placing them on the estate map. Some other times the dog handler has to do everything by himself but, in both cases, grouse counting is taken extremely seriously. Dog handlers can sometimes take other people with them, but they are deemed responsible for their friends (and their dogs!) behaviour. I am very happy to be able to write that Briony and I were allowed to go counting! It was an honour and a dream coming true. My first count took place at Muggleswick Estate, with Steve Robinson, who breeds and handles Irish Setters, supervising me. In the morning I followed him while he was handling his Irish Setters. Briony was kept on lead so that she could become familiar with grouse (she had never met any before) in a safe setting: as grouse always come first, we had to be sure she would not grab any young chicks. After hours of good behaviour, in the afternoon, she was allowed to work off lead cooperating with some new dogs. There were Steve Robinson Irish Setters, some Pointers owned by Terry Harris, Maria Jacques and Roy Heath; a Gordon Setter owned by Nicky Harris and, finally, a smart English Setter pup handled by John Naylor. I have to admit that these people were trusting my dog more than I was doing. It was nice feeling, they made me feel welcome and accepted. Briony did well, she was very gentle and careful with birds and thanks to this I was allowed to go counting again! On the following days, indeed, Terry Harris, a reputable Pointer and Gordon trainer, took us to Eggleston Estate and carefully monitored our work. There were his Pointers and his Gordons with us and sometimes some English Setters belonging to Dennis Longworth, Anne Maddison and John Naylor. Dennis Longworth, despite being “already” 83, is in wonderful shape and has a very sharp mind: he spent his life with pointing dogs and loves English Setters. It is a real pleasure to listen to his tales, opinions and advice. As said earlier, gamekeepers are really concerned about dogs behaviour during the counts and Terry Harris guaranteed for us: if a dog misbehaves during a count (or even during a trial) it could be banned forever from a specific ground! Things for us were going well and I was invited to go counting in Scotland too but, unfortunately, a kennel cough epidemic made this great opportunity vanish. Nevertheless, two gamekeepers, Brian at Dorback Estate and Craigh at Tollishill Estate kindly allowed me to train on their grounds sending me to the best “places”. Brian even spent a couple of hours with me in the rain enjoying working with Briony… she seemed to like him more than me!

If you have read the whole article, it should be now very clear that grouse come first and that its preciousness makes gamekeepers wary about “unknown” dogs. Nowadays it is easy to travel to UK with your dog, all you need is the rabies vaccines and a de-worming treatment against echinococcus, any dogs can go to Britain but only a few, perfectly trained ones, can be allowed on a moor. Someone might be tempted to go there and work the dog on grouse in disguise, without asking permissions. I would not do that, it would be dishonest, rude and you could be – rightly so – considered a poacher. Estates need grouse count to assess the quality of game management and decide how to organize the shooting season. Whereas shooting days might be booked in great advance (years!), the final decisions on the numbers of shooting days and on the number of birds that might be shot, will be made at the end of the counts. In 2015, some estates partly cancelled their season and I am not sure about what happened in 2016, I was told that some estates in the Scottish Highlands apparently had less birds than they were supposed to have. Grouse shooting is the result of careful planning and safeguarding the species is the priority. Mismanaging grouse can compromise both the bird and the estate survival. In Scotland and Northern England grouse are very important: they play a big role in local culture and economy. All the people involved in grouse management love this bird and the grouse plays a big role in rural economy. I think I love grouse too, and I know that what I am going to say cannot be considered “romantic” but grouse are money. Moors, as a natural environment, can exist thanks to grouse and the same can be said about estates. Look at those barren landscapes covered with heather, you cannot grow any crops there. Think about these wide open spaces located in very rural areas of the country and imagine what could happen if there were no grouse. Grouse shooting brings money to these areas and creates jobs; grouse shooting finances moor management and supports biodiversity, these would not be possible without the money earned through grouse shooting. For more information check the website http://www.giftofgrouse.com/

The second article of this series, about British field trials, the Puppy Derby and the Champion Stake cane be read here.

Still curious about British trials? Check the section A Month on the Moor or click here.

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