Training With Mo

April 9, 2011

Piedmont, SC

Today we drove 90 miles to Piedmont, SC to train with Maurice "Mo" Lindley and watch him train other dogs. It was a long 89 F day but it was wonderful. Mo worked quite a few dogs and while we visitors/handlers chatted between runs, he was busy catching pigeons and planting them for the next team. Mo is incredibly generous with his time, land, birds and advice, sharing it with anyone who makes the drive (or flight in one case) to his place on Saturdays.

Here is Mo working with Tessa, practicing the Stand Still command - non-verbally - while another client of his works a Brittany out in the field. This way we can teach Tessa to stand still when another dog goes on point (called backing or honoring) and to stand still through flush and shot (we were using blank pistols and homing pigeons).

I also followed Mo when he was working with other dogs, and there is much to be learned from watching him, like timing of corrections and praise.

To read more about Maurice Lindley and the West/Gibbons method, click here.

The Whoa

March 4, 2010
Sandy Creek Park, GA

It's spring, and the birds are back...Tessa watches them settle on the field in dog park no. 3. I use the opportunity to practice the "whoa". We are slowly working our way up to 15 minutes using a variety of distractions. Instead of releasing her, I sometimes simply heel her away in the other direction. The off-leash heel is going well.

Not having access to birds much, we do what we can in the park. Our new sequence is a 5-minute whoa with distractions; I then toss her tennis ball into the woods, but keep her in the "whoa" for another minute or so. If I have a plastic bag with me, I blow it up and pop it after tossing the ball so as to simulate a gun shot (starter pistols are not allowed in the park) - works well enough. I then release her and ask her to fetch the ball. Hopefully this will teach her the sequence of whoa - bird flying - gunshot - her marking where the bird falls - waiting for the release - locating and fetching the bird. Of course we will need to see how this translates into the bird field.

On The Road

December 30, 2008
Senoia, GA

After days of drizzle and rain, the sun finally showed itself and we went for a road trip that took us through Griffin, Barnesville, The Rock, Dog Crossing (yes, there is such a place, and I had to let my dog cross it), Thomaston, Senoia, Starr's Mill and Atlanta.

On the left, Tessa poses at Starr's Mill, with a heron in the background that she just would not notice. She did find a huge fat worm though and was trying to eat it, which was pretty disgusting. She had no interest in the historic significance of this place, the historic marker of which reads as follows: "The property that became Starr's Mill was owned by Hananiah Gilcoat who built the first mill here before his death in 1825. This site, on Whitewater Creek, was less than a mile from the boundary between Creek Indian lands and the State of Georgia. Hilliard Starr, who owned the mill from 1866 until 1879, gave the site its current name. After the first two log structures burned, William T Glower built the current building in 1907. This mill operated until 1959, using a water-powered turbine, instead of a wheel, to grind corn and operate a sawmill. The Starr's Mill site also included a cotton gin and a dynamo that produced electricity for nearby Senoia."

Dog Crossing is located in Upson County near The Rock. There actually is a book by Ed Grisamore called "Smack Dab in Dog Crossing". This is the one.

On our way back, we came through the big city. It was Tessa's first trip to Atlanta, and I don't think we need to bother again - what a place! How can people stand it? But I thought Tessa should get a glimpse of it. The photo below was taken through the windshield and shows Atlantic Station, a fairly new and still growing area in downtown Atlanta, the motto of which is "Life Happens Here" and "Work Live Play". I can see where they work and live, but where do they play? I'd rather work, live and play in Dog Crossing.

December 30, 2008
Atlanta, GA

Upon our return to Athens, we headed straight to Lake Herrick for a little detox. Here, she is in a solid "whoa" but without EVER taking her eyes off the Orbee.

December 30, 2008
Lake Herrick, Athens, GA

Let's Get Serious

December 21, 2008

Sandy Creek Park, GA

"Whoa", along with "come" and "heel", is the most important command a bird dog needs to know. Of course, even if we never go hunting, any of these commands could come in handy in many situations. "Whoa" basically means "stop and don't move until I release you". I started teaching this at home by making her hold a "whoa" before each meal, then utilized and practiced this command when taking photos. We have now progressed to working with distractions and temptations; here, I tossed her Orbee ball, but she did not break the whoa. I even had plenty of time to take a few photos of her, until I released her by telling her to "fetch".It may look impressive but we are still a looooong way from where we need to be. Ultimately, she will need to come to a dead stop and stand still like that in the field, even if in pursuit of prey, with 100% reliabilty and no matter how far out she is, and that requires much more complex training setups.

The sit-stay on the other hand is easy to teach. First off, Tessa needs to sit before she gets what she wants: a meal, a treat, permission to come up on the bed, etc. It is also our counter-command (no pun intended) when she counter-surfs - she knows the meaning of "off" and I use it, but I found it more effective to replace the action of jumping with the action of sitting politely, especially while I am preparing her meal, probably because once a dog sits, it requires one extra step (getting up from a sit to a stand) to jump. It is especially effective if she is asked to sit just as she is about to jump. An unfortunate side-effect is that too much sit-stay takes away from the "whoa", so I make sure that doesn't get put on the back burner.

Now that she is approaching 6 months old, it is time to increase the pressure during training, by increasing duration and distance and introducing temptations and distractions. In the photo below, she sits in the far distance while I walk around the field.

Of course, there are plenty of rewards for a job well done.

Tally Whoa!

November 15, 2008
Sandy Creek Park, GA

Just another day at the park...lacking a yard, this is where we like to hang out for work and play, often a combination of the two. Tessa's favorite command is "whoa". Of course, it's a long road to perfection, but her puppy whoa is pretty solid and I often take the chance to get some shots of my otherwise fast moving dog.

The next day, we did our first track and retrieve of Tessa's quail-feathered dummy. Just trying to keep things interesting for her.

Did I say interesting?

November 16, 2008
Big Yak Inspection