Ready for birds

In order to use a bird as a means of positive reinforcement we want to make sure the dog will have fun retrieving (or chasing) the bird without the gun first. Once the dog is excited to eat his food after the gun shot, we shoot and walk over to them, let them out of the crate, and throw a pigeon for them to retrieve. It is very important to get excited to ensure they enjoy the bird and the retrieve. The bird and praise are both positive reinforcement to be associated with the gun fire. If the dog does not come out of the kennel willingly or doesn't want to get the bird, the process has moved too fast and they are not ready for this step. Remember to go back to the last spot your dog was successful and move forward again.

Field Conditioning

When moving to the field, an assistant stands about 75 yards away while we restrain the dog. We have our assistant shoot a small caliber blank pistol, and throw the bird. It is very important that the gunfire comes before the bird is thrown. We have experienced problems with shooting while the bird is in the air, because some dogs tend to look away from the bird when they hear the gun, losing the mark, and therefore make an unwanted association with the game. Gun shy dogs do much better at this point if the gun comes first, followed by the bird being thrown.

If your dog does well, you would move the assistant closer in small increments. 25 yards is close enough. When the dog is comfortable with this exercise you would repeat this process with a shotgun. If your dog shows any signs of fear, you need to move your assistant back to the point where your dog was last comfortable. Follow through by slowly bringing them in closer until they show no fear.

When we shoot the first bird over the dog we do not take the shot unless the ideal situation presents itself. We like to use launchers so we can launch the bird away from us and not shoot directly over the dog. A windy day is better as it quiets the gunfire. Dogs hearing is much more sensitive than ours, and a muzzle blast which gives us a headache, will surely cause problems for our canine companion.

This is a sure way to introduce the gun or cure gun shyness. Severe gun shyness usually requires some additional steps. These additional steps are usually shooting before anything good happens. Shoot before they are let out to relieve themselves, shoot before they go for a ride in the truck, shoot before they are given water, shoot before playing fetch, shoot before coming in the house upon returning home from work, shoot before anything good happens. Follow these simple steps, your dog will make a positive association with gunfire, and enjoy many days a field.
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