Skip to main content

Puppy Training: Getting Ready to Hunt

Puppy Training: Getting Ready to Hunt

Without a doubt, my favorite part of puppy training is the first few days I take it into the field on an actual hunt. That's when all my hopes and their future potential converge to produce the animal I'll be hunting over the rest of its life. After all these years, it's still a thrill I never tire of.

During your puppy's first six months of life, it is critical that they come to know and trust you. It is vital you learn to understand your pup's developing personality. Eventually, you will see your puppy mature and its ability to concentrate increase. A key ingredient in puppy training is to know when the dog is ready to learn as well as when it's ready to move on.

But there's a lot more to introducing a puppy to hunting than turning it loose just to see what it will do. As any good boy scout will tell you, there's no substitute for being prepared.

Any time you get more than two dog trainers in the same room (or drinking the same whiskey), there's bound to be disagreement on just about, well, everything. One of the longer running arguments goes something like this: Should you train your dog exclusively on wild birds, or should you use planted pigeons or quail?


Professionals — men and women who train dogs for a living — reached a consensus on this decades ago. I've interviewed dozens of dog trainers of all breeds over the years, and can't remember a single one who didn't use planted birds at least some of the time.

But there are plenty of amateur trainers who don't buy into that approach. They have their reasons, and while I may not agree, I respect them. That said, I start every one of the puppies I train on planted pigeons. To a puppy, a bird is a bird is a bird, and starting it early on planted birds gives you the opportunity to develop two essential behaviors: the pup's prey drive and its acclimatization to gunfire.

To do the first, you simply truss up a pigeon, plant it in light cover, and lead in your puppy from downwind. To do the second, you wait until the dog is 5 or 6 months old, then fire a starting pistol while the dog is 40 or 50 yards away and chasing a flushed bird. There are nuances involved with both, of course, but that's the gist of it.

Hunting the Arc  


Developing a pup's focus on birds cuts down the time he'll spend examining flowers and bugs and other extraneous diversions in the field. Although it's not common, I've seen puppies that, following an early introduction to pigeons or penned quail (two or three months of age) are doing a credible job of hunting at four or five months. Once they learn how to use their noses, it's one less hurdle they'll have to get over on their first hunt.

The next thing I want a pup to understand is the recall command. He doesn't have to have it locked in — it's unlikely any youngster will be — but he should at least know what it means. You don't want your puppy running off if you have no way of calling him back. I once had a 5-month-old pup run away for an hour, and believe me, it was no fun.

How you train your dog to do that is up to you. I was able to introduce my current pup to collar conditioning at a very young age, but she was and still is quite precocious.

Most pointing breeds aren't ready for collar conditioning at five or six months, and if they're not, that's fine. Attach a lead to their collar, tug them to you, and reward them with a treat and lavish praise. Reinforcement with a collar can come later.

The last thing I like to do is teach the dog to hunt in the pocket, or in an arc roughly from nine o'clock to three o'clock. As soon as my pup is three or four months old I put them on a lead and take them for a walk several days a week.

When they lag behind, I give my whistle a couple quick toots and tug them forward. I'm always surprised at how quickly most dogs learn to quarter to the front, but once the dog has been collar conditioned, those that don't can be given a mild nick as a reminder.

The Big Day 

Before you take your pup on its first hunt, try to the best of your ability to find someplace that has birds. That can be tough sledding in some parts of the U.S., and if you have access to a shooting preserve and the scratch to foot the bill, that's an excellent alternative. I have neither, so, for better or worse, I start all my young dogs on whatever the hunting gods deign to present me with.

Now for the bad news: Bring your starting pistol but leave your shotgun at home. If your dog is completely acclimated to gunfire, bring a buddy along and let him shoot. You want to be able to focus all your attention on your pup.

Put your dog down in the best cover you can find and let him go. Don't over handle him; just let him hunt. He's going to make lots of mistakes. He's going to roll in cow flop and chase meadowlarks, bark at grasshoppers and examine every snippet of scent he crosses. But while he's exploring those things, he's also gaining precious experience.

This isn't a process you can rush. You may get lucky and get him into birds on his very first hunt€¦but I wouldn't bet the ranch on it. I recently returned from a two-week trip to Wisconsin, where I hunted my 6-month-old pointer, Suki, every day. On the last two days of our hunt she finally pointed her first birds, a grouse and woodcock. I was happy as could be — but it took us 12 days to get there.

Put your puppy down in the best cover you can find and let him go. Don't over handle him; just let him hunt. He's going to make lots of mistakes. Thats part of the puppy training process, though. He will gain valuable experience from mistakes and learn to avoid them in the future. No sense in rushing things if you want successful hunts in the future.

Let your pup work things out at her own pace. Although you can and should try to keep her working in the pocket, if she lags behind to sniff some enticing bit of scent, let her work it out before sending her forward again. If she points, flushes, and chases a real live gamebird, fire your starting pistol.

If you have a buddy, he can shoot the bird. This will excite her even more and she'll redouble her efforts to find birds. If he misses, that's fine. Killing a bird isn't critical.

Don't correct her with a collar for any reason if she's working or chasing a bird. There's simply too much risk that a young dog will get the wrong idea about what the correction means. Collar corrections on bird work will come much later.

If you need to use the collar to reinforce your recall command, that's fine, but do so sparingly and with a light touch — and again, only if she's not working a bird.

Graduation Day  

At what point does a puppy graduate from supervised introductory hunts to the real thing? That depends on the maturity of the dog and the amount of time you're able to get her into the field. There's no formula for determining that, since it varies so much from dog to dog. But here are some of the things I want to see.

Consistent performance in response to your vocal commands should be one of your training goals. Keep in mind that a puppy's attention span is limited; therefore short. Frequent puppy training sessions are far more effective than longer but fewer sessions.

First, I want to see a pup that, at least most of the time, is hunting and using its nose, even if it doesn't know exactly what it's hunting for. I want it to be completely and thoroughly conditioned to gunfire, and to reliably return on both whistle and verbal commands.

The other commands — whoa, heel, fetch, and so on — will come in due time, when the dog has gained a bit more maturity.

Right now, it's all about the fascinating world that lies beyond your pup's ever inquisitive nose. The foundation you lay down during those first few months of a young puppy's hunting career will stay with it the rest of its life.

Puppy training should be enjoyable for the both you. Make those hunts fun, make them productive€¦and your pup will remember.

To Continue Reading

Go Premium Today.

Get everything Gun Dog has to offer. What's Included

  • Receive (6) 120-page magazines filled with the best dog training advice from expert trainers

  • Exclusive bird dog training videos presented by Gun Dog experts.

  • Complete access to a library of digital back issues spanning years of Gun Dog magazine.

  • Unique editorial written exclusively for premium members.

  • Ad-free experience at GunDogMag.com.

Subscribe Now

Already a subscriber? Sign In or start your online account

Phone Icon

Get Digital Access.

All Gun Dog subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. This means you have the option to read your magazine on most popular phones and tablets.

To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine.

Get Digital Access

Not a Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Dog jumping out of phone with Gun Dog website in the background
Make the Jump to Gun Dog Premium

Gun Dog Premium is the go-to choice for sporting dog owners and upland hunting enthusiasts. Go Premium to recieve the follwing benefits:

The Magazine

Recieve (6) 120-page magazines filled with the best dog training advice from expert trainers.

Training Videos

Exclusive bird dog training videos presented by Gun Dog experts.

Digital Back Issues

Complete access to a library of digital back issues spanning years of Gun Dog magazine.

Exclusive Online Editorial

Unique editorial written exclusively for premium members.

Subscribe Now

Already a subscriber? Sign In or Start your online account

Go Premium

and get everything Gun Dog has to offer.

The Magazine

Recieve (6) 120-page magazines filled with the best dog training advice from expert trainers.

Training Videos

Exclusive bird dog training videos presented by Gun Dog experts.

Digital Back Issues

Complete access to a library of digital back issues spanning years of Gun Dog magazine.

Exclusive Online Editorial

Unique editorial written exclusively for premium members.

Subscribe Now

Already a subscriber? Sign In or Start your online account