Summer training in my part of New York State requires me to work through some challenging scenarios. As I’ve mentioned in previous columns, the weather here can be hot and humid, which means that the bulk of the training must happen at either the beginning or end of the day. My friend and fellow trainer Dan Lussen and I incorporate water into the training as much as possible, and we try to increase fitness by having our flushing dogs swim or run in the cooler hours of the day. We engage in a constant battle against thick cover and training fields that seem to grow up as quickly as we mow them. When we try to run our dogs in edge cover, they get lost in a sea of brambles, brush, and tall grass, and it can be hard to do drills effectively because the dogs are not often visible in the thick stuff. Summer is the time when we make a great deal of progress in our training, but the challenges are many, and they are real.
When August rolls around, something changes. Every year, there comes a mid-August day when a little hint of Fall arrives, and I realize that in a few short weeks, hunting seasons will start to open. When these hints of autumn arrive, our mindset begins to shift to a hunting focus, and we recognize that pretty soon it will be time to put all that training to use in real hunting environments.
It’s an exciting time, but also a time when Danny and I realize that hunting—and real hunting environments—will present different conditions than the controlled and managed ones we use every day in our training sessions. In order to set our dogs up for success, it becomes important to make a transition and to gradually introduce some realistic hunting scenarios into the mix. In this column, I will discuss that transition period, and how we go about creating realistic hunting environments that will help our dogs get ready for hunting season.
Water workouts are a great way to keep a hunting dog in shape during the summer. (Photos courtesy of Mark Atwater) Hunting Dog Training in the Summer The goal of late-summer training , and the goal of getting our dogs into more realistic hunting environments, is to set our dogs up for success when hunting season rolls around. Success in the hunting field relies on solid foundational work throughout early summer, a dog that is conditioned for the longer and more demanding hours of the hunt, and an awareness on the part of the trainer or handler that training is not over when hunting season begins. The foundational skills that we build in early summer should be drilled, repeated, and cemented in place to ensure that our dogs can perform in the hunt field, and that we as handlers can enjoy the fruits of our summer labors.
The actual hunt is more demanding on the dog, and there are more variables and unknowns. It goes without saying that as we give up a bit of the controlled environment we created in early summer training, we should be able to trust that our dog knows what is expected, and can perform in situations that present more challenges (i.e. thicker cover, wilder birds, and more stimulation).
From a conditioning and preparedness standpoint, as we enter that transitional training period of late summer and introduce more realistic hunting scenarios, it is our responsibility to make sure that our dogs are physically prepared. We always keep our flushers close-shaved through late summer so that training in briars and thick cover doesn’t leave them full of burrs, ticks, and thorns. We make sure that they have the physical conditioning and diet/body composition to allow them to bust brush for longer periods without carrying extra weight or insufficient muscle. We also hold ourselves accountable as trainers: as we gradually introduce more realistic hunting environments, we will get a better sense of where our dog’s weaknesses lie. When those weaknesses present themselves, we MUST be willing to take a step backwards, and to return to the controlled training field to reinforce those skills which don’t seem to hold up in more typical hunting scenarios. To that point, we may need to focus on range, on a solid recall from a distance, or on a dog’s composure (over-stimulation or potentially hesitancy or uncertainty), which can quickly change when they move into the woods or heavier cover.
As the summer cools off, you can transition from water work to morning and evening walks in the woods. (Photos courtesy of Mark Atwater) Transition from Summer Training to Hunting A great place to start the transition to realistic hunting environments is to get your dogs out in the woods a bit for regular exercise. I like to walk a small group of dogs on a wooded trail in late summer for conditioning. The beauty of a wooded trail is that I have a clear direction of travel, and my dogs can range into heavier cover on either side of me. Mature woods present a good deal of distraction and can make it hard for my dogs to see me at all times as they cast off the trail, but there is not such density of cover that they cannot quickly regain a line-of-sight to me, or key back to the trail. A group of dogs running together is given the opportunity to cue off each other while also presenting a more stimulating environment.
As I walk a trail, I keep good track of what dogs are keying in on me and checking back in. Is there a dog in the mix that is ranging too far or failing to work both sides of the trail? Is there a dog that seems slow to turn on my commands? Will a dog that is out of immediate sight return quickly on a recall whistle? If any of these behaviors seem loose on basic woods walks, I need to go back into the training field to firm up the foundational skills .
Training in lower cover allows you to see your dog work so you can make quick corrections for productive training sessions. (Photos courtesy of Mark Atwater) Training Flushing Dogs in the Woods If a dog seems comfortable and connected in the open woods, I can introduce a few more skills in this moderately challenging environment. Maybe I will walk a dog at heel through the trees, recognizing that a dog should heel close even through an obstacle course of saplings or brush. I may do some bumper retrieving sessions in the woods, presenting a scenario where a dog does not have a mown path to direct him on a straight line for the retrieve. I want to see my dog picking as straight a line as possible and marking the fall when there are obstacles in the way. Again, if the dog seems easily distracted or confused, or if the retrieve is not as tight as I’d like, I go back to the field for a few sessions. Eventually, I may even roll some pigeons off the trail to let the dog flush among the trees. The variable here is the new environment, and the challenge for the dog of watching a bird fly through a broken field of view. If all goes according to plan, I may even shoot some of the birds that were rolled into the woods. Note that pigeons are a vital tool in these sessions. Quail or other birds may not elevate well in summer training, and I want to make sure my training birds are getting up and out, creating some commotion on the flush.
Working dogs in the open, mature woods present an intermediate step, and I can generally see through these woods to watch what the dog is doing. If everything progresses to my liking, I can find a slightly denser piece of cover, or one with some green understory. The process begins again, with this added layer of complexity. To the best of my ability, I want to make sure my dog is prepared for success, but I remain ready to step back into a more straightforward environment if my dog encounters challenges.
As a general rule, I try to avoid running my dogs in very thick green cover even as hunting season approaches. If I can’t see the dog, and if the dog is battling just to get through the cover, I am not creating a learning environment that does either of us much good. I’d rather get some quality training accomplished in moderate cover, or re-drill challenging situations in the training field, than frustrate myself and my dog with too many physical obstacles.
As hunting season approaches, it's easy to get excited, and to want to get out in the cover to see what natural birds are present and how a dog might handle them. That said, I encourage trainers to move slowly. The hunting season will come, and the hunting cover will die back with the advancing fall. While there is some summer training time left, take full advantage of it, and move slowly. It is far better to control the training and make it effective than it is to create challenges that the dog is not sufficiently prepared to overcome. A slow progression into more realistic hunting situations will serve both dog and trainer well.
