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Cocker Activities => Working => Topic started by: ips on October 09, 2017, 10:32:13 AM

Title: season started ?
Post by: ips on October 09, 2017, 10:32:13 AM
Who's working season has started and what you been up to so far ?

I have been dogging in for about six weeks (I think 😲) beating starts 4th Nov but I may have a couple of days on a new (to me) shoot before that.
Title: Re: season started ?
Post by: Emilyoliver on October 09, 2017, 02:07:13 PM
We've been dogging in since end August.  Going this coming Saturday to pick up pigeons.  Beating/ picking up season on the shoot starts 28th Oct.  Every saturday with a few week days over festive season.  Can't wait!!
Title: Re: season started ?
Post by: ips on October 09, 2017, 03:34:54 PM
Did you do much with the dogs out of season, as in training / polishing and if so did it pay off ??

Re-dogging in, do you find it beneficial for the dog. Some people consider that you can ruin a beating dog by taking it dogging in ??
Title: Re: season started ?
Post by: Emilyoliver on October 09, 2017, 04:30:55 PM
Not really, no.  I chuck a few dummies about for the older dog very occasionally, but he only really comes alive around birds.  And I do a couple of working tests just to remind myself as much as him about what we're supposed to be doing!  But he's pretty much as trained as he'll ever be.  Otherwise he does agility in summer as a 'filler'.  The other one is only just a year, so has regular training (daily) - he won't be out this season I don't think.

I find it very useful actually.  Aside from him totally loving it, it gets him fit (and me too), and gets him used to the birds before the first shoot day.  It hasn't ruined him yet.  He does range quite far while dogging in and runs lines along the hedges, but he doesn't chase birds once they're up and he's responsive to the whistle.  I suppose it could ruin a dog if it was inclined to bog off a lot anyway.  Pip just isn't, so I'm really lucky.  He's done 2 seasons dogging in and beating/picking up and he's worked fine beating after the dogging in.  So I do think he knows the difference.  Suppose they're 2 very different scenarios.  Hopefully he'll be just as good this season.  I've done little bits of him hunting a pattern and he remembers that fine.
Title: Re: season started ?
Post by: ips on October 09, 2017, 07:15:10 PM
Not really, no.  I chuck a few dummies about for the older dog very occasionally, but he only really comes alive around birds.  And I do a couple of working tests just to remind myself as much as him about what we're supposed to be doing!  But he's pretty much as trained as he'll ever be.  Otherwise he does agility in summer as a 'filler'.  The other one is only just a year, so has regular training (daily) - he won't be out this season I don't think.

I find it very useful actually.  Aside from him totally loving it, it gets him fit (and me too), and gets him used to the birds before the first shoot day.  It hasn't ruined him yet.  He does range quite far while dogging in and runs lines along the hedges, but he doesn't chase birds once they're up and he's responsive to the whistle.  I suppose it could ruin a dog if it was inclined to bog off a lot anyway.  Pip just isn't, so I'm really lucky.  He's done 2 seasons dogging in and beating/picking up and he's worked fine beating after the dogging in.  So I do think he knows the difference.  Suppose they're 2 very different scenarios.  Hopefully he'll be just as good this season.  I've done little bits of him hunting a pattern and he remembers that fine.

Sounds similar to eze, she has of course had her moments dogging in when she has lined a bird but it a bog off as such. I too think they know the difference between dogging and beating...i hope 👍