ARE we too soft

[MIN]

took Gemma working yesterday. Her kit bag consists of water, a power snack (dinner), towelling robe and a fluorescent jacket.
 She is our first working dog and we have trained her ourselves . She only stands 11 inches at the shoulder and weighs about 8 kg. She works her socks off for us, covering more than her share of the drives.She also works non stop and harder than most because of her size, yesterday she was on the go for 6 hours. She is offered fresh water after the drives, a snack at dinner time, wears a hi vis jacket ( she is red in colour) and at dinner time and home time is wrapped in her warm "dressing gown". when we get home her needs are seen to before anything else
Yesterday, i was told that we pamper her and will make her soft.
  In my head, this little dog does me proud and it is only proper that we respect and care for her in return for her work. We see many of the dogs do not even get a drink of fresh water all day, but never have i heard their owners being told off
I like to think that this man with his overweight slug lab was jealous of me and my little pocket rocket
End of rant

[twiceover2]

No way are you too soft.  You are just doing right by your dog.  Anyway, I always think in life generally it's better to be too soft than too harsh.

[Emilyoliver]

If your little dog does the work asked of her and does you proud then you're doing nothing wrong. Surely there is no harm in ensuring she is warm, fed and hydrated during her rest periods. Have you seen any of the photos from the cocker trialling champs? Many of those little dogs had coats on whilst waiting to compete.  Do what you feel is right (sounds like the lab has enough unbuilt insulation to not need any help with keeping warm).

[Pearly]

Labradors and cockers normally have very different roles on a shoot and certainly use different amounts of energy.  The local shoot to me has cockers and a couple of springers for beating, the labs tend to be peg dogs only

No, I don't think you're being too soft just putting Gemma's welfare first - as the working dog guidelines from BASC describe perhaps you could politley point that out next time the Lab owner makes any comment

Pearl is a peg dog, well ok, in the shoot organisers words "eye candy" for the real working dogs she wears her fleece at lunchtime and if there are any extended breaks.  Although I wouldn't want her to wear anything (not even a collar) when out as she may get caught on undergrowth (if ever she ventured in ).  IMO if you are concerned for Gemma's safety during the drives then there is something wrong with the shoot - shots should only be fired whe there is clear sky between the tree line and bird unless its a ground shoot and then I'd be worried about my own safety let alone Gemma's

[JeffD]

I have never heard such a load of dogs danglies, looking after your dog is the number one priority during and after a shoot.

When I get home its dog, gun then me. Don't take any notice you can tell the folks who don't look after their dogs as they have to retire them early due to joint problems. Teal doesn't have coats but the day she shows signs of feeling the cold I will buy one.

I used to carry a towel in my game bag and would dry my dogs off between drives and at lunch time, all my dogs worked well into old age might be because I looked after them.

[MIN]

Labradors and cockers normally have very different roles on a shoot and certainly use different amounts of energy.  The local shoot to me has cockers and a couple of springers for beating, the labs tend to be peg dogs only

No, I don't think you're being too soft just putting Gemma's welfare first - as the working dog guidelines from BASC describe perhaps you could politley point that out next time the Lab owner makes any comment

Pearl is a peg dog, well ok, in the shoot organisers words "eye candy" for the real working dogs she wears her fleece at lunchtime and if there are any extended breaks.  Although I wouldn't want her to wear anything (not even a collar) when out as she may get caught on undergrowth (if ever she ventured in ).  IMO if you are concerned for Gemma's safety during the drives then there is something wrong with the shoot - shots should only be fired whe there is clear sky between the tree line and bird unless its a ground shoot and then I'd be worried about my own safety let alone Gemma's

she wears the hi vis so i can track her. she is so small she runs under the crop tops and a little flash of yellow works wonders. it is loose and uses  Velcro so if she got caught a good yank from her and it would come off. 
i don't worry about the guns, they are not gungho types, but on saying that on fox shoots, i keep her on a long line i prefer it that way( i think one could swallow her whole she is so small )

[VeeBee]

A working dog is a trained athlete, human atheletes take care of themselves before, during and after exercise. In my view people who work their dogs should also take care of their dog's physical needs when out in the field. After a marathon humans are wrapped in space blankets to keep warm to prevent muscle damage, why should this not apply to a top sports dog (working dog in the field). People spend a lot of money on buying or training a working gun dog, so surely it is best to take care of your assets.

I must be soft also, as before a winter snowy walk, I spray the legs of my dog with olive oil to prevent the snow clumping on her legs and afterwards I wash her legs to get rid of the oil and rub paw cream into her paws to prevent cracked paws.

[Wendy G]

I used to get the rise taken out of me because I would not let my dog work near the motorway or on a frozen canal
"Wendy is taking her little dog for a walk"
I would rather be remembered for being too soft on my dog than too hard
Think the jacket is a good idea if you go on shoots where ground game is shot
Ignore them

[Gordon]

You can never ever be too soft when you have a Cocker

[dal55]

I Think you have a star and treat her just as a little working dog should be  x

[Smokey 1]

Quite a few people were very amused, Murphy ( FTCH Moel Famau Grifon) was wrapped up in a towel and carried around in my game bag after his first run at the 2013 Cocker Championship's. The weather was freezing cold -12 and a couple of foot of snow, the dogs welfare is more important than a trophy. You do right by you dog and then you can be sure the dog will do right for you, next time the lab man tells you your being soft, tell him not as soft as the five bellies on his dog 



Smokey

[milly]

I'm sure we all like to refuel at lunch time so why wouldn't your dog! Mine isn't generally interested in water between drives but I always have a bowl down at lunchtime and the end of the day. I take a coat for the cocker for the lunchtime break but up to now its not actually been cold so he hasn't needed it, wearing any sort of coat on the shoot wouldn't last 2 minutes though because the covers too thick. Treat your dog as you see fit and ignore him.

[JeffD]

Quite a few people were very amused, Murphy ( FTCH Moel Famau Grifon) was wrapped up in a towel and carried around in my game bag after his first run at the 2013 Cocker Championship's. The weather was freezing cold -12 and a couple of foot of snow, the dogs welfare is more important than a trophy. You do right by you dog and then you can be sure the dog will do right for you, next time the lab man tells you your being soft, tell him not as soft as the five bellies on his dog 



Smokey

That's a great photo of a very special dog, he can climb in my game bag any day

[Birdy]

That's a great photo of a very special dog, he can climb in my game bag any day

was thinking the same thing myself