Ok Dave, make sense of all these articles!

Here we go and it is quite simple.

First, if you have a Pup or Untrained older dog, always start with "8 weeks to 8 months",

Second, You need to review the "Yard Working Summary"

In both of the above mentioned articles you will encounter references and links to other articles.  Read those articles as you progress so it all makes sense.

Yard & Field Working Plan

An A-Z summary for obedience training your pointing dog. 

Dave calls it "Puttin' a handle on 'em"

Tools: 6 to 8-feet long leash (lead), 20 to 30 feet stiff check cord, an ordinary dog collar, strong flying birds and bird launchers (remote control is best), 22 cal. crimps - cap pistol and small gauge shotgun.  If uncomfortable with an ordinary leash, you may use the cowboy piggin' string.(made popular by Delmar Smith and his 'wonder lead' (same thing)

What is yard work?  Yard work is the foundation to all bird work in the field.  Yard work is where you teach the fundamental field commands only you're doing it at 6 feet in a small controlled area.  We call it yard work because we start in the yard.  This is something that can be done right at home every evening when you get home from work.  Yard work can even be done in the family living room if it’s too dark outside when you get home.

We are often asked "Why yard work" if the dog points/retrieves naturally?  Because if there is ever a mistake or concern and you try to correct it, the dog will not know what or why you are correcting it.  You can do more harm than good in this situation.  Yard work teaches the dog to hone his instincts, to hunt more efficiently, and to hunt to the gun (the handler).  Yard work is to dogs what K-12 is to kids.  It doesn't necessarily make your dog the best/brightest but, if done properly, gives your dog the chance to be the best that it can be because it lays a foundation to build upon.

The Bible has a story about building upon rock or building upon sand.  Solid yard work is building upon rock.  It will support and reinforce what you do in the field.

Regarding Wing on a String and other Techniques found in two books that we recommend:

We do not endorse wing on the string as a training technique. We believe that the Wing on the String teaches sight pointing.   Sight pointing is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if pup sees a bird walk out in front of him.  The point is (pardon the pun) that smelling the bird is more important and thus we want to cultivate his nose to be the best it can be (within the constraints of his breeding).  

This conflicts with Wolters Gun Dog book whose book we recommend (there are several things in Wolters we do not recommend - ask!)  We are asked to explain this a lot.  Don't be confused.  We said we don't use wing on a string to train.  We do use wing on a string on very young pups for photo purposes and to check/enhance their birdiness.  After a while, the wing/string becomes a game to them and many pups will grow bored of it and revert back to chasing it for fun.  No, there's nothing wrong with your pup if you experience wing chasin'.

How can we endorse Wolters Gun Dog and not like wing on the string (and some of his other techniques)?  We do not have our own book written (yet) and thus we recommend a couple books that work if you must have a book. 

I used Wolters book many, many years ago and had success with it.  It's just one of a couple books we know that will work with Brittanys.  We do not wholly endorse all of Wolters (Gun Dog) or Winterhelts (Training and Care of the Versatile Dog) techniques.  We are saying that their techniques work and seem to work well with Brittanys. 

Bottom line is this, if you must use a book, read as much as you can from different trainers and decide which method best fits your dog's personality. 

Most of all, be consistent and don't flit about jumpin' from technique to technique. 

We recommend our techniques over the books and we can only help you if you are using our techniques. 

Books / Videos are good for observing different techniques that accomplish the same thing.  Tailor the training techniques to the personality of your dog, not vice versa!

Keep also in mind that what I describe here is not the only way to do it and I personally have multiple ways to accomplish any one particular task depending upon the personality of the dog!

Of course our described techniques on this page work well as this is what we use!  Our techniques will provide you the necessary info to make a dog steady to wing and shot.  You can stop where you want depending on whether you want 'steady until wing' or steady to wing or 'steady to wing & shot'. 

Btw, steady to wing and shot has always implied that the bird was killed and the dog stood there as it should,  What's ridiculous is to slay a perfect time honored traditional phrase by adding that the dog is steady to 'fall', well of course, you shot it didn't you?  LOL. 

The terms can be confusing but keep it simple in your mind that a dog steady to 'wing & shot' is steady to everything which includes your buddies untrained dog running circles around yours while it's at point! :- o

A dog that is only steady to a cap gun (like in a trial) or if the shooter misses a bird but yet the dog will break if the bird is actually hit (of course it's gonna fall! LOL) is not steady to wing and shot.  Ok, 'nuff said.  See my bird dog terminology for definitions of terms used on this page.

Here's an overview of our plan:

When the pup is ready (8 months or later is our preference) we begin simple yard work. A "ready" dog is one that is birdy, maybe likes to play fetch, and takes his runs in the woods/fields in earnest and with inherent desire to find something.  The only commands we teach prior to yard work is the dogs' name, 'aaaaa' (pronounced like the 'a' in the word 'tack') -means 'no!',  and the command 'down' or 'off' to teach pup to not jump up on anyone.  We also introduce the pup to the word 'dead' when playing fetch with him.

When I say 8 months or later, I am not implying that you should do nothing with your pup with regard to bird training (see our plan for 8 weeks to 8 months!).  If you have access to wild game birds or strong flying pigeons, use them!  Our pups are usually sight pointing wing on a string at 5 to 6 weeks of age (for photos and to check birdiness) and puppy pointing hidden birds shortly thereafter.  Remember this, if your pup was bred to run big and you want it to hunt big, then place as few restrictions on it if possible.

Some Brittany pups mature later and that's ok.  I've seen late bloomers end up being terrific dogs.

We start our pups on native and planted birds with no restrictions. All birds used must be strong flyers in order to get away from a chasing pup. With no yard work, pup usually starts "flash pointing" on its own, and if the instinct is strong, may even stand on point until flush. This is a good time to sound condition pup if it is actively chasing / naturally pointing birds (See my training tips on sound conditioning). 

If pup does naturally stand point and is sound conditioned, kill a few birds over it but don't try to issue commands as he hasn't learned any yet!  Once we've established the pup's desire for birds we move to yard work.  Remember, After sound conditioning and when the pup is ‘flash’ pointing, we kill a few birds over it even though it is not trained.  We do this to increase his level of excitement when he sees you coming to train each day and to keep him in birds early in training.  We want pup to be eager to train.  If pup won't stand point naturally and wants to chase, don't worry - you can still sound condition him.  Don't EVER kill a bird over pup or ANY dog if he busted it and / or is chasing it. 

So now we start our formal yard work. 

Dogs learn in steps / levels / layers / increments (or whatever word).  Each new step builds on the step you are leaving.  You must overlap or blend the previously learned step with the next new step and it must be a logical progression. 

You will build upon what was previously learned with each new lesson thus creating a solid foundation that consists of a complex set of commands that the dog understands.  A dog taught in a logical fashion is a happy dog.  They will look forward to each lesson because everything you are doing is understood by both you and the dog!

You wouldn't take a pup out into the pasture and while it is running freely command 'whoa' without ever having shown the dog what whoa is on a leash would you?  There must be steps leading up to that.  Blending each new step with the previous step helps the dog to understand what is expected (tired of me saying that?).  Always start and end your lesson positive with something you know the pup knows!

I like to use a six to eight-foot leather lead to begin to teach the dog "heel". This is the first layer or step that we will build upon (or you can teach come on the lead before heel on the lead - whichever you prefer). Heel is easily taught with little or no pressure and is a controlling command that will not interfere with the dogs range if done right!  Heel comes in handy / crosses over in later yard work. Heel is like the foundation to a house.  If it’s good, everything else that follows will be easier to teach. 

Heel does this: 1. teach pup to carry his head up to smell and find birds, 2. give you control without taking the fire out of him or sacrificing range, 3. help you later with the natural retrieve, 4. gives your pup the foundation step for all commands that follow, including any tricks you may want to teach.

When your lesson is over, release the dog from heel with a gentle tap on his head with a simultaneous and quick double whistle blast.  This teaches your dog to 'release' and 'go' which will be important later on in the field.  All this is done in the yard away from birds.

When the pup understands and performs heel (heeling properly in the yard with complete slack in the lead) we give it a few planted birds in launchers in the field (Don't forget to desensitize the pup to flushes as described in my article to prevent launcher shyness).

We heel young pup to the launcher for his first bird or two, perpendicular to the downwind scent cone.  A scent cone is like an invisible ice cream shaped cone that contains the scent of the bird as it wafts away from the bird (the point of the cone) in the wind to you (the big end of the cone). We heel the first time or two so that when pup smells scent, pup is smelling with his HEAD UP and will turn its head into the wind letting you know he has it. If pup does not stop on his own, we do not restrain it, instead, putting the bird up to make pup think he accidentally flushed it himself.  In fact, on the first couple of birds, I will replant them in the same place just to bold him up and give him a chance to anticipate.  After that, I move them around a good bit to keep 'em guessing!

I have found that finding that first planted bird head up is absolutely KEY to helping him figure out that he can find more birds with his head up in the air rather than down on the ground smelling tracks.  This is very important because almost all pups want to smell the ground.  Why? Because there's all kind of interesting scent down there however, that is not the way to quickly and efficiently find birds.  We are helping him figure this out on his own.  My philosophy in training is this "put your bird dog in a position to succeed, not one that allows failure".

After 2 or 3 times, many pups will point intensely from the heel position with no prompting and will hold till flight.  After he discovers birds, he will not want to heel!  At this point in his training, it is ok to let him pull the leash in front of you to help build his desire to find the birds.  Once he is puppy pointing, we kill a few birds (assuming he is sound conditioned, if not, do it now)…we’re keeping up pups desire.  (See teaching heel). 

You might think you need to whoa your pup in this exercise but refrain from doing it.  We want him to understand that he cannot catch the bird.  Also, giving your pup birds from an early age (even at 8 weeks!) in training help to keep your pup excited.  Sometimes many repetitions are required before pup begins to understand his movement causes the bird to flush wildly.  Pigeons that come back to the loft are essential for this exercise.

Now we move on to the 'whoa' command at heel in the yard.  We sometimes use the barrel turned on its side to teach whoa before teaching it on the lead. The Barrel technique is found in the tip index. I prefer to teach whoa on the leash (lead).  You can use a verbal, non-verbal, and a whistle command for whoa (or any other command) if you wish.  Just use all three every time you ask him to whoa then eventually use each one independently until he understands that all three mean the same thing.  Personally, I use the hand signal (traffic cop stop sign, hand open, palm towards dog) and the verbal command.  I don't teach a whistle signal for whoa in the beginning.  If you want a whistle signal, simply add it as described earlier in this paragraph (use a DISTINCT and UNUSUAL whistle sound for whoa so that no one else ends up with accidental control of your dog unless you always hunt along).

At this point in the plan, We have taught him to release, come, heel and whoa, reinforced whoa from the barrel, plus taught him to keep his head up at heel and whoa. We always release pup from whoa with a tap on the head and a simultaneous double whistle (or gunshot for those who want steady to wing), I'll explain later.

Once the pup is releasing, coming, heeling, whoaing at heel, and keeping its head up, we start adding additional steps to the whoa training (See teaching whoa).

Next we begin to teach whoaing to the young pup while he is no longer at heel but still on the 6 ft. long lead with pup tugging at you on the lead out front, still in the yard.  At the same time, we add quartering (moving back and forth like a windshield wiper out front of you) on the lead and coming to his name when called, still in the yard.  This is part of the blending of steps or layering process.  He learned whoa standing next to you at heel, now he is learning whoa out front which is very different from the pups perspective. Every new step is built upon the previous one.

Quartering training is easily done at this time. 

NOTE:  Quartering is taught so that the dog will learn to run to objectives to his left then to his right.  It is not a meaningless windshield wiper motion though it may appear as a long distance windshield wiper motion in featureless flat prairie grasslands.  Bird dogs should seek objectives.  There are many locations where the land is featureless, no pot holes, no 'edge', no nothing, just a sea of flat open CRP land.  In this instance a quartering dog has no objective to run to rather he should cast wide left then cast wide right.  (photo below).  That's how we do it in those areas.  A dog that runs a straight line in those areas will miss many birds.

Quartering is the act of the dog casting far to the left then far to the right so as to 'sweep' the field and find birds.  Some describe it as a windshield wiper motion HOWEVER, that does not mean it is a back and forth action at 25 yards!!!!!  If that is all you wanted then all you would need is a close working flushing dog like a lab or cocker!

Quartering behaves in a couple of different ways.  If you are hunting in a location with 'objectives', that is, a place with edge cover, scattered mesquites, fence rows, irrigation ditches, etc. your dog should cast to the objectives on the right then cast to the objectives on the left.  The dog has time to do this if foot handling.  If pushing the dog from an ATV / horse / jeep, the dog will have less time to run to objectives left and right which may mean a second pass through that area.

Not every hunting place has objectives like the mid-west, east coasters, and westerners are use to.  There are plenty of places from Texas to Montana and the Dakota's that have featureless CRP.  Here's a photo of just one place.  The birds are not in any one specific location and there is no similarity from one clump of grass to the next as to where they will be:

Also, not every hunt needs quartering.  One example is a ruffed grouse or woodcock hunt.  In that style of hunting the dog needs to be quiet and close.

Ok, Teaching your dog to Quarter:  Give the one word command you want to use to turn pup (we use ‘hup’ though retriever trialers use that command for sit - so be it, you can use whatever word you wish if this bothers you.) simultaneously with the corresponding whistle command, then walk that direction yourself, arm outstretched with your hand signal pointing the direction your heading. Don't tug, check him*, and be sure to keep pup in front, stopping if you have to. Soon pup will learn that the word and whistle command means change directions. Once he understands both, you will want to give the verbal/whistle command separate so that he knows each mean the same.

You may have to *check pup with the lead to get his attention that you are changing directions.  Checking is different than pulling or tugging. 

*Checking is a sharp but brief jerk of the leash.  It sends a signal to the dog that it is being corrected.  If you simply tug or pull, the dog will give you a physics lesson by giving you an equal opposite reaction-pulling back at you.  So remember to check to correct.  Never use checking with pronged, choke, spiked collars.  We use an ordinary dog collar placed loosely around his neck!

If you have to check him, and most do, simultaneously give the command to change direction and soon he will change immediately when you speak the verbal command because he does not want to be checked.  You should raise the arm on the side of your body that you intend pup to go. Reaching across your chest to indicate a direction can confuse the pup. Later, this translates to him looking when commanded afield, so that he goes where you point with your outstretched arm. Soon after, he'll be so acclimated to your body language that you won't even have to raise a hand to indicate direction, rather he will key off of the direction you are headed.  If you hunt from a horse, jeep, atv, etc, he will begin to key off the direction your mode of transportation is pointed.

An alternative Quartering training method is this and I really like this one as it is one I often use:

Plant a couple pigeons in hidden launchers about 50 to 75 yards apart in natural objectives (assuming he is pointing, remote controlled launchers if not). On a long check cord, let him run to the end and lead him _away_ but near the first birds scent cone. Then give him the quartering command/whistle (hup) while pointing with outstretched arm towards the birds scent cone.  If he disobeys, simply take him into the scent cone. He will point/flush (depending on training), you fire the blank gun/kill the bird if he points it. If he's not pointing yet, simply let him see the flushing bird and get excited. Now head towards the opposite launcher and repeat.  Repeat this sequence several times over several lessons and he will quarter with you as he now thinks you are the almighty BIRD god.  He will WANT to quarter/come with you whenever you ask. 

Later in his training, you can use the method to teach the dog that you have discovered birds on your own and can simply call in him by saying "birds in here" or whatever term/signal you wish to use.  Yes, its the dogs job but there ARE times afield when your dog is one direction and you see and/or hear wild birds the other direction.

NOTE on Quartering Pattern:  It should be a 'forward' running figure 8 not a backwards figure 8.  If the dog is turning into you when turning to go back across the field to make his figure eight, that is wrong and inefficient as he is covering ground he already hunted.  We want the dog turning forward, out and away from the handler when making his figure eight.  Be sure to do enough quartering repetitions so as to brain wash your pup in yard work on this expected pattern.  When you go to the field on a check cord, you will need to reinforce the learned pattern at a great distance.  Your dog should be turning forward between the imaginary clock hands of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.  This is not to say that your pup should not independently seek objectives when hunting, this is to establish an efficient hunting pattern in the absence of objectives.  What is an objective?  It is a place that potentially holds birds such as brush, trees, plum thickets, hedge rows, etc.  A smart dog will recognize those sorts of cover as potential bird holding areas and 'seek' them out by running on the downwind side to quickly and efficiently find birds.

Now we have arrived at the point in the yard work where you have accomplished this with your pup:

In the yard, he releases, whoa's, quarters, and comes to you at the big distance of 6 whole feet.  If your dog isn't perfect at 6 feet, why would you expect it at 300 feet?  Remember, steps.  We will incrementally work him out further and further.  You dog now carries his head up and is almost perfect at each command.  He should be heeling off the lead at this point as well.  He quarters in a 'forward 8' pattern and is kept between 10 and 2 on his forward pattern.

Now that we have completed our yard work on the lead, we move to the check cord (20 to 30 feet long). We go through the same commands while you hold the check cord in your hand. Pup now heels without a lead, quarters on command, comes on command, and whoa's instantly.

When he is doing well on the check cord in your hand, drill pup in an enclosed area (like a fenced back yard) with pup dragging the check cord instead of us holding it, we go through the same drills, repeating over and over.  Now he's doing it at 30 feet with the check cord in your hand!  See, we are working him out away from us and he is learning to do it at any distance but he's not quite there yet!

If pup is doing everything well dragging the check cord in an enclosed area, then take the check cord completely off and repeat your commands (remember, we are still doing YARD WORK, thus do it in the YARD where he has learned everything so far). 

If all goes well it's time to move afield. Always back up one level if pup falters. Correct behavior through repetition teaches pup to do what / when asked without even thinking.

Afield, We go through the whole routine on the lead briefly, then the check cord, then dragging check cord, then no check cord. If the repetition is there and you've not rushed pup, you can whoa or turn pup with a single command at any distance pup can hear you off the check cord completely.  If pups messes up at any level in the training, back up one step.  Guess what?  We didn't use an e-collar, whoa board, whoa post, studded collar, etc.!  Whoo-Hoo!!!

Folks this takes time, patience, and an even temper. Sessions are never more than 10-15 minutes, 2 to 3 well spaced times a day. Always start and end positive like doing something you know he can do well. 

I like 10 minutes twice a day and if the dog had a particularly tough session, I will only train that dog once that day and maybe even skip training the next day, replacing it with additional fun time on the 'off day'.  Also, if you are blending / layering (adding a new step) and pup does it well at say, 6 minutes, then stop and praise!  He learns that by doing what you ask there is a reward! Sometimes pup can be confused if you keep drilling the same thing into their head in the same lesson.  So remember, brevity sometimes has more gravity!  Also, have fun time on birds in between days/lessons.  This is where you let him find birds that will fly away (not be caught).  This pleases your pup and keeps his fires lit.  Don't be a drill sergeant!

Eventually, you will put him at heel and take him to the release location (field work!).  You will then release him while you still hold the end of the leash (darn, field work at 6 feet).  Let him find the bird and establish point on his own, you will remotely launch the bird and fire the gun.  If he is standing steady after the shot, great!  Heel him away. (THIS IS the beginning of learning to be steady to wing and shot).  OK? Then move to the check cord and do the same. OK? Then move to dragging the check cord and do the same. OK? Then move to no check cord. OK? Good.  Make sure you are planting your birds in natural objectives if possible but not the same one every time!  YOU DO NOT HAVE to make your dog steady to wing/shot.  Read on...

If you want your dog to break at the flush, then don't check your dog and let him break at flush.  At a minimum, your dog should stand until the bird flushes for safety reasons.  Your dog should allow you to walk out front of him to make the flush yourself so that even if the dog breaks at flush (steady until flush), he still has to come from behind you which still makes it much safer to shoot the flushing bird.

If I wanted steady to wing, I would teach in this order: 1. check pup if he breaks at the flush and put him back where he was standing (repeat the command to him when doing it).  I would repeat on another bird over several lessons if I had to until he stands stead TO the flush which is steady to wing.  I would then shoot birds over him as long as he allows your to walk out front and flush the bird without him breaking.

If steady to wing and shot is what I wanted, I would teach as above and begin work on steadiness to shot assuming he is perfectly steady to wing.  If he breaks only at shot, I would check him as I did above and repeat.  Soon your dog is steady to wing and shot on a leash, then a check cord, then no check cord.  See the layering and blending of each step with the other?

A note about steady UNTIL flush, not steady to flush.  'Until flush' means the dog breaks when the bird flushes whether it be a wild flush or your flushed it purposely.  That dog always breaks at flush.  I recommend 'steady to wing' at a minimum.

NOTE:  Some dogs will do better only being required to be steady until flush their first year.  After a year of hunting and shooting a lot of birds over your dog it may actually be easier to steady him further.

If in training pup gets a little soft on point, kill the bird and let pup run to it and mouth it. We recommend killing birds early in training once the pup points long enough to allow you to flush it. This maintains high drive and intensity.  This is the point in training where you must decide whether you want a dog 'steady until flush' or 'steady to wing' or 'steady to wing and shot'.

If pup picks up the bird you have shot, call him to you, kneel down and turn away from him while patting your leg with your left hand and command heel.  Be careful to not look him in the eye but to watch him from your peripheral vision.  Sometimes a pup that makes eye contact will stop short and drop the bird.  If done right, He should come along side of you without thinking as heel is automatic for him, if you did your yard work properly. 

Take the bird after a minute or two (NOT right away) so that he can associate the pleasure of having the bird in his mouth with your tactile and verbal praise.  Remember, pup only retrieves because he enjoys it, not because you told him so keep it pleasurable.  If you want pup to retrieve because you told him, then later in his life, around age 2, you will want to teach the trained retrieve or force training.

The wing & shot dog (not a young pup) has learned that it is not released from whoa unless you physically release him.  The steady to wing dog has learned that a shot must be fired before he can move.  To release your steady to wing dog on a non-productive you can command it to move with either a touch, heeling away, and/or double whistle blast however, I strongly recommend touch or heel for the w & s dog.  BTW, Most hunters find steady until flush good enough.

Now that pup is steady to the level you selected (until flush, to wing, or to wing/shot), heels, whoa's, quarters, comes on command afield, we fine tune his natural inclination to retrieve. If pup won't retrieve naturally, doesn't like it, then you'll have to perform the trained retrieve or force retrieve. 

For developing the natural retrieve, you can visit my tip section covering that. Now we move to 2 other training locations and repeat. Pup still has it down? Pup is trained to point, comes, whoas, quarters, heels when you let him out of the dog box, knows that he isn't released until he gets the double tap/whistle.

Now, why the tap and double whistle? The tap/double whistle mean the same thing 'Go'.  This helps us teach the dog he is never released from whoa unless we physically release him. The whistle translates to GO and can be used when dealing with a pottering dog or one that drops and rolls in excrement....simply double whistle and it reminds him "oh yeah, GO!"  The double whistle blast can also be used in conjunction with 'hup' which means for him to turn (different meaning than for the retriever guys).  Some folks use it for 'steady until flush' or steady to wing dogs as a release.  I do not recommend using it as a release for wing and shot dogs that compete.  Yes, I know I wrote this earlier in this article.

Also remember to NEVER, NEVER call your dog off of whoa!  He can only be released from whoa with a tap on the head, or heeling him away, or our verbal release command, or the shotgun being fired (steady to wing) or the flush of the bird (steady until flush).  This increases his steadiness on birds if he knows he can't move until you appropriately release him.

Folks, you just read a summary of a yard working plan.  Key elements of that yard working plan are discussed in different articles on this page such as the following article which addresses HOW to teach 'Whoa'.

Tips index

FAQ's (frequently asked questions)

Teaching WHOA!

This is the often-asked question regarding the training of young gun dogs. There are many different ways to teach whoa and I will say up front, there are more ways to skin the proverbial cat than one can count.  My way is certainly not the only way.  Different ways fit different dogs.  My way seems to fit Brittanys well.

Whoa is taught to help each pup understand to hold his/her point after pup has already established point on his own. We never "whoa" a dog into a point. We teach the dog to naturally go on point by using strong flying quail/pigeons that pup can't catch (see 'heel' and 'yard working plan') or wild birds if the time of the year and wild populations are sufficient.

After setting the dog up in a few training situations that teaches pup that he can't catch the birds, the well bred pup will naturally start pointing on his own. This is when we kill a bird for pup to help develop desire (don't do this unless you have already performed proper sound conditioning).  Later, after some considerable training, we will use the calmly stated reminder "whoa" so he can be steadied to wing. For definitions of "steady until flush", "steady to wing", "steady to wing and shot", go to the FAQ section of this Tips page.

We believe that the first commands to teach pup are coming to his name using soft techniques and teaching pup to cease inappropriate activities when told "NO" or "aaaaaa" ('a' as in the work tack or bad).  You might want to consider another command other than "NO" because it can confuse pup when you later teach the "WHOA" command. We do not believe that the command "sit" is appropriate at the beginning phases of training since it often times confuses pup when teaching whoa (pup will try to sit when commanded whoa - See “Sit? Not Yet!” On this web page).  'Sit' won't ruin the pup but may cause training delays because you now have to teach the difference between the two.  The problem with sit is that when you begin to teach whoa it may become his default posture since whoa is a controlling command and pup will want to sit.

Let's make it clear how important whoa is: Whoa can save a pups life! Pup must learn this command and learn it well. Whoa can keep pup from bolting in front of a car or any other terrible situation you can think of not to mention that it a fundamental yard working command that lays the foundation for the pup when it’s time for field work.  A dog taught whoa properly will not creep/bust/chase.

Whoa is not a command you will want to use on birds every time for the rest of pups life, instead, it is a command to help bridge understanding.  Pup must learn that it is to stay standing until released.  Whoa bridges that gap.

We teach whoa at about the same time that pup has learned "heel" (see my yard working plan).  We teach heel first because it is an easy command to teach and it is a very good controlling command that doesn't harm hunting spirit.  Heel is the ‘jumping off point’ for all other yard and field work commands that follows (please read the 'heel' section).  It ties together the command to whoa as well as keeping the dog’s head up.  For a dog to point with style, they need to understand that they should carry themselves in the field with their head up to efficiently find game and to stay steady at whoa when they find game.  They also come to understand that when they are released from heel with the double whistle/tap, they are to start running, hunting, and having fun.  The heel command does not affect them mentally in the field unless improperly applied.

BEFORE I start with how to teach whoa, keep this in mind, your dog is never allowed to be released from whoa unless you allow it by deciding at the beginning of your training program that he is to either be 'steady to wing & shot ('shot' has always implied kill / fall)', 'steady to wing' or 'steady until flush'.  CREEPING WITH YOU AS YOU GO IN TO FLUSH IS UNSAFE! 

Decide now that you will teach your dog:  

A. To either 1. Break at the flush (steady until flush) or 2. break at the shot (steady to wing) or 3. only break when commanded, even if a kill was made - this is steady to wing and shot.

No matter the level of training, he will heel or be commanded to release with touch and/or whistle to continue hunting should you have a non-productive (no bird was produced or was anything shot at).

No matter what level of steadiness you choose, Steadiness is important! 

Keep in mind that even if a dog that is only steady until flush and has a non-productive he will need a release touch or command.  I prefer touch.

Once the pup has learned "heel" we add "whoa". When you stop walking and the pup is properly heeled at your side, he will naturally come to a stop as well.  We take advantage of that and command in an easy tone "whoooa" every time we stop, that is step 1 of the dog learning whoa!   You may stroke him up and talk sweet talk but don't let him move (this is a good time to introduce Positive Vibration - see that article on this page).  Do this every time you stop while he is at the heel position. In pups' mind, he will associate stopping with the word "whoa".

The reason we use an easy tone when commanding "whoa" is that when you really need it, like pup bolting across a busy road, you can say it loudly and firmly, which will certainly get pups attention!  Also, teaching whoa in a nice way up front teaches him that pleasure is associated with the word, not harshness.  If the pup doesn’t stop when you stop, then you will need to lightly check him with the lead, set him back to the position of heel and command whoa – style him up while he is standing there and give him some sweet talk while repeating ‘whoa’.  He will associate good things with standing and hearing the ‘whoa’ word so will be more apt to stop and stand the next time you are heeling him and command whoa.  View this mpeg movie clip of a dog that is just learning heel with whoa (250K). (open with windows media player)

We want our dog to stop abruptly when commanded to whoa.  This carries over to the field later as your dog will associate whoa with pointing and be more apt to 'slam' on point rather than slow down and finally stop to point.  Slowing down when it smells faint amounts of scent then stopping after it has strong scent is actually a form of creeping!  We want our dogs to slam on point!  SLAMMING ON POINT IS THE HALLMARK FEATURE OF MY PROGRAM!  Pointing on first scent is absolutely essential for spooky wild birds!

One way to get your pup to 'slam' to a stop on whoa is to command him to whoa while simultaneously coming to an abrupt stop yourself.  Many young pups will be spooked into stopping suddenly at which point you gently style him up and coo the 'whoooa' command in conjunction with sweet talk and stroking.  Repeat until you don't have to make abrupt movements to get the pup to stop suddenly.  I find that by suddenly placing my lead hand quickly in front of the pups face with palm open toward pup making the traffic cop stop sign also helps him to understand to stop suddenly.  You can also suddenly slide your feet when you come to a stop and the noise created by your feet will cause the young dog to be bewildered and stop suddenly.  You can also give the dog a sudden 'check' when you come to the sudden stop while simultaneously speaking 'whoa'.  Any or all of these combinations will help the dog understand to whoa instantly.

We like to add the "Barrel technique" at the same time that we're adding whoa to the heel command, since it really teaches pup to stand firmly and intensely. The Barrel technique is found in my tips index.  It is not necessary but does help those dogs that just don't get it.  Some of you may not have good control of your dog with an ordinary lead.  If this is true, I recommend Delmar Smith's Wonder Lead which sells for about 20 bucks and comes with instructions.  A cheap alternative if in cowboy country is to go to the farm and ranch store and get a two strand piggin' string for about 9 bucks.

Please read our section on 'heel' as it explains how to introduce the pup to birds using heel and how to cultivate the dogs nose properly.

When pup is conditioned enough to heel without you holding onto the lead and pup is whoaing at your side, it's time to start the "walk out front" routine. This is the next step in teaching whoa in your yard work. This is done easily while heeling, commanding whoa, BOTH of you stop suddenly (ensure that he is at whoa), then walking out in front of pup while raising your arm out from your body with your hand in the "stop" position (like a traffic cop signals stop) towards pup (a good photo of this is on our photo page of teaching heel).  Pup may be confused and try to walk with you. If he does, say nothing, pick him up, put him back where you originally whoa'ed him, then repeat firmly, "whoa" and speak some of the same sweet talk you used in his earlier training when teaching him to whoa at your side. Now 'walk out front™' again. Soon pup will associate the non-verbal "stop-sign" with the command whoa and knows to stay put.  You may also hold the lead in your hand when you walk out front so that if he creeps, you can 'check' him (see checking in my yard working plan) to reinforce the whoa command.

Why is the 'walk out front™' routine important?  It is the fundamental building block for a dog that will be steadied until flush or to wing or wing and shot (wing and shot has always implied through the kill / fall of the bird). 

How is it a fundamental building block?  When the dog goes on point, you want him to stand on point (at whoa) while you walk out in front of him to flush the bird right?  If pup won't let you walk out front with him on whoa in the yard, why would you expect him to do it in the field????  Here is an MPEG movie clip of the walk out front in yard work:  Click Here (280K). (open with windows media player)

Once the pup is basically standing at whoa and letting you walk out front, he may challenge you by taking a step or two towards you or away from where he originally was whoa'ed.  To stop this, gently check him with the lead that you are holding in your hand while standing out front of him and repeat sharply “Whoa!” then put him back where he was standing.  Soon your dog will let you walk out front and he will stand there without moving.  Add a degree of difficulty to the command once he is doing this by walking a large circle around him.  He may just follow you with his head or he may turn around.  If he moves his feet, put him back and repeat as above.  Whoa means no foot movement!  Later we will refine this by not allowing him to move his head or tail.

We want an absolute whoa! ^tm  My term absolute whoa ^tm means GIVE NO GROUND!  Whoa means whoa, no half steps, nothing!

Let me make one point here: You don't have to use the non-verbal hand signal command but it is heaven sent when in a tense hunting situation. It really works well in Hunt Tests when you are not suppose to do anything other than quietly and gently remind your dog to stay at honor. Often the judges won't even see your subtle reminder and will be amazed at your dogs' great intensity at whoa when honoring.

Keep this in mind: At the beginning of your training program, you must decide that either you will: 

A.  touch him on the head to release him to continue hunting as in a non-productive / running bird or for the retrieve.  This is steady to wing/shot (wing and shot has historically always implied steady through a miss or kill and fall), or

B. allow him to break when the bird is flushed or allow him to break when you shoot a gun (for steady until flush or steady to wing respectively).

Now it's time to teach the 'walking whoa™'.  This time we don't stop and say “whoa”.  While walking with our dog at heel we command "whoa" calmly while the handler continues to walk (without stopping). The dog will be confused and probably only hesitate instead of whoaing because you usually stop before commanding whoa and he is probably associating whoa more with you stopping than the actual word itself.

Think like a dog here, each situation is unique to him and pup is easily confused. Simply stop, say nothing, pick him up, and return him to the approximate spot where you commanded whoa while walking, put him down and say "whoa" firmly. BINGO, he makes a connection! He learned earlier that when you put him back and firmly said "whoa", that he had messed up by not staying at whoa. Now we're making progress. Repeat this exercise several times until he does it perfectly. Perfect means stopping immediately when calmly told whoa and staying there while you are walking. Don't make this too difficult yet. Only walk out front 5 to 6 feet with lead in hand, turn and face him with the stop sign. NEVER SAY WHOA AGAIN when walking out front; in other words, saying it once means stay put!  Don’t forget to style him up with sweet talk and such.  If your dog is particularly stubborn, you can check him when you command whoa instead of putting him back....so it goes like this on the walking whoa:  walk with dog at heel, command 'whoa' but while you still walk.  If he doesn't immediately stop on the command 'whoa', immediately check him and repeat the command.  You may need to put him back where he was to add emphasis.

Now we start adding greater degrees of difficulty. Try trotting with your dog at heel and commanding whoa. Again, this is different to pup and he will be confused. Check him / put him back as above. Soon pup will SLAM on brakes when commanded whoa (calmly) while running.

Note:  If your dog is not slamming to a stop when commanded to whoa, you are not doing the job properly.  Go BACK to whoaing at heel and check the dog if it does not stop immediately when commanded to whoa.  Immediately means no further movement - stop mid-step - freeze! 

Next step is to go back to ordinary yard work except this time; pup is working at leads length IN FRONT of you (a 6 feet long lead is what we use for all yard work when not using the check cord). He is no longer heeling; he's working out front so guess what? He will be confused when you command whoa. Put him back as above. Soon pup will understand to stop immediately at whoa when commanded at leads' length. This is also the time when we start teaching "hup" or "round" or whatever word you want to change the quartering dogs direction afield. That will be a separate lesson that we will post later.

When pup is whoaing immediately at leads' length, we move to the check cord (holding it in our hand). You guessed it, just like above. When pup is doing this well, in an enclosed yard, we let pup drag the check cord and start work on whoa from there. Now we do it in the enclosed yard without a check cord.

This is where I like to make it interesting.  Assuming pup is whoaing on command in an enclosed safe area, I like to add distractions to test his steadiness and to improve his staunchness on whoa. 

Take a bag full of live pigeons that will come back over and over (to save money!) and have them on standby.  Go get your dog and bring him to the enclosed area, carefully so that he does not smell the pigeons (keep him upwind!).  Now ask him to whoa.  While he is at whoa, retrieve your bird bag full of live pigeons.  Just the sight or sound of pigeons in a bird bag may excite him to move off whoa.  If it does cause him to move, put him back and command whoa.  Go back and get your bird bag.  Now, we begin the 'pigeon toss' game.  Toss pigeons up into the air so that your dog can see them fly away.  Your young dog will undoubtedly break from whoa and try to give chase.  Calmly collect your dog and put him back at whoa.  Repeat.  It make take several lessons before your dog will stand at whoa and let you fly pigeons over his head. 

Folks, it is normal for your dog to 'mark' the flight of the pigeons.  To 'mark' is to stay in the same spot and spin his body around to watch the bird fly away, that is good.  We just don't want him to take a step towards the bird.  So if the bird flies over him to his rear, it is normal to spin around and watch, to spin then walk/run towards the bird is not good.

Some field trialers will train the mark out of their dog for appeal to judges.  It is not only unnatural but in my estimate, unethical if actually killing the birds.  A dog with a proper mark on a wounded bird has a great chance of making the retrieve thus not wasting game.  One more area where bird hunting and trialing depart ways.

When pup has that down, we move to the bird field and start from heel, then lead, then check cord, then dragging check cord, then no check cord. Always back up a step if he refuses. Remember that pup will be a little stubborn in the bird field because you have already killed a bird over him with one of his puppy points earlier in his developmental stages. This is good, it's desire!  You can also repeat the 'pigeon toss' game in the field as described above.

NEVER WHOA A DOG TO POINT!  Your dog must learn to establish his own point (through some help by you).  Once he establishes his own point, then - and only then do you command whoa to your young green trained pup (this is a good time to use positive vibration IF you have blended it in earlier as a form of praise).  Hopefully this is where the light bulb eventually comes on!  If you have taught whoa properly, he will stand there without moving and let you flush and shoot the bird in a safe manner.  You may also use the pigeon toss technique in the field to help steady him to wing or wing and shot.

Keep this in mind:  your dog is never allowed to be released from whoa unless you:   A. heel him away (as in yard work or after steadiness to wing/shot), or B. touch him on the head to release him (to continue hunting or for the retrieve as in wing/shot), or C. shoot a gun for steady to wing, or D. allow him to break at the flush for steadiness.  This teaches him later to never move once he is either commanded or self-initiates a whoa.  Steadiness is important!

Final words: If you have taken your time, kept lessons to less than 15 minutes (10 minutes preferable), ended each lesson positive, had separate play time each day, and been patient and kept your cool, then pup will whoa on a dime at any distance that pup can hear you. Any refusal where pup does not whoa on the dime, you MUST back up one step, sometimes several steps. Don't rush and remember to love your dog even on bad days. If you're having a "bad hair day" ;-), DON'T TRAIN THAT DAY. This is a 10 to 15 year bond on average, so have fun together!

Tips index

FAQ's (frequently asked questions)

 Teaching heel in yard work for your Gun dog.

The pointing dog should know the command heel. This command is one that is often overlooked but is actually the fundamental building block of later yard work. Other than the dogs' name, and the meaning of no, this is the first command we teach. Follow along with us as we explain step by step how to teach your dog heel. We have some photo's hyperlinked into this text for easy reference. The photos are placed together on another page. It may be easier to read the instructions then go to the photos, which are all in sequence.

We teach heel first because it is an easy command to teach and it is a very good controlling command that doesn't damper hunting spirit.  Heel is the ‘jumping off point’ for all other yard and fieldwork commands that follows.  It ties together the command to whoa as well as keeping the dog’s head up.  It helps with the natural retrieve later as well.  For a dog to point with style, they need to understand that they should carry themselves in the field with their head up to efficiently find game and to stay steady at whoa when they find game.  They also come to understand that when they are released from heel with the double whistle/tap, they are to start running, hunting, and having fun.  The heel command does not affect them mentally in the field unless improperly applied.

Teaching your Gundog to heel is easy. Get a 6 feet long leather lead with a heavy snap. Position his collar with the snap hanging straight down under his chin. Hold the lead as demonstrated in this photo. A little slack in the collar is good. Pat your left leg and walk slowly while circling to your left trying to get him to walk beside your left leg.  Click here to view a brief mpeg movie clip that shows a totally untrained dog begin heeling lessons (115K).  Click here for a short mpeg movie clip of lesson two, the same dog (115K).  Keep in mind each lesson is only 10 minutes and separated by several hours - note how the dog is attentively looking at me - you can see the light bulb starting to come on!

If he lags behind or away from you, immediately pat your left leg while saying the heel command. You can crouch slightly while doing this to encourage the dog to come to your side. Remember to keep walking (slowly) while doing this. This is the hardest part of teaching heel. Once you get the dog heeling, the rest comes easy. If he continues to lag behind or away from you, you will have to give a correction but not a painful correction. Do this: With the lead in your left hand, correct him by firmly bumping the snap on the lead straight up (photo) with your left hand while saying the heel command and then patting your left leg (see checking in our 'yard work plan'). Don't bump him too hard or you will put him off his training. Only give the correction with a verbal "heel". The only other time we use this correction method is when he is heeling but has his nose on the ground sniffing. We don't ever want our pointing dog with his nose on the ground. He finds birds best with his nose up, right? This is where we start the fundamentals of keeping the dogs' head up. After much repetition, he doesn't even think about walking with his head down. This translates later to the bird field when hunting birds.

Our properly heeling dog walks at our left side, his head beside our left leg, and head up (head up because that's how we want him to hunt) with slack in the lead. Observe this photo of Chief heeling while he is dragging the lead (dragging the lead comes later in training as the dog progresses). He should not be fighting you to go his own way.

Now to get him to stay close to you while initially learning to heel, always make left turns/circles. We do this so that he gets use to his head being close to your leg. After several lessons of this, you can start making right turns. Eventually, he should be walking beside you no matter what direction you walk. Patting your leg and saying heel helps a lot when teaching this command. At first, you'll feel a little awkward on how to hold the lead. Here's a tip: To pat your left leg with you left hand you must shift the lead over to your right hand.

If he starts to get ahead of you while heeling, hold the lead in your left hand while taking the rest of the lead in your right hand. Do a little overhand flip of the lead with your right hand so that the end of the lead passes in front of the nose. Say heel when you do this. Doing this teaches him to not walk ahead of you. It takes a little practice to learn to flip the lead, but you'll get it. Don't flip it hard and don't strike your dog, ever. We only want his attention to remind him he is too far ahead (photo).  AND/OR, you can use your right foot to correct him.  Since he is on the left, simply cross your right foot in front of your left leg and let it bump him in the nose while commanding 'heel'.

If your dog is simply too much for you to handle and you don't have the ability to utilize our method of  teaching heel the way we describe, consider Delmar Smith's 'Wonder Lead'.  It's a good tool for teaching heel.  Please, only use it if you can't accomplish teaching heel the way we describe.  Delmar's lead comes with an instruction page and can be purchased from most bird dog supply stores on the internet.  Here's one: http://gundogsupply.com

Once pup is heeling properly, put him on birds.  Heel him perpendicular to the down wind scent cone (see scent cone in 'yard working plan') so that when he smells the bird you will know because he will turn his head into the scent cone and alert you to his recognition of scent.  If he tries to lunge at the bird, simply release it to fly away (remote controlled bird launchers work well).  Soon he will learn to point his quarry so to not scare it away.  When this happens, kill some birds over his point to encourage this behavior.

An important thing to remember here is that when heeling him in on a bird, be pleasant and make it fun.  Also, you are cultivating his nose at this time. You are teaching him to stop and hold point (ON HIS OWN) with the smallest amount of scent possible.  Do this by crossing perpendicular far down wind and keep crossing the down wind scent cone 5 to 10 yards closer each time.  Carefully study your pups head and nostrils so that you can tell when he has scent.  I like to flush the bird immediately on his first scent so as to cement in his mind how spooky birds can be -this helps develop his instinct to freeze and point so as to not scare the bird.  Also, try to use a white pigeon if possible to enhance puppies' visibility.  Sometimes remote launchers flush the bird so forcefully that the bird is ejected 10 feet in the air so rapidly that the pup hears the flush but never sees the bird.  Another option if you don't have a white bird, is to tie a string and hose to the birds leg so as to weigh it down some...this will cause the bird to only fly a short distance thus allowing pup time to see what it is that he smelled.  Be careful to not cause your pup to be 'launcher shy'.  Launcher shyness is often caused by a launcher that is too loud or if pup gets too close to the launcher when you launch it.  Your pups FIRST FLUSHES should be natural, WITHOUT A LAUNCHER.

Now you will tie in the command to 'whoa' once pup understands that he can't catch the bird and naturally self-initiates his own point, then and only then do we command whoa.  We NEVER whoa pup onto point.  He must figure out on his own that he can't catch the birds.  There are techniques to help you help him understand that he cannot catch the bird.  If what I have written here is not working, write me. 

Nothing is more pleasurable than to hunt with a dog that you both learned the basics together! This all relates later to the bird field. Look at this good photo of Chief at whoa. Chief was heeled along side then commanded to whoa, the handler walked out front and gave the non-verbal reminder (hand out front) to stay at whoa. Keep in mind that Chief is fully trained. He will whoa on the dime out hunting if he were asked to. This can save your dogs' life. A bird dog about to rush across a busy road needs to be put under control to save his life!

There are many methods to teach whoa but mine is to start from the standstill position of heel. The dog already knows to stand close beside you at heel, so whoa is a natural command to follow.  Now proceed to my section on 'whoa'

Let me know if you need me to clarify anything. The only dumb question is
the one not asked. Keep it fun; keep the lessons short (10 minutes maximum) and Good luck!

Tips index

FAQ's (frequently asked questions)

Develop the Natural Retrieve! ^tm

One of the most common discussions among bird dog trainers is "How to force train". Does the dog naturally retrieve? If you answered yes, then try teaching through repetitive conditioning. It works. ALL of my dogs were taught this way and they are Reliable!

Dogs are like us. They want to be taught the easiest way possible. Would you rather something be forced on you or done gently? Dogs have the same response.

What is "repetitive conditioning"? If you were ever an athlete, your coach probably taught you about "muscle memory". Well, repetitive conditioning is the same thing. A Baseball player may take 200 swings a day with his coach observing to ensure that he is making the correct swing. That way, when the player steps up to the plate in a game, the player unthinkingly makes the correct swing with the correct posture. Your dog will do the same without thinking how difficult the retrieve may be.

We start by reinforcing what your Brittany naturally wants to do, which is to "go get it". We use hard bumpers (added bird scent or wings taped around the bumper helps) and frozen birds initially. This discourages chewing. Also, we never let them play with the bumpers/frozen birds outside of our repetitive conditioning training. 

I like to start my Brittanys when they are barely able to walk!  With young pups, use light weight objects like a knotted sock.

We have several techniques, here is one:  Assuming your Brittany is a house companion as well, do this: When sitting in your easy chair (sitting is a non-threatening posture to the dog), get your dog excited about the bumper/bird by teasing him with it. Then state your command (fetch, dead, get it, etc...) and throw it. If he goes to it, great! If he goes and comes back with it part way, great! Whatever the response, repeat this exercise several times up until about 10 minutes or you get a satisfactory retrieve to your general vicinity/hand. Stop, praise excitedly, use treats and put away the bumpers.

Next day, do the same. Soon your pup will start to love this game. Assuming he is only coming back part way, tie a short lead to his collar. Gently pull him to you after he picks it up (say nothing), take the bumper, say 'dead' and praise excitedly (give a treat). Never more than 10 minutes at a time. It's too easy to get caught up in the excitement, so set an egg timer. Remember, it's always better to end positive at say, 7 minutes than at 10 minutes on a negative response.

Next day, repeat. After several days, he will start to bring it to you in your easy chair.  Remember to say 'dead' when playing.  Now start teaching "hold", and "give". Gently hold his muzzle upon his immediate arrival, being careful to not pinch the lip between the bumper and teeth. Say "hold", count to yourself 1, 2, 3, 4, then say "give" and take the bumper. Do this every day and remember to end positive. Soon your dog will be playing this game with great excitement. Remember to always put the bumper/bird up after training. The bumper/bird is a "trophy" only to be shared together. This translates later to the bird field.

If your dog wants to play keep away with it, try playing fetch in a confined area like a hallway in your house.  Remember to praise when you take the bumper from him.

NOW, it's time to move on

Let's now start all over, but from your easy chair in the back yard. Your favorite drink in hand makes for great refreshment. Don't forget his water bowl. Do every thing as above.

Is he doing it right? Good. Now stand up and start all over again. Your increased height may make him timid, so bend over and pat your leg if necessary or sit on the ground. Doing it right again? GREAT! Now move to the training field. Start all over again. Doing it right? SUPER! Time to kill a bird.

Assuming your dog is sound conditioned (See sound conditioning) it's time to shoot a bird for him. A game bird in a remote control bird launcher gives the best control over this training scenario. Get him to point it (assuming he is already pointing) then put the bird up and let him mouth it when he goes to it. Call him, then praise excitedly upon his arrival. If he doesn't do it perfectly, don't worry. You can tie a lead/check cord to him and gently pull him as described above. Usually it only takes a couple of times for him to understand.

If your dog is not wanting to return to you with the bird no matter what you do, the problem is with the "come" command. Since we teach heel early in training, the heel command is ingrained into the pups' mind. As soon as the pup picks up the bird, we gently/softly command heel and start to walk away slowly from the dog (in a crouched position helps as it is a non-threatening posture). Most dogs that have learned the heel command well will simply follow along side without thinking (conditioned response from repetitive training!) at which point you bend down and take the bird from the dog while walking. Command "drop", "give" or whatever you like to instruct the dog to let go of the bird as you take it from him. Stop immediately after taking the bird and praise/reward. Do this several times in a row and over a period of days. Soon the pup will learn that not only does he come to the position of heel after picking up a bird but that he will be rewarded for doing so!

Do you see the repetition? Now add your own scenarios to this. Don't forget the water retrieves. Don't forget to have him heel (assuming he knows the command) with the bird before you tell him to "give".

Want to teach him to hunt dead for a blind retrieve?  If pup is retrieving well, take a frozen or fresh bird, drag it across your lawn and leave it somewhere hidden.  Now bring pup in and tell him 'hunt dead' or 'find it' or 'find dead', whatever command you choose, as it should be a different command than for marked retrieves.  Be excited and animated when helping him look for for his first unmarked retrieves.

Marked retrieves are birds that the pup watched go down and he has a general  idea.  Unmarked (blind) retrieves are those that he did not see fall.  I use 'dead' for marked retrieves and 'find dead' for unmarked blind retrieves.  Once a dog figures out the difference, you will see your dog get just as excited over blind retrieves as he does marked retrieves.

Start pups training as early as possible, do this often and you will have a dog that won't even hesitate on the most difficult of retrieves.   There are variations to this conditioning, so feel free to e-mail for advice.

Tips index

FAQ's (frequently asked questions)

Staunching, The Barrel Technique (intensity at whoa)

Here is an old tried and true staunching tip for your Gundog. If your dog looks a little flat on point, try this. Get a 55 gal. Drum. Drive 2 stakes in the ground 2 feet apart. Lay the drum on its side against the stakes. Now place your Brittany on the barrel.

Command 'whoa' gently and allow the barrel to be wobbly.  Allow your Brittany to slide off if it does not try to stand still.  When your Brittany is doing its best to remain perfectly still, press your leg against the barrel (which presses the barrel against the two stakes) to remove the wobbliness and repeat "whoa". Make sweet talk while styling him/her on point. When your Brittany begins to relax, remove your leg and the wobbliness returns thus making your dog "staunch" again. Repeat as above.

Over time and subsequent lessons, you can be more concerned with minutia such as the dog slowly moving it's head or flagging while at whoa on the barrel.  Once the dog understands the concept of the barrel, you can begin to let the barrel wobble with any movement, whether it be a flagging tail or anything else.  Soon you can have your dog on the barrel with its head and tail up while it remains perfectly still and staunch.

Combine this with your ordinary yard work and you will be amazed as to how solid your Brittany is at whoa.