Steady drill

A Master Hunter must be steady to wing and gun. This means that when the dog finds and flushes the bird, the dog immediately must sit without moving as the bird takes wing and the hunter shoots it. The dog should watch the flight of the bird and mark its fall. Only when the dog is instructed to fetch may it leave its position to retrieve the bird.

This is a very tall order for an eager spaniel who, above all else, relishes the chase.

A few weekends ago, Cathy V. worked with Humphrey, her clumber spaniel. Humphrey has three Master Hunter legs and needs one more to become a Master Hunter. Humphrey is, however, an ideas dog. If you give Humphrey a command, he is liable to come up with an even better idea, at least in his mind. To combat this and to maintain his rock-steady composure at the flush, Cathy worked Humphrey with Marilyn, an accomplished trainer.

The sketch below illustrates the drill. Because Humphrey earlier had made a move toward the bird, Humphrey was unceremoniously repositioned at the point of the break. Then (and this is the key), Marilyn changed her own position to put herself between Humphrey and the toss of a bird. Marilyn tossed the bird, Gary made a shot, and the bird fell.

Humphrey understood completely that any attempt to break toward the bird would be successful only if he could avoid Marilyn's wrath, which, he was convinced, was not possible. As a result, Humphrey stayed in position.

This subtle repositioning by Marilyn near Humphrey's line with the bird reinforced the requirement of steadiness. Humphrey understood without being yelled at or corrected. He understood because Marilyn had repositioned herself. Marilyn did not make a fuss or any noise. But, Humphrey understood that any move toward the bird involved a confrontation with Marilyn that he did not want to have. This is what allowed Humphrey to maintain control over himself, which is what learning is all about.

You can see from this that training involves the coordination of everyone, the handler, Marilyn, and the gunner, Gary. The change did not involve any yelling, reprimands, or beeping on e-collars. Instead, Marilyn's subtle move toward the line between Humphrey and the bird made Humphrey himself decide to maintain position rather than tangle with Marilyn. It was the idea-dog's decision to stay. In this way, the training becomes internalized and Humphrey determines himself that hupping to the flush is the best course of action.

(click to see entire sketch.)