Joe Dynarski

Homer learned fun bumpers at around 10-12 weeks old as a way to get him SUPER excited about retrieving. I’d get him riled up with the dummy and just say his name as I tossed it. Homer LOVES this game to this day and I end every training session with 3-4 FUN tosses. This game completely reinforces retrieving is fun and creates a MASSIVE desire to retrieve.

Keeping training sessions to 15 minutes daily and ending them with a few fun bumpers will keep you dog “wanting more”. Training a dog that WANTS to retrieve is far easier that training a dog that thinks retrieving is work. Give your dog lots of praise and fun while training and he will have a burning desire to retrieve and makes training a joy.

Having fun with a dog is what is mostly lost when he is trained by someone else. The dog associates the fun with THAT trainer and not you, and will never preform as well for you as the trainer. I get a kick out of watching Homer “foam at the mouth” for his fun bumpers, he will squeal and bark on his way out after a fun bumper. Hope this tip helps you have more fun with your dog

Joe Dynarski.

Last week-end I used him to take care of me and another set of hunters in a blind 75 yards away. We shot over 30 ducks and Homer got every one. It blows me away how enthusiastic he is about retrieving. I’ve had several hunters ask if I would train their dog after seeing Homer at work. I tell them the same thing I’ve been preaching on this blog, GET THE DVD’s and work with your dog.

I’ve watched others with dogs that were trained by “Pro’s” not perform nearly as well as dogs trained by their owner’s. Training Homer has been as much fun as the actual hunting. This is Homer’s second season and his progression has been amazing, he is so confident he literally EXPLODES out on every retrieve. Last season he struggled a bit with long blinds over 100 yards, this season he blind retreived a duck we range marked at 231 yards. He did it with TOTAL confidence and only 3 stops to correct his line. A 200+ yard blind retrieve is an amazing feat for any dog, let alone a 2 year old dog trained by his owner.

I’m telling you, if you let someone else train your dog, your missing out on 90% of the fun of having a great gun dog.
Joe Dynarski

That dog was useless for the rest of the week-end, it was so scared of doing something wrong it would not even leave the blind. The last day of the hunt the dog was at camp in a kennel instead of doing what it loved. Proper OWNER training is way, way more important than “dog” training. If you want a great dog, educate yourself on how to use your training aids PROPERLY.
Joe Dynarski.

A dog that has been constantly forced will not develop strong confidence and desire. Homer has an insane desire to perform well in training because it’s fun.

Joe

The combination of 4 videos and 1 book by Joseph Middleton is the system I use. Richard Wolters book’s are no doubt some of the best ever published on hunting dog training, but lacked a real system.

The DVD’s produced by Joe take all the proven methods developed by Richard Wolters and created a very easy to follow gun dog training system. I feel I would have had a much harder time training Homer if I had used only the books.

The books had sort of a scatter gun approach, the DVD’s are laid out with a definite plan and gun dog training system. Each lesson builds on the last and gives suggestions as to when you’re ready for the next step.

I have a bunch of other training videos that seem to focus on one particular thing and don’t lay out a plan. So far I have never viewed a single video that I could call “Complete”.

This is the reason Homer’s breeder and I both HIGHLY recommend a SET. With the DVD set I recommend you WILL get maximum results working only 15 minutes a day with your dog. The only other video set I’ve ever seen that gives an actual system is the Mike Lardy DVD’s. Mike’s DVD’s are excellent as well, but focus mainly on field trial dogs

Mike’s system is for a far more precise dog, but requires a much larger time commitment. The Wolters DVD set will require far less time and was developed for the hunter. I really only spent 15-20 minutes a day with Homer and he is completely capable of passing a Master Hunt Test. Would he win a Field Trial Competition? Probably not, but he is more than capable of any retrieve he will face hunting.

I wanted a hunting dog that was capable of retrieving a bird he never saw fall. The Wolters DVD’s have given me that and the joy of training Homer myself. I started training Homer when he was 10 weeks old and he was performing like a pro before his first birthday.

Joe Dynarski

In 1961 Richard A. Wolters revolutionized hunting dog training with his Water Dog and Game Dog books. Since then many new drills and training aids have made things even easier than Richard could ever have envisioned.

A few years back Joseph Middleton decided to produce a set of videos based on Wolters training methods and combine them with the latest techniques. The result is what I feel are THE best DVD’s for the hunter with limited time.

One of the best things about the videos is Joseph Middleton and professional trainer Charles Jurney use UNTRAINED dogs to show you what to do when things go wrong. This is something very few videos do. In my opinion using trained dogs as a demonstration is cheating the viewer.

By using only “Green” untrained dogs the Water Dog and Game Dog videos give you a “Real World” look at hunting dog training . This alone sets these videos far ahead of the pack. If your serious about training your own hunting dog, take a good look at what the Water and Game dog DVD’s have to offer, I think you’ll find them to be the best value. This entire blog and Homer’s outstanding ability is a testament as to how effective they are.

Joe DynarskiYou’ll find a very special price on these DVD’s by clicking the image below.

Joe Dynarski

This from the Purina Pro Club Site

Hydration Strategies in Sporting Dogs

Keeping dogs hydrated during sporting events and gun dog training is of critical importance. Research shows that a 44 lb dog that is participating in intense sporting events loses double the amount of water when compared to the same size dog that is not exercising (3000 cc’s of water vs. 1500 cc’s of water) even at similar environmental temperatures.

Intense exercise in hunting dog training uses energy stored in the body. The process of using energy by the body produces waste products that must then be filtered out of the body and excreted. If there is not enough water available in the body, certain negative health conditions result. When even mild dehydration occurs, your canine athlete can have decreased cognition abilities, muscle ataxia, increased strain on the heart, and a decreased ability to regulate its body temperature. Total body water losses between 8-10% can result in death. The initial signs of dehydration can be subtle so it is important to know your dog.

The amount of time for a dog to transition from intermediate to final stages of dehydration is quite short, so it is imperative to recognize the first signs of dehydration and take immediate action. If your dog exhibits any of the intermediate signs of dehydration, seek veterinary medical attention.

Signs of dehydration

Beginning signs
Visibly tired
Slowed pace/ Less animation
Act more “warm”—excessive panting etc
Changes in attitude- appears more apprehensive

Intermediate Signs
Skin turgidity will become less-if you pinch the skin on their back, it will be slow to return to normal shape
Slow gum capillary refill- if you press firmly on their gums and release, the time it takes for the gum to refill with color will be slow
Gums and tongue become darker in color
Rectal temperature remains > 105° F

Final signs
Weak in the hind end
Wobbly and unsteady on feet

Dehydration can occur in any dog working intensely, regardless of the environmental temperature, not just when it is hot outside, although increased temperatures do increase the incidence of dehydration. Hence, it is critical to keep hard working hunting dogs hydrated regardless of weather conditions.

Unfortunately, electrolyte solutions typically used to hydrate humans do not work with dogs. Dogs do not sweat in useful amounts except from their footpads, instead they pant to cool themselves. Therefore, they do not lose electrolytes at the same rates as human athletes. Human electrolyte solutions can actually make dehydration worse in dogs because it causes an imbalance between the concentration of electrolytes inside and outside of the cells. This situation causes the water to be pulled out of the cells, which further exacerbates the dehydration condition. Most human electrolyte solutions are high in simple sugars, which can also exacerbate dehydration by pulling even more water into the gut. Feeding a quality diet should provide enough electrolytes so that the dog does not need to be supplemented, either pre- or post exercise. Therefore, dogs should be offered clean water in the field as often as possible.

Dogs should be taught early in their conditioning and training to drink from a waterspout so that water can be delivered quickly and efficiently in the field. There is not always a bowl handy! The most convenient way to carry water in the field is either in a large water bottle with a “sports lid” or spout or, in the new backpack water carriers like a “Camel Back” often used by cyclists and hikers.

In addition, during breaks or at lunch, offer the dog water baited with a few kibbles to give it flavor. Dogs maybe more inclined to drink water that has been flavored with kibble or other treats.

Remember, a dehydrated dog is not able to give a peak performance and will have a difficult time recovering from the exercise bout.

DON’T FORGET, GET YOUR DOG TRAINING DVD’S HERE !!!

I picked an area typical to where I’d find wild birds. I planted the launcher in a thick bush and had a friend control the pull cord on the launcher. I added about 25 yards of string to the launch cord so Homer would not just head straight for my buddy. Homer had to find the right bush and when he did I raised my arm and the bird was launched.

Because of his previous brush training Homer made quick work of the 30-40 yard retrieves in the brush. Our Gambles quail here in Arizona are big time runners. To help Homer’s tracking ability I shot over a few of the Bobwhite’s and let them land in the brush. I sent Homer as if I had hit the bird and left it up to him to track and retrieve the “injured bird”.

The quail I got were fairly weak fliers so they really acted like an injured Gambles, running around from bush to bush after their launch and short flight. Homer made every single retrieve. Homer was taught the HUNT-EM-UP command at about 6 months old but really did not get the true meaning until I started this type of gun dog training.

It only took about 6 birds for Homer to understand the birds were in the brush. I used the STOP whistle command the first couple times to get Homer to sit on flush. After that, it was awesome to see him do it himself. When he found the bush with the quail in and it flushed, he sat perfectly on his own and marked the fall.

If your looking for quail for training your hunting dog I have a link to the place I got my birds in my blogroll. This type of live hunting dog training is exciting for both Homer and me. At a just a year and a half old I can honestly say Homer is a REAL gun dog. I still can’t tell you how much fun training Homer has been.

Joe Dynarski.

A hunting dog’s basic instinct is to take the path of least resistance to a dummy. In heavy cover like you see in my photo, Homer try’s to go around each bush on a blind retrieve. The problem with that is, by the time he gets 30 –50 yards out, He’s WAY off the line I gave him, and nowhere near the fall of the bird. The white stakes were useless in this drill because Homer would not be able to see them through the brush.

To teach him to take a straight line through the brush, I first had to teach him to go through a bush at very close range. I picked a bush he could not see over, healed him about 2 feet from it and tossed a dummy over the bush and released him. When he tried to go around the bush I stopped him and told him NO, re-healed him in front of the bush and told him “through it”. This lesson is explained in great detail in the Game Dog DVD.

This took quite a few tries and patience on my part. but he started to catch on. At this stage of his hunting dog training, Homer’s desire to retrieve is nothing less than psychotic so stopping him numerous times did not hurt his desire to retrieve. Once I got him going through brush at close range, I started extending the distance. Homer did great until he hit an open area. After an opening, he wanted to go around the brush again. Gun dog training is not rocket science so I came up with a simple fix to help Homer understand what I wanted from him.

Here’s a hunting dog training drill I used to extend him to over 100 yards through heavy brush. I built a 60 yard run with wood stakes and marking tape. This run was only about 2 feet wide and extended through some very heavy cover as well as an open area. I healed Homer at the beginning of the run and released him with the back command. He naturally tried to go “outside the lines” to get around a bush. Again every time he did this I stopped him told him no and started over. . The photo below is the run I made for Homer.

This went on numerous times before he started to understand what I wanted him to do. Once he made it all the way through the run to the dummies, it clicked in his head. Now Homer explodes through the run to the dummies at the end. I used the run about 6 times with 10 dummies in the pile. After that I tried a 50 yard blind in a different area with similar cover. Homer got it!!!! He thrashed straight through the brush for the retrieve.

Joe Dynarski

HOMER GOING THROUGH THE RUN

A couple months ago I started using 3’ wood stakes painted white to help Homer take and hold a line at long distances. The stakes are highly visible and give Homer a spot to run to. I started very short with a pile of dummies around the stake 10 yards out. Homer learned very quickly the stake marked the pile. After that I simply started adding distance. Once I got the distance out to around 200 yards I started changing the angle to the stake by sending him from different places to the stake. Once Homer showed confidence I started removing the stakes to see if he really “GOT IT”

I’ve been doing this mainly in open areas, this has really improved Homer’s line. At this point in his hunting dog training Homer no longer needs the stakes. He now consistently runs nice straight lines at full speed. In my next post I’ll tell you how I got him to run straight lines through bushes and heavy cover.

Joe Dynarski

GET YOUR HUNTING DOG TRAINING DVD’S HERE

I love the excitement Homer shows when I put on his collar and get the dummies out. I would have missed out on a lot of fun if I had sent Homer to a trainer. Another plus is since I’m Homers hunting dog trainer he works VERY hard to please me. I had one other Lab that was trained by someone else and that dog did not work half as hard as Homer. I really think training your own dog is the way to go, both of you will have much more fun. Happy hunting dog training
Joe Dynarski

One day during the week Homer gets 15-20 marked retrieves. Most of the marks are doubles and at least one triple. One “problem” that popped up this hunting season was doubles. If I shot a bird while Homer was on a retrieve, he would break off that retrieve to get the new downed bird.

To solve this problem, I throw a dummy send Homer off, then throw a second dummy in his path as he’s going for the first retrieve. If he tries to get the second dummy first, he gets nicked told “Back” and made to pick up the first dummy down. It took about a dozen of these corrections for him to get it.

Another thing I did was take him to an area where I could shoot, I’d throw a dummy and send him off. Then I’d fire a shot when he was about ¾ of the way to the dummy. If he stopped, or even looked back, again he was nicked and told “Back”. Once he had this gun dog training drill down pat with dummies, I started throwing a dead pigeon in place of the second dummy.

The pigeon really gets him fired up so it took a few more corrections for him to go to the dummy first. I’m fairly certain he has it down now, I even got a friend to release a live pigeon’s and shot them as Homer was making a retrieve on a dummy. As of right now he completely focuses on his first retrieve.

HAPPY HUNTING DOG TRAINING 

Joe Dynarski

If you get into the habit of raising your voice if the dog doesn’t respond you’ll soon be getting louder and louder with the command. Raising your voice also leads to frustration on your part. Once you become frustrated you’ve lost control of the dog and he knows it.

Use single word commands. It’s easier for the dog to learn single words i.e.: SIT, STAY, HERE, BACK, OVER ect ect. I hate when I see someone trying to teach a dog something like “HERE”. Instead of using a lead and pulling the dog to them as the command is given, they slap their knees and say, “HERE BOY , COME ON, HERE BOY”. Not only does it look ridiculous but it confuses the dog. Learn more about dog training basic commands by clicking the pictures video pictures below.

Joe Dynarski

The collar is simply a means of applying “pressure” on a dog to perform a command quickly When done properly the dog will learn how to turn off the pressure by quickly obeying a command.

What is pressure? Pressure is simply making the dog uncomfortable, with slight pain. Ear pinching and toe hitch to teach “Force Fetch” are other examples of putting pressure on the dog. We sit the dog, hold a bumper a foot from his mouth, then, pinch his ear enough to cause pain and tell him “FETCH”. The second the dog reaches for the bumper we release the pinch.

This teaches the dog that obeying the “FETCH” command stops the pain on his ear. When done repeatedly the dog will “FETCH” as quickly as he can to turn off the pressure. This same type of conditioning is what the electronic training collar is for. By applying pressure and giving a command at the same time and releasing the pressure the instant the dog obeys the command teaches him how to shut off the pressure.

This is why the collar cannot be used to teach a new command. Because the dog has no idea how to turn off the pressure on a new command he gets “Burned” and more confused. To turn off the pressure the dog must know what he is being told to do.

Punishing a dog with the collar never teaches him how to turn off the pressure, it’s the same as beating him. He knows he’s getting beat but has no clue how to stop it other than running away. Punishing the dog with the collar in most cases causes the dog to just stop, because he’s confused, and he learns to fear the collar. Even worse when a command he knows is given he does nothing because he is afraid to make a mistake. This is how a good hunting dog can be ruined by not using the collar correctly.

The best video I’ve seen for teaching proper collar use can be found by clicking the video pictures below.

HAPPY HUNTING DOG TRAINING 

Joe Dynarski

GET YOUR HUNTING DOG TRAINING DVD’S HERE

My Vet highly recommends all three for a working retriever like Homer. The Giardia shot is very important when doing water training. Many of the ponds I train Homer in have a high probability of containing Giardia. It’s a real nasty bug that causes a ton of stomach and intestinal problems. Dog’s get sick when they drink water containing the Giardia bacteria. In rare cases it can be fatal, in most cases its an expensive trip to the Vet for treatment.

According to my Vet, swimming is the BEST form of exercise for our dogs. I provides a great work-out without the pounding on hips and joints running produces. Homer gets to swim at least 3 times a week. Swimming really helps his conditioning, it also keeps his coat clean and odor free.

I’m going to do an entire post on the rattlesnake. There’s a lot of misunderstanding about this vaccination so I’ll do an entire post on what I’ve been told by my Vet.

In addition to the extra shots, Homer gets daily vitamins and Synoviflex to keep his hips and joints healthy. Homer works very hard in training and hunting so the Synoviflex is kind of preventive maintenance as well as the multi vitamin. The vitamins help assure his immune system is top notch, nicks and scrapes are fact of life for a working dog. The vitamins help prevent infections from all the little nick and scrapes Homer gets.

Contact your local Vet for the Giardia, Lyme disease and Rattlesnake shots. I’ve provided a link to find inexpensive Vitamins, Synoviflex, and Buffered asprin for dogs by clicking here. I’m also adding a new page call “HEALTH TIPS soon.

HAPPY HUNTING DOG TRAINING 

Joe Dynarski

GET YOU HUNTING DOG TRAINING DVD’S HERE

There are two things you can do to protect your dog if you hunt in snake prone areas. I STRONGLY recommend getting BOTH.
#1 Get your dog PROFESSIONALLY snake proofed. I know this blog is about training your own dog, but this one is better left to a pro. They will put far more pressure on a dog than most home trainers would consider. A Snake bite can kill your dog, it’s WAY worth the $50-$100 to get the snake proofing done right. Snake proofing teaches the dog to FEAR the sight, smell, and sound of a Rattlesnake.

#2 There is a vaccination available from your Vet that will greatly reduce the damage done by a Rattlesnake bite. This comes straight from my Vet, who is very experienced with snake bites in animals. The new vaccine WILL NOT I repeat WILL NOT make a dog immune to Rattlesnake venom. A snake bite is very serious and should never be left un-treated. What the vaccination does is significantly REDUCE the amount of anti-venom needed to treat a Rattlesnake bite. Reducing the treatment also means big savings to you.

In the Southwest U.S, where I live, we have a specie of Rattlesnake called the Mojave (sometimes called the Mojave Green). The Mojave Rattlesnake is the most toxic Rattlesnake in the United States. The Rattlesnake vaccination will not work on Mojave bites. A bite from the Mojave is deadly to dogs, 99% of dogs bitten by this snake will die, even if they get to a vet quickly. The Mojave will also kill most humans if the person is not treated quickly. This is why I got Homer snake proofed.

If done right snake proofing alone should keep your dog safe from a bite, I like the added insurance of the vaccination. Common sense will also protect your dog. Think about what you are doing before you send a dog into heavy brush. Snakes love to hide in thick brush in the afternoon hours.

Having your dog well trained to whistle commands will also help, blasting the “HERE” command on the whistle if you hear a snake could save your dog from a bite.

Joe Dynarski
GET YOUR HUNTING DOG TRAINING DVD’S HERE

I’ve never had a judge behind me in a hunting blind that said, I’m taking that duck away,  the dog did not retrieve it with enough precision and style.  At the end of the day all I care about,  is that my dog brings back what I shoot. Training a dog to compete in field trials does require way more precise training than a pure hunting dog.

I’m interested in helping the hunter, my dog is purely a hunting dog and that ‘s where I have the most experience. Bottom line, if you want a dog that can do blind retrieves in a short amount of time the hunting dog training DVD’s I recommend will get you there. I use them exclusively, they work great for me,  and I’m certain they’ll work for you.

Joe Dynarski.

My biggest mistakes came when I tried to jump ahead or extend Homer’s distances too quickly. What I’ve learned is 99.9% of “Homers” difficulties were actually my bad training. I wanted a “Master Dog” in 6 months. This lack of patience and not thoroughly completing each step of training is what caused the problems. Here are 10 quick tips to help avoid problems training your gun dog.

• Be consistent train your dog daily and have fun with your dog.
• Keep daily dog training sessions short,15- 30 minutes a day Over training can burn you and your dog out.
• Keep your dog training sessions simple when working on something new. Success builds confidence in your dog.
• Focus on one thing a training session.
• Be patient, dogs learn through consistent repetition.. just because he did a task twice in a row doesn’t mean he fully “get’s it” and you should move ahead.
• Always finish you dog training sessons with “Fun Bumpers”.
• Never, never , ever use your electronic training collar to “punish” your dog.
• Try to train your dog in the type of terrain/cover you normally hunt once a week
• Stay calm during training sessions, If you get frustrated QUIT for the day.
• Always end the dog training session with your dog wanting more.

I hope these tips help you avoid some of the bird dog training problems I created with Homer. Homer comes from such excellent breeding, that sometimes he learned in spite of me. Once I learned to calm down and have fun, I was amazed at how fast Homer learned things. If you get stuck go back and review the DVD’s again. Sometimes I had to watch them a few times before I “got it”

Joe Dynarski