Recent content by andyj

Working with larger birds (Chukkar, Grouse, Pheasant,etc.) more often might help. Just a thought. Definitely focus on teaching her what the game is all about by hunting as many birds possible (like we all aspire to). Most likely, she'll grow out of it.

Depends on the size of the dog to some extent. If you're training a smaller size pointer then I agree with using inexpensive pigeons/quail. But be careful when shooting over your dog with quail; it can be dangerous since they tend to fly low. With a large dog like my Chessie pup, I have to...

Patience is certainly needed for Chessies; our breeder always reminds us that. Many trainers have difficulty with the breed because they are very intelligent and think for themselves. If they don't agree with you then they flip you the proverbial bird and go about it their way! The key is to...

We had a great training session with Axel on Sunday at the breeder's place. We're fortunate to have a breeder that also hunts (a lot) and agreed to help with the training. Anyway, we did an intro to gun noise and progressed up to using a dummy launcher next to him. He was sooo intense on the...

I sure appreciate everyone's comments. Chessies make good upland bird hunting dogs despite having been bred for hardier purposes. They may not be a good choice for smaller low-flying birds (e.g. quail) but they are well suited to flush grouse and pheasants. On the plus side, they are great...

Thank for the warm welcome!

In response to Dakotazeb: It's not that I want him to chase but rather to exhibit more enthusiasm for hunting birds. I should have made that more clear. Chasing can also be a curse when a hen flushes and he goes to the next County after it. We haven't shot birds over him yet. The original...

I'm currently training my 8-month old Chessie (Axel) for upland/Pheasant bird hunting with the help of a veteran bird dog trainer. We have gone through six lessons so far which entail placing birds in a small field and working Axel to find, flush, and give chase to the birds. We are stuck at...

Hello, I'm new to this forum. I came here because I enjoy upland/pheasant bird hunting and seek advice on hunting and dog training in particular. I own a wonderful 7 year-old chocolate lab and an 8 month-old Chessie that I'm training to hunt right now. I live in Michigan so naturally my...