Scotty the Shed Dog

Update on a Bad Habit

One recently it was raining lightly and I just took Scotty to the city property where we work antlers some. I have three spots we have been working. That morning I just allowed him to run and have fun. Exercise is important when a puppy grows rapidly. There was an aluminum beer can that someone threw out. Scotty had the greatest fun running around with it. Bad mistake for me. I laughed watching him.

When I first started him on the rubber antlers, he was perfect until we ran into a green Mellow Yellow plastic bottle.

Now he has started taking a victory lap with the rubber antler and not coming to whistle. It came right out of the blue - never an issue until that day. So we are taking an entire week off from antlers and work on obedience.

If he has no antler - he is solid to a whistle recall. Needless to say I will be doing trash duty on that city field. His teeth are looking good - he has added a bunch. He is 5 months & 7 days old today.

This pup has been so easy to work with - so as a trainer I am going to have to earn my keep.

Basic to the basics. Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

I have found that to be just part of the maturation process. When Belle was a pup she would run after that bumper and bring it right back. Then at the 6 to 7 month range she decided she didn't want to bring it back. Running circles or when doing water retrieves she would swim back toward me then stop in ankle deep water and just run around. That's when I decided collar conditioning was a must. With the guidance of a pro I started collar conditioning and followed up with force fetch and the problem went away fairly quickly.

Good luck
Todd

I agree that it is a pup / maturation process. Scotty is such a good dog but he loves to do what pups are expected to do. He loves to get my caps and run with them. It has my scent on them and it really pleases him to get his chance. When he was 3 months old he was super on retrieving. I now pick up trash anywhere I work him out to avoid the victory lap stuff. Removing the trash has reduced that activity. He takes most of his victory laps in the field - not in the woods.

I have only worked antlers once in the last 11 days. He did good on three out of four with all retrieved but took three circles on one antler.

I will get an electronic collar when he turns 6 months in a few weeks. His ability to smell antlers at a distance is excellent. It is great fun to work the wind properly by getting him in position and watch when that scent is identified and he hits that line to his find. I am getting better on identifying air flow at 2 and 3 feet above the ground. Large trees in the woods create air ripples and dead spots in the scent stream.

Thanks Todd for the guidance and information.

Wayne

As I have stated before just remember a collar doesn't teach-it only reinforces what they have already been taught. Watch videos or get help if this is your first time to collar condition a dog. You have to know how to read the dog to determine the amount of pressure and now exactly when to turn off the pressure. Fine line.
Happy for you as you enjoy the journey with your pup.
Todd

Update on Scotty April 18th

Scotty has all of his teeth in and his gums are dark. Glad this has occurred. He will be 6 months in three days.

On Monday, Scotty got his first paid training session. I was given the name of a great trainer who works primarily with German Shepherds and he is very affordable and great at training. We had a one hour session. As the dog handler I got most of the corrections - it was eye opening. I am determined to do everything possible to bring out the abilities of my pup.

I have never seen Scotty drink so much water as he did at his one break. I have my home work - heel, down, stay, come as well as using a 20' check cord to be in a position to correct all refusals. We got home at Noon and I worked him three short sessions before 5:15 PM with him sleeping between them.

I will start hard antlers next week. I have to purchase some items to improve my training methods - 20' cord and a belt and treat bag. The trainer advised me to be more timely with treats. He gave me many cues on reading my dog and what I should be watching for.

Best money I have spent outside of the Vet's office. I love my Scotty and he is headed in the right direction.

We are going to improve the foundation first and then start on an e-collar.

I am smart enough to know what I don't know - so I am paying for the knowledge and experience my dog needs.

Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

DogDoc this question is for you.

My son purchase 80 acres on the Mississippi River at Chester, Illinois and Perryville, MO. It is in the flood plain and will be prime snake habitat. Scotty will get his chances on that ground - it holds some trophy deer.

What should be in my dog first aid kit? Can I take penicillin or some other med to give my dog a shot if he gets nailed by a poisonous snake in the middle of no where. Scotty will weigh approximately 75 pounds when grown. He is in the high 50s now.

His parents go 72 and 75 pounds.

Please tell me what I should have in a field kit should I encounter trouble.

Thanks
Wayne

Scotty is 6 months old today. It was a lite rain this morning and I took to the field and woods. He loved it.

For straight times now, he has loaded into the front seat of the truck. Gosh I am glad to see this. He has a great nature. He needs me to be more consistent in my training and to eliminate his refusals on commands.

We have done 3 short 10-15 minutes session each day this week. The frequency seems more important than the length of time. Heel work is improving and the down command is improving. His recall has become an issue at times.

His teeth are squared away - I am giving it some more time to avoid any issues. I will schedule a training lesson next week. That lesson will be important to get feedback on how this owner / handler is doing.

Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

Happy Birthday, Wayne!

Thanks DoctorBrady.

The big 64 here. I put three planted hard antlers in clover and wheat that is about knee high. Scotty found all three - his nose was going 90 to nothing when he could smell them and not see them.

I get the biggest kick out of watching him when he hits the scent cone - he shifts gear and gets his head lower and works right in.

He passed a heart worm test and test of any tick related diseases this week. He is 71 lbs and improving on his leash manners. He now follow the "wait command" at doors and at the base of any steps.

Has developed some trust issues on the retrieve - he don't like me - I am paying for taking the rubber antler too fast.

Got a great trainer in my town. I have had two paid sessions - $25 an hour. The trainer has helped us greatly.

Hope all your dogs are healthy and doing well.

Wayne

I got a great opportunity for Scotty to be trained by one of the best trainers of shed dogs in the country. I came to realize if I continued to train Scotty he would become a good dog but not near what he could be if I put him in the hands of a talented full-time trainer.

Jacob Burris from Linton, Indiana had four of his dogs in the National Shed Hunting Championship finals. All dogs run on Saturday and only the dogs with the best times advance to the finals on Sunday. Some of the four he owned and others were owned by someone else but trained in his kennel. Jacob had an opening that I became aware of on Tuesday so Wednesday morning early I loaded Scotty into the back seat of the truck and headed north. Scotty travels great - he has been to Springfield, MO and back. He sure enjoyed playing with Brushpile's dogs.



Scotty has grown since his Springfield trip and he now gets the back seat to himself. He weighed 71 pounds at 6 months and 5 days old. He behaved great on the trip to southwest Indiana.

It was raining when Jacob and I met up in Washington, Indiana. He saved me some driving time by coming about 45 minutes south to hook up.

Jacob has the touch with dogs and I have watched his videos of working with other dogs. He trains each dog based upon what works for that dog. With an education background, I call that teaching the student - not teaching the subject. Scotty doesn't have too many bad habits but he will be taken to the next level with this shed dog trainer.



Jacob has a facebook page and if you need to get in touch with him PM me and I will share his contact information.

In the photo, Scotty has just realized this is a strange crate and a new vehicle. He is processing it when I took the photo.

I have already seen video this morning of Scotty running and romping with the pack at Jacob's Kennel. Scotty will be exposed to some of the best dogs in the sport and Scotty is the youngest dog in the kennel. He has settled in very well.

Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

Scotty has been getting many different lessons. He is responding well too. This video shows his Kennel discipline is getting better.

For whatever reason, I am not able to post the videos I get off Facebook.

This Thursday, May 18th I am traveling to Indiana to spend three hours with Scotty and the trainer. I will get valuable coaching. I will make sure Scotty gets to ride in my truck before I return to Tennessee.

Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

Kennel Discipline Video

I posted it to YouTube first and that allows the link to work here.


Scotty's control is improving with the leadership of Jacob Burris and his training. Jacob is located in Linton, Indiana.

I like that. okayZOOOM! LOL

On May 18th I traveled to Linton, Indiana to visit Scotty and Jacob Burris, his dog trainer.

Two major things I learned from this trip.
1. As I originally thought, I selected the best dog trainer for Scotty. Jacob impressed me again as I observed him working with Scotty and how the pup responds.

2. My pup has a great deal of natural ability and this pup is headed in the right direction. He has only been in Indiana for 15 days and much has changed during that time. You have to realize part of those 15 days were just getting him settled in to a new handler and environment. I am so pleased.

I put a deposit on our next pup that will come to our home in July - he is about 12 days old right now. Scotty will have a buddy boy to run with. My wife had plenty of questions last night and one was if the new dog would get shipped off like Scotty. I said if he shows the promise and ability that I hope he has - Yes he will get the same training opportunity. I would not spend hard earned $$ if I believed a dog was just average.

I talked names and my wife is lobbying for one certain name that was on my list. The top three names are: 1) Magic, 2) Buddy Boy, and 3) Perry for my grandmother Scott's favorite TV Show. She never watched Perry Mason - she watched "Perry". I wanted the name of Magic and mentioned Mason. Buddy Boy may be the compromise and it would roll off my lips easy enough.

Scotty did his first water retrieval in his life. I have never thrown him a bumper but plenty of antlers. I had never had him in deep water but Jacob has given him plenty of water time in their large pond. I was slow with the phone but I got part of the retrieve. Scotty did great.

His leash behavior has improved greatly in 15 days. He has a couple of sessions on hold conditioning but that will come later. He has a firm grip with the mouth. He allows Jacob to rub and touch his face without a blink of the eye.

The day involved some valuable coaching time for me. I was shown key points for me to change in my approach.

Here is the video of his water retrieve.



Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

Scotty is 7 months old today. He began collar conditioning on Saturday. Trainer relayed to me that he had a good first day with the collar.

Wayne

dogdoc said:

I have found that to be just part of the maturation process. When Belle was a pup she would run after that bumper and bring it right back. Then at the 6 to 7 month range she decided she didn't want to bring it back. Running circles or when doing water retrieves she would swim back toward me then stop in ankle deep water and just run around. That's when I decided collar conditioning was a must. With the guidance of a pro I started collar conditioning and followed up with force fetch and the problem went away fairly quickly.

Good luck
Todd

Click to expand...

Todd,
What your post describes is what I am getting & addressing. My dog trainer is doing a super job with Scotty. He has been on e collar conditioning approximately a week. His discipline has shaped up nicely. I am excited about Scotty's potential and I will not hold him back by suffering thru my personal "lack of experience."

Thanks
Wayne

This video below was provided to me by Jacob Burris, Scotty's dog trainer in Linton, Indiana. Scotty is 7 months old plus about 11 days and this type of conditioning will increase his strength and stamina. I am 100% dedicated to keeping Scotty at the proper body weight. I know it will benefit his joints and improve his ability to hunt harder and longer.

The pack of dogs are having a great time during their exercise session. I have been at the location this video is shot the training location is well organized and thought out.

Scotty has the camo collar on in this video. He is the youngest and will soon be the largest dog.


Thanks for watching this thread.

Wayne

Scotty was never tied out much by me. In hind sight that was a mistake. He was never conditioned to give into the pressure of collar. I will do a better job with the next pup regarding this training issue. Scotty has high drive and he has been a challenge for me to control his pulling on a leash. A prong collar changed his behavior only when he had it on - a flat collar here we go again.

This video was provided by Jacob Burris, Scotty's dog trainer. I am extremely pleased by the progress Jacob has achieved with Scotty's discipline, steadiness and obedience. This video is all off lead - and represents a wonderful improvement in Scotty's behavior.

Here is the recall command, OK is the release command, heel is feet by the left ankle of handlers command and one whistle is sit. I used come but that has been changed and I used free and that is now OK. Scotty's eye contact with the handler is exactly what you want. Congratulation to trainer and to the dog.


Thanks for watching this thread.

Wayne

I hear someone got a new pup. ;-)