Scotty the Shed Dog

[wbpdeer]

I spent time researching and I selected a Kennel out of Southern Indiana to get a lab pup to train as my shed dog. Brushpile and Doctor Brady influenced me through their post regarding breeding and blood lines for deer tracking dogs.

To me, deer antlers have an almost magical power.

Scotty is my lab pup that I will be picking up on Jan 28th - weather permitting. I placed my trust in the dog breeder. Both of Scotty's parents have won some National Shed Dog trials.

I have two photos of him that Shannon Neal, breeder and trainer, took this evening for this forum. More about her kennel later. I will be going to a North America Shed Hunting Dog Association Trial in her area on Jan. 28th.

I have high hope for this pup and I do plan on sharing our progress on this thread. Will I make mistakes? That is part of learning. Everything I do will be about how this pup learns - not about my ego or what I need.

Scotty will not be exposed to birds. I want him 100% committed and trained for shed antlers.



Scotty was born October 21, 2016.



She did a great job getting him to pose for the camera.

Wayne

 

[wbpdeer]

http://www.sheddogtrainer.com/nashda-events/

The link above has the detail about the Shed Dog Trial on Jan. 28th and another one on Feb. 25th.

You can find training videos on the NASHDA website. Anyone that watches "The Crush" on the outdoor channel has seen the black lab that Lee and Tiffany has "Tank". He is a trained dog that competes in these events. Tank just happens to be a TV Celebrity on a popular outdoor show.

Thanks for reading this thread.

Wayne

 

[wbpdeer]

Skyline Drive Kennels is the place I am getting Scotty from.

http://shedhuntinglabs.com/

The link above will take you to their website.

Friends, I am just documenting where this process and dog story began.

Labs are natural retrievers but other breeds can be trained for good shed dogs too. I could have gotten a cheaper dog but that just didn't give me the confidence that I would be happy with the outcome. Years ago when I was in High School my father had 20 to 40 bird dogs in his kennel and I was his designated gunner for dog training. I hate pen birds 'cause they don't fly well. A poorly training dog can break on point.

What influenced me with this decision is remembering dad's wobbly legged pups that I knew they had never in their life seen a bird wing but they would lock up on that first bird wing when it was cast in front of them with a fishing rod and line. Some things are determined at birth.

I went with a great blood line. 'Nuff Said.

Wayne

 

[buckdeer1]

Great looking pup.My lab Tyne is what I would say was my first real dog.She is far more than a dog.If I'm not working she is with me.You will have more fun and both of you are sure to learn some things.All my buddies say that when they die they want to come back as my dog.At 2 Tyne got arthritis in her front knees.Luckily we have a great vet hospital a couple hours away and for the price of a redneck blind she is better.Something to think about is AKC health insurance

 

[wbpdeer]

Thanks Buckdeer.

I have some video of Scotty but I am working on getting in on Youtube and just not ready yet.

Wayne

 

[wbpdeer]

I have a video of the first time Scotty went to the woods with the big dogs. He is the little guy in the "Green Collar" and he is just being a pup.

The link below shows the YouTube video.

Thanks for reading / watching this thread.

Wayne

 

[Brushpile]

Scotty will be a great shed dog! I look forward to following his training, development and success. I have been under the weather and unable to train this week.

 

[wbpdeer]

Thanks Brush. I am going to study the training methods hard. Obedience training is a huge part of the discipline. This pup is the one in the litter that can get out of pen. I think that spells motivated to me.

Three keys for me: Obedience, train to know antler by sight, and train to know antler by smell. A good shed dog works the wind.

Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Wayne

 

[TreeDaddy]

I spent time researching and I selected a Kennel out of Southern Indiana to get a lab pup to train as my shed dog. Brushpile and Doctor Brady influenced me through their post regarding breeding and blood lines for deer tracking dogs.

To me, deer antlers have an almost magical power.

Scotty is my lab pup that I will be picking up on Jan 28th - weather permitting. I placed my trust in the dog breeder. Both of Scotty's parents have won some National Shed Dog trials.

I have two photos of him that Shannon Neal, breeder and trainer, took this evening for this forum. More about her kennel later. I will be going to a North America Shed Hunting Dog Association Trial in her area on Jan. 28th.

I have high hope for this pup and I do plan on sharing our progress on this thread. Will I make mistakes? That is part of learning. Everything I do will be about how this pup learns - not about my ego or what I need.

Scotty will not be exposed to birds. I want him 100% committed and trained for shed antlers.

View attachment 5381


Scotty was born October 21, 2016.

View attachment 5382

She did a great job getting him to pose for the camera.

Wayne

Cutman,

Can we get a "love" response option for this little fellow?

How can anyone NOT love dogs?!

bill

 

[dogdoc]

Awesome. As you know I'm a huge lab guy. Can't go wrong with a fetchy lab for shed hunting. I tell clients all the time to not skimp on money when it comes to getting a nice lab. Since coming from a top flight kennel I'm sure the parents are OFA certified with hips and dna tested to be free of EIC. Two very important factors to consider. I wish you the best of luck training your new pup. Let the journey begin.
Todd

 

[wbpdeer]

Dogdoc

On the parent's testing that is a Yes and Yes. That is posted on their website. Thanks for the advice.
Got some video clips of him with his first trailer ride and a good antler introduction in the field. Going to try to get them up to YouTube to share.

Wayne

 

[wbpdeer]

Scotty is a young puppy doing many things for the first time. This video is his first trailer ride. Scotty has the green collar. His litter mate is Leo in the yellow collar.

Hope you enjoy this video.

Thanks for watching this thread.

 

[wbpdeer]

This video shows Scotty being introduced to antlers. He has keen interest. I am excited by what I observe in this pup. When I train him to antlers in the beginning I will try to reduce the distractions. He loves his trainer and he shows what I am looking for.

I feel great about the blood line and the kennel. This pup acts like he could be retrieving rather soon. Oh my - he is still a pup and I do look forward to this journey.

The average person may not believe a dog can be trained to hunt shed antlers. This intro video should show the potential is naturally there for this pup.

 

[Doctorbrady]

Wayne,
Congratulations on your new puppy! I look forward to watching its progress. I went with a friend to pick up an antler dog once. The breeder/trainer was Roger Sigler who was one of the early antler dog training guys. It was a real treat watching all the dogs work. As with all "superstar" working dogs, the key to success is keeping the dogs training and working. I have seen more than one well trained working dog that became a fat couch potato once it left the breeders/trainers facility. I am sure that your dog will get plenty of action.
Also, a huge welcome to the owners of shedhuntinglabs.com who have recently joined our ranks. It is a pleasure to have some more obsessed dog people here !

 

[Gator]

Don't forget the importance of introducing the pup to new environments. Both of my dogs will find sheds, even very hidden ones around the house when told to do so. Take them to the farm, they just run around and play and act like they are looking for a shed.

 

[dogdoc]

Will your new dog be force fetched? I would imagine that would be an important training step for shed dogs?

 

[j-bird]

Congrats on the new puppy Wayne. I look forward to following along.

 

[wbpdeer]

Will your new dog be force fetched? I would imagine that would be an important training step for shed dogs?

Teaching him to retrieve is a big part of what I will have to teach. Most of what I have studied thus far has been how shed dog trainers do it with a pup.

I have not watched how trainers working a lab for duck hunting purposes do it. I would welcome your advice and thoughts.

Today my plan is a tennis ball with a small section of antler thru it and starting in a closed door hallway. Get good in the house and then go to the yard without major distractions. I will toss rubber antler for him to retrieve.

I am concerned about when he cuts teeth about hard antlers. Right now he is getting trained on Sit, Down and Place.

My dad's bird dogs were a pain in the rear to get into a dog box back 40 years ago. I will teach Kennel if it is the last thing I teach.

I do want others that never train a dog to get to enjoy this journey. Hope it proves to be beneficial to others.

Thanks
Wayne
(a wanna be lab trainer)

Note: In a shed dog trial, the dog has to find and retrieve to hand six antlers inside of a 15 minute time period. How well the dog retrieves to hand separates the winners from the pack IMO.

 

[wbpdeer]

DogDoc

I intend to train him to whistle for a come command. Think that will be a double pop on the whistle. My great motivation is I want to one day look at a pile of antlers that Scotty found for me and others. Will use the trial standards to train him but we will compete just enough to get good. Shed hunting on new ground is what cranks my engine.

 

[dogdoc]

Sounds like you did your homework so you should be getting a fetchy dog. Delivering to had doesn't always require a dog to be force fetched but I will never own a hunting lab that isn't force fetched. Lots of videos online and great books/videos that explain force fetching. It is about a 6 week process and I don't start force fetch until the pup has all it's adult teeth. Basic obedience is a must and all my labs are collar conditioned. The collar doesn't teach the command but just reinforces the commands the pup already knows. I haven't trained a shed dog but I would think for a competition shed dog the basics would be all the same. Whistle commands are a must and are very easy to transition. One whistle for sit. Short burst for here. I'm sure the breeder you are getting the dog from will let you know on force fetch and whether or not they collar condition there labs---my guess would be that they do.

Don't over do the retrieving at this point. Just a couple retrieves at each training session. Always quit with the puppy wanting more--not with a puppy that is getting bored.

look forward to following along in your training
todd