Well, yesterday evening I got a BIG HUGE and unexpected surprise. Miska came running out of the bush on our property (actually way too close to the road for comfort) carrying a WILD TURKEY! I was absolutely stunned. I called her to me and she ran with it in her mouth. All I could think to do was run to the house to grab my camera. It was still alive and she carried it all the way from the road to our house - over 400 feet. Wild turkeys are not small birds by any means and they can be difficult to hunt, so for Miska to 'bag' this one was quite a feat! By the time she got to the house and paraded it around a bit, she dropped it; she was tired.
Showing posts with label hunting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hunting. Show all posts
4 September 2011
3 August 2011
Good hunting prospects
It looks like we have some very good hunting prospects in this litter. You'd think so since the sire, Brick, has his AKC Master Hunter title and the dam, Miska, carries several hunting titles and loves to hunt! All the puppies were tested with a wing-on-a-string and a frozen quail. Mr Black and Mr Turquoise had the strongest pointing instincts of the 6. Each of these puppies locked immediately on point when they saw the wing and Turquoise even pointed a tiny feather on the ground. All pointed and all were very interested in the frozen quail. It certainly would be nice to see each of these 6 puppies get at least a junior hunting title although I know that won't the case. (And notice the nice tails on these puppies when they point!)
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| Mr Green (Bentley) on point |
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| Intense pointing from Turquoise |
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| Miss Red has lovely style |
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| Hey, where's the rest of the bird? |
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| Yellow on point |
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| I ain't moving if it doesn't move |
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| Mr Black finds the quail |
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| I think I'll have a little taste |
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| Black thinks the feet smell or taste good |
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| Turquoise likes this sport! |
14 May 2011
Frustrated Hunters
You can take the dog out of the hunting field but you can't take the hunting out of the dog.
A cactus wren decided to make a nest in the eavestrough of our house in AZ. And BTW, very, very few houses in AZ even have eavestroughs because of the lack of rain. For some reason, our house does. They do serve a purpose during the monsoons so they aren't wasted. But when the wren decided to set up its home on our house, the dogs got a little excited. After all, it's been months since Miska, Tyro and Diva 'hunted' birds.
A cactus wren decided to make a nest in the eavestrough of our house in AZ. And BTW, very, very few houses in AZ even have eavestroughs because of the lack of rain. For some reason, our house does. They do serve a purpose during the monsoons so they aren't wasted. But when the wren decided to set up its home on our house, the dogs got a little excited. After all, it's been months since Miska, Tyro and Diva 'hunted' birds.
26 April 2009
Gypsy earns her FD title
Gypsy (Ch Szuni's Gypsy Moon CD FDJ) bred and owned by Susan Scobie of British Columbia, is a grand-daughter of my beloved Sasha (BPIG* Am/Can CH Varazs Kiraly Sassy Sasha Am/Can CD, Am/Can CDX, FDJ, RN, RA, RE, RAE, TT, CGC, CGN) and I'm proud to announce that she just completed her Field Dog (FD) hunting title in April.Susan and Gypsy
22 April 2009
Cadaver or SAR dog?
Miska should really be a cadaver or SAR (search and rescue) dog because she is always finding body parts in various sizes, shapes, species and in varying states of condition in and around our property and in the woods where I walk her and our other dogs. So far, all parts have been animal (or so I believe and hope), killed mainly by coyotes and the occasional fox.
The past 2 months (only March & April since we returned from Arizona) have been a record for her - a deer leg, various deer bones, 2 wings & thorax of a Canada Goose, deer antlers, a tail hide from a white-tailed deer, and a few unrecognizable body parts, pelts and bones. This stuff used to go into our garbage but now it goes into our municipal 'green' bin, except for the antlers which I gave to Miska's field trainer, Mike Wilshire, to add to his 'rack' collection.
So this morning, I wasn't surprised (although I was a little disturbed) when she brought me something that didn't resemble a body part. This time, it was a live calico coloured pussy cat in her mouth!!! It was thin, wet, and muddy and not looking or smelling very good. We are surrounded by hundreds of acres of woods with no close neighbours so heaven knows how far it had wandered or how long it had been living or lost in the woods.
There were no puncture wounds from Miska's teeth, thank goodness, but there still could have been some internal injuries from her jaws. After all, Miska is a keen hunter and she found this pussy outdoors this morning while accompanied by her 'pack' - our other 3 dogs. And when there is a pack hunting, there is competition so she may not have been as gentle with it as she would have when alone. Anyway, I pried it from Miska's mouth and immediately took it to a vet. There was no collar on it and I don't know if it was microchipped. I couldn't keep a cat. It certainly needed medical attention but it probably will be humanely euthanised because it didn't look well. Sometimes I wish Miska wasn't quite so keen on hunting and finding me bodies or body parts but if she is ever needed as a cadaver or SAR dog, I'm confident she'd do an excellent job!
The past 2 months (only March & April since we returned from Arizona) have been a record for her - a deer leg, various deer bones, 2 wings & thorax of a Canada Goose, deer antlers, a tail hide from a white-tailed deer, and a few unrecognizable body parts, pelts and bones. This stuff used to go into our garbage but now it goes into our municipal 'green' bin, except for the antlers which I gave to Miska's field trainer, Mike Wilshire, to add to his 'rack' collection.
So this morning, I wasn't surprised (although I was a little disturbed) when she brought me something that didn't resemble a body part. This time, it was a live calico coloured pussy cat in her mouth!!! It was thin, wet, and muddy and not looking or smelling very good. We are surrounded by hundreds of acres of woods with no close neighbours so heaven knows how far it had wandered or how long it had been living or lost in the woods.
There were no puncture wounds from Miska's teeth, thank goodness, but there still could have been some internal injuries from her jaws. After all, Miska is a keen hunter and she found this pussy outdoors this morning while accompanied by her 'pack' - our other 3 dogs. And when there is a pack hunting, there is competition so she may not have been as gentle with it as she would have when alone. Anyway, I pried it from Miska's mouth and immediately took it to a vet. There was no collar on it and I don't know if it was microchipped. I couldn't keep a cat. It certainly needed medical attention but it probably will be humanely euthanised because it didn't look well. Sometimes I wish Miska wasn't quite so keen on hunting and finding me bodies or body parts but if she is ever needed as a cadaver or SAR dog, I'm confident she'd do an excellent job!
20 April 2009
Darien NY hunt tests
April 18-19, the German Shorthair Club of Western NY once again hosted AKC hunt tests at Darien NY. In some ways, we couldn't have had better weather - no snow and no rain! Temperatures were quite warm on Saturday, with lots of wind - too much really and then dropped quite a bit on Sunday (better for the dogs); the wind was mild on Sunday morning but picked up a lot later in the morning so it felt quite cold but it was sunny. The grounds there are very spacious and in good condition although the cover was very low because all the grass remained flat from the snow cover. Still, I much prefer this venue to many of the ones used in Ontario for field tests.
Miska and Vadasz were both entered in the Sr Hunter level. Tyro and Diva were entered in Jr Hunter. Gary decided to handle his dog Vadasz and so I only had 3 dogs to deal with but I also walked the course when Vadasz went out so I got lots of exercise and also got to listen to the discussions of the judges and the AKC marshall.
I had lots of butterflies as this was my first time handling a dog at the Sr level. Good thing the nerves can't travel down the lead in hunt tests. Miska was going to do whatever she was going to do, and there wasn't much I could about it - or so I thought. But I did learn many things over the two days.
Miska's performance on Saturday wasn't very good. She neither honored nor had a chance to retrieve a shot bird. She did find a bird but flushed and chased it and brought it back to me - a huge no-no. It was an exceptionally long retrieve remarked one of the judges, tongue-in-cheek. Hmmmn, note to self - need more work on her steadiness.
Sunday, Miska was considerably better. She had a beautiful honor from quite a distance away. I was thrilled. I was also able to successfully call her off from chasing a bird that the other dog flushed but which wasn't shot at. Miska also had a fantastic and stylish point that she held for a very long time while I tried to find the bird and flush it. Unfortunately, there was no bird - it was where a bird had been that her bracemate had previously found. I learned I could 'relocate' her to help me find the bird. But it seemed it was the bracemates (usually GSPs) which found the birds first and they (birds) were few and far between.
Anyway, I blew the test for us on the next honor; I allowed Miska to steal the other dog's point. I didn't realize I could command her to whoa before she stopped moving, i.e., when she 'acknowledged' the other dog on point. I understand that acknowledging the other dog is open to some interpretation and disagreement by judges but I'll be better prepared next time and command her to whoa before she can steal the other dog's point. Up to that point, she was still in contention but my error caused her to not pass. Sometimes I need to make mistakes in order to improve and that's one.
Vadasz's performances were somewhat similar although he didn't honor at all, indicating that both dogs need more work on steadiness and honoring. Vadasz apparently also needs more training on his fetching. Gary says he doesn't always bring the bird to hand, choosing to drop it and then go off to hunt for another. I discussed this problem with Gary and asked him how he reinforced the 'hold'. He explained that he uses the command 'hold' and then gives Vadasz a treat when he gives him whatever is in his mouth. I now rail against using verbal commands when a dog is learning a behaviour and even for many behaviours a command is not needed. I did explain, however. that the timing and placement of his food reward was being paired NOT with holding the dumbbell or bird, but with spitting it out. The desired behaviour - holding the object - is not the one being reinforced. Instead, spitting it out/dropping it is being reinforced.
So how does one reward holding something? Give the dog a very small treat while it holds the object in its mouth. Of course, I don't start with a quail or chukkar but with a dowel or dumbbell, something fairly small so there is room to put a treat on the dog's tongue. Nor do I start this with a dog that hasn't first played Susan Garrett's "It's Yer Choice" game because the dog's immediate reaction when smelling or seeing a food treat will be to open its mouth and drop the object. By playing the "It's Yer Choice" game, my dogs have learned that just because food / treats appear, they must continue to work.
This generally got me thinking about different approaches to my dogs' field training, especially with Tyro and Diva as I want them to learn control with birds now rather than trying to undo a lot of undesired behaviours that they may learn such as flushing, chasing and retrieving birds on their own. And I really want to avoid any kind of corrections and use of force in field training which virtually everyone does, just as I do in my other training with my dogs. Miska's biggest challenge is steadiness to wing & shot because her desire to retrieve/fetch is ultra strong (something I've reinforced since her puppyhood). So for her, the steadiness needs to become more rewarding than the retrieving for now and I have to figure out how I can do this at home, possibly with no birds. That's another challenge!
So no qualifying scores in SH for Miska and Vadasz but a whole lot of learning and a little more handling experience was gained by the humans.
As to Tyro and Diva, neither found any birds on Saturday - more dogs failed on Saturday in all classes than passed. Being a very sociable Vizsla, Tyro was a somewhat more interested in playing with his bracements than finding birds, especially on Sunday when his bracement, a very young Vizsla, really wanted to play with Tyro which didn't help at all and then later teased Tyro by bringing over a quail in its mouth to play with.
Diva was much more focused on hunting (she is Miska's daughter after all!) and on Sunday successfully found 2 birds, pointed 1, was shot over and also retrieved 2 quails to my hand, one still alive. Thankfully Diva saved the weekend by being the only dog to return home with a qualifying score and rosette. Way to go Pumpkin-Wumkin!
Miska and Vadasz were both entered in the Sr Hunter level. Tyro and Diva were entered in Jr Hunter. Gary decided to handle his dog Vadasz and so I only had 3 dogs to deal with but I also walked the course when Vadasz went out so I got lots of exercise and also got to listen to the discussions of the judges and the AKC marshall.
I had lots of butterflies as this was my first time handling a dog at the Sr level. Good thing the nerves can't travel down the lead in hunt tests. Miska was going to do whatever she was going to do, and there wasn't much I could about it - or so I thought. But I did learn many things over the two days.
Miska's performance on Saturday wasn't very good. She neither honored nor had a chance to retrieve a shot bird. She did find a bird but flushed and chased it and brought it back to me - a huge no-no. It was an exceptionally long retrieve remarked one of the judges, tongue-in-cheek. Hmmmn, note to self - need more work on her steadiness.
Sunday, Miska was considerably better. She had a beautiful honor from quite a distance away. I was thrilled. I was also able to successfully call her off from chasing a bird that the other dog flushed but which wasn't shot at. Miska also had a fantastic and stylish point that she held for a very long time while I tried to find the bird and flush it. Unfortunately, there was no bird - it was where a bird had been that her bracemate had previously found. I learned I could 'relocate' her to help me find the bird. But it seemed it was the bracemates (usually GSPs) which found the birds first and they (birds) were few and far between.
Anyway, I blew the test for us on the next honor; I allowed Miska to steal the other dog's point. I didn't realize I could command her to whoa before she stopped moving, i.e., when she 'acknowledged' the other dog on point. I understand that acknowledging the other dog is open to some interpretation and disagreement by judges but I'll be better prepared next time and command her to whoa before she can steal the other dog's point. Up to that point, she was still in contention but my error caused her to not pass. Sometimes I need to make mistakes in order to improve and that's one.
Vadasz's performances were somewhat similar although he didn't honor at all, indicating that both dogs need more work on steadiness and honoring. Vadasz apparently also needs more training on his fetching. Gary says he doesn't always bring the bird to hand, choosing to drop it and then go off to hunt for another. I discussed this problem with Gary and asked him how he reinforced the 'hold'. He explained that he uses the command 'hold' and then gives Vadasz a treat when he gives him whatever is in his mouth. I now rail against using verbal commands when a dog is learning a behaviour and even for many behaviours a command is not needed. I did explain, however. that the timing and placement of his food reward was being paired NOT with holding the dumbbell or bird, but with spitting it out. The desired behaviour - holding the object - is not the one being reinforced. Instead, spitting it out/dropping it is being reinforced.
So how does one reward holding something? Give the dog a very small treat while it holds the object in its mouth. Of course, I don't start with a quail or chukkar but with a dowel or dumbbell, something fairly small so there is room to put a treat on the dog's tongue. Nor do I start this with a dog that hasn't first played Susan Garrett's "It's Yer Choice" game because the dog's immediate reaction when smelling or seeing a food treat will be to open its mouth and drop the object. By playing the "It's Yer Choice" game, my dogs have learned that just because food / treats appear, they must continue to work.
This generally got me thinking about different approaches to my dogs' field training, especially with Tyro and Diva as I want them to learn control with birds now rather than trying to undo a lot of undesired behaviours that they may learn such as flushing, chasing and retrieving birds on their own. And I really want to avoid any kind of corrections and use of force in field training which virtually everyone does, just as I do in my other training with my dogs. Miska's biggest challenge is steadiness to wing & shot because her desire to retrieve/fetch is ultra strong (something I've reinforced since her puppyhood). So for her, the steadiness needs to become more rewarding than the retrieving for now and I have to figure out how I can do this at home, possibly with no birds. That's another challenge!
So no qualifying scores in SH for Miska and Vadasz but a whole lot of learning and a little more handling experience was gained by the humans.
As to Tyro and Diva, neither found any birds on Saturday - more dogs failed on Saturday in all classes than passed. Being a very sociable Vizsla, Tyro was a somewhat more interested in playing with his bracements than finding birds, especially on Sunday when his bracement, a very young Vizsla, really wanted to play with Tyro which didn't help at all and then later teased Tyro by bringing over a quail in its mouth to play with.
Diva was much more focused on hunting (she is Miska's daughter after all!) and on Sunday successfully found 2 birds, pointed 1, was shot over and also retrieved 2 quails to my hand, one still alive. Thankfully Diva saved the weekend by being the only dog to return home with a qualifying score and rosette. Way to go Pumpkin-Wumkin!
Diva on point in training
Diva with her qualifying rosette
30 October 2008
Hunting instinct lands Miska in trouble
Sometimes it's a mixed blessing owning hunting dogs when what they hunt can cause injuries or sometimes worse. Miska has very strong instincts for hunting both feather and fur. We don't get much wild upland game where we live so most 'hunting' around here is for fur. When I say 'hunting', I am not carrying a gun to shoot game with; Miska just hunts naturally whenever we head outdoors.
Yesterday while out walking along our usual trail in our neighbouring conservation area, Miska found a creature in the woods. I usually know when she's hot on the scent of something because often she barks at it, usually because it's up a tree. In this case, it was on the ground. I could see her and Nova working as a team to corner it. It was big and dark and ambling along the ground. Fortunately Tyro and Diva didn't join in when they heard me shouting 'leave it!' at the top of my lungs. My shouts turned to screams, however, when neither Miska nor Nova paid any attention to me. When they get so excited and aroused by the hunt, I'm sure they don't hear me at all because they are so focused on the prey.
At first I thought it was a raccoon, then I thought it was a skunk and because the dogs were so close to the creature, I was certain they had been sprayed. But I couldn't smell any skunk odor. Finally Miska backed off and away and then I saw her face - she had a muzzle full of porcupine quills. Boy, she got it good. Obviously, she had tried to bite the porkie. Nova was spared. Of course, it had to be the one occasion when I didn't have my cell phone with me and we had quite a long walk back to the house. Poor Miska kept trying to paw her face. I tried to carry her for a few yards but an extra 43 pounds of weight was very difficult to hoist for long. Needless to say, I was so relieved but so exhausted to get her home. My vet was closed for the evening and doesn't provide 24 hour emergency service so I phoned around to find a clinic that was open after 6 pm. Fortunately I did, only five minutes drive away, and so a short while later, she was recovering and sleeping off the sedative and I was $110 poorer. Ouch - those quills really, really hurt when being pulled out which is why they need to be sedated. She had a few in her mouth but most were around her muzzle; maybe about 40-50 quills. It could have been a lot worse. Will that teach her a lesson? From what I've heard of other people's experiences with their dogs, not likely.
The photo at R is of Miska's brother, Vadasz taken in April 2008 with a number of quills in his body. Most likely he had found a dead porcupine and rolled on it because of where the quills were situated. They were also quite soft and easy to extract.
Then on today's walk, Miska found half a body of a squirrel. That wasn't something she killed and ate; probably leftover kill from a fox or coyote. Being the ultimate retriever that she is, she always brings these things to me. Oh happy day- NOT! Fortunately I had a bag to dispose of the carcass and a treat to give her. Sometimes I wish she didn't like to hunt quite so much.
Yesterday while out walking along our usual trail in our neighbouring conservation area, Miska found a creature in the woods. I usually know when she's hot on the scent of something because often she barks at it, usually because it's up a tree. In this case, it was on the ground. I could see her and Nova working as a team to corner it. It was big and dark and ambling along the ground. Fortunately Tyro and Diva didn't join in when they heard me shouting 'leave it!' at the top of my lungs. My shouts turned to screams, however, when neither Miska nor Nova paid any attention to me. When they get so excited and aroused by the hunt, I'm sure they don't hear me at all because they are so focused on the prey.
At first I thought it was a raccoon, then I thought it was a skunk and because the dogs were so close to the creature, I was certain they had been sprayed. But I couldn't smell any skunk odor. Finally Miska backed off and away and then I saw her face - she had a muzzle full of porcupine quills. Boy, she got it good. Obviously, she had tried to bite the porkie. Nova was spared. Of course, it had to be the one occasion when I didn't have my cell phone with me and we had quite a long walk back to the house. Poor Miska kept trying to paw her face. I tried to carry her for a few yards but an extra 43 pounds of weight was very difficult to hoist for long. Needless to say, I was so relieved but so exhausted to get her home. My vet was closed for the evening and doesn't provide 24 hour emergency service so I phoned around to find a clinic that was open after 6 pm. Fortunately I did, only five minutes drive away, and so a short while later, she was recovering and sleeping off the sedative and I was $110 poorer. Ouch - those quills really, really hurt when being pulled out which is why they need to be sedated. She had a few in her mouth but most were around her muzzle; maybe about 40-50 quills. It could have been a lot worse. Will that teach her a lesson? From what I've heard of other people's experiences with their dogs, not likely.
The photo at R is of Miska's brother, Vadasz taken in April 2008 with a number of quills in his body. Most likely he had found a dead porcupine and rolled on it because of where the quills were situated. They were also quite soft and easy to extract.
Then on today's walk, Miska found half a body of a squirrel. That wasn't something she killed and ate; probably leftover kill from a fox or coyote. Being the ultimate retriever that she is, she always brings these things to me. Oh happy day- NOT! Fortunately I had a bag to dispose of the carcass and a treat to give her. Sometimes I wish she didn't like to hunt quite so much.
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