Wesson’s First bird this same weekend.
We had our worst day of training. Wes wouldn't come to a whistle, sit in his place, or give the attention needed to be successful. All of his puppy energy was focused on running around and wrestling. This, of course, would come the day before the opening day of the pheasant season. Wes, just 6 months at the time, is my fox red Labrador retriever. I drove ten hours one way to Oxford, Mississippi, to get him. My first time in the south and my first time training a dog all on my own. My goal for Wes was to be a good hunting dog that could also be an everyday companion and relax with me at home on the blistery cold Iowa winter days.
I was lucky the first month or so I had I was still working from home as the last of us transitioned back into the office from the COVID days. This gave me plenty of time to drill the basics with Wes. After a few days, I could tell I had a special dog on my hands. He was intelligent and progressed quickly. Leading me to the first step of being patient. I did not push him to learn too quickly and manage my expectations for a puppy only a few weeks old.
As the weeks went on, I introduced Wes to water, and after only a few trips to the local lake, he was retrieving sticks and jumping in off the dock. Living up to the Lab's reputation of loving water. This was right around the four-month mark when I decided I needed to learn more to keep up with the dog I had. I signed up for a workshop through the breeder in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and made the 6 hour trip across Wisconsin. Here Wes was the youngest dog by a couple months, and the trainers did more coaching me than they did Wes. Giving me tips to help hold his attention and reminding me that a dog his age isn't always going to do what I want him to do and be…. You guessed it, patient.
Wesson a Friend and me.
We, as a team, learned a lot and made a lot of progress on place training and recalling. Wes was even one of the only dogs to get in the river and swim alongside the canoe. Reminding me of the type of dog I had been blessed with. We trained the skills taught at the workshop and were able to do them like clockwork. I found an empty field and started working on long and blind retrieves with Wes pushing him a little more every day. He exceeded my expectations, making patients even harder.
The days would come when he would have more energy than he could control, and we would take steps back. I had to remind myself, be patient, go back to the basics, and work back up. Reminding myself that getting frustrated with a puppy will not help him get to where I want him and where he could end up being.
All this eventually led up to the day before the opener of the pheasant season. Wes had done everything I had asked of him. Finding dummies in tall grass coming to the whistle on retrieves. Making me believe he could handle a light bird hunt at just about 7 months old. We go out just to fine-tune some things, I thought when Wes had his worst day of training he had ever had. Doing the opposite of anything I wanted him to. Biting at my legs and arms and wanting to wrestle instead of work. I had never been more frustrated with him and had decided he wasn't going to hunt with me at all and that he had too much work to do. I put him on his lead and just walked him around the parking lot, forcing him to stay on heal until I was convinced, he had worked enough.
The following day came, Wes was still full of energy. I decide he needs to go just to burn energy, so he isn't crammed in a crate all day. When I say this dog had the best day Wes ever had that following day, I mean it. He's looking for live birds for the first time in the field, and he flushes ten to fifteen in the first field. This type of group flushes was a thing of the past in Iowa. I had never had a flush happen around me like that. I was so caught off guard I didn't even think about shooting. With the help of my dad and a buddy, we would end up shooting 7 birds in the first two weekends of the season. Seeing more wild Iowa birds than I have seen in my life. I credit that all to Wes and his nose.
a few birds and better shooting away from a limit.
Not only did Wes find the birds and flush them, but he hunted close, always came back to the whistle, and performed exactly how you want your dog to in the field. This lesson was driven home that first weekend of the pheasant season. Be patient with your puppy; when you feel you've lost everything, he has learned to go back to the beginning and start again. Not every day needs to be a training day, and not every training session has to be drilled.
We continued to hunt through the season the following weekend, Wes leading us to 5 birds in one field and less than 2 hours. Slowly, the lessons turned from being patient with Wes to trusting him. Learning to read his body language and know when a flush is about to come. With the weather turning cold and flirting with snow every week, I'm starting to pull off the reigns. Wes is still only eight months old and has plenty of seasons ahead of him. Holding him back for the last month of the season won't be easy, but it is the right decision for his long-term health, another lesson in patience I'm trying hard to learn. For now, we go back to training, making sure to keep it fun, keep it light, and right when you're ready to give up. Take them hunting because they might flush more birds than you have seen in your entire life.