abirddogmoment

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Beautiful pair of northern shovelers

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happiest animal in the world

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peench

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Fish again!!! Here are some of my favourite game fish (+two minnows) embroidered onto my favourite garment so far!

Sturgeon, pike, burbot, trout, perch, silvery minnow, and a fathead minnow.

Wanna acquire this specific project?

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Click this link. It's not a virus, I promise.

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Harassing the animals a little bit is a critical part of the camping experience

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eta she's found a new home!!

Liberated this beautiful scarf from the thrift store today but I don't have anywhere to put it! Any dogblrs interested in it? I'll send it for free, but it might take a min to arrive with our postal strike!

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Morning walk through the badlands

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One of the hunting dog Facebook pages I follow was asking for questions to ask hunting dog trainers in their podcast and I asked:

The science behind dog training has really evolved over the last decade. What are some ways you hope hunting dog training evolves as well, or opposingly, what are some ways you hope it doesn't?

Anyway I've got some thoughts.

I actually have ways I want hunting dog training to evolve, and ways I hope it doesn't!

Please Evolve According to the Science

I want to see way more positive reinforcement foundations in puppies. I don't want to see puppies with an ecollar at 4 months. There are soooo many better ways to work according to the puppy's skill level and maturity and I want, as a group, hunting dog people to move away from use of aversives on puppies.

In a similar vein, I want to see much better emphasis on breeding good skills (eg soft mouth, innate retrieve) instead of using (reliable but outdated) methods like force hold / force fetch. I understand why they're used, but we have access to genetics like never before. We can be breeding stronger retrieve instincts and moving away from needing to force fetch dogs as a baseline.

I want to see more thought behind pairings. I'm tired of seeing two field trial champ dogs thrown together with little thought to structure or temperament, or two beautiful GCH confo dogs with no thought to bird ability. I'm not a golden person but I like the work Windmill Retrievers is doing with their genetic diversity program (caveat that goldens have a huge show/field split so they aren't confo dogs but still solid breeding program).

Please Don't Follow the Current Trends in Training

Most hunting dog homes are maintaining regular and significant exercise and conditioning programs ("creating athletes") instead of doing more quiet enrichment. I hope this never ends. Dogs that actively hunt SHOULD be athletes to maintain their range of motion, strength, and stamina for work in the field.

Starting field and terrain work immediately. Hunting dog puppies typically start training in the field between 8 to 10 weeks during the critical socialization period, despite the risks associated with not being fully vaccinated and having little baby joints made of jello. I love this as this is a risk I ALSO take with my dogs and I feel the benefits largely outweigh the risks.

Anyway this is just my personal thoughts as a random hunting dog enthusiast.

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A lil guy

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With ears like that, it's a miracle she doesn't take flight 😂

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Friends from the swamp

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A compilation of some of my favourite Mav moments ❤

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LOL but seriously release the hounds

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A quick morning walk

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Feel free to elaborate on what kind of pet you have!