the brittany and Julie Knutson's book training the pointing lad

[fisher]

OK so im back in the game I have been gone for a year not hunting after having to sell a well trained black lab. This year I said ill hunt with no dog and start looking at what type I might want next. after 3 trips grouse hunting I miss my boy bad but Have been looking at the Brittany.

I trained my lad with Julie Knutson's book training the pointing lad. witch if you have not took a good look at is a sweet book. Brittany fans can I use this book? I used a small hand wip to train my lad to sit and heal this worked well can I do the same with a Britt?

how do I train the Britt to stay close I hunt heavy woods for ruff grouse I think on point at 40 yards after the ground clears would be OK. Well on the gun flint this last weekend I don't think I could find a dog on point at 40 yards.can I train a Britt to stay with me at 20 yards.

Anyone know a good HSOforum or book for training pointers and or Britt?

hope every one is having great hunting

Im happy to be back

Jeff Krop

[gspman]

You should be able to use that book just fine. You will not have a happy Brit if you are going to try to keep it within 20 yards. I don't think there is a pointing dog worth keeping that ranges only 20 yards and you certainly are not going to find many brits that stay that close. Heck, even flushers range further than that. Every dog has a natural range. You can change that a little but IMHO you should work with the dogs natural range instead of against it. Have some faith in that little brit and let it range out and find you some birds. If you search on "pointing dog training" you'll find lots of info.

[fisher]

ok so never hunting with a pointer how do you find the dog if its to fair and how fair can I expect the brit to go?

[gspman]

Traditional grousers will put a bell on the dogs collar to track their movements. When the bell goes silent the dog is on point. People also use beeper collars for this. There are also GPS tracking collars nowadays too.

Range depends on alot of variables. The cover, the weather, the wind, the dogs natural range, etc. There are bootlicker Brits and there are half mile Brits and everything in between. This is true for most of the major pointing breeds. Part of it is what you are comfortable with but you need to let the dog do it's thing to a degree. Pointers are not flushers and need to be left to do their job somewhat independently.

[870Express]

Good stuff GSP man. Fisher, my brit is 1.5 years old and I solely used Julie's book until force fetch. I like her style. Why I chose it? It is very important to me that my dog is a fully finished waterfowl and upland pointing dog. Is this the best book to complete this with? Who knows...did it work for me and did I enjoy it? You bet.

As a generalization, pointing labs take a little longer to develop their pointing because of their prey drive and wanting to pounce and retrieve. On the contrary, pointing dogs sometimes are a little more timid in becoming high-powered retrievers(than a retrieving breed). Because of this, Julie's book takes the pointing training at a little slower pace than traditional pointing systems. This was perfect for me as I was training my first pointing breed and didn't want to screw it up.

One thing I'd make note of is to go a little easier on the "sit" command or teach the dog "whoa" from day one instead. I'll use Julie's systems on my future pointing dogs.

As for range, be sure to communicate what you're looking for to the breeder. Might want to stay away from the horseback field trialers and look into NSTRA or MH, SH lines (again a generalization). Have fun, those little brits are awesome!

[fisher]

Ok so I started reading Julies book again its looking good 870 and GSP man you have good things to say I guess I fear was that I would end up with a Britt or any pointer that was meant to be run on horse back. I have never been on a horse and being that I live in down town St. Paul I don't see myself buying one to hunt on!! I am looking now for the right breeder for a Britt can anyone give me a some good people to talk to?

I enjoy being back talking to dag people again I missed this vary much thank all of you and hop to have many more chats. If anyone has a free day Id love to see your Britt work and see what im going to get

[gspman]

Just be very clear with the breeder with what you want and what your expectations are. If you want a close/moderate ranging Brit for grouse then say that. If you detect any B.S. then save that one for later and keep looking.

Talking to people from the MN Brittany Club and the St Croix Valley Brittany club would be great places to start. Get ahold of the breed secretary and get the names of some breeders and go from there. There is also a breeder that visits this site that has Brits too.

[870Express]

Search Kentucky_Ike as screen name or Ben's Brittanys is the kennel name I believe in Southern MN. A lot of pleased owners of his dogs on the site over the years. I'd get ahold of someone at the St. Croix Valley Brittany club and tell them exactly what you're looking for. Take your time finding a dog, you're deciding on a best friend for the next 10+ years God willing. I'd also ask the breeder if he can show you how one of the parents run in the field. Try a park or WMA if there's no acreage on the premises. It may be possible that a medium to short ranging dog has too much range for you...or not enough range

[kentuck_ike]

fisher, I have 2 litters coming up. I would be happy to talk with you. if you do a search for Ben's Brittanys you should find my HSOforum. My e-mail is [email protected] drop me line if you would like to see my dogs in action.

Ben