So, you hunt a lot more than the average person, you might spend some time traveling to different hunting destinations, and you spend multiple weekends and some weekdays chasing waterfowl. This is an intermediate, all around type of dog course. You're looking for a dog that is going to hunt persistently, you want a more precise dog, and you want a dog that can handle the marks, run, and has been trained to run blinds as well as seasoned level testing concepts.
Lets talk about what you're getting from FFR in our seasoned gundog program. Let's go back to our started program, the training will stay similar in theory, except when we get to the force-to-pile phase when the training splits off and differentiates from our started course. We introduce the left and right “back” casts and begin sitting the dog on whistle command and progressively casting them to the “back’ pile. Over the period of a few days, the dog will be taught the back and over casts, as well as returning to the back pile on land, and ultimately receiving low-pressure reinforcement to push “back”.
Once the dog is remote-sitting cleanly, we are moving into the infamous T-drill. This is where our timelines become inaccurate for most dogs. Some dogs have progressed through the extensive process of teaching a proper T-drill in as little as 2 weeks, and some have taken 2 months. To give you an insight as to why the T-drill can be so difficult for some dogs, they are being asked to make the correct decision and return to the correct pile with a hand gesture, and some dogs are slow learners. They have a hard time making good decisions, but in time, they all prevail.
Now, once the T-drill is complete, we go back, and we are running from heel, sending the dog back, stopping and casting the dog to any pile on land and in water, and we increase the T-drill significantly in size, and the dog is stopping and responding to the e-collar appropriately from making the wrong decision. We begin lining drills such as wagon wheel, zigzag, and v drills. This instills proper lining etiquette. At this point, once this is complete, we have a dog ready for pattern blinds. Pattern blinds are the process of running to particular blinds at random distances, creating confidence in the lines, and COMPLETING the “back” and “over” casts by swapping to other piles. Cast corrections are the deciding factor of whether a dog is ready to move from pattern blinds to cold blinds.
Other basic concepts that are imperative are line correcting, bank cheating and de-cheat, reverse T, and swimby. All are extensive concepts to develop an excellent blind running dog. Based on how the dog is progressing through the course and their confidence levels, will determine how successful they are at running said blind between 50 and 200 yards. This is a seasoned course, don't get greedy haha.. Now wait, will my dog be a better marking dog? Absolutely. We run marks every day, and as I've said before, I’m a marking guy. I want to see my seasoned-level dogs running interchanging doubles, short in-line marks, bank cheat marks, and a challenging triple.
I want to see these dogs pinpointing singles out to 200 yards typically, terrain-depending, and putting in a persistent hunt in the fall area. Walk-up marks should be done with ease, I like throwing a lot of short, long doubles, and really testing these young dogs’ boundaries. You're going to have a much more consistent marking dog and a dog willing to challenge a blind. Still, you’ve got a seasoned gundog, and maturity and reps between the handler and dog will be a determining factor in how efficiently that dog will work for you.
Ready to take the next steps in gundog training? We understand that its an investment not only in your dog, but future hunts for years to come. Whether you have more questions about our seasoned gundog program or are ready to get started, we would love to hear from you!
