| | | | | |  |  | | Ben O. Williams |
SELF-POINTINGby Ben O. Williams
Excerpt from:Bird Dog – The Instinctive Training Method
You don’t need to have seasoned dogs in the field to train a pup. If a pup has what it takes, he will learn the ropes himself. The only advantage a pup gains from working with older dogs in the field is that he will follow the other dogs and cover more ground, which accelerates the desire to hunt. A pup on its own is a little more reluctant to cover ground when it first starts, but that changes quickly with more time in the field.
I’m a firm believer in natural field training and in letting the dog use its natural ability to hunt. I once asked my friend, Thomas McGuane, what his secret was in training cutting horses. His reply went something like this: "Ben, I can only train a smart horse because it’s already in him what to do." It’s the same with bird dogs. I don’t train them; I just give them the opportunity to learn.”
A first-year pup will break on birds or chase them, but he soon learns that he can’t catch them and starts to train himself not to do this anymore. These are learning sessions for a young dog. A self-taught dog will point and learn to hold until the bird flushes. We don’t give enough credit to the dog for what he learns on his own.
My Brittany, Hershey, is the best all-around bird finder I have today. He made his first point on a wild rooster pheasant. I had been working dogs on young sharptails in a Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) field when Hershey seemed more interested in being alone than being with the other dogs. I heard Hershey’s beeper collar broadcasting in the pointing mode off to my left, but I figured he had just stopped to smell something. I paid little attention to him until an older dog honored his point. This got my attention, and I hurried past the trailing dog and walked up to Hershey. He didn’t move. In the barrow pit next to the dirt road the dried grass was only inches high. I looked up and down the lane and saw nothing. Hershey still didn’t move. I walked down the slope, and a big rooster burst from underfoot.
|  | One reason a dog moves from a point is that it has lost the scent of the bird and becomes impatient.
Photo by: Author |
This is Hershey’s tenth year, and he has never pushed a point in his entire life. He never breaks until the last bird flushes, and he honors every dog that points. He learned all of this from working wild birds, starting with that rooster many years ago. A pup chasing birds after the flush is completely different from a dog moving or breaking on point before a flush. If you want a pup to be steady to wing and shot, chasing birds has to be curtailed, but it has absolutely nothing to do with stopping a pup from moving after it points.
One reason a dog moves from a point is that it has lost the scent of the bird and becomes impatient. Or the scenting conditions may be so poor that he has overrun his nose and before he can stop, the bird flushes. The pup is not screwing up in this situation, as most dogs will correct this movement on their own as they mature. There are always a few dogs that creep or break when pointing, of course, and this has to be corrected right from the get-go.
This is where the five percent of training that you may have to contribute to help a pup hold steady on point comes in. It’s very important that you are sure the pup is ready for the necessary correction. Again, every pup’s learning curve is different, and this creeping or breaking could simply be immaturity that will work itself out.
 | | There are always a few dogs that creep or break when pointing, of course, and this has to be corrected right from the get-go.
Photo by: Author |
If you are sure the pup has a problem holding point and he will not hold with a simple verbal command, it may be because your command for the pup to stay or whoa was not firm enough during earlier training sessions. Or it could be that the pup is headstrong or just too intent on getting at the birds. Sometimes teaching a pup to hold point is easier with the help of an assistant. Put a check cord on him and let him run. When the pup points, get to him as quickly as you can and step on the rope. Work toward the dog while keeping the rope tight. Sweet-talk him and pet him, but hold him firmly. Then have the assistant walk in front of the dog and flush the bird. If you can’t find the bird, let the pup go. It’s okay if he flushes a bird, as you’ve achieved your goal of having the pup hold for a while.
Most of the time I do this training by myself, and it works just as well. Once you have the pup held firmly, slowly relax the rope and move forward while talking to him, saying "whoa," "stay," or "eeezy." Then hold him again. If this is done two or three times, so much the better. If you can’t find or flush the birds, just let the pup go. If he flushes the birds, let the pup run and chase the birds a short distance, then call him back. I think chasing birds a short distance at this point in training is perfectly fine.
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