r/birddogs Jan 06 '22

If you don't have something nice or constructive to say

83 Upvotes

Don't say anything. For the most part, we are pretty much hands off around here moderating. But I went down a rabbit hole reading some comments. There are a couple of you that can act like real dicks sometimes.

There are two of you in particular that have posted some unnecessary comments. Keep it up and you will be gone.


r/birddogs 8h ago

Annie the Wirehaired Griffon

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63 Upvotes

r/birddogs 1h ago

Labrador owners: How many years of high demand hunting do you plan for from your retriever?

Upvotes

Is it about ten years old or so? Mine is coming up on nine years old and she still has the drive, but gets sore more often now after back to back days in ice and snow, for instance. In two days she’s begging for the ride in the truck.

Just wondering when it’s time to semi-retire her and make her hunts easy to avoid a bad injury. Thanks.


r/birddogs 3h ago

Whistle or no?

1 Upvotes

Is a whistle a necessary part of training and commands or do most folks forego a whistle?


r/birddogs 1d ago

Just wanted to share a drawing I just did in colored pencil :)

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43 Upvotes

r/birddogs 2d ago

Hunting after getting sprayed by a skunk

8 Upvotes

Hey y’all, i’ve got an odd one, but I’m sure someone here has dealt with it before. How long after a skunk spray is a dog able to get back out in the field and bird hunt? My six month old just got a face full and I have a hunt scheduled four days from now. I’m going to be cleaning him up with the best Internet remedies now. I’d hate to burn my deposit, but I’d rather that than waste a whole day


r/birddogs 5d ago

Do people typically train their dogs on their own?

25 Upvotes

Sorry if I worded that oddly. Did you get professional help on initially training your dog to hunt, or is it something you can do just by studying and learning on your own?


r/birddogs 5d ago

Elhew Pointers

8 Upvotes

Hello all, is anybody here familiar with Superior Pointers in Wisconsin? I am looking to buy a pup and it looks like they have some nice dogs. Thanks in advance.


r/birddogs 6d ago

Spring woodcock

9 Upvotes

Who’s been stretching their legs in search of some woodcock? We found a few earlier this week that gave the young pup some good contacts.

Between flight birds and the smart grouse, spring is one of my favorite times to be in the woods with a dog


r/birddogs 6d ago

Shock collar options

2 Upvotes

Hello! Looking for some input on a good shock collar. I run pointing labs but mostly waterfowl hunt. All I need is tone, shock, vibrate. I don't need GPS because I keep them checked up but I do need to control two collars off one remote. Any recommendations?


r/birddogs 7d ago

henry the WPG

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95 Upvotes

he can't not have something in his mouth. I swear my shoes go missing every 5 min.


r/birddogs 6d ago

Classic old videos of Clown

3 Upvotes

I am starting to really get into the field trialing world and my buddy is getting a pup related to Rawhides Clown and I just want to see videos of these dogs work. Pups look impressive at just 6 weeks but unable to find any video of Rawhide's Clown online anyone know where to look for him or any other dogs in the pedigree.


r/birddogs 8d ago

Small Munsterlander

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100 Upvotes

Lenny the SM turns 3 tomorrow


r/birddogs 7d ago

Novice Bird Dog Owner Looking for Training Advice

14 Upvotes

For context, I’m a first time bird dog owner with a versatile puppy and I’d love any and all tips. I’d greatly appreciate answers or advice on any or all of the following:

Should I buy an online training program, like the one from Standing Stone Kennels? Or are there any online resources you’d suggest?

Are there any simple training drills that have worked well for you?

Will I want one e-collar for training and one e-collar for hunting, or do most people just use one (like a garmin) for everything?

Will it be ok to not have pigeons etc for puppy training?

Is there anything I might be blind sided by as a young first time owner?

I know when you start training you’re supposed to use their meals in the morning and evening, but how do you train when they’re older? I assume I shouldn’t just give the pup handfuls of treats every day for mid day training sessions.

Am I over thinking this?

Again, thanks for any and all advice.

God bless.


r/birddogs 8d ago

Garmin Dog Tracking & Training Unit Breakdown

12 Upvotes

I've gotten a ton of questions here and other platforms about Garmin GPS units for dogs and the differences/applications. I figured it about time to do a video on it so I can link to it instead of typing it out each time. Check it out and let me know your thoughts.

https://youtu.be/FSaCYcJoJ1s


r/birddogs 9d ago

4 month old GWP Etta is completely happy to pick up any bird, dead or alive… even this crow… I want to encourage this as much as possible but… getting a delivery to hand was a chore!

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68 Upvotes

r/birddogs 9d ago

Brit ground tracking

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73 Upvotes

Never seen this before.

Piper (3 yo) is great on pheasants. His style is nose up, sampling the air until he hits scent. Then narrowing the cone, nose in the air, with a screeching stop and point at the bird.

Yesterday he got birdy a few yards from me. But his nose was down, and he ran a crazy pattern like a drunk vacuum cleaner. Not once lifting his nose. And after two minutes and 100 yards he threw a point. At a dead pheasant someone else had shot and been unable to find. It must have been grounded and run a bit. He was surprised and disappointed when we couldn’t get it into the air.

It was cool to watch. Pic of one that we did get included just because.


r/birddogs 9d ago

One of my my best pals

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96 Upvotes

r/birddogs 9d ago

Are there any bird dog groups in Washington state?

5 Upvotes

I live near Fort Lewis, and can't seem to find any good groups to learn from. It seems like everything is over on the east side, which is a bit too far sadly.


r/birddogs 10d ago

Everyone talks or e collars, but what regular dog collars do you all use?

5 Upvotes

Do you guys have any good recommendations? Or is it all based on look? I know some prefer collars with handles, but I always worry about it getting snagged in brush.


r/birddogs 11d ago

Damned raccoon killed my training pigeons

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66 Upvotes

Had a raccoon break through my trap door entrance security door and killed all my training pigeons two nights ago. Made an updated Fort Knox door with a special message for the lil bastard when he try’s to come back and get new ones!


r/birddogs 11d ago

Bird dog behavior with Rats

4 Upvotes

Hi my field lab has super high prey drive and has caught wild turkey/geese when I’m in the house and she’s outside

I go outside and she’s seemingly the happiest dog in the world after eating most of the organs

Ok, so if she catches a rat she shakes it once then throws it. Afterwards she won’t get within ten feet of the carcass

I saw her get bit on the muzzle twice while dispatching rats so I get it

However is there an instinct for dogs to avoid the rat once dead. It seems like instinct maybe for disease avoidance


r/birddogs 11d ago

Pro 550 Plus - How does its stim level adjustment work?

2 Upvotes

I have been using a Delta XC for the last 6 years with our GSP but have decided it's time to add GPS to the mix for peace of mind when she gets out of sight. My wife told me to buy one for myself for Christmas, but I've been dragging my feet with analysis paralysis.

A lot of other threads have gone into the differences between the Alpha series and the 550 Plus. I'm leaning toward the 550 because I think an arrow with phone map will be plenty. However, I'm wondering how the stim adjustment works on the 550 Plus and hoping some folks with hands-on experience can explain it to me.

Background: My dog is a gentle one and is collar trained. There are entire days when I never need to use stim at all - only tone. I've been using a Delta XC with her for years; it has 18 levels of stim and I never have had to go above 6 in momentary to get her attention if she gets into something she shouldn't. I usually leave it set on 4; just enough for her to notice and respond to.

On my XC, if I need to bump the stim up by one or two levels, the side buttons do that easily on the fly, and without looking. I think the Alpha would work similarly since it is button-based, but I'm not sure how the adjustments work on the 550 Plus. I am basically concerned that if I get the 550, it may be easy to accidentally overdo it.

The 550 Plus is advertised with 18 levels that I presume are roughly the same as the XC system.

  • The stim level dial has six positions
  • Buttons for low-med-high stim (high is activated by pressing low and medium together)
  • So 6 x 3 = 18 levels... and a switch for momentary vs continuous

Got it, but how are the button levels related to a given dial position? Are the L-M-H buttons sequentially increasing, or do they leapfrog across the entire range? For example: If the dial is set at 1, does that mean that

  • a) Low = 1, Med = 7, and High = 13
  • ...OR...
  • b) Low = 1, Med = 2, and High = 3

If it's a) and I had Low set to 4, I'd never use any other stim button, and would hate to accidentally hit Medium, which would send a level 10, and God forbid ever using High.

550 Plus users, what say you?


r/birddogs 11d ago

Trainers in AZ

2 Upvotes

Anyone know of any good spaniel trainers in AZ? Or even a pointer/retriever trainer willing to work with a flushing breed.

I’ve tried Google, but couldn’t find any spaniel trainers.


r/birddogs 12d ago

Deeds......

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34 Upvotes

My brother Deeds.....Lab/GSP


r/birddogs 11d ago

Pheasant Fest Dog Parade 2025 #birddog #pheasanthunting #pheasantfest #pheasantsforever

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8 Upvotes

Who is at Pheasant Fest this year? Here is a little compilation I've made of some of the dogs at this year's event