Brittany Spaniels The Potential

[baileykira]

hi everyone just acquired a female brittany spaniel,black and white roan i am in a bit of a quandry as to what activity to engage her in,she is fairly well trained off lead could use a little work though her recall sits drop blah blah are all well.happy to do the tunnels,hurdles,weave polls of agility circuits,there in lies the problem she is also showing signs of being a great hunting dog as she reguarly flushes out birds and will stand on her hind legs pointing to ''prey'' until i say well done kira good find,a friend of mine from moorabbin dog obedience recommends i try trialling her what is this and how do i prepare her training wise for this she is purebred and registered ect whats involved ect please no one suggest flyball as she seems to have an aversion to tennisballs.

ps i have tried her retreiving a sock filled with duck feathers and scented with duck blood as this is what my mum and dad trained our gundogs (labradors) with never unsupervised and only at special times she seems to have the knack for finding it quickly we play a game with her by hiding the sock with her out of the room then letting her in asking her to search and of course she always finds it her quickest time is around three secs so please any advise would be welcome also any advise on clubs ect that provide such training as i said im currently training at moorabbin but live in the st kilda area

[sidoney]

She could do any of these things you have mentioned ... why not go and have a look at each, have a try, see what you both like! That is what I would recommend!

[TURBOTERROR]

have ago at obedience too , also freestyle dancing. and thats lots more out there you can do.

[FHRP]

Why not try it all!

Brittanys, like most of the Utility Gundogs, are capable of having a go at just about any dog sport! What are you interested in?

[baileykira]

well she is loving the obedience training and the agility,showing no fear unlike our collie who has issues with the tunnel ,the brittany is fairly quick getting her way round the various components of the course.my friend suggested the trialling because it apparently throws more of a challenge to the dog and owner .

apparently there is a huge trialling event at cheltenham next weekend i am hoping to go and get an idea as to what it actually entails,talk to people who have been doing it for a while.

well as far as it goes i am happy and committed to do what is right by the dog by finding the sport that suits her best that said i find flyball a bit ....well how should i say it weird ;)

oh yeah austogo if her freestyle dance partner is Brodie Holland i will be very very happy i wouldnt kick him outta my kennel

[FHRP]

well as far as it goes i am happy and committed to do what is right by the dog by finding the sport that suits her best that said i find flyball a bit ....well how should i say it weird

If you want to try something that will truly 'suit her' and she will most likely lurve.. I'd suggest Utility field trials, or as a second Retrieving. It is amazing to see these dogs doing (and loving) what they were orignally bred for...

[sidoney]

FHR I was looking at Utility Field Trials some years back but I think I needed to have a shotgun and licence or something like that? Or am I barking up the wrong tree?

[AgilityGirl]

Hi Baileykira,

Your new girl sounds very promising :rolleyes:

Why not try giving all of those activities a try? You never know what might appeal to you both!

Sonia.

Edited April 22, 2006 by AgilityGirl

[FHRP]

FHR I was looking at Utility Field Trials some years back but I think I needed to have a shotgun and licence or something like that? Or am I barking up the wrong tree?

It is probably best if you do have a gun licence, yes. I have one for retrieving trials. I do believe that in the rules though you can have someone shoot for you, but I hear it is fairly uncommon practice. I am sure you can expose the dog (and yourself) to the sport before commiting to owning a licence and a gun. It may be enough to get a person hooked :rolleyes:

[Working_Setters]

I agree with FHR, for somebody thinking of starting out in retrieving/field disciplines, just give it a go initially, if you decided you love it, then you can worry about the gun & licence thing down the road.

baileykira

I'd suggest giving the folk at WGAA (Working Gundog Assoc. Aust) a call, they are friendly, knowledgeable and conduct monthly training days in the Melton area. For more info see WGAA

Apart from WGAA there are no other clubs that I know of conducting regular gundog training sessions, most gundog training is done via small informal groups of people getting together to train their dogs. You might be able to track down such a group in your area, try ringing some of the gundog/retriever breed clubs (start with Brittanys, but also try other utility/retriever breeds), phone numbers are on the VCA website. The majority of people in these clubs will be into shows, but there will be some folk that work their dogs and the breed club secretaries will be able to put you in contact with them.

Edited April 22, 2006 by Working_Setters

[baileykira]

thanks guys i have heard that these days you can use a gun to train the dog similar to a starting pistol ie just makes a bang noise.

As far as the gun licence thing goes i have held a licence since i was twelve years old and learned to shoot much earlier than this,both my parents were dog breeders of gun dogs (labradors)so that was kind of inevitable

i believe she will enjoy being a working dog she just loves looking for her ''sock'' her whole body wags .another question anybody out there know where i can purchase the relevant leads ,retreiving dummies ect?

and yes i agree with you fhr it is wonderful seeing a dog just click with that which they were bred to do just started to train the collie at herding classes. :rolleyes:

[FHRP]

Contacting the Club L'Epagneul Breton Inc. in Victoria http://www.clubbreton.com.au/ would probably be a good idea also. They are very much into Field and Retrieving trials, not showing.

[Working_Setters]

thanks guys i have heard that these days you can use a gun to train the dog similar to a starting pistol ie just makes a bang noise.

That's very much the case, many retriever folk do the vast majority of their training with some form of cap gun. Even in retrieving trials where they do use a real gun, only blanks are fired. In WGAA retrieving trials, the "birds" they use are rubber ducks, see Dokken's Deadfowl Trainer

another question anybody out there know where i can purchase the relevant leads ,retrieving dummies ect?

Many folk make their own training dummies, I've got some that I made by stuffing 3 tennis balls into a length of fire hose, then stitching up both ends with fishing line. As for getting the fire hose, the manufacturer was very helpful when I approached them politely, I was willing to pay for it, but as I only needed a meter or two, they gave me some scrap for free. Others have approached local fire stations and got sections of hose that the fire brigade were replacing and would have just been chucked out anyhow. I could recommend a stick type AIR KONG, I got mine from a pet shop here in Brisbane (so I’m sure they must be in Melbourne also) and it works well. Apart from that I have a selection that I bought from the USA. All the Retriever and most Utility Gundog clubs will have a source of training bumpers, some will be handmade by somebody in the club, others will have imported in bulk to save on shipping then re-sell etc. Ask them when you're doing your phone around, somebody will have some for sale. WGAA had some for sale last time I was down in Vic. Perhaps your parents have some from their Lab training that you could "borrow" to get started?

Edited April 23, 2006 by Working_Setters

[FHRP]

baileykira, it sounds like you're in a great position to give your Brit a chance do do some field work! The question about getting retrieving dummies was recently posted on the Australian Working Retriever Central Bulletin Board and the suggestion of John & Vicki Lawton at Specialized Dog Accessories in Melton , Vic was made. Johns email is [email protected]

[sidoney]

(SIA for minor hijack)

WS:

I'd suggest giving the folk at WGAA (Working Gundog Assoc. Aust) a call, they are friendly, knowledgeable and conduct monthly training days in the Melton area. For more info see WGAA

Hey, gee, according to that brochure Vizslas don't do gundog work.

FHR:

It may be enough to get a person hooked

Now don't go telling ME that, not after the money I've spent on agility training, equipment, etc.!

[Working_Setters]

Hey, gee, according to that brochure Vizslas don't do gundog work.

A working Vizsla you sure it wasn't an orange coloured GSP you saw

Guess somebody with a working Vizsla needs to get over to WGAA and show them the error of their ways, have that omission corrected. Strictly speaking they also left out a number of other utility breeds, Spinones, Small Munsterlanders, Pudelpointers and Griffons all come to mind.

Edited April 23, 2006 by Working_Setters

[FHRP]

A working Vizsla you sure it wasn't an orange coloured GSP you saw

Oi! My 'orange coloured GSP' has shown up more than a few of the liver ones at retrieving trials However, I don't pretend he is actually a working bred dog. Victorias field trial dog of the year in 2003 was a Vizsla though!

I wont tell you about our last trial when we were in the paddocks after it finished and I went and physically lifted my boy of a beautiful point on what I had convinced myself was a snake.. to see the quail then flush I think it's me that's not working bred...

[Working_Setters]

Oi! My 'orange coloured GSP' has shown up more than a few of the liver ones at retrieving trials However, I don't pretend he is actually a working bred dog. Victorias field trial dog of the year in 2003 was a Vizsla though!

I wont tell you about our last trial when we were in the paddocks after it finished and I went and physically lifted my boy of a beautiful point on what I had convinced myself was a snake.. to see the quail then flush I think it's me that's not working bred...

Joking naturally. There are some very fine working Vizslas around, I recall one at Brittany club pheasant trial about 7 years ago, very impressive and went on to win the event. Vizsla are also favoured by the kiwis as indicator dogs for deer hunting, with a number of folk of the opinion that they are quietest in the bush of the versatile breeds. If I was looking for a versatile dog, I'd think long and hard about a Viz, I've not seen a lot of them in the field, but from what I've seen and read I gather a good Viz is highly attuned to their master, which is a trait I value highly. Whilst my training technique could justifiably be termed "no nonsense", I don't care for hard headed dogs. Much prefer a biddable dog that longs to please, then it's just a matter of showing them what you want.

Congrats on your retrieving trial success, it's not easy to beat the labs with a versatile dog. As for you not being working bred, it sounds like you're doing a fine job, and if we're honest we've all made similar stuff ups in the field. I recall when my Britt was a young(ish) pup we were out in the paddock to get some bird experience, when she slammed onto a beautiful point, but she was pointing a patch of barren ground, I'm mean barren there wasn't a blade of grass on it. So I sauntered over, shotgun open and laying across my shoulder, shells in my pocket, thinking she was pointing some rabbit poo or the like, when a pair of quail materialised out of thin air, then burst into flight. My mouth was so wide agape that I never even thought of trying to load the gun, to this day I can't understand where those birds came from, but I did learn a valuable lesson about trusting my dog.

I didn't know about the 2003 dog of the year, do you have the details, whose dog is it and who bred it?

[FHRP]

I didn't know about the 2003 dog of the year, do you have the details, whose dog is it and who bred it?

That would be Dual Ch Hubertus Easy Rider owned by Mark Huehn (who apparently didn't even have a gun licence when he got the pup to possibly hunt with!) and bred by Agnes Pali.

Dual Ch Hanafor Nyari Tama (F) UD owned by Ben & Marlene Rankin and bred by Faye Harris also won the 1991 Victorian State Field Trial Championship and the NSW Field Trial Championship earning him the Victorian Gundog Field Trial Dog of the Year award!

Warren and Kerry McKay (Aranyoz Vizslas) have been quite involved in field trialing Vizslas in QLD. They put the first two Field Champion titles on V's in Australia. That was some time ago but Warren now has a young bitch I believe he's training up for field work, so maybe you'll see some in the field again up there.

Thanks for the congrats on the Retrieving. We're still very much Novices and have our first restricted trial this weekend We have enjoyed it, but it certainly is a Lab dominated sport..

Edited April 24, 2006 by FHR

[baileykira]

Just drop some kibble over the course the labs wont work if there is food around ,i managed to get my hands on some fire hose so i will have to sweet talk my partner to do the necessary stitching ha ha.

We have one of those air cong things and the water one which she seems to prefer i cant keep her out of the water in fact ,she would find a 1cm depth puddle to jump in.her breeder had never even shown her water or had her near it ,barring the odd bath.

Kira would like me to brag on her behalf though she was assessed for obedience on Sunday and she has been put into green 3 straight away,so is eligible for agility,we had a go on the apparatus and blew them away with how well she does the jumps and weaves.they seem to believe that we have a good working relationship and wouldnt beleive it when i said i have had her for only three weeks.its only capped of a great week with Collingwood winning the ANZAC DAY game .

Thanks to everyone for all the links to the various sights im driving my partner nuts telling her all the things im going to make (with her sewing input)for the dog.oh well the life of a dog lover im sure your all just as crazy.