Forward Running Dogs
I used to
believe forward-running dogs were
bred—as simple as breeding a forward-running male to a forward-running female—but
over time I learned it was more than just breeding. It was a combination of
breeding and training. If you think about it, forward is by definition “in front,” but in front of what? The
answer is, in front of you. You determine the front, and it changes every time
you change direction. A dog that runs all over the place is running for himself
and does not care where you are. A forward-running dog stays in front and is
running for you.
Good bird dogs are bred with the instinct to hunt in
front of you. Without it, you would flush birds before your dog found them.
Like most pointing dog instincts, this instinct needs to be developed. Taking
your pup afield when he is young and following behind him is a great way to
encourage him to be in front. Once he is staying in front, you begin to change
direction and ask him to go with you. He should bend and go to the front. As he
becomes older and more independent, you introduce the e-collar to ask him to go
with you. You are teaching him that his place is in front of you, and he learns
to pay attention to you so he knows where to go. If you develop this instinct
at a young age, your dog will be forward-running because he never learned any
other way to run.
About ten years ago I purchased a six-month-old
started female from out west. She was bred right, and I could hardly wait to
see what she would do. I tacked up my horse and turned her loose. She took off
running like a crazy dog, and I remember thinking I might never see her again.
When I finally rounded her up, I knew I had to introduce the e-collar before
letting her go again. It took about a month to teach her to go with me using
the pinch-collar, check-cord, and e-collar, and when I eventually felt
confident about using the e-collar to make her go with me, I turned her loose
again.
Her first cast was to the side, and I knew she was
already in her own world. I continued in the direction I was heading, called
her a couple of times, and tapped her with the e-collar. It took a little
convincing, but she came around. It was not long before she headed off to the
side again, and once again I used the e-collar to ask her to bend and go with
me. It took a couple more weeks, but soon I had a pup that was running and
hunting in front of me. The transformation was incredible. While her range
shortened, she went from running reckless to staying forward and paying
attention.
I forgot about this experience until a few years later
when I turned a pup loose and he did the same thing. It was then that I
realized a forward-running dog has to pay attention; he has to know where I am.
I can’t have one without the other. So I stopped running this pup and
introduced him to the e-collar. Before long he was a forward-running dog.
A lot of field trialers argue that using an e-collar
this way shortens a dog’s range, but if the dog is bred to run, he will run,
and if he is not forward, who cares what his range is. If you teach your dog to
pay attention when he is young, your dog will be forward-running and will want
to stay in contact with you. Some of these dogs learn to show to the front. Showing
is a field trial term for a dog that intentionally shows himself to let his
handler know where he is. He does not come in to the handler, but rather, he
stays out front, giving the handler an occasional glimpse of where he is. A
good hunting dog does the same thing, letting the hunter know he is hunting and
not standing on point.
While genetics plays an important role, a
forward-running dog knows he is part of a team. It’s really simple: Your job is
to determine the front, and your dog’s job is to hunt in front of you.
