01/27/2026
Copied from a friend. A friend of mine ask me to re post my rant about first time duck hunting your dog. Couldn’t find it so here goes.
You paid big money for a well bred dog and spent a ton more at a trainer. First time you carry your dog hunting he lays down in the box, looks the wrong way and when you shoot it scares the hell out of him. 😂😂. You’re mad and embarrassed because your friend got a golden doodle Rotwiller mix from the pound and he is a hunting machine 😂😂😂. You paid your money and didn’t get what you wanted. Well…… it doesn’t work like that. You have to train a hunting dog and HUNT a trained dog! Just like the breeder did their part and the trainer did their part, you have to do your part. If a dog can learn the training he can learn to hunt. Sometimes it’s not easy. It seems they have lost all their confidence. How you Handel this makes the difference. How many times did you carry the dog? How many ducks did you kill over them?DID YOU HELP YOUR DOG?? Sometimes you have to get out there and help them like a puppy. Walk out there throw happy birds in the decoys, make it fun. It may take a few hunts or a few seasons. All that depends on you and how much they hunt and you kill. Don’t think YOU can’t ruin a good dog. I was so guilty of this when I was younger and have been way out of line with my own dog that I thought knew better. We’re human I get it. I’ve been training for 33 years and have seen and heard it all. If done right I’ve never seen many that didn’t turn it around. Typically it’s their 3 season that they really turn it on. So the morle to the story is check your eago and hunt the dog. Keep training in the off season then hunt the dog. If you can’t do that then buy an older dog that has already hunted. The fact is some just get it faster than others. It does not mean it’s a bad dog. Plan the work and work the plan. Enjoy the process with a sense of humor.