GSP for Tracking?

[Franko_1983]

All

Anyone ever used there GSP as a tracking dog on the deer? My boy is 8yrs now but came from great pedigree down country and is unreal on the feather, but he gets too excited still around the chase, but wondered whether could be trained and if anyone actively uses theirs for fur?

 

[Jon P]

I have only used GWP but I know of people who have used GSP. If he is steady enough to walk quietly with you there is no reason not to give him a go. Won’t cost you anything to try as you already have him. Most dogs can find a freshly shot deer especially if chest shot as they don’t tend to be that mobile for longer periods.

 

[Franko_1983]

Thanks Jon P

Feel guilty everytime I go out without him tbh. He does walk to heel but if something bolted he would likely give chase, my bad as I never properly worked him. He has great recall/stay/walk to heel but rabbit/deer, he would take off and that would be the job f&^ked lol. Alternative is ofcourse to have him on the lead but then that's no fun is it...

 

[Jon P]

Thanks Jon P

Feel guilty everytime I go out without him tbh. He does walk to heel but if something bolted he would likely give chase, my bad as I never properly worked him. He has great recall/stay/walk to heel but rabbit/deer, he would take off and that would be the job f&^ked lol. Alternative is ofcourse to have him on the lead but then that's no fun is it...

My current one is on a lead at times. Can’t break her to muntjac yet, she is 3 yrs old with an extremely high prey drive- if a munty bolts across in front of us she would be off coursing it. Fallow and roe she is pretty good with. Summer now- get out with your camera and stalk a few without the rifle and just concentrate on getting the dog steady. Mine will walk quickly next to me and sits down as soon as the rifle goes in the quad sticks. She Does get excited after the shot as wants to rag anything that has been shot- she has never been used for birds- just deer.

 

[Dunwaters]

All

Anyone ever used there GSP as a tracking dog on the deer? My boy is 8yrs now but came from great pedigree down country and is unreal on the feather, but he gets too excited still around the chase, but wondered whether could be trained and if anyone actively uses theirs for fur?

Yes, I’ve used them on both deer and birds for over 40 years.
Train them to heel FIRST, then bring them out stalking, after a few outings they cop on to walking slightly ahead of your knee and indicating deer. Some of them are inclined to squeak a bit if left at the bottom of a high seat.
They are well capable of pulling an animal down if required.
You can use the same dog for birds, I had one old witch that adapted her pace depending on whether I was carrying a shotgun or a rifle.

 

[Dunwaters]

Thanks Jon P

Feel guilty everytime I go out without him tbh. He does walk to heel but if something bolted he would likely give chase, my bad as I never properly worked him. He has great recall/stay/walk to heel but rabbit/deer, he would take off and that would be the job f&^ked lol. Alternative is ofcourse to have him on the lead but then that's no fun is it...

This is about the only time I’d consider using a shock collar, he’s worked out that he can safely ignore you once he’s off the leash.

 

[Dunwaters]

My current one is on a lead at times. Can’t break her to muntjac yet, she is 3 yrs old with an extremely high prey drive- if a munty bolts across in front of us she would be off coursing it. Fallow and roe she is pretty good with. Summer now- get out with your camera and stalk a few without the rifle and just concentrate on getting the dog steady. Mine will walk quickly next to me and sits down as soon as the rifle goes in the quad sticks. She Does get excited after the shot as wants to rag anything that has been shot- she has never been used for birds- just deer.

It looks like a problem that you might have created for yourself.
Why are you letting her rag carcasses?
From her point of view that’s her reward and now she’s anticipating it. Clever girl.
Don’t let her do it, bring her right back to basic retrieving exercises until she’s steady and dropping to fall, then repeat the process with deer.
Only send her when she’s behaved herself and even then not every time.

 

[Franko_1983]

Yes, I’ve used them on both deer and birds for over 40 years.
Train them to heel FIRST, then bring them out stalking, after a few outings they cop on to walking slightly ahead of your knee and indicating deer. Some of them are inclined to squeak a bit if left at the bottom of a high seat.
They are well capable of pulling an animal down if required.
You can use the same dog for birds, I had one old witch that adapted her pace depending on whether I was carrying a shotgun or a rifle.

cheers dunwater - its just his prey drive a think more than anything, as I walk with the stick he will walk to heel but if something bolted he would deffo go an course it.

am no sure about the shock collar, my weans might not forgive me as hes their pet, I just want to take my best pal out stalking rather than leaving him behind, and him no being a pure pest. Should I just take him on a few dummy stalks without the rifle you reckon or better to take gun, so he gets used to staying put when onto the sticks? nothing like training them in a real life situation for me, i just dont want the lead thing as that does nobody any good.

 

[Jon P]

It looks like a problem that you might have created for yourself.
Why are you letting her rag carcasses?
From her point of view that’s her reward and now she’s anticipating it. Clever girl.
Don’t let her do it, bring her right back to basic retrieving exercises until she’s steady and dropping to fall, then repeat the process with deer.
Only send her when she’s behaved herself and even then not every time.

Hi, she is not allowed to rag the carcasses, but thinks she should be able to. Game dealer would take exception to bitten carcasses. However I will admit to her being started too early as my older dog damaged her hip. So I thought I would take the younger one just for a walk about. Unfortunately I had a very mobile roe doe , put the pup on the long lead , (older dog did not need a lead) . Tracking well around 300 yds. Went in think cover end of lead slips out of hand- pup goes flying off down a step bank though trees. Launches in a think bramble bush land on top of roe doe, bit of a tussle , dog gets kicked off . I manage to shot roe in chest as running passed me with pup in high pursuit- pup flys back into doe and starts ragging carcass. Not the best start for a young dog but we did get the deer. - currently she won’t run forward at shot deer but makes a noise similar to a pack off hounds. She can have deer walk within a few yds off us and no reaction from her other then to point them - the gun shot is the trigger, and the anticipation that she may be allowed to rag a deer if it is a runner. Now she will only hang on if they are still moving . No movement she just pushing them with her nose.

 

[Dunwaters]

cheers dunwater - its just his prey drive a think more than anything, as I walk with the stick he will walk to heel but if something bolted he would deffo go an course it.

am no sure about the shock collar, my weans might not forgive me as hes their pet, I just want to take my best pal out stalking rather than leaving him behind, and him no being a pure pest. Should I just take him on a few dummy stalks without the rifle you reckon or better to take gun, so he gets used to staying put when onto the sticks? nothing like training them in a real life situation for me, i just dont want the lead thing as that does nobody any good.

The problem is that he really enjoys the chase and is ignoring you when he gets tempted, if I’ve read you right.
As an alternative to the collar walk him to heel on a long leash and put temptation in his way, when he bolts, be ready for it and hit the stop whistle as well as giving him a good jerk.
He’ll cop on fairly smartly what’s required and that he can’t get away with ignoring you. The collar achieves the same effect but works over a longer range, the downside is that a collar is really easy to abuse.

A lot of problems with hunting dogs are down to the owner wanting to make sure that their dog will hunt BEFORE they embark on basic training, so they let the puppy chase and develop some really bad habits.
Take it for granted that your pup WILL hunt and train it first, 99/100 you’ll save yourself a lot of heartache.

That, by the way, is a classic example of “ do as I say”. I did it your way for decades and gave myself and my dogs lots of problems and lost a lot of field trials for lack of basic training.
I have lots of both T shirts in the closet, training for basic obedience first is a lot quicker and easier than fixing foreseeable problems.

 

[Dunwaters]

Hi, she is not allowed to rag the carcasses, but thinks she should be able to. Game dealer would take exception to bitten carcasses. However I will admit to her being started too early as my older dog damaged her hip. So I thought I would take the younger one just for a walk about. Unfortunately I had a very mobile roe doe , put the pup on the long lead , (older dog did not need a lead) . Tracking well around 300 yds. Went in think cover end of lead slips out of hand- pup goes flying off down a step bank though trees. Launches in a think bramble bush land on top of roe doe, bit of a tussle , dog gets kicked off . I manage to shot roe in chest as running passed me with pup in high pursuit- pup flys back into doe and starts ragging carcass. Not the best start for a young dog but we did get the deer. - currently she won’t run forward at shot deer but makes a noise similar to a pack of hounds. She can have deer walk within a few yds off us and no reaction from her other then to point them - the gun shot is the trigger, and the anticipation that she may be allowed to rag a deer if it is a runner. Now she will only hang on if they are still moving . No movement she just pushing them with her nose.

She’s anticipating the rag/retrieve.
That incident with the doe was probably the most exciting thing she’s ever done and she wants more.
I had exactly the same thing happen.It turned a barely interested deer tracker into an absolute cracker.

Get her steady to shot, bring her out with a mate on the rifle, you hold the leash and steady her up with a few discharges at nothing. When that goes perfectly try a few live exercises but DONT let her go or send her, you’re trying to break the link in her mind between the shot and something really exciting.
When that’s working perfectly try her yourself on the leash, repeat the full process.
In future don’t send her unless you actually need to, so that she gets used to NOT being sent most of the time.

It’s how I train my pointers to be steady to flush, shot and fall, the dog always drops, it only gets a retrieve if it’s too awkward for me to pick it myself or if we’re trialling.

 

[Franko_1983]

The problem is that he really enjoys the chase and is ignoring you when he gets tempted, if I’ve read you right.
As an alternative to the collar walk him to heel on a long leash and put temptation in his way, when he bolts, be ready for it and hit the stop whistle as well as giving him a good jerk.
He’ll cop on fairly smartly what’s required and that he can’t get away with ignoring you. The collar achieves the same effect but works over a longer range, the downside is that a collar is really easy to abuse.

A lot of problems with hunting dogs are down to the owner wanting to make sure that their dog will hunt BEFORE they embark on basic training, so they let the puppy chase and develop some really bad habits.
Take it for granted that your pup WILL hunt and train it first, 99/100 you’ll save yourself a lot of heartache.

That, by the way, is a classic example of “ do as I say”. I did it your way for decades and gave myself and my dogs lots of problems and lost a lot of field trials for lack of basic training.
I have lots of both T shirts in the closet, training for basic obedience first is a lot quicker and easier than fixing foreseeable problems.

thanks mate will give that a bash, he is extremely biddable but prob made a rod for my own back by allowing that type of behaviour to exist in the first place. He is so steady on the feather but that what he bred for. What you describing is just good basic principles, shouldn't take him long hopefully then can enjoy days in the field with him.

appreciate the advice bud

 

[McKenzie]

Best deer dog I’ve had was a GSP & I didn’t take her stalking until she was perhaps 6 or 7. She was trained as a bird dog but I didn’t have to train anything with the deer, she just changed her pace to suit mine & walked to heel perfectly (no lead) & would sit if I raised my binoculars.
I’ve also had the opposite problem so that one ended up just being left in the car & I’d fetch her if a deer ran. Infinitely better to have one with you.

 

[Franko_1983]

Best deer dog I’ve had was a GSP & I didn’t take her stalking until she was perhaps 6 or 7. She was trained as a bird dog but I didn’t have to train anything with the deer, she just changed her pace to suit mine & walked to heel perfectly (no lead) & would sit if I raised my binoculars.
I’ve also had the opposite problem so that one ended up just being left in the car & I’d fetch her if a deer ran. Infinitely better to have one with you.

thats a bitch for you mate, steadier and more attuned to your every move. My boy is loyal and always aiming to please, a great bird dog but need to run the coursing thing out of him, never to old to learn and has a wonderful nose on him, and built for days in the field.

thanks for commenting

 

[AMoorlen]

My current one is on a lead at times. Can’t break her to muntjac yet, she is 3 yrs old with an extremely high prey drive- if a munty bolts across in front of us she would be off coursing it. Fallow and roe she is pretty good with. Summer now- get out with your camera and stalk a few without the rifle and just concentrate on getting the dog steady. Mine will walk quickly next to me and sits down as soon as the rifle goes in the quad sticks. She Does get excited after the shot as wants to rag anything that has been shot- she has never been used for birds- just deer.

Hows she bred? Nice looking dog going off the profile photo.

 

[Jon P]

Hows she bred? Nice looking dog going off the profile photo.

Hi
Please see pedigree , she is a fun dog to have around, occasionally hard work though as prey drive can be off the scale with some things, mainly cats , foxes and muntjac.

 

[Dogtra UK]

I speak with lots of my customers and German Pointers seem to be the number one breed I sell e-collars for. Brace yourself.

www.dogtra.co.uk

 

[tomgsp]

I have 2 GSP and I love them. I didn't go for strong German lines as they are quite head strong apparently.
I trained mine myself with the Garmin tracking collar and my oldest which is 4 would have found more than 40+ roe that if I didn't have a dog I wouldn't have found.
They stalk with me off lead and are really steady and will lie under a highest quiet.

Cheers