The club is developing a set of training aids to help Cesky Fousek owners pepare for our tests and most importantly to bring out all yourFousek’s hunting potential. Most of these aree in the form of .pdf files that you can either read on line or download to your computer for easy reference. Don’t forget we also have many videos on our YouTube channel. Check back often, as the list of resources will be growing.
Preparing for IHDT; Tracking and retrieving duck at a club training day
Training Articles by Tawna Skinner
The club is now advocating a primarily positive reinforcement approach to training the the young gun dog. Toward this end, Tawna Skinner–long-time club member and experienced dog trainer is authoring a series of materials on applying the clicker method to training retrieving. We provide links to recent Gun Dog Supreme articles. Additional, more detailed training instructions that are too detailed and long for newsletter articles will be posted here for download as they become available.
1. Introduction to Clicker Use
2. Clicker Training Part II
3. Retrieve to Hand: A Step by Step Approach
4. Training for Track of Live Bird
Other Positive Training Resources
Positive Gun Dog Training–Ch 1. Karen Pryor Publication
Club YouTube Videos
Planning on testing your Cesky Fousek? The BWPGCA has a whole set of videos on YouTube designed to better prepare you for each discipline in the Natural Ability and Intermediate Hunting Dog Tests. Just go to our YouTube Channel to see what’s available. Here are some specific examples filmed at actual tests and training/exposure days:
Basics of good grooming
Assure that your dog has a great looking and practical hunting coat.
https://youtu.be/sDQwi8x9Ci4
Affinity for water: (Natural Ability)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAghOeswU-U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0W053ISvxvg
Training day duck exposure (Note: Natural ability dog does not do a duck track, but exposure to a duck both builds familiarity with water and builds interest in duck tracking for later.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5AXwYNVQiU
Searching: (Note: this video is of an Intermediate Hunting Dog Test, but the basic elements of this discipline are the same as at the Natural Ability level. The search is shorter and performance expectations are not as rigorous at the NAT level.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_aNjRapv2Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETc3V-MRFwk
Track of Live Bird
Example of a training day first exposure to tracking
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aPrJoZ5TMU
How to release dog on the track. Good example of IHDT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1waLuJGRtQ
This Natural Ability Dog does an acceptable track. At the NAT level, the dog is not required to retrieve to hand.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aPrJoZ5TMU&t=62s
Pointing: This video is of Intermediate Hunting Dog Test. In the first attempt at pointing, the dog catches a bird and retrieves it to hand. Natural Ability dogs are not required to retrieve.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWOyxbbq0bA
Retrieve of dragged game. This discipline is only used at the IHDT, not the Natural Ability Test.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzZ8IZ928Lg
Training for Drag Track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIE_roXwTPk
Blind Retrieve
Intermediate Hunting Dog Test retrieving discipline
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIWN_tHKXiQ&t=25s
Track of Live Duck (Intermediate Hunting Dog Test)