how to lock on to a cold blind??

[dtmanring]

My pup is now ten months old and we have been working on blinds. When i say dead bird and line her to my hand, she keeps her head still but her eyes are wandering. She seems to vere the way her eyes are looking. how do i go about fixing this? More sight blinds? I want her to be totaly locked and commited to the line i set for her.

[Breck]

contrary to popular opinion a hand in is not for lining. It is meant to be a cue that the dogs is locked in and looking where you want. Some times Sit is also said as a re-enforcer before the send.
You can a wagon wheel to work your dog on moving with you around the compass and looking exactly where you want. Add in a few specific verbal cues if you're not doing so already.
Dead bird, No here, Good, right there, (hand in) back etc

[Eddie Sullivan]

10 months is pretty young to be expecting them to handle like a veteran.

[DarrinGreene]

What do you really want pup to do in this situation?

dead means "sit and stare straight forward"

how do you train that behavior?

like you train anything else training 101

figure out how to make the dog do the behavior then re-enforce it

[truthseeker]

I spend a least a month creating a good line to the back pile and that is after, FF ,OB, and one mark. Ten months seem a little young for cold blinds. Just one opinion.

[hoosierharvester]

i agree with breck. verbal ques and alot of wagon wheels and short short sight blinds....

[Brad B]

Sounds like you and the dog just need more time doing what you're doing. The more you two practice the better in sync you will be and all those little issues will work themselves out.

[MooseGooser]

With first cold blinds,and quite a few thereafter, what are you teaching?
are you teaching the dog to handle, or are you more concerned with the dog looking off your finger?

I have learned to not mess with the dog.
kick him off and handle. The lines will come with consistency
jmhdao

gooser

[Tim West]

Is the dog buggin or just not clear that dead bird means "look straight ahead". I have had the same issue with my young dog and the last couple of times I went to field and put out six birds in a field, with quite a distance between them. Line the dog up and send it. It will be going to a blind, because you've got a ton of em out there. The dog will pick up speed as they progress. Give lot's of praise! The blinds I run are short, only thirty to fifty yards.

Then I like to go to a big, big field and do the same thing, but with only three. Running longer distances really gets them going, and their casts become more literal.

If you can plant some banty roosters or pidgeons at the end, that will help too.

But, in general your dog just needs reps. These are a few ways to get them.

[captainjack]

With first cold blinds,and quite a few thereafter, what are you teaching?
are you teaching the dog to handle, or are you more concerned with the dog looking off your finger?

I have learned to not mess with the dog.
kick him off and handle. The lines will come with consistency
jmhdao

gooser

This is the way I start them as well. If you sweat the dog trying to get that perfect lock, you will create a bugging problem. Get the dog looking in the general direction, give a verbal cue if desired ("right there", "good", or "sit" are all popular cues here). Hand down and "back".

You will eventually deal with the eyes flicking. The way I do it is to get them looking in the direction I want, then say "good", if dog's eyes flick away, "no" then I usually just pat my knee or snap my fingers lightly behind the dog to get them to refocus. may also use "here" or "heel" and or stepping up or back for more influence. Once the dog is refocused, I usually say "sit" firmly rather than another "good" cue. Then hand down, pause a second, and send on "back". If dog's eyes flick away after the hand goes down, I pull my hand away and refocus the dog. Then another firm "sit", hand down, "back".

There is a lot of finesse involved here but the key IMO is to not put the hand down until the dog is locked (with a dog that has progressed beyond elementary cold blinds), and pulling the hand away if the dog moves his eyes off your target.