Everything is prepared for duck season; make sure that includes your dog

If you’re reading this, the good news is that duck season is just a few weeks away. You’ve probably put off less important things like yard work, honey-dos and anniversaries to get ready for opening morning.

Guns are cleaned and oiled, gear is checked, decoys are untangled and you’ve spent more money on shotgun shells than you’d care to admit to your significant other. That just leaves the most important member of the team, the dog.

Hopefully, you’ve been training to get your dog in proper physical shape and focused. If you were lucky enough to hunt during early teal season, you have a good idea of what might need tweaking before big duck season. Either way, there’s differences between training and hunting the dog will need to be introduced to.

Little things matter

Brandon Menard is owner of Cypress Bottoms Retrievers in St. Martinville, La. I’ve known him for years. We’ve trained together and he’s even trained dogs for good friends of mine. When most of his client dogs go home to hunt with their owners, he guides for Full Strap and Stringer Outfitter and Guide Service. When guiding, he hunts client dogs he still has in his kennel. Since he “plays on both sides of the ball,” he gave some great advice and insight.

“Little things can turn into bigger issues, but can be avoided if addressed ahead of time.” he said. “We may tend to focus on marking, steadiness and the handling aspects to get the dog hunt ready, but there are things before and during the hunt that can get overlooked. This is important for novices, but also applies to veteran dogs who haven’t hunted in the nine or so months between seasons.”

Make a trial run

You both must get to where you’re hunting, be it by boat, UTV or other means. Don’t make the first hunt the dog’s first time getting to the blind. Take them out a few times before and use the “place” command, so the dog knows to get in and stay in that spot.

The dog needs to know where it will work from. Take the dog when brushing or getting the blind ready before the season opens. I use the “place” command again to get the dog used to the dog box or platform. It’s not a bad idea to put out some decoys and work the dog through them so it’s comfortable should it drag a decoy on a retrieve. When hunting, give the dog as much field of vision possible without sacrificing concealment, especially with novices. It makes the retrieves easier and faster so you can start working the next flight.

“Dogs key in on where marks come from and most of the time they’re out in front when training,” Menard said. “Hunting changes this when blind orientation, wind direction, decoy layout and other factors come into play. Having someone out of sight throwing marks will get the dog looking in all directions.”

Make the most of the hunt

Another good point Menard made is that dogs get plenty of retrieves during training in a short time span.

“When hunting, there’s lots more calling and no retrieve if the ducks don’t finish or shots are missed,” he said.

Duck dogs don’t know and don’t care about shooting hours. They might get antsy with ducks flying around or landing in the decoys before its legal shooting time. I’ll take a little excitement over disinterest any day. After a few retrieves they settle in. If things are slow, a couple of bumpers never hurt and keep it fun.  This is geared more toward the rookies, but can still apply to the veterans early in the season.

“Turn a not-so-great hunt into a great training session and make the most of it.” Menard suggested.

His best advice: patience.

“Don’t expect a young dog to be able to function with a blind full of hunters blazing away; it’s too much,” he warned.

Prepare before taking a puppy

If it were me, I’m not shooting so I can focus on the dog. If able, hunt with others who get what you’re trying to do and the payoff it will bring later. A young dog off to a bad start equals problems that sometimes can’t be fixed.

Menard added, “With an older dog, a lot of retrieves can take a toll so be patient and not let it turn into work.”

He strongly urged resisting the temptation to take a young dog or puppy with no training on a hunt. It won’t be fun, it’ll get frustrating, and the dog could get ruined before it ever had a chance. Its time will come.

Good luck and fetch ‘em up!!

For more info on Cypress Bottoms Retrievers or Full Strap and Stringer, contact Brandon Menard at 337-552-7808.

The post “Everything is prepared for duck season; make sure that includes your dog” first appeared on LouisianaSportsman.com.