Training with pigeons

An old adage says the best way to make a bird dog is to show it a lot of birds. Birds, after all, are what all that training is about. When possible, try training with pigeons and pen-raised ones instead. In a perfect world, we’d show them lots of wild birds in hunting season. Unfortunately, some seasons provide fewer opportunities. Family and work obligations, poor local bird numbers, dog injuries, weather conditions, foliage, and a slew of other reasons can limit the number of encounters you expose your dog to in any given hunting season. Luckily, there are other ways to supplement your dog’s exposure to birds. Better still, you can utilize them almost year-round. I’m talking about opportunities created by visiting game farms or setting up training scenarios with legally trapped or purchased birds. Before the upland purists cry fowl (pun intended), I know they are not wild birds, and this isn’t hunting. Nevertheless, these practices permit you to set up training scenarios that will provide experience and help improve your dog’s performance before it enters the next hunting season. DIY pigeons The easiest way to train your dog with live birds is to use trapped or purchased barn pigeons. They’re the right size, easily available, hardy, easy to keep and handle, and are strong flyers. Ideally, training should be done with a like-minded training partner. That’s why OOD Field Editor and Illustrator Tom Goldsmith and I get together a few times during the off season to train our flushing dogs. We typically utilize pigeons to reinforce the basic skills our dogs need to hunt well — find, flush, and retrieve. Here’s how we do it. The dog handler takes his dog out of sight, at least 100 yards away from the training area. The other person dizzies a pigeon, and plants it in the grass or in a bird launcher if we bring one along. When the bird has been planted, a whistle or other signal is given. At the signal, the handler approaches the site with dog in control. Alternating retrieves Once they are within gun range of the bird, the hunter loads their gun. The dog handler can shoot, but it’s best if the other person does it, so the handler can focus on dog control. With the shooter ready, the handler releases and directs his dog to hunt and flush the bird. Once flushed, the