Pass Along PDJ
July 2008

Static Distance
by Steve Smith

ogs are creatures of habit, we all know. But sometimes, so are we. When we’re working on retrieving with our pointing dogs, too often, the longest retrieve he has to make is the farthest we can throw a bumper, maybe 40 - 50 yards. So when he has to hunt for a bird that dropped well out that he didn’t see, he has a tendency to run 40 or 50 yards away and start his hunt, though the bird may have sailed 80.

To at least get into his mind that a bird may be two gunshots away when you send him for the retrieve, do what the retriever guys do – train using someone out there 80 – 100 yards. Fire a blank pistol, and have your assistant (get your lazy brother-in-law or your kid out there) holler Hey, Hey! and toss a bumper for the dog to retrieve. Give the retrieve command you taught while force-fetching him, and away he goes.

The idea is to give the dog the idea that what he’s looking for could potentially be farther away than your previous training tosses have led him to believe. Of course in the uplands, most of the retrieves are going to be in that 40 – 50 yard range, because that’s also shotgun range. But we do get sailers, and it’s nice to have a dog willing to break through the static barrier to go get the bird.

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