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| GWPs in the Field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home Page | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| One of the main reasons we decided to get GWPs was the reputation they have as being great bird dogs. GWPs are exceptional at finding birds, whether the bird is wounded, dead, or alive. Most GWPs hunt at a moderate range (100-200 yards or less) and that allows them to cover a lot of ground while still staying in contact with the hunter. But even our field trial dogs that may range 1000 yards away from Tom in wide-open country will continue to "check-back" with Tom regularly. If Tom loses sight of one of the dogs for more than a few minutes, he knows that it is probably on-point waiting for him. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| GWP Breed Info | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| GWP Temperament | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Our Foundation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Many hunters like a close working dog. In South Dakota, the prairies are big, wide-open country. In these areas a big ranging dog will find more birds scattered in the distant cover. Most GWPs will adapt their range to the cover. In heavy cover they hunt closer, while in big open country they range farther out. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Our GWP's | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Upcoming Litters | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Started Dogs Available | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A quality GWP puppy will naturally point birds, and will then flush the bird. But they quickly learn that the only way to get a bird is to hold their point until the hunter can get into shooting range of the birds. Once a puppy has been hunted at least one full hunting season, you may want to train your dog, so you can have a polished gun dog. In additon to pointing birds, our dogs will point and hold rabbits. Although we aren't interested in much rabbit hunting, we will occasionally shoot a rabbit and let one of the dogs retrieve it. GWPs are also good at tracking game. When Cruiser was six months old he help me track down the young buck antelope I had shot with my bow and arrow. |
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| Photo Gallery | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other GWP Sites | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| During our four and a half month long hunting season, Tom will take the dogs hunting 3-6 times a week. We feel this is the best way to evaluate our dogs. During this time, our dogs are hunted exclusively on wild birds. The rest of the year, we enjoy training and field trialing our dogs. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Email Us | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Field Trials are a great place to compare your dog to other dogs, and to get the opinions of more experienced trainers. We also enjoy spending time with other people who enjoy great bird dogs. We enjoy the competition, but it's the time that we spend with our dogs and with other dog lovers/bird hunters that makes field trials enjoyable. We have learned alot from other field trialers who have more experience than we do training and hunting bird dogs. |
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| In additon to field trials, other organized events that you can run a GWP in include AKC Hunt tests and NAVHDA tests. Both of these events have different levels that you can run your dog in--from Junior Hunter or Natural Ability tests up to Master Hunter or Utility tests. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| One thing to keep in mind when looking at the hunting titles a dog has is that they are conducted for the most part on pen raised birds, not wild birds. Many other factors also go in to a dog getting a hunting title; the handlers experience, the judges' likes/dislikes, the type and quality of competition, luck, etc. We suggest that if at all possible you see the dogs work in the field and come to your own conclusions about their field abilities--then decide if what you see stacks up adds-up to the titles that the dogs have. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| A good GWP has a natural instinct to hunt, find birds, point, and retrieve. Many hunters are happy with their dog's natural ability, and never bother to train their dog, or to force break it to retrieve. It takes time and effort to get your dog to be a polished gun dog, but a trained dog is a great hunting partner, and the time spent training your GWP will increase the bond you have with your dog. A trained gun dog is a dog that any hunter would be proud to show off to their hunting buddies. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| When a trained dog finds a bird it will hold its point while the hunter flushes and shoots the bird. Once the bird is shot, the hunter will release the dog, which will then retrieve it to hand. Most GWPs are natural retrievers, but for the hunter that wants a completely reliable retriever, we recommend "force breaking" to retrieve. A dog that has been "force broke" will consistently retrieve birds to hand. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||