A Client’s Reservations
Some of you may have heard that I've given up on teaching college-level courses to begin a challenging and lucrative career of training gun dogs and their people. Let me assure you, there are loads of butterflies in your gut when you make such a drastic change. And that first customer is always the test - right?
Well, this client - my first client - had a real head-scratcher of a dog issue that was a fun challenge and, I believe, we found a way to solve it. However, that's not what this story is about. It’s what came afterword that was the “real” story.
First, I need to catch you up with a back-story. You see, I had been working on our young setter Dakota (Dak) and, more specifically, on his retrieving. I tried to avoid (what used to be termed) force fetch training on Dak by using a longer transitional approach. Dak liked retrieving for fun but wasn't keen on birds. After hunting a season and well over a year of fetching bumpers, baseballs and a few other odd items, I transitioned to frozen quail. All the while, keeping the process fun, I slowly became more insistent in completing that task. Without Dak realizing it, fetch transformed into a command that he happily complies with. There, you’re caught up!
Okay, after his session was complete, I asked the gentleman if he might like to shoot a pigeon for Dak to fetch. The client agreed, adding the routine disclaimer about his having limited wing shooting skills. “Oh stop. That’s what they all say”!
For the practice, I would control Dak to maintain steadiness during wing and shot. Then, upon the successful completion of the shot, I would send Dakota toward the ultimate goal of retrieving the expertly downed bird!
Well, this guy wasn’t exaggerating his shooting prowess, let’s say. It may have required further down-play? And, after several attempts, (thought of my buddy, Bill), he successfully struck the flushed pigeon! – Yay!
For added suspense, picture in your mind’s eye, a gallery of people at the US Open as leading pro golfer, Studs Mackenzie, lines up his shot. He swings masterfully, the power and grace of his follow through bringing gasps from the stunned audience! What a drive!!
Now, back to reality… The stunned audience was me and the commotion due to witnessing the lethally-struck bird being deposited from flight right into the pond! - Boo!
Indeed, the lifeless puff dropped behind the tall green screen of cattails and into the farm pond beyond! Ker-plunk! I steadied Dak for the retrieve, removed the check cord, and sent him on – “Fetch Here”!
With deep concern, I released Dak wondering if he would actually scent the bird through the thick cattail cover. Worse-yet, would he - could he - swim through that cover with a bird in his mouth?! Or, would he leave the bobbing bird in his struggle to get back to dry land?
The drop from the bank into the water’s depth is steep and deep – much too deep for Dak to reach the bottom. I could hear torrents of splashing and see the cattails wave in unison. Unlike his sire, Gus – the Gator, Dakota is not as comfortable in the water. Only a matter of weeks prior, Dak had given up on a bumper that was tossed too distant and attempted to return without it. Eventually made the retrieve due to my insistence.
How can I insist when I can’t see the bird or the dog?! Dak frantically chops with his forelegs as he tries desperately to keep his head as far above the surface as possible! Add to the commotion the sound of a dog gasping and snorting for air and your mind takes you to thoughts, so horrible! Thoughts like… “Is it fair to blame the other guy for my dog drowning ?” - “How does one preform mouth to mouth resuscitation on a dog, again”?! - “Breath mint, anyone?”
Dakota swims like a drowning horse; churning water like mixing a margarita!
I could tell Dak had been on the bird and was making headway through the cattail forest. He wouldn’t drown. Relieved, the question became whether or not he would retain his grip on the bird. Pigeons, and doves, have light feathering that tends to fill a dog’s mouth with fluff! Easily dampened, they stick to everything they touch. Would he hold on?!
Always a step ahead, I had already conjured up a plan if Dak could not complete his mission. Gus, whose persistent barking whine could be heard throughout the process, would be bold enough to bring anything from the deep. I would have Dak witness his father’s accomplishment in a combination of a challenge and proof that the task was within his ability. That is, of course, if the bird hadn’t already sunk?!
After a time, I could see glimpses of white slogging through the green foliage. Finally, Dak had a foot-hold! With a final surge, he broke into the open! Like some sort of sorry sea creature, water poured from thick fur covered in green duckweed! Yet there, in his grasp, was an equally soggy grey pigeon! Dak’s very first retrieve was a water retrieve! – Yay, again!
What began as routine steadiness training transformed into a stellar water retrieving seminar as far as my client was concerned! “All part of the transitional training experience!” I chortled, with a confident smirk. It was not long after that experience, during our last farewell handshake, that the gentleman handed me double the payment. “What’s this for?”, I questioned. Wearing a satisfied look, he replied, “I’m reserving our next session”.
(The entire scene can be viewed, as it happen, on my homepage, above “Customer Comments”.)
