Transition Retriever Training
A dog coming out of Basic Retriever Training has most likely just received its AKC Junior Hunter Title. With its basic training under it belt, it is equipped to work hard for its handler, but really doesn't have the necessary tools to run confidently in the duck blind. Transition Retriever Training is the next step and brings to play a number of new building blocks that will help the dog hammer out a great hunt.
Transition Training consists of five additional elements that once again, build on one another to help us teach the trained retrieve. This is the minimum level of training to move a dog through an AKC Senior Hunt Test and then on to the advanced concepts required for the Master level hunt test program.
Double T Drill
The Double T is an extremely versatile drill used to generalize our three handed casting and to introduce obstructions and other concepts that a dog will encounter in the field. The basic concepts taught in the Single T are now expanded upon to generalize remote handling skills and the lining capability. In addition, obstacle training is introduced in the Double T drill and the expansion of the dog's ability to carry casts and initial lines is refined and mastered in this phase of Transition Training.
The drill itself consists of the same "back" pile found in the Single T, but instead of just one set of "over" piles, two sets of "over" piles are deployed to provide more suction on the dog's line to the back pile and an additional intersection for practicing whistle sits. By training through the distraction of the over piles, the dog's tendency to hold and run a straight line is improved.
Swim-By
Think of swim-by as the Single T of water work and its purposes range from the basics of teaching handling skills in water to the concept of once in the water, stay in the water. Dogs learn to stop and tread water while waiting for commands, cast into the water and to stay in when swimming near shore.
The Swim-by process follows directly on the heels of the Double-T on land and is the aquatic extension of the T drill. The most obvious end product is a dog that will swim by the handler on command and not get out of the water until given direction to exit. This drill is the pre-cursor education to teaching a dog about water channels and cheating singles. The end product is a dog with the desire to stay in the water and able to learn the intricacies of advanced water work.
Pattern Blinds
Pattern blind drills are blind retrieves the dog learns by repetition. This intermediate step from yard work to cold blinds builds the dog's confidence in holding a line through various factors like cover, water, and obstructions. Pattern blinds TEACH the retriever how to get from the line to a blind.
Over a period of several weeks, increasingly complex pattern blinds are run until an array of retrieves are established to reinforce to the dog how it should react in the face of various factors. Remember, up to this point, the only type of handled retrieve made has been in the context of the Double T or Swim-By. Pattern blinds transition the retriever to cold blinds in a manner that will allow for little confusion or unfair correction.
Cold Blinds - Handling in the Field
A cold blind is a handled retrieve that is run to a point the retriever has not seen before. A good example of a cold blind in a hunting sceanario would be in the event that a duck was shot out of site of the dog's line of site while in the blind. The shooter has seen where the bird went down, but the dog was unable to mark the spot due to position in the blind or multiple marks going down as the birds came in. Without three handed casting, the game would be lost, but since the handler marked the bird, the dog can be run there "cold".
Just like in our pattern blind phase, early cold blinds are very simple and without factors such as heavy cover or irregular terrain. As the dog grows comfortable with its new capability to handle, length and factors of cold blinds are increased. Angle entries to water, points, and multiple bodies of water will be components of complex blind retrieves and while a dog that can handle these situations seems miraculous, it is really just a product of three elements: Patience, repetition, and a focused training plan.
The Walk-Up
In training marking and steadiness, the dog has always been required to sit quietly waiting for game to fall. This is the ideal way for a retriever to mark, but as we all know, game is not always taken in a controlled manner. Many times, ducks are jump shot and dove are taken while walking fields and fence lines. Retrievers must be know how to mark while in motion. A walk-up is what this situation is called and the Senior Hunt Tests verify this skill is in place.
Essentially, the dog is trained to sit and mark the fall of game when shots are fired. This prevents breaking that can spook other game or endanger our best friend because of gun fire in the field. Once cleared, the retriever is sent to work safely. Walk-ups are a part of every Senior Hunt test and also a part of many hunting scenarios.
Double Marked Retrieves - Building Memory
Through all of the basics and handling training, the skill of marking has also been honed through the practice of throwing marks for the dog. Marks are thrown regularly as both a reward for hard work and to develop the natural tendency to "go get things". The behaviour to run straight to a downed bird is not natural for dogs and single marks are the tool to teach the straight line. Once retriever has shown competency in this most basic aspect of the trained retrieve, a second mark is added so that we can begin to train the dog to remember a second mark while retrieving the first.
The AKC Senior Hunter Title marks a dog that has completed transition training and learned to remember one mark while retrieving another. Setting the goal of a Senior title for your dog will assure you of steady, well trained hunting companion and give you a good indicator of your dog's mastery of mid-level field work.