R. I. Dog Guy, LLC

By Jim Barry, CPDT, CDBC

Among the American Kennel Club breed groups, the Sporting Group is by far the most popular.  In 2005, nearly a quarter of a million sporting breed dogs were registered, and this does not count the untold thousands whose owners did not register.  In our training programs in southern New England, 30 percent of the dogs that participate are sporting breeds or sporting breed mixes; Labrador retrievers and Lab mixes alone constitute more than 20 percent of the dogs in our classes.

These dogs are bred to hunt.  They have been selected for generations to emphasize the ability to find, point, flush and retrieve game.  Even sporting dogs from show lines are likely to display these behaviors to a high degree; those from field lines can be completely consumed by them!  At the same time as sporting dogs have been increasing in popularity, the number of people who hunt has been declining.  Between 1991 and 2001 (the last year for which comprehensive figures are available) the number of hunters in the United States declined by nearly 10 percent.[i]  And most hunters pursue big game, an activity in which dogs are rarely used.  So the vast majority of sporting breed dogs will never have a chance to participate in the activity for which they were specifically bred.

The Field Sports Spectrum

Don’t be discouraged if you have one of these great dogs, but don’t choose to hunt.  You have a variety of field sports to choose from, including both organized and individual activities.

Organized field sports are sponsored by dog clubs.  They involve training dogs to perform actual or simulated hunting tasks, and then evaluating them against each other or against a prescribed standard.  Gun dog tasks fall into roughly three sub-groups, depending on the breed’s particular work in the field.  Flushing dogs like spaniels search for birds within gunshot range from the hunter.  When they locate a bird, they flush it into the air and then retrieve it when shot.  Pointing breeds, including those with “pointer” in their name as well as setters and several other breeds, hunt and point game.  In the United States, the practice is that the game is then flushed by the hunter; in other countries the dogs may flush on command.  They must then retrieve on both land and water.

Retrievers, of course, retrieve!  They are used mainly in hunting waterfowl and must bring back birds from long distances, over land and water, in icy conditions and in difficult terrain.  Many retrievers also are good upland hunters. 

Some gun dogs are “versatile hunting breeds,” defined by the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA) as “the dog that is bred and trained to dependably hunt and track game, to retrieve on both land and water, and to track wounded game on both land and water.”[1]  They include the pointing breeds and the Weimaraner, Viszla, Brittany and Spinone.  The three setter breeds—Gordon, English and Irish—are also quite versatile, although not included in the NAVHDA registry.

The organized field sports reflect these groupings.  At the top of the hierarchy are field trials under the auspices of the American Kennel Club.  These are competitive affairs, with dog/handler teams surmounting increasingly difficult tasks until one is named the winner.  A dog that achieves a series of victories is deemed a “Field Trial Champion.”   Field trial champions are highly desired for breeding programs and may command very large fees.  Field trials tend to be dominated by a relatively small number of professional and dedicated amateur trainers.  Some of these individuals have developed their own training programs, organized around field trial requirements.  Most involve using electronic collars and other forceful tools to develop highly reliable performance under very demanding conditions.  “Campaigning” a field trial dog is costly and involves much travel.

Another category of field sports is hunt tests.  In hunt tests, the dogs are judged not against one another but against a performance standard.  Hunt tests are sponsored by the American Kennel Club as well as other organizations including the United Kennel Club, the North American Hunting Retriever Association and NAVHDA.  Most of these organizations award titles at three or four levels.  In the AKC system, for example, the titles are Junior Hunter (JH), Senior Hunter (SH) and Master Hunter (MH).  The standards increase in difficulty as the dog progresses.  A JH retriever test involves two retrieves on land and two in the water at distances up to 100 yards, with distractions typical of an average hunting day.  At the MH level, dogs may have to retrieve multiple birds, at distances of hundreds of yards, and in very difficult terrain.  They also must find “blind retrieves,” locating birds that they have not seen fall, following the directions of the handler.  The progression of difficulty is similar for flushing, pointing and versatile breed hunt tests.

Most of the national breed clubs for sporting dogs also award working certificates.  These tests indicate that the dog has reached at least a minimal level of hunting ability.   For example, the working certificate for a Golden Retriever requires the dog to make two “double retrieves’ (picking up two birds in the order indicated by the handler) at distances of about 50 yards on land and in the water.

No Birds are Harmed in These Programs!

A common characteristic of field trials, hunt tests and working certificates is that the dog is required to work with live, or “formerly live” birds.  In most of these activities, birds are shot during the tests.  This is a turnoff for many dog owners, and undoubtedly limits the participation of family dogs in these sports.  There are, however, two programs that families can pursue that involve gun dog tasks, but without the guns.

A new Gun Dog Club has recently been organized in the UK.  One of the objectives of the founder, Pippa Mattinson, was to provide options for non-hunters to participate in field activities.  As she puts it, the club mission includes as a goal:

To raise standards of skill and behaviour amongst working and pet gundogs.  For every gundog fulfilling his potential in the field there are many who fail to do so. Every dog in the field deserves the chance to be a capable member of the team: every pet dog deserves the chance to experience the joys of fieldwork.[ii]

In pursuit of this goal, the club has developed a six-level award system, with categories for retrievers, spaniels and versatile dogs (which the British call HPRs, for hunter-pointer-retriever).  The first three award levels can be achieved by working with retrieving dummies, rather than actual game.  Another advantage of this system is that it begins with relatively simple tasks, and increases in small steps that the most handlers can manage with due diligence.  This makes the awards more accessible than in the AKC and other hunt tests, in which the “criteria jumps” are much greater.  For example, in the Gun Dog Club program, a Beginner Retriever must:

• Heel on lead for 20 yards
• Sit on a single command
• Stay in position for two minutes with the handler 20 yards away
• Recall on command
• Retrieve two dummies at 25-30 yards

A Junior Retriever must:

• Work off lead during the test
• Heel for 30 yards and stay for 3 minutes
• Retrieve two dummies at 50 yards
• Find a dummy dropped surreptitiously by the handler at a short distance
• Recall and sit on a whistle command

This step up is much more manageable than that in the AKC retriever programs, where the increment between Junior and Senior levels requires the dog to master longer distances, blind retrieves, directional control from the handler and steadiness throughout the test.  Thus, the Gun Dog Club program is well suited for clicker training and other positive methods.  We have begun to organize weekend training programs that culminated in the beginner, junior and intermediate tests, so the owners can proudly display their ribbons and certificates to mark their accomplishments.

Another way to work with a dog in the field is an individual activity that I dub “non-hunting.”  This can range from a very simple to a very elaborate sport.  It essentially involves training a dog for, and then carrying out, hunting tasks without actually shooting anything.  Sporting dogs can be trained to find, point and retrieve dummies in the back yard.  By investing in some equipment, such as dummy launchers or remote bird releasers, the handler can extend the distance and incorporate other tasks such as flushing and steadiness under simulated field conditions.  The pinnacle of non-hunting is to don camouflage or upland hunting garb and take a dog into an area where it would be likely to encounter game.  The handler can then encourage the dog to perform all of the tasks appropriate to its breed and the conditions, but using reinforcers other than actual prey.  Pointers can hunt bird fields for pheasants, hold steady on point, and be rewarded with a treat or a retrieving dummy.  Spaniels can flush a bird and chase a “happy bumper.”  Retrievers can hold their position in the blind, and then find a hidden dummy for a treat or toy.  The handler can carry a gun or not, as best suits his or her style and values, and can load one with blanks, or “poppers” rather than shot.  It may seem silly to hunters, but the experience of taking a sporting dog into the field or marsh at sunrise, and collaborating on a challenging task, is not to be missed.  And the dog is very likely to be happier and better behaved as a result.