Thread: What breed should I do the deer dog blueprint with?

If you are asking this question you may not be ready for a dog.

I have labs and love them. Great family dogs and do everything good. If I was purely chasing big game I would go something more specific for that though. I run labs because i’m also big on duck shooting so the lab is critical for that for me. Plenty of good points already, a nice heading dog would go well. A lot of potential with a good vizsla and gsp etc but you also need to be very good at your handling to get the best from them. A lot of work managing them day to day.

Originally Posted by mimms2

Any. It's a method of training that works. Few things I disagree with and that I think he does wrong, but no question about the calibre of dogs turned out.
I happen to have a pure mongrel cross I could sell you, assuming you meet good home/ character requirements

@mimms2 keen to hear your perspective on what you disagree with. Not for arguments sake but because i’m always interested in listening to different opinions/ideas. Feel free to PM if we don’t want another classic dog opinion argument in the thread.

my Black Lab Weimaraner cross was a great dog , good on anything and had a better nose than my lab , she would find ducks the Lab missed , climb hedges to retrieve , find indicate / Deer , great watch dog as well, it helped that she had the Lab to teach her, i got most of my dog training methods from old RNR magazines and reading books , the best tip was eat on command and moving the feed bowl close to lawn mower/chain saw so got used to loud noises , also could take bone out of mouth ,important with young kids .

Originally Posted by mimms2

Just a couple of things and no biggie really.
i let my dogs largely free-range. They can go in cage/chain when needed. Whereas he keeps his either kennelled or working (plenty of people do) but I like to let dogs be dogs and play aswell.

The other one, in one of his videos he's teaching a "come" or something, but instead of using -one- word ("come", or "here" whatever it was) command he was saying "come, come on, come here, get here" using half a dozen different words.

Yea fair enough, I agree and do the same pretty much. I have noticed that with him a few times changing small things in the command etc. My pup atm only ever came out of the kennel when I could observe him just to avoid him destroying stuff. As he’s gotten older and learnt the do and donts he’s pretty much out all the time now unless if we go out then he’s back in kennel (5 months old). Yard is fully enclosed though and front of house is seperate to the back where dogs are.

Funnily enough after talking about how my pup knows the do and donts at home, I came home from work today and he had chewed the bloody back door matt while my wife wasn’t watching. I blame my wife lol doh!

I'm training my pup with the blueprint. Not exactly as he does it but more or less.
It's going well. My pup is stopping, sitting, staying and coming to my call. His system definitely seems to work.

Bea doesn't sleep outside in her kennel though. She sleeps inside in a crate. I agree with what others have said and I don't really like her being cooped up all day.

Consider the type of hunting you will do. Terrain and climate. Match your dog to your personality, lifestyle and hunting. I personally prefer female working dogs for biddability. Huntaways and Strong eyed heading dogs. Learn your individual dogs traits and understand and respect your indicator dog in training. My heading dog is way more "softer" to a growl than the huntaway. Analyze your dogs behaviour and how it uses it senses. Use blueprints concepts as far as it works for you and your indicating dog. Hunt one area alot by yourself and then train your dog in that area so you can set it up for success. Always trust your dog - you will be amazed at what it can be capable of....Have fun

My lab x gsp is quite a driven dog. I call it the gsp ignorance. Smart enough to know what you want him to do, but there’s always a moment or two where he thinks about how he can test my decision. He requires a fair bit of pressure while working, more so than a dog that might be more biddable and clingy, for lack of a better word. I’ve had two pure gsps in the past and they were much the same.

They need a lot of work day to day to get the most from them but if you do things right they are very loyal dogs.

Dogs with high drive ability can be slow to mature so that is something to factor in as well.

A good heading dog with a bit of eye and calm temperament. The heading dog crosses Viz, GSP, Lab can be good too, hunting lines are optimal but not essential.
Mines a wire head gsp X heading dog and its a different beast to train compared to my old GSP, GUS, the GSP's have full on prey drives which can make them hard
to keep close when they are on game. My Kahu has been much easier to train and is easy going ( most of the time )

Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst

Don't rush into buying a dog, 12 or 15 years is a long time stuck with a lemon. You need to look at how much hunting you're going to do etc also. Breeds like the Vizsla or GSP are proven hunting dogs but they're also a lot of work, guys rush out and buy them and 90% of the ones I've seen in the flesh have been a "waste" as no real work was put into them, a lot of them are downright obnoxious too when you go to visit someone and there's this "million mile an hour dog" that won't sit still for three seconds, I know of one dog from a very good mate that comes from one of the top kennels in NZ and the bloody thing is gunshy and mad as a snake. I agree with the heading dog bit, they're a dog that exudes intelligence and are not high maintenance, they learn very easily and more importantly they retain that information without huge amounts of effort having to be put into them.
I got my Bo as "free to a good home" as a pup through a fellow forum member, he was from hunting lines though, Catahoula/Heading X and he's been such a pleasure to have around and train, he just turned 1 last month and has a few deer to his name now, we've done quite a bit of training and practise but you can tell the dogs that are smart from the dumb ones and he's pretty sharp and a good mix with the strong prey drive and nose of the Catahoula and the intelligence and calm and collected (and quiet!) outlook of the heading dog

Old thread I know, but have you got pictures of your pup?

Did the O P grow up with dogs? Or is this a warm and fuzzy idea?
A dog is a living creature , not a furry machine , so the dog will need all your attention - more than a potential girlfriend even. Good dogs are the result of a bond between owner and dog , and many hours of concerted effort. The world is full of shit dogs , and most of them are not to blame individually

Originally Posted by Fee Knicks

Did the O P grow up with dogs? Or is this a warm and fuzzy idea?
A dog is a living creature , not a furry machine , so the dog will need all your attention - more than a potential girlfriend even. Good dogs are the result of a bond between owner and dog , and many hours of concerted effort. The world is full of shit dogs , and most of them are not to blame individually

I was reading this and thinking, yeah, that bond is important. And looked down at my feet….



When I was farming and even did ok at dog trials, I never quite got how deep the bond could go.

Yes @Tahr I nearly choked when I saw your photo. Here's my vizsla/gsp cross chilling while I read the forum. Suggest to a person who is looking to train a pup. Get a dog that you like, that is suitable for hunting and your lifestyle. Yes, pointers are definitely more energetic, but then so am I. Kai runs a voluntary "Endangered Tennis Ball Recovery Programme" every day down beside the local tennis courts in the long grassy fields which are full of pheasant and tennis balls... Yes, my throwing arm has nearly fallen off. But hey! They have such a strong prey drive, so train them well, and enjoy them. I make all the mistakes compared to him hunting. I really enjoy Johnny Bissell's writing in NZ Hunter (he has an article in their latest magazine) about working with indicating dogs. He brings a lot of real life balance to the principles of the Blueprint and managing the dog while hunting. Next time around I'll be adopting more of his training principles earlier. Enjoy the process is all I can say. They are the best hunting buddies.

Originally Posted by Tahr

I was reading this and thinking, yeah, that bond is important. And looked down at my feet….

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When I was farming and even did ok at dog trials, I never quite got how deep the bond could go.

Its a funny thing the "bond" thing. It kind of appears, you can't force it and its wonderful when it happens.

I was out this morning with my wee girl and it was only after turning back for the car I realized I had barely said a word to her and yet we had been hunting together for over an hour looking for a good spot to try for a pheasant when the next 2 day hunting period for public land opens. She watches me (my body language I guess) and I do the same with her. We speed up and slow down with out a word being said. At home she generally is within 3-4m of where ever I am and this all just "happened".