Home Forums Birds & Dogs Hunting Dogs Retrieval question

So yesterday I made a new duck hunting friend. As I was getting into the shower before bed (I work nights so it was mid day), he calls me and tells me he has a pile of mallards down on the pond near my house where I take my 18 MO Airedale to swim/train/exercise. I tell him Ill be there in 15 minutes.

We arrive, I call her to heel, and she sees the first mallard floating in the middle of the pond. I send her and she swims to it and retrieves it like a seasoned vet (this is her first duck season).

We walk to the other end of the pond, and there are 3 more, about 5 yards apart. It is much shallower on this end. Same thing, I heel her and send her out. She walks to the first one, smells it and leaves it. She then does the same thing to the other two.

I call her back and send her out 2 more times with the same result.

My theory is, she wasn't there for the fun (the flushing, shooting, and dropping) so she wasn't too interested. However, the way she retrieved the first one threw me for a loop.

I'm open to ideas, but for context, she has had no formal training, just my dumbass working with her. She hunts and retrieves dove like crazy, and has flushed and retrieves pigeon/chukar really well.

Some dogs mine included do like cold dead birds.

The more wiggle the better, along with a little squeek.

Next time have a pocket full of rocks or dirt clods. When they are looking at the duck heave a rock and tell her back ( fetch ) the ripples will get her there to grab it. Usually all it takes. I've never had to explain it that way to a lab but other breeds you might. Mb

Not at all uncommon for a dog’s first experience with mallards. They are much larger than doves and can be intimidating to a young dog. With the swimming retrieve, your dog wanted to get out of the water, so she grabbed the duck and swam back without hesitation. The shallow water ducks allowed the dog the option to mess with the ducks and choose to leave them alone.

Next time, wear your waders and get in the water with the dog. Toss the shallow water ducks into deeper water and then send the dog. Meet her in the water and accept the retrieve from her there. If you wait up on shore, she may learn to drop the duck at the water’s edge. Transition to waiting in shallower water and, eventually, up on the bank. Since she’s already handling smaller birds well, this will likely go fairly smoothly.

Since you’re going to hunt the dog, set a few training goals and work towards consistency. You and the dog will both enjoy it. It might also be helpful if you PM me with the exact location of your duck pond. 😏

Force fetch.

This is what most trainers will recommend. Not sure how an Airedale will react to force fetch training.

Maybe try walking fetch with anything the dog will pick up and work up to ducks.

Clue #1

Work with heavier training dummies - have some terry cloth wrist bands or head sweatbands (double them up) that you can put different scents on and stretch around the dummy. Use over and over so that your dog gets used to differing game scents. Repeated retrieving-training needs to be tied into the dog's daily fun-exercise time. Those days he does good, give him ample time but not so much as to tire him out - on the days he's not interested, stop the training immediately, put him on a leash, walk him home and put him back in the kennel. It doesn't take them long to figure out what they need to do to have 'fun' so to speak. This is especially helpful with young males 6-months and older.

Too late….but Ducks and Labs would have made things easier.

^^^^^^^^this^^^^^^^^^^

With this it makes non-traditional retrievers good and traditional ones excellent.
And an Airedale should respond to it just as well as any other dog.

No doubt, but I have always wanted an Airedale, and she really is awesome. Plus, I think she is more versatile than a lab. The one I had was awesome, I wish I would have taken him through some of the training she has had.
She swam to the large mallard and brought it back like a pro. Just had no interest in the other floaters.

If I had to assume, she would have brought them back with no issues had we been there to actually shoot them. She gets FIRED UP when we are killing doves, and the same when we jump ducks (which we have only done a few times, need to get her out for more of that). She has done well, not perfect but pretty damn good on ducks we have shot together.

This was also her first time being sent on what I call a "cold" retrieve. All things considered, I think she did well. But yes, I do agree force fetching training would be the right move.

Have been casually following your adventures with Her and think you have down better than I would have originally imagined.

If she has shown a more than casual interest in retrieving, I would just keep working on it.

My current 2YO English Cocker was not all that reliable until this past season and then something changed in South Dakota. Last week here in Pa, a friend shot two Pheasants. One He flushed, and he was on it and back on the run. The second all he knew was he heard a shot 75 or so yards away. Friend couldn’t find it, so I sent him. 5 minutes or so later he was coming back to me with the Bird.

Yours is young, for now I wouldn’t expect perfection and keep working with her. If she doesn’t come around to where you are happy, then you may want to consider the FF option.

Just my two cents take it for what it’s worth (about that). I would get on the force fetch program ASAP and then not have to fiddle around with “hoping” your dog will come around. Force fetch teaches the dog that when you send him for a retrieve, not doing so is not an option. A lot of people hear the word “force” and are immediately turned off. So call it the “trained” retrieve or something else. It’s the same thing. You are not beating or abusing the dog in any way. If you are, you’re doing it wrong and are a POS anyway. There are a myriad of videos and literature on the subject, take your pick. I’d get on it as soon as you could and have her ready to go by next season, and it takes some time. I don’t know if you’re strictly a bird hunter but since it’s a terrier, this will come in handy when it comes to fur retrieves as well. Again, just my two cents.

How is your Airedale more versatile than a Lab?

I cant talk about all labs, but the one I had:

Didn't have the stamina to hike and hunt deer/elk all day like she does.

Wouldn't harm a fly so he would NEVER work on fur.

Was gunshy from day 1 although I tried my absolute best to properly ease him in. (Did the same exact thing with her and she's bomb proof on it).

Make no mistake, I love labs. One of my favorite breeds. If I was only a duck hunter, thats what I would have.

You should see her work on dove. She thinks they are the best. She LOVES cripples, whether they be dove, chuckar, pigeons or ducks. Her drive when they try to get away is second to none. She's doing really well!

With that….give her reps and time. It should all work out.

Force fetch

Took her and my son out. 1 coyote, and 4 ducks. 4 great duck retrieval, 3 swimming and one on land.