THE MELT-DOWN

“Whoa!  Whoa!!  WHOA!,”  I yelled.  K-Lee “busted” the bird.  She was chasing it across the field and into the brush.  She wouldn’t stop for me or the e-collar.  Moments later, the bird made its escape and she came to me—as if giving me a consolation prize.  I picked her up and carefully held her off the ground with her rear-end much higher than her head. (I wanted to get her attention and get her focus off the bird.)  Carrying her back to the spot where she transgressed, I shouted several times at her, “Shame!  Shame on you!!  Shame!  Shame!”  I firmly placed her  where she should have remained in the first place.  

"Bird On The Run"

We were taking our turn in a NAVHDA  Merrimack Valley Chapter training clinic.  It was at that moment that I realized I had thrown the “still small voice” (see March 2nd post) out the window and was using the “big voice”.  (Oh, the sour feelings of failure!)  K-Lee knew better than to bust a bird but she gave in to temptation.  Full disclosure:  She had been waiting  nearby the bird field.  While she was doing so, she was with other dogs who were ramped up and excited—whining and barking to tell their owners that they wanted to go, go, go after birds.
 ....It's as if my pup has a competitive streak.

When released, she ran hard and fast and slammed into a point.  One of the gunners said, “Well, that didn’t take long.”  It didn’t.  She usually hunts at a more casual pace for me, but that afternoon she was wound up like a spring-driven toy at Christmas.  She flew!  I had no problem with that.  The problem was that she didn’t stay “on point” like she usually does.  She saw the bird try to escape and the chase was on!  Deep down inside, I thought that she might try that, so I had the training collar turned up for a serious correction.  She blew right through each correction with no more than vocalization.  I sensed that the men who were gunning for me were probably concerned that I was being too harsh. 

I thought to myself, “Never scold your dogs or your children in public”.

I felt like a hypocrite and a brute. (No, I didn't strike her!) Both the dog and I were going through a melt-down.  After I placed her on the spot where she originally pointed, I kicked around a bit in the grass—as if I were trying to flush another bird.  She acknowledged my command “Whoa” this time, but I knew very well that she knew there wasn’t a bird there anymore.  Her nose is that good.  I was “wound up” after that bit of "theater", but felt that maybe the it had been timely and appropriate.   After a few moments to calm (us) down, I released her to find the next bird.

K-Lee had to work a bit for the second one--she cast left, right, back, farther and finally slid into a point.  I went to her and was pleased that she remained steady.  She looked like a painting.  I walked around a bit and saw the bird.  It was jammed into a spot from which I was sure it wouldn’t be able to take flight.  Looking back, that was a really bad assumption--for a host of reasons.

“Mistake #2” was bending over and grabbing the bird.  It was more than K-Lee could stand.  She charged to my side with a (sort of) “I want it boss!” look. Having the bird in my hand did nothing to calm her down.   One of the gunners asked me if I still wanted to deploy the bird.  I said “Yes.  I’d like to see how she handles it.” 

The bird flew, and the gunners did their job with excellence.  I told K-Lee to “fetch”, but she must have anticipated me.  She took off like a nitro-fueled dragster a micro-second before the command fell from my lips.  She came back yanking on the bird like my neighbor's kid works on a piece of bubble gum.  (I think she likes to make the birds squeak.)  She sat and delivered—though hardly the best that she’d ever done.  The bird?  It had seen better days.

I was once told by a breeder who is also a senior NAVHDA judge, that my dog would probably turn out to be a really good hunter for me, but (most likely) she wouldn’t be a good test dog because of her temperament.  I believed him, but after this day’s “melt-down”, I really believe him.  This is the second time that K-Lee  went “over the moon” in this environment.  Each time there was shooting, birds, other anxious dogs as she waited her turn in the field.  Perhaps in time, with more exposure we can "dial her back" a bit.   

As I’ve previously said, my priorities with K-Lee are first, companion dog; second, hunting partner; and third and last, NAVHDA testing dog (to help in our development).  I’ve nothing to prove—we just want to have a good time and try be the best we can become.  So we’ll continue to work on the requirements of the Utility Test because it will make her a better dog.  ...but to actually test?  The jury is still out on that one.   Anyhow, we're sticking with it.  There’s much, much more to a NAVHDA chapter than the tests.   

 # re-learning “sotto voce”