How long do you expect to get from your dog?

dev110

I'm just wondering what your plan is with dogs.
Do you run two dogs? One in the morning and one after lunch?
Or just run the one dog and give and hour or two break for lunch?

I only have the one dog but over the last few weeks I have been building him up and getting more food into him to give him more energy. The longest I have hunted him was 3 hours and he still seemed to have plenty of go still left in him.
I will be hitting heavy cover first thing tomorrow morning so if I can get through that I should be ok as the rest is just normal going.

How did you do to get your dogs ready for tomorrow? Its to late to change things now but might be interesting to hear what others do.

Glensman

The Neighbours take my dog out for at least an hour every day while I'm at work. Plenty of days she gets more than 2 hours of exercise.

With the fact that she is a pointer rather than a springer I would expect to get a full day out of her without much issue.

I can see your probelm with Springers though, hard to last that pace for a full day's hunting. My hunting buddy just got a cocker to run beside his springer.
I think if my dog was getting it tight I would run 2 dogs, but probably together- they can take it in turns to hunt cover.

kermitpwee

Most guys down here in Mayo seem to hunt springers for 3 hours no more and they reckon there goosed. I will be hunting my springer for 7 hours 2moro. He is 7 and is as fit as a fiddle. Last year he would hunt for 8-9 hours, he ran young dogs ragged last year. The only answer to this imo is the food I am feeding him. Both my dog and my uncles sprocker were on it and they were unreal, my uncle couldn't afford it(38euro for 15kg bag) so he went back to a cheaper food and his dog will now do 3 hours max.
The key is to read your own dog and don't kill him!

Dalken

kermitpwee wrote: »

Most guys down here in Mayo seem to hunt springers for 3 hours no more and they reckon there goosed. I will be hunting my springer for 7 hours 2moro. He is 7 and is as fit as a fiddle. Last year he would hunt for 8-9 hours, he ran young dogs ragged last year. The only answer to this imo is the food I am feeding him. Both my dog and my uncles sprocker were on it and they were unreal, my uncle couldn't afford it(38euro for 15kg bag) so he went back to a cheaper food and his dog will now do 3 hours max.
The key is to read your own dog and don't kill him!

Good advice here imo. It sounds like your springer is well prepared for tomorrow, all I'd add is that you should have a small feed for the dog at some stage in the day thats very important.
Hopefully tomorrow is a brighter day than today, damp and shi*y out there today, forecast is better though.

garyc007

i will be running my springer most of the day, she will be tired come evening but she wont give up!

steyrman2

hi lab for the morning depending on how it goes i have a pointer for the afternoon when the birds are settled in beet or heavy ditchs if i shoot a few in the morning i will leave the pointer till friday then every second day i get out the dogs get a run worked great last season i have bulked up my dogs to 24 % feed with extra cod liver oil 3 times a week and good worm doses

djflawless

ill be out with the springer from 8-12. back to the house for tae.springer will be getting a little portion of porridge with a good spoon of sugar.back out for 1.30 or 2 o clock and hunt thru some easy ground near the house.should be finished near 4.she's been running 2 miles along side the bike once a week the past month.along with a few rabbit hunts.so she should be up for it.she has been for 3 years anyways
up for retirement in 2014-2015 season all going well

gregers85

Its rare we would go out for the full day usually 3-4 hours in the morning or the evening, I have a setter and my cousins I shoot with have springers (rarely out together!) they will hunt away and still very eagerly but are generally very tired on the way home!! I find my setter works a lot better when she's tired - she's 2 and tends to run around excitedly but once she tires up a bit really sticks her nose to the ground and works well!!

dev110

What will ye feed your dogs when you take a break for lunch?

greengrasscork

I will hunt 2 springers in the morning for 5 hours 11yr and 4yr old then switch to 2 different springers after lunch both 19months old for about 3-4 hours

gregers85

dev110 wrote: »

What will ye feed your dogs when you take a break for lunch?

Has any one tried those royal canin energy nuts to keep the dog going?? guess there like a bottle of lucozade for us i spose haha are they any good??

marlin vs

dev110 wrote: »

What will ye feed your dogs when you take a break for lunch?

Nothing,my setters are only asked to work hard for 3 months and thats only a 3 day week.

Dalken

dev110 wrote: »

What will ye feed your dogs when you take a break for lunch?

I'd just have a cup full of nuts for them a lunch time when I'm having a sandwich. Red mills worker in my case, I'm sure there are other fancy high energy feeds you could give them. I used to put my dogs on Kasco high protein racing greyhound feed for the season but I find the worker a good feed. Personally I don't really believe that there are top nutritionalists working away in labs doing all sorts of tests to produce optimum performance feeds, they're all basically made from bits of chicken and ash after all.

EPointer=Birdss

marlin vs wrote: »

Nothing,my setters are only asked to work hard for 3 months and thats only a 3 day week.

Sure what has that got to do with it?

Routine is
8-12
Tea
2-4:30ish

Dev - I feed myself at half time so I'd give the dogs cup of nuts, rub of an old towel & clean bedding.
Can guarantee they'll konk out for a few hours before the next run.
Repeat the above the with a proper feed at 5pm.

djflawless

feckin porridge!!!
if i wasnt such a carnivore id be eating it meself...
but sure ya couldnt beat rashers and sausages with a big shtick

ronn

I was only out for a few hours today, so no lunch time treats for the dog today,
last year i cooked some lambs liver and gave it to the dog for lunch,

think i got that tip on here,