Grouse with Lab?

[Jojoe]

Does anyone on this forum use a Labrador for flushing Grouse? If so, is the training similar in nature to the quartering done for phasants? Finally, if the training is similar, can/should I use bumpers scented with bottled grouse scent to train for this?

Hiking in the woods with my pup is what I do for fun and if I can combine the hike with this style of hunting that would be great. I just don't want to waste time and effort confusing my dog if this type of training is unsuitable.:confused:

[jiggy]

Yup, we hunt grouse, pheasant and partridge with our labs. I can't say we really trained on grouse per say...it just came naturally while doing the pheasant training/hunting. I find upland to be more "on the job training", but that's just me.
Once the dog flushes up a couple birds...the lightbulb usually goes off. It's teaching them to stay in gun range that we had our problems, as my girls are fast over the ground.
We field trial our dogs and don't find upland training/hunting unsuitable at all. This time of the year is their time...to go out and let their hair down a bit.

[Sharon]

If your're going to have time to get into gun position and choose a lane of fire (in thick SW ON. cover not Northern logging roads), I don't know how a flushing breed would provide for that. I would think the bird would be long gone before you got there but.......

A friend wrote this on another forum:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I am certainly no expert on either woodcock or ruffs , but the only way I ever seemed to get a shot when I hunted either bird, was to look for a shooting lane and get into position in that lane with the gun basically at "present arms" position, then I'd take a stance kinda like a fencer and push my front foot forward and then bring my back foot up...wait a second and push the front foot forward again, repeating until the bird flushed. If it flew anywhere near the opening in the canopy I had picked out, I had a decent shot as my feet were both on the ground and pretty much where they needed to be. If not, I could still swing fairly well because of my open stance and got lucky occasionally.

A partner and takng turns flushing is probably one of the best techniques.

I once knew a fellow who taught his pointing dog this trick. After the dog pointed, he could command the dog to take a single step... after which it re-assumed its point. Once he set himself up in a clear shooting lane, he would command "Inky...advance" and she would take exactly one step and then lock back up. Often that was all that was needed to flush the bird. I saw him advance the dog four times into a thick brush pile before a rooster came boiling out the other side. Made for some easy shooting."

RayG

[North of 7]

I hunt my FT lab on all upland game. To them a bird is a bird and with whistles you can keep them in range and quarter.

Good Luck

[be2man]

Hey Ron I haven't got a lab, but I've hunted grouse alot with my previous Britt, and more recently my Pudelpointer pup. I've found alot of birds walking logging roads and trails that the dog picks up foot sent on the trail or body scent off the side of the trail that I never would have known were there. In those situations a flushing dog could actually provide better shooting than a pointer. If the birds are in thick cover it's hard to flush them yourself and get a shot, or they'll walk away from the dog on point.
I'd just take the dog with you if he's used to guns. Nothing like on the job learning about the cover and the birds.
As far as putting a pattern on him, I think the dog will learn with exposure where to find the birds and hunt more effectively in heavier cover on his own than running a fixed pattern as you might want in open pheasant cover. Definately needs to work in gun range though. Flushing dogs can be excellent grouse dogs and get you more time afield with your dog.
Take him with you and hunt like you would with out a dog, shoot some birds for him to retrieve and he'll get the idea there's something out there to find and start searching on his own.

Cheers, Tom

[sterregold]

There's some great advice in here Ron. Find yourself a shall we say, target rich environment, which you ought to have up your way this year, and let him rustle a few up. He'll catch on!

[Jojoe]

Thanks!!
So, we just need to be a nike commercial eh?
OK, worked for the past 6 month putting his hair up...guess he's do to let it down for a while:bigrin . I have no question that we'll both have some fun!

Thanks for the input and if we'er successful you'll here it here first...if not...I'll have to come back and edit this post...:rolleyes:

[nimkii]

I was away on the moose hunt this week and I took Abbie along to keep me company. While out hunting I would put her away in the kennel in the truck and off we (our hunting party) go. One instance this week, I was walking back to the truck with her and she slowed down, ears perked up and she was real serious, she caught somethings scent. She slowly walked towards a bush and stopped, moved in a little closer and a grouse flew up over her and across the pit where the trucks were parked. We just watched it fly away. She whined a little bit and was getting all excited and looking at me as if she was thinking " You idiot, there's a gun in your hand and you didn't shoot!!!!", not much I could do with a 30-06. So to answer your question, yes I definately think you could teach a lab to hunt grouse. I have done no upland training with Abbie of any kind.

[Greg]

I've been dying to hunt upland with Suzy...well... I've been dying to hunt anything she can retrieve.. since the only exposure she's had in her first fall has been 3 fruitless trips and 1 with geese.. but she wasn't ready for geese :(