Hunting season is over.  Freighter finished his show Championship.  Now it is time to get him back into hunt test training.  He has only done sporadic training since September so where to start?

Stretching Freighter Out

We decided stretching Freighter out was a good way to start.  We had him run some long single marks, (a mark is where the dog watches the bumper or bird fall).  I posted about Thunder and Storm running some single marks, here.  We moved Freighter back from where Thunder and Storm started so he had to look a long way down the road to watch them fall.

In these pictures, Freighter appears closer to the camera than he is.  I not only zoomed in, but also cropped the image so he would not be a tiny spec.

Steady For Mark
Freighter Always Needs Work On Being Steady So Hubby Is Keeping A Close Eye On Him

I used a black and white bumper and tossed it in an angle back from me on the road.  I know the bumper was difficult for Freighter to see not only due to the distance, but also because I was throwing it against a dark (trees) and a white (snow-covered road) background.  The object was to encourage Freighter to get back into the habit of looking out a long distance for a fall.  When hunting, the birds do not far that far out, but for hunt tests they do (a topic for another day).  It is also great exercise when you repeat it.

Released To Retrieve
Freighter Is Released To Retrieve
Dog Running
Freighter Is Running Hard

Just like Grandpa Thunder, Freighter went off road.

Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Oops Off Road

Unlike Grandpa Thunder, Freighter realized his mistake and got back on track to find the bumper.

Retriever Training Bumper
Good Dog Freighter

We repeated this several times and I changed to an all white bumper which made it a bit more difficult because it was landing on the white road.

Dog Running
Freighter Off To Retrieve Another Bumper

Except for the first retrieve, Freighter did great marking and retrieving all of the bumpers.

Retriever Running
Freighter Flying Past

There was not enough room to throw double or triple marks so we stuck to long singles.  It was a good way for Freighter to get back into a training frame of mind and to get some good exercise at the same time.

Retriever Running
Nice Job Freighter

The Groundhog says an early Spring so Freighter will be getting out for more training as weather and daylight allow.

11 thoughts on “Stretching Freighter Out

  1. Wow, that does look like lots of fun to do. What a good dog you are Freighter. It is so great that you do so much with your dogs. And we know the dogs like all the activity.

  2. Excellent way to start getting his mind back into it. Our bumpers are orange, but I’m mostly using those for water retrieves for Delilah, as infrequent as that is. 🙂

  3. It seems like you had a good balance of getting him back in slowly, but still challenging him and getting him some great exercise as well. Good job, Freighter!

  4. I love your posts with lots of images of the dogs in action and being conditioned or trained. Freighter is looking good! 🙂

  5. Who would ever guess that stretching could be so much fun? 🙂

    Great job, Freighter!

  6. Seems to be happiest at a good gallop! Freighter’s enthusiasm comes right through the lens. We have been walking the Chessies along the tow-path, they meet others and scouting nature! Really the best exercise for the Senior Girl, if it is really cold they have spiffy plaid coats, it can be very windy along the Maumee..

Comments are closed.