Question: I have a young female English Setter. The problem I am having is that she will not hold point on birds. She may flash point, or point for a couples of second, but then she will dive in and try to catch the birds. What can I do?

Karl R., Bellville.

Answer: I have had similar problems with some female English Pointers. It seems to be more prevalent with females than males in my case. First, make sure the dog is whoa broke and will stop on the whoa command when off-leash. Practice in the field and at home. The dog should stop for you at distances of, say, fifty feet. Next, work the dog into a bird with a check cord on. If the dog does not stop to point the bird, jerk her back with the check cord and say “whoa”. Keep doing this for several days with three to four birds each day. If this doesn't start her pointing, use an electronic training collar on a medium setting. Without the check cord, work her into a bird. Do not put the bird to sleep or dizzy it. If she doesn't point the bird but instead flushes, tell her to whoa loudly. If she doesn't stop, hit the button on the collar for two seconds while shouting “whoa”. If she yelps and comes back to you, pet her and tell her to “whoa those birds” in a gentle voice. Repeat as needed.

Charlie Linblade

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