Lefty81

Best wishes with your new pup. I recommend training the pup yourself. You'll get a much greater reward on the duck pond when you reap the benefits of YOUR time and effort you spend with it, you get to know your pup better, and plus and you'll save lots of money. In my experience, I've never seen a dog perform well for the owner after its been off at school (others might have different stories). Training is work but it's fun and you can't beat the joy of watching your pup do what YOU taught him to do, not what you paid some other guy to do who doesn't care for your dog like you do. "Water Dog" by Woltors is a great buy! What kind of dog did you decide on?

Thanks for all the great advice. I started putting some of it to use this afternoon. Still a little too hot to get spend too much time on it in Georgia but I'll let you know how we progress.

I only use that on a bird he may not have marked, a partner's bird or one that eventually went down after flying low for a great distance. He's always excited about retrieving dummies that I throw. I've worked him with doubles, forced fetching, and the t pattern. He seems to lose his excitement on blinds.

Yes, he's spent the better part of two season with me so he knows about retrieving birds (no problems there). Which makes me consider using some type of scent or frozen ducks to practice blind work. Let me add by saying that in a hunting situation, it takes me throwing a empty shell or rock near the bird to get him to retrieve. He'll be 3 this Dec and I figured I still have a chance to teach him to take a line on a blind.

I was wondering if any of y'all had some ideas of how to get my lab more excited about learning to take a line on blinds. We were out today doing some work and he eventually took the correct line but didn't seem like he was all that enthusiastic about doing so. This seems to be the one area I'm finding hardest to teach him. (if you subscribe to DU I was trying to work him on the "triple line drill" described in the july/august 09 issue) Thanks for the help!

I've got a black SBE1 and have thought about getting it dipped (really like the new MODB). Does anyone know if there are benefits to having your gun coated? Rust prevention? How well do the aftermarket coats hold up to abuse?