Pre-Owned Hunt Close! A Realistic Guide to Training Close-Working Gun Dogs for Today's Tight Cover Conditions (Hardcover) 0876912595 9780876912591

Dust jacket notes: "Today's upland bird hunter isn't looking for a dog that can win a race to the birds nor does he want a dog that can course out to the farthest reaches of the hunting area in search of birdy looking objects. Instead, he's looking for a dog that will excel within a restricted range and work at a pace com­patible with a man walking. Moreover, he wants a dog that can move with grace and hunt with style. How to obtain such a dog, how to train and care for it, how to make it become the kind of hunting dog you want it to be, how to house it and feed it and even ship it are some of the things this book is about. A good close-working bird dog has all the style and class of a field trial dog but works on a shorter string. He also hunts the cover that you-the hunter-have chosen, giv­ing you the pleasure as he quarters before you, freezes on point (or backs a colleague) awaiting your instruction to break point and retrieve. But while the joy of the hunt and the instinct to freeze on point are inherited, most of the rest must be taught. Patience, repetition, and a genuine respect and affec­tion between dog and handler are crucial to the process, as is a knowledge of how-and how not-to proceed. For anyone peek­ing the joys and satisfactions of developing a solid, hard-hunting, close-working bird dog, here is the manual that will tell them how to go about it."