When teaching a dog how to run cold blinds, training goes into a phase called transition. My dogs start out
with a single expectation - "go". We strive to reach a skill level where if the dog even looks like it is not
on line (i.e. slight turn of head....enough to see her nose), the whistle is blown and a line correction is given.
You shouldn't do that with a young dog and even with older dogs there are situations where you don’t
have to be that precise. However, expectations drive standards.

I have four dogs that are through transition. They have run quite a few hunt tests and hunt ducks and
geese every year....a lot. Most of it happens on the Mississippi River. They are presently in maintenance.

This was our latest training session.


It was a set of short, cold blinds in a new area using orange bumpers. They are tight with factors. This
was done to provide several reps of our routine at the line, work on taking perfect initial lines (mostly
looking for improvement), sit crisply for any correction, practice literal casts, deal with an increasingly
more difficult angled terrain change, avoid conflicting scent (from previous piles) and to have fun.

The fun focus is critical because a happy dog is easier to work with. They are more responsive and love
to train. There are always minor "adjustments" which keep you on your toes, but I never pushed "the
button" on my transmitter. My oldest had to do one remote drop because she was too quick and I was
too slow.

Each dog is different which is a plus. Running multiple dogs has a huge, positive impact on sharpening
a handler's skills. On a side note, I use to think maintenance was a "necessary evil"....not anymore.

Looks similar to the 'tune-up' drill. When you run that set up are you running in the following order: 1,6,2,4,3,5 to avoid suction to previous run blind or you running them around the horn?

Good question! With these four, they were run left to right (in order). They had to deal with the way it was presented. There is a rationale.

This is a set of gradient blinds. The angles, suctions, etc. are designed to gradually increase in difficulty as the session progresses. For example, running #1 followed by #6 would present the largest change in angle......not gradual. The same is true of the number of old piles to run by. There is a gradual, progressive increase.

However, you are right....there are several different ways to run a set of blinds. So it depends on what you are trying to accomplish and the skill level of the working dog.