GLOSSARY
Air: to allow the dog to empty his bowels and bladder
Angling: to cross terrain or enter water on a diagonal line
Area of fall: the place where a bird/bumper has fallen after being thrown as well as the area immediately around that bird/bumper. This is the area where you want the dog to establish a hunt
Attrition: a method of teaching that relies on repeating a concept; the dog learns the lesson by doing it over and over until he does it correctly
Auto Cast: an auto cast occurs when a dog breaks the “sit” on a blind and goes on his own
Back: a command meaning “go,” generally issued at the beginning of a blind retrieve or to keep the dog traveling away from the handler and toward a marked or blind retrieve
Bird boy: the person who throws birds/bumpers during a trial, test or training session; may also be referred to as the gunner
Beacon - a technique where two white bumpers are propped up to allow a more visible target for a mark or blind. Beacons are excellent to help young dogs on a memory mark be successful.
Blind Retrieve: a retrieve of a bird that the dog did not see thrown. The dog is directed to the blind through the use of hand signals, whistle and/or voice commands
Blind see Blind Retrieve or Holding Blind
Blink: to refuse to pick up a bird/bumper after locating it. The dog pauses next to it or stands over it, then leaves, acting as if s/he has never seen it
Break: when the dog leaves for a retrieve before being sent by the handler. Breaking is a bad thing and should be addressed if it occurs
Bumper: a retrieval object; usually canvas or plastic. White is the most visible, then black, then orange. Most dogs cannot see orange well. Generally, orange bumpers are used on blind retrieves so a dog does not see them from a distance. Thrown bumpers simulate a bird being thrown
Call Backs: a list of those dogs remaining in the field trial or hunt test after each series is run
Cast: a handling signal given to a dog by the handler to go in a given direction
Cast Refusal: the dog refusing to respond to the direction or cast given by the handler
Cheat: to avoid an obstacle
Cheating Single: a mark that is thrown with an obstacle (water, hill, cover, etc.) on the direct path to a mark.
Cold Blind: 1. a blind retrieve that the dog has never run before
- a blind retrieve before running any marks
Cover: grass, brush, or any other vegetation which may conceal the bird from the dog on land or in the water
Creeping: forward motion by a dog while marks are being thrown, without making an intent to retrieve.
Cue: a verbal clue to the dog such as "dead bird" indicating a blind or “mark” indicating that a mark is about to be thrown
Delayed Triple: a triple marking scenario in which there is only one memory bird. The memory bird is thrown followed by two singles. Thus the first mark is picked up third – making it a type of triple.
Diversion: a thrown mark or dry shot used to distract a dog from another mark or a blind retrieve
Double: a marking test in which two birds are thrown sequentially in two separate locations. In the upper levels, triples and quadruples will also be seen
Drag back: scent trail left by dogs returning with birds, especially through high cover where the birds’ scent is left on the vegetation
Dry Gun/Shot: a shot by a gun without a bird being thrown
Entry: 1) the spot at which a dog enters the water on either a blind or mark.
2) the manner or style in which a dog enters the water - "water entry"
Fall: the spot a bird or bumper was thrown to, where the mark landed
Flag: a visual attractant to help a dog identify either a pile of bumpers or a blind retrieve
Flat Throw: also known as a square throw - a bird or bumper thrown directly across from the thrower, i.e., neither back nor in. From the dog’s point of view it is a 90° throw. Other types of throws are angle-in and angle-back throws
Freezing: the dog’s refusal to give up the bird to the handler, i.e., the dog appears to freeze on the bird and ignores all commands to release it a/k/a “stickiness”
Go Bird: the first mark to be retrieved, generally the last bird that has been thrown
Gunner, Gun: see Bird Boy
Handle/ Handling: directing the dog with whistles and hand signals to a bird
Handler: the person who is working/running the dog
Happy Bumper: a bumper thrown in play or as a reward or encouragement for a dog
Hard Mouth: a dog that is very rough on, abuses, or eats the birds when sent to retrieve
Head-Swinging: when a dog looks away from a mark before being cued to do so by the handler; head-swinging is a bad habit and is detrimental to marking
Heel Position: dog is by handler's side. Traditionally the heel position is on the left hand side, but dogs can heel from either side
Holding Blind: an area where the dog waits, generally made of cloth. A dog in the holding blind should not be able to see the test while it is waiting
Honoring: when a dog remains stationary on the line while another dog is sent for the bird or birds. The honoring dog must not interfere with the working dog
HRC: Hunting Retriever Club. The United Kennel Club sanctions HRC
Interrupted Double: a scenario that employs both marks and blinds. A double is thrown and then one mark is retrieved. A blind or multiple blinds are then run before picking up the first mark thrown. The delay in picking up mark one allows for more time and, thus, an increase in difficulty on mark one.
Line: 1) retrieving line - the location where you send and receive the dog while it is working - also known as the "Point of Origin"
2) line to the mark or blind - an imaginary straight line from the point of origin and the bird on either a blind retrieve or a mark
3) the handler "lines up" his dog, or gives his dog a "line" at the time of release on a blind
Lining The Blind: a perfectly-run blind; the dog successfully completes a blind retrieve without requiring any whistle commands or hand signals from the handler
Line Manners: the dog’s behavior while coming to the line, while on the line, waiting for the marks, and upon returning to the line with the birds
Mark: 1. the fall of a bird/bumper which a dog should watch, remember, and retrieve when released to do so; a thrown bird or bumper
- a cue word that indicates to the dog to pay attention because birds are about to be thrown
Mark The Pile: throw a bumper to the pile to show the dog exactly where he will be sent
“No Bird”: a term that refers to a poorly-thrown mark. The handler or judge indicates that the mark was not acceptable and it will need to be re-thrown
“No-No” Drill: any drill that is attrition based, does not rely on the e-collar for corrections
Obstacle: any physical factor that a dog must contend with while on the way to a mark or blind. Typical obstacles are: logs, rows of cover, water, hills, ditches, etc.
Pile: a group of bumpers placed near each other. A pile is used in repetitious-type drills where the handler is repeating a concept
Poison Bird: a bird that must not be retrieved until after a certain order. Typically a poison bird is a mark that must not be retrieved until the dog has picked up the blind
Popping: the act of a dog stopping on its own and looking for help from the handler
Remote when the dog’s starting position is away from the handler at the start of a
retrieve
Remote Position: when the dog is sitting and facing the handler he is said to be in a remote position. A dog will be in a remote position when he is in the field awaiting a cast from the handler
Remote Cast: a cast that is given while the dog is in front of and facing the handler; a blind starts with the dog being sent back from heel position. After that initial cast all casts are remote casts
Single: one mark thrown before dog is sent to retrieve
Steady: a dog that waits to be sent on a retrieve is said to be steady
Switching: 1) leaving the area of the fall of one bird, without retrieving it, and going to hunt for another bird in another area
2) dropping a bird while returning and leaving it for another bird
Suction: any factor that causes a retriever to deviate from a line to a blind or mark; an old fall, terrain, water, wind, bird boys are some examples of factors as suction
Wipe-Out Mark: a mark that crosses the line to a previous mark. By throwing a mark across a line to a memory bird the memory bird is wiped out
Walk-up: Used to simulate a flushed mark while hunting. The handler, with the dog at heel, walks forward until the birds are thrown.
