1 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, Welcome to The Houndation's podcast. I'm your host, 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:08,239 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson, and this week's show is all about having 3 00:00:08,320 --> 00:00:10,680 Speaker 1: more than one dog and how that can be a 4 00:00:10,800 --> 00:00:17,959 Speaker 1: benefit but can also create some unexpected problems. Since we 5 00:00:18,040 --> 00:00:21,400 Speaker 1: are Minnesotan's my family, you know, through and through we 6 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:25,280 Speaker 1: have a strong lake cabin culture. So many people we 7 00:00:25,360 --> 00:00:27,360 Speaker 1: know go up north for the weekend or for their 8 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:29,920 Speaker 1: vacation to chill out next to some lake that offers 9 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:33,360 Speaker 1: up fishing and swimming and generally pretty good vibes. We 10 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: are lucky in my family to have a little place 11 00:00:36,159 --> 00:00:40,200 Speaker 1: at a lake, and questionably lucky that about fifty seven 12 00:00:40,200 --> 00:00:42,440 Speaker 1: of my wife's relatives also have places at the same 13 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:46,479 Speaker 1: lake in the same exact spot. Many of them have dogs, 14 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:49,080 Speaker 1: so there is always a rotating cast of hounds up 15 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:51,120 Speaker 1: at the lake. And the number of times that I 16 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:54,360 Speaker 1: hear someone comment on how old dogs teach new dogs 17 00:00:54,400 --> 00:00:56,720 Speaker 1: this skill or that trick is kind of mind blowing. 18 00:00:57,040 --> 00:01:00,800 Speaker 1: It's also generally totally wrong, which is one of the 19 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:03,320 Speaker 1: things I'm going to get into right now. 20 00:01:10,120 --> 00:01:11,759 Speaker 2: Beliefs are weird. 21 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:15,200 Speaker 1: On one hand, they can carry a lot of weight 22 00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:18,840 Speaker 1: and truly help people make better decisions. On the other hand, 23 00:01:19,319 --> 00:01:21,520 Speaker 1: they can convince us to dig in our heels and 24 00:01:21,560 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: tighten our grip on things that simply are not true. 25 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:29,280 Speaker 1: The history of us is littered with those types of beliefs. 26 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:32,440 Speaker 1: It wasn't so long ago that it was believed that 27 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:36,160 Speaker 1: the shapier skull would determine your strengths, the depths of 28 00:01:36,200 --> 00:01:39,640 Speaker 1: your mental faculties, and whether you were likely to be, 29 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:43,080 Speaker 1: I don't know, a serial killer or not. Phrenology as 30 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:45,800 Speaker 1: a belief eventually went the way of the Dodo, but 31 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:48,280 Speaker 1: not nearly as quickly or as quietly as it should have. 32 00:01:48,880 --> 00:01:52,000 Speaker 1: Another theory about how our brains work, proposed by John 33 00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 1: Locke back in the late sixteen hundreds, said that we 34 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:59,800 Speaker 1: were all born as blank slates. There was nothing written 35 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:02,760 Speaker 1: on our mental chalkboard, so to speak, and we all 36 00:02:02,760 --> 00:02:05,680 Speaker 1: had to gain our knowledge from lived experiences and our 37 00:02:05,720 --> 00:02:08,760 Speaker 1: perception of the world once we were in it. We 38 00:02:08,880 --> 00:02:11,359 Speaker 1: now know that there's plenty of writing on that chalkboard 39 00:02:11,360 --> 00:02:14,280 Speaker 1: that has passed down through generations, and that we most 40 00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:19,200 Speaker 1: certainly aren't born as blank slates. Einstein, that fellow who 41 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:21,600 Speaker 1: changed an awful lot about what we understand in the 42 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 1: world of physics once proposed that the universe was stationary. 43 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:28,480 Speaker 1: Since he was the kind of guy to get the 44 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:32,600 Speaker 1: tough questions right, people believed him until Edwin Hubble discovered 45 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:35,799 Speaker 1: that everywhere we look in the night sky, objects were 46 00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:39,120 Speaker 1: red shifted, meaning that they were going away from us 47 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:42,240 Speaker 1: at a rate that was hard to fathom. It also 48 00:02:42,320 --> 00:02:46,120 Speaker 1: proved that the universe wasn't static but is actually expanding. 49 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:50,680 Speaker 1: For about thirty years ending in the nineteen nineties, people 50 00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:54,120 Speaker 1: believed that sharks would provide the cure for cancer and humans. 51 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:57,840 Speaker 1: This is because people believe that sharks never got cancer, 52 00:02:58,200 --> 00:03:01,400 Speaker 1: which has been proven wrong dozens and dozens of times now. 53 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:06,160 Speaker 1: Another belief in the sixties that was totally bonkers was 54 00:03:06,200 --> 00:03:08,120 Speaker 1: that teens who went on dates had to do some 55 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,959 Speaker 1: type of activity so they wouldn't succumb to their desires 56 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:14,440 Speaker 1: to well get busy. I guess they were supposed to 57 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:16,919 Speaker 1: play rugby or build a small off the grid cabin 58 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:19,240 Speaker 1: on their dates so they wouldn't suddenly realize that there 59 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: were all their fun things they could do. People are nuts, 60 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 1: and it's fun to look back on some of the 61 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:29,280 Speaker 1: dumb stuff that society generally believed. It's also true that 62 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:31,920 Speaker 1: folks fifty or one hundred years down the road will 63 00:03:31,919 --> 00:03:34,320 Speaker 1: look back at us like we are cave men and 64 00:03:34,360 --> 00:03:38,480 Speaker 1: women just barely functioning with our dumb, primitive brains and 65 00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:43,240 Speaker 1: our outdated and dangerous ideas. They might get a kick 66 00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:46,280 Speaker 1: out of the flat earthers, who should just charter a 67 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:47,880 Speaker 1: plane and go find the edge of the earth so 68 00:03:47,920 --> 00:03:50,360 Speaker 1: we can end this debate once and for all. We 69 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:53,640 Speaker 1: are all waiting there. Fliffers, go out and find it. 70 00:03:53,720 --> 00:03:58,160 Speaker 1: Take some pictures. Can't be too hard, right, any huski. 71 00:03:58,760 --> 00:04:01,880 Speaker 1: The dog world isn't immune to beliefs that just don't 72 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 1: hold a lot of water. And one of them that 73 00:04:04,400 --> 00:04:06,720 Speaker 1: I'm going to get into right now is the idea 74 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:10,360 Speaker 1: that old dogs teach puppies the ways of the world. 75 00:04:11,080 --> 00:04:13,840 Speaker 1: Is if your old lab takes the new pop aside, 76 00:04:14,400 --> 00:04:17,760 Speaker 1: a puppy that the old dog undoubtedly hates and resents 77 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:20,880 Speaker 1: with as much hate and resentment as a lab can muster, 78 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:24,839 Speaker 1: which isn't much, and that dog's going to say to 79 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:27,840 Speaker 1: that puppy, this is how we sit. So we get 80 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:31,359 Speaker 1: a bite of cheese or a treat, or the roosters 81 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:33,320 Speaker 1: like to hold up in the patches of willows on 82 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:36,120 Speaker 1: the edge of the cattaills, so just swing down when 83 00:04:36,279 --> 00:04:40,120 Speaker 1: young grasshopper and get ready to flush them. Let me 84 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: frame this up another way to maybe make it make 85 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,159 Speaker 1: more sense. If you want your dog trained and you 86 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:49,600 Speaker 1: aren't confident enough to do it yourself or capable enough 87 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:53,560 Speaker 1: to do it yourself, where do you look right a 88 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:56,719 Speaker 1: professional dog trainer? You don't look for someone who owns 89 00:04:56,760 --> 00:05:00,200 Speaker 1: a really good dog that will train your dog. It's 90 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:02,600 Speaker 1: not like there is a market for professional trainers who 91 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:05,280 Speaker 1: just let their dogs train other dogs while they sit 92 00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:08,680 Speaker 1: on the porch of their vacation homes, drinking margaritas and 93 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:12,920 Speaker 1: checking their ever increasing bank balances. If it was as 94 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:15,719 Speaker 1: simple as old dogs teaching young dogs, you can bet 95 00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:18,840 Speaker 1: your happy ass that someone would have capitalized on that 96 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:22,280 Speaker 1: in some way already, because there would be some serious 97 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:24,000 Speaker 1: money to be made. 98 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:24,280 Speaker 2: Now. 99 00:05:24,279 --> 00:05:27,080 Speaker 1: While there's probably are some folks somewhere who claim to 100 00:05:27,080 --> 00:05:30,680 Speaker 1: do this, you know, this world's pretty big. It's not 101 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:34,000 Speaker 1: an industry that is thriving, at least to my knowledge. 102 00:05:34,279 --> 00:05:36,240 Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure I know why, and so do you. 103 00:05:36,960 --> 00:05:40,359 Speaker 1: So Anyway, I currently have two dogs, and one of 104 00:05:40,400 --> 00:05:43,560 Speaker 1: them is eleven and the other is three. I wouldn't 105 00:05:43,600 --> 00:05:47,280 Speaker 1: say the veteran hasn't taught the rookie anything because she has. 106 00:05:47,880 --> 00:05:50,400 Speaker 1: For instance, the old dog is a master of finding 107 00:05:50,440 --> 00:05:53,920 Speaker 1: any molecule of food she can, which often involves her 108 00:05:54,000 --> 00:05:56,599 Speaker 1: licking the stove and the entire kitchen floor on the 109 00:05:56,720 --> 00:06:00,000 Speaker 1: off chance that three breadcrumbs or a splatter of buck 110 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:03,840 Speaker 1: has ended up within her reach. The young dog has 111 00:06:03,839 --> 00:06:06,200 Speaker 1: taken to this task several times a day as well, 112 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:09,279 Speaker 1: which might be proof that dogs do teach other dogs something. 113 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:12,400 Speaker 1: It also might be proof of parallel thinking in food 114 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:16,080 Speaker 1: driven animals with unbelievable noses. It's hard to say, and 115 00:06:16,160 --> 00:06:19,159 Speaker 1: I can't really ask them. I think it's far more 116 00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: likely that the new dog learning from the old dog. 117 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:24,880 Speaker 1: Belief is really supported by how the old dogs work 118 00:06:25,000 --> 00:06:29,360 Speaker 1: with us, not how they work with the puppies. For example, 119 00:06:29,720 --> 00:06:32,560 Speaker 1: during pheasant hunts, an old dog is not going to 120 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:35,679 Speaker 1: tolerate a puppy in its personal space. A good bird 121 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:38,039 Speaker 1: dog is going to do what good bird dogs do. 122 00:06:38,320 --> 00:06:40,920 Speaker 1: And if there is something that old bird dogs love, 123 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,200 Speaker 1: it's bird hunting. A pop out in the field for 124 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:47,360 Speaker 1: its first fall might have a tiny inkling in its 125 00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:50,680 Speaker 1: mostly empty skull that birds are what it's after, but 126 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:54,480 Speaker 1: it won't be mission focused like an older dog. It'll 127 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:56,640 Speaker 1: be very excited to be there, and it will burn 128 00:06:56,680 --> 00:07:00,760 Speaker 1: an awful lot of unnecessary energy just running around sniffing stuff, 129 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:03,320 Speaker 1: which is great. But when the old dog puts up 130 00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:06,560 Speaker 1: a rooster and the shotgun swings just right, the puppy 131 00:07:06,640 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: might realize that the entire vibe of this new outing 132 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 1: has changed. When the old dog picks up that Chinese 133 00:07:12,400 --> 00:07:14,880 Speaker 1: chicken and brings it back to you, that puppy is 134 00:07:14,920 --> 00:07:17,840 Speaker 1: going to be very interested in it. It's also going 135 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:20,840 Speaker 1: to notice that everyone is happy about the new developments. 136 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:23,400 Speaker 1: And if there is a sense memory that grows deep 137 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:26,760 Speaker 1: roots in a dog's brain, it'll involve attaching the scent 138 00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 1: of something to an exciting fun experience. Add in a 139 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:34,240 Speaker 1: dash of gene deep love for game birds, and you 140 00:07:34,320 --> 00:07:37,080 Speaker 1: have the recipe for the advancement of a dog's education 141 00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:40,560 Speaker 1: in the realm of bird hunting. In that case, did 142 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: the old dog explicitly teach the new dog anything? Nope, 143 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:48,040 Speaker 1: I take that back. The veteran might have taught the pupster, 144 00:07:48,160 --> 00:07:51,040 Speaker 1: through a growl or some other avoidance behavior, that every 145 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:54,200 Speaker 1: rooster is his. And that's the final word. On the matter, 146 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:59,080 Speaker 1: there's no denying the benefit of bird exposure and the 147 00:07:59,160 --> 00:08:01,640 Speaker 1: overall inns and outs of the hunt that just go 148 00:08:01,840 --> 00:08:04,040 Speaker 1: way better when you have a dog along that knows 149 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:07,240 Speaker 1: what to do. A puppy or a youngster in that 150 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 1: world is going to learn more about the hunt than 151 00:08:10,400 --> 00:08:13,440 Speaker 1: one that goes solo and has less exposure to birds 152 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:14,760 Speaker 1: and gunshots. 153 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:26,679 Speaker 2: And the whole process. 154 00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:31,080 Speaker 1: Another example here, which I talked about recently on an episode, 155 00:08:31,600 --> 00:08:35,640 Speaker 1: just might involve water. A doc jumping dog might take 156 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:38,560 Speaker 1: off and enthusiastically hit the drink at full speed to 157 00:08:38,600 --> 00:08:42,080 Speaker 1: get to a bumper. Is it possible that a young 158 00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:44,319 Speaker 1: dog that watches this a few times might be more 159 00:08:44,360 --> 00:08:46,800 Speaker 1: inclined to leap off the old diving board as well? 160 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:50,880 Speaker 1: Maybe it seems likely, But the old dog isn't some 161 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:54,000 Speaker 1: retired olympian teaching the next generation how to flip and 162 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:56,000 Speaker 1: twist in the air from a height to ten meters. 163 00:08:56,440 --> 00:08:58,600 Speaker 1: The old dog is just doing what the old dog does, 164 00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 1: and a young dog is round it. Does it hurt? 165 00:09:01,720 --> 00:09:03,840 Speaker 1: Probably not at all, and it might be some benefit. 166 00:09:04,760 --> 00:09:07,679 Speaker 1: While having two dogs, in my humble opinion, is twice 167 00:09:07,679 --> 00:09:11,760 Speaker 1: as good as having one dog, It's not without its downsides, 168 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:14,760 Speaker 1: of which there are many. In this way, even if 169 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:17,400 Speaker 1: it were true that old dogs are like the mentors 170 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:20,520 Speaker 1: who set out specifically to mold their proteges into something 171 00:09:20,559 --> 00:09:24,640 Speaker 1: they could only dream of becoming, it's also true that 172 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:28,160 Speaker 1: one extra dog in many training situations is one dog too. 173 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:33,240 Speaker 1: Many puppies have notoriously short attention spans. Now, I'm going 174 00:09:33,280 --> 00:09:35,480 Speaker 1: to get into this in future episodes about puppies and 175 00:09:35,520 --> 00:09:38,920 Speaker 1: distraction training, but for now, understand this. If you have 176 00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:42,040 Speaker 1: a dog under about two years of age, other dogs 177 00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:45,480 Speaker 1: will pull that dog's attention so hard you will likely 178 00:09:45,559 --> 00:09:49,600 Speaker 1: lose out on anything you try to do with the dog. Now, 179 00:09:49,640 --> 00:09:52,880 Speaker 1: you might think, well, sure, other dogs, new dogs, strange 180 00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:56,120 Speaker 1: dogs still distract my pupster, but not the old dog 181 00:09:56,160 --> 00:09:58,800 Speaker 1: that I own and that lives with my young dog. 182 00:09:59,440 --> 00:10:02,600 Speaker 1: While this does tend to mitigate some level of distraction, 183 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:05,560 Speaker 1: it's also not quite so simple. The easiest way to 184 00:10:05,640 --> 00:10:08,200 Speaker 1: test this is to try to train two dogs at 185 00:10:08,240 --> 00:10:11,440 Speaker 1: one time. If you've never done this, boy, are you 186 00:10:11,520 --> 00:10:14,880 Speaker 1: in for a good time. I have extra special insights 187 00:10:14,880 --> 00:10:17,240 Speaker 1: into this because I'm the father of twins, so I 188 00:10:17,280 --> 00:10:19,480 Speaker 1: had to train two babies at one time, which is 189 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 1: a job I was woefully underqualified for. I've also trained 190 00:10:23,520 --> 00:10:26,280 Speaker 1: both of my current dogs at the same time, including 191 00:10:26,320 --> 00:10:29,840 Speaker 1: when one was a true pupster. Even more than that, 192 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:32,800 Speaker 1: I had the misfortune of having nextdoor neighbors for a 193 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:35,560 Speaker 1: few years who did the big brain move of getting 194 00:10:35,559 --> 00:10:38,440 Speaker 1: two terriers at the same time, and then I watched 195 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:40,679 Speaker 1: them try to train both of those litter mates to 196 00:10:40,800 --> 00:10:44,960 Speaker 1: astoundingly terrible results. And it wasn't the dog's faults either, 197 00:10:45,760 --> 00:10:48,120 Speaker 1: it was the situation in which they lived and thus 198 00:10:48,440 --> 00:10:52,719 Speaker 1: were trained. Are there benefits to having two dogs? Absolutely, 199 00:10:53,240 --> 00:10:55,839 Speaker 1: in the right situation, I'd risk a divorce to have 200 00:10:55,920 --> 00:10:58,560 Speaker 1: more than two, because I think dogs make life a 201 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:01,080 Speaker 1: hell of a lot better, and as I get older, 202 00:11:01,120 --> 00:11:03,760 Speaker 1: my tolerance for them doesn't change, but it does for 203 00:11:03,840 --> 00:11:07,480 Speaker 1: being around people. I prefer the company of four legged 204 00:11:07,480 --> 00:11:10,000 Speaker 1: buddies who can smell pheasants much better than I and 205 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:13,559 Speaker 1: have no aversion to swimming through cold, cold, cold water 206 00:11:14,240 --> 00:11:16,360 Speaker 1: to find dead ducks and return them to me while 207 00:11:16,360 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: I sit in relative warmth sipping coffee. Multiple dogs are great, 208 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:23,319 Speaker 1: and for many of us, a necessity if you want 209 00:11:23,320 --> 00:11:26,520 Speaker 1: to always have one prime ish age dog with which 210 00:11:26,520 --> 00:11:30,160 Speaker 1: to hunt the deal though, is to recognize when the 211 00:11:30,240 --> 00:11:33,679 Speaker 1: two or more dogs are lowering the effectiveness of training 212 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:38,600 Speaker 1: sessions or just degrading the learning experiences during actual hunts, 213 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:41,839 Speaker 1: versus the times when having a season pro out there 214 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:46,040 Speaker 1: with a newbie is actually beneficial. This isn't as cut 215 00:11:46,040 --> 00:11:48,360 Speaker 1: and dry as you might think. I'll give you an 216 00:11:48,360 --> 00:11:51,280 Speaker 1: example here that smacked me upside the head last December 217 00:11:51,320 --> 00:11:53,760 Speaker 1: while standing in the middle of head high cattails trying 218 00:11:53,760 --> 00:11:56,400 Speaker 1: to get Sadie to find a rooster that had tumbled 219 00:11:56,440 --> 00:11:59,280 Speaker 1: to terra firma after soaking up a load of fives. 220 00:12:00,120 --> 00:12:03,360 Speaker 1: I thought, since it was Sadie's third season and she 221 00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:06,320 Speaker 1: has been on a lot of birds already, that she 222 00:12:06,520 --> 00:12:09,680 Speaker 1: had the hunt dead command down just fine, thank you 223 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:13,040 Speaker 1: very much. I can tell you about some badass rooster 224 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:15,480 Speaker 1: retrie if she's come up with that would have put 225 00:12:15,520 --> 00:12:19,200 Speaker 1: any dog to the test. The thing, though, which occurred 226 00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:21,920 Speaker 1: to me while standing in that freezing slew, was that 227 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:25,160 Speaker 1: she wasn't as good as I thought, because she always 228 00:12:25,200 --> 00:12:27,960 Speaker 1: had the older dog to pick up the slack. And 229 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:31,320 Speaker 1: if there is one thing an old seasoned dog really 230 00:12:31,360 --> 00:12:36,280 Speaker 1: excels at, it's finding those dead and wounded birds. Those 231 00:12:36,320 --> 00:12:39,240 Speaker 1: dogs have seen every trick, the runners, the hiders, the 232 00:12:39,280 --> 00:12:41,440 Speaker 1: birds that really really don't want to end up in 233 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:44,480 Speaker 1: the game bag. A three year old dog doesn't have 234 00:12:44,520 --> 00:12:47,400 Speaker 1: that same resume. And it gets worse when you realize 235 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:50,400 Speaker 1: how often the old dog has found a bird while 236 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:54,200 Speaker 1: the young one didn't. That was a big blind spot 237 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:57,720 Speaker 1: on my part and didn't become evident until I only 238 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,640 Speaker 1: had the young dog to rely on for fine, wounded 239 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:04,240 Speaker 1: and dead birds. Maybe the key is to look at 240 00:13:04,240 --> 00:13:07,840 Speaker 1: both dogs and yourself as a team, but to also 241 00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:11,360 Speaker 1: really develop each dog as an individual. In fact, that 242 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 1: probably is the only good way to go about this stuff. 243 00:13:14,400 --> 00:13:16,600 Speaker 1: It probably would pay to think about it like this. 244 00:13:17,720 --> 00:13:20,680 Speaker 1: All dogs need a lot of training. They just do 245 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:24,200 Speaker 1: well at least working dogs anyway. The level that you'd 246 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:27,199 Speaker 1: put into a solo dog, that's the level you should 247 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:30,280 Speaker 1: put into every dog, regardless of how many you own. 248 00:13:31,040 --> 00:13:33,120 Speaker 1: Instead of looking at it like the older dog will 249 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:35,440 Speaker 1: somehow put on its teaching hat and relieve you of 250 00:13:35,480 --> 00:13:37,719 Speaker 1: some of your training duties, look at it like the 251 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:40,560 Speaker 1: old dog can be an additive feature to your training. 252 00:13:41,160 --> 00:13:43,600 Speaker 1: There are benefits to an older dog being around a 253 00:13:43,679 --> 00:13:46,880 Speaker 1: younger one in a social setting and hell, even when 254 00:13:46,880 --> 00:13:49,440 Speaker 1: the older dog corrects your pop after it jumps on 255 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:51,680 Speaker 1: the old timer's head and bites its ears with little 256 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:55,480 Speaker 1: needle teeth for the thousandth time, that's generally a better 257 00:13:55,520 --> 00:13:58,280 Speaker 1: scenario than a puppy jumping on a strange dog's head, 258 00:13:58,320 --> 00:14:01,360 Speaker 1: because that correction might not come softly. If you get 259 00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:04,800 Speaker 1: my drift, There are benefits in hunting settings, as I've 260 00:14:04,960 --> 00:14:08,079 Speaker 1: already outlined. An old dog that puts more grouse into 261 00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:10,120 Speaker 1: the air for you will allow the younger dog to 262 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:14,160 Speaker 1: experience more of all parts of the hunt, including retrieves. 263 00:14:14,920 --> 00:14:16,880 Speaker 1: You just have to be careful about looking past the 264 00:14:16,960 --> 00:14:19,880 Speaker 1: development of your fresh recruit in order to have the 265 00:14:19,920 --> 00:14:22,840 Speaker 1: best hunt you can because while those two goals aren't 266 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:26,840 Speaker 1: mutually exclusive, they often just don't play very well together. 267 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:30,080 Speaker 1: And you also have the reality that dogs are pack animals. 268 00:14:30,360 --> 00:14:32,720 Speaker 1: And while this can make training pups around other dogs 269 00:14:32,720 --> 00:14:35,600 Speaker 1: are real biz natcho, it's also one hell of a 270 00:14:35,640 --> 00:14:38,440 Speaker 1: benefit for them in your home life. You might not 271 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:40,920 Speaker 1: always want to engage your dog in play or give 272 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:44,080 Speaker 1: it some pets or whatever, but two dogs together often 273 00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:46,440 Speaker 1: seem to figure out how to keep each other entertained. 274 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:49,920 Speaker 1: All of this is to say, I fully encourage you 275 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:53,520 Speaker 1: to get multiple dogs, although not multiple puppies at the 276 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:56,400 Speaker 1: same time. Now, if you do pick up another one, 277 00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:59,320 Speaker 1: as you can see the painful reality that your original 278 00:14:59,360 --> 00:15:02,720 Speaker 1: dog may be aging pretty fast or a little closer 279 00:15:02,760 --> 00:15:04,960 Speaker 1: to the end than you maybe really want to admit, 280 00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:08,240 Speaker 1: just remember the level of inputs you need to develop 281 00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:11,040 Speaker 1: that dog not only into a great working dog, but 282 00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:15,920 Speaker 1: a well behaved companion. That's a heavy lift, and it 283 00:15:15,960 --> 00:15:18,440 Speaker 1: can be made much heavier by thinking that an old 284 00:15:18,480 --> 00:15:20,560 Speaker 1: dog is going to grab a corner and help you 285 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:24,080 Speaker 1: hold the whole thing up. They won't, but they can 286 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:26,760 Speaker 1: help in many ways, and they don't have to be 287 00:15:26,800 --> 00:15:29,400 Speaker 1: a negative to the whole equation. You just have to 288 00:15:29,520 --> 00:15:32,880 Speaker 1: understand how to manage both and pay attention to the 289 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,400 Speaker 1: subtle ways in which having multiple dogs might turn into 290 00:15:36,400 --> 00:15:39,960 Speaker 1: a problem down the road. It's a new set of challenges, 291 00:15:40,000 --> 00:15:44,280 Speaker 1: but it's a great problem to have. That's it for 292 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:47,160 Speaker 1: this episode. I'm your host, Tony Peterson. This has been 293 00:15:47,200 --> 00:15:50,600 Speaker 1: The Houndation's podcast. As always, I want to thank you 294 00:15:50,720 --> 00:15:54,040 Speaker 1: so much for tuning in and for all of your support. 295 00:15:54,080 --> 00:15:56,200 Speaker 1: You know, all of us here at meet Either truly 296 00:15:56,280 --> 00:15:59,400 Speaker 1: appreciate it. If you're just getting keyed up for the 297 00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:02,560 Speaker 1: season and you want to keep training your dogs, or 298 00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:04,840 Speaker 1: maybe you're going on that first Western haunt, or maybe 299 00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:07,680 Speaker 1: it's a most white tail season for you. The meadeater 300 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:11,360 Speaker 1: dot com has so much hunting content. You can go 301 00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:14,680 Speaker 1: and read articles, you can find recipes for those doves 302 00:16:14,760 --> 00:16:17,080 Speaker 1: or tea or whatever early season birds you're gonna chase, 303 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:20,120 Speaker 1: or you can just fill some time on maybe a 304 00:16:20,160 --> 00:16:24,920 Speaker 1: long road trip listening to Clay's Bear Grease podcasts, Wired 305 00:16:24,920 --> 00:16:28,520 Speaker 1: to Haunt or whatever. So much content there to keep 306 00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:31,560 Speaker 1: you entertained and educated. Go check it out at the 307 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:34,200 Speaker 1: medeater dot com and as always, thank you so much 308 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:34,800 Speaker 1: for listening.