Mt. Rushmore HRC

05/28/2026

Some great info on dogs and snake bites. Thank you Best Retrievers for sharing!!

SNAKE VACCINES: EDUCATION BEFORE DECISION 🐍

This is one of those topics where emotions can run high very quickly, and our goal is not to tell owners what decision they should make for their dogs.

Our goal is to encourage education, preparedness, and informed choices.

After years of working dogs in the field and following information shared by National Snakebite Support (NSS), we personally believe it’s important for owners to understand that snake vaccines are NOT a substitute for:
✔ awareness
✔ training
✔ preparation
✔ emergency veterinary care
✔ and fast action after a bite

Some of the concerns NSS discusses include:
• lack of proven real-world effectiveness
• vaccinated dogs still requiring emergency treatment and antivenin
• possible complications in diagnosis and treatment
• adverse reactions that have been reported
• and the false sense of security that can delay emergency care

One thing we found especially important:
If your dog is bitten, swelling can happen FAST, which is why many snakebite experts recommend removing collars immediately.

We also believe owners should learn about the snakes in their area, especially:
• rattlesnakes
• copperheads
• and water moccasins (cottonmouths)

At the end of the day, every owner has to make the decision they feel is best for their dog.

We simply encourage people to research, stay informed, and be prepared BEFORE an emergency happens.

A huge thank you to National Snakebite Support for the educational resources they provide to dog owners everywhere.

📍 Best Retrievers
194 Stockade Ranch Rd.
Paige, TX 78659

📞 Office: 512-409-8222
📱 Facebook & Instagram: Best Retrievers

05/28/2026

Our hunt test is just a couple days away. A request:

Please drive slowly on our district gravel roads. We are in a serious drought and fighting a lot of dust. Keeping your speed at 20mph or less will help tremendously!

Thanks!

05/27/2026

𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬

⭐ What are they?

𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: A check down bird is a mark that dogs have a tendency to overrun or deviate away from, because there is another retrieve drawing the dog deeper into the field.

A check down bird is *𝐧𝐨𝐭* defined by the length of the retrieve.

⭐ The following list highlights the 𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 that create a check-down bird scenario:

🔹 No elements are present that naturally slow your dog’s momentum while en route to the mark.
🔹 The check-down gun station is retired.
🔹 The check-down bird is protected, preventing the dog from easily stumbling upon it, seeing it, or winding it.
🔹 The longer gun station is positioned to be highly visible and attractive both from the mat and as the dog moves toward the fall area of the short bird.

⭐ 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐢𝐩:

When setting up a check down mark, avoid adding factors like terrain, cover, and technical water entries & exits that can cause your dog to deviate from the line to the retrieve. Instead, concentrate on the concept only.

You can teach your dog to fight factors by doing marks that don’t involve the check down bird concept.

05/27/2026

Great thought for those of you working to train an HRCH Champion!

Long. But worth the read.

I subscribe to James Clear's newsletter. Today, he sent this quote:

"When you lose a game, the score doesn't transfer to the next contest, but your habits certainly will.

Circumstances are temporary. Sometimes you're winning, sometimes you're losing. Hot, cold. Lucky, unlucky. But your habits travel with you. This is why you want to execute the same way whether the score is 10-0 or 0-10. Not because the score doesn't matter, but because the score isn't what you're actually building.

It's not about winning or losing any given round. It's about doing things the right way. If you have a chance to practice your craft, you want to do it as well as you can (even if you end up losing that day). Your previous reps can save you or betray you. The habits always translate to the next round."

~James Clear

Here's why it matters for us as retriever handlers.

𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡: It's SO easy to get caught up in results. That ribbon. That placement. That qualifying score. But here's what you need to understand. Those results don't affect next week's test or next month's trial.

What DOES affect next week's test?
→ Your habits.
→ Your mindset
→ Your focus
→ Your discipline
→ Your knowledge

The dog that nails the 3rd series water blind? That performance didn't just happen. It's built on hundreds of training sessions where the handler had the HABIT of:

- Reading the factors and understanding the danger zones
- Taking their time on line
- Knowing exactly where their dog is looking
- Having confidence that their dog understands the 'rules' around the water
- Casting with clarity, consistently, every single time

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝. They require more setup, more planning, more energy.

Learning to set up clean, effective marking tests is harder than just chucking bumpers. Setting up a 3-peat blind is more work than throwing one blind in with your marks. Consistently enforcing your standards when you're tired or your dog is having an off day? That takes discipline.

But going through that hassle in training...that's what ultimately makes your performance in competition second nature.

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

Because here's the reality: Every single training session is a chance to build good habits - or reinforce bad habits.

When you let your dog creep on the line "just this once" because you're tired?
𝐇𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝.

When you blow a whistle and watch your dog loop 8 yards to the right?
𝐇𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝.

When your dog makes noise and you send them anyway?
𝐇𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝.

Your dog doesn't know it's "just training." They're learning what you'll accept. They're building habits - good or bad - based on what you do consistently.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐝. 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐞. But the way you trained leading up to it? Those habits are coming with you to the next one. And the next one. And the next one.

So ask yourself: What habits am I building right now? What am I practicing when nobody's watching?

Because your previous reps can save you or betray you.
The habits always translate to the next test.

Train like it matters. Because it does.

~ Kevin

05/27/2026

Good explanation of training on a punch bird.

𝐏𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬

⭐ What are they?

𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: A punch bird is a mark with elements that challenge a dog’s ability to maintain momentum en route to the retrieve.

⭐ In order to create a true, effective punch bird scenario, the setup must include 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:

🔹 Terrain that causes the dog to lose sight of the destination en route to the mark
🔹 Water, which increases the time and effort required to reach the bird
🔹 Tall, thick cover on line
🔹 Scent distractions, such as drag back or scent from other gun stations
🔹 An alternative destination, i.e. another gun station tight to the line of the retrieve
🔹 The punch bird can be retired, with shorter, stand out gun stations
🔹 Significant distance

⭐ 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐢𝐩:

You don’t always need to run a punch bird as part of a triple. Instead, run the middle-distance bird as a single first. Then, run the punch bird and the short bird as a double (thrown punch bird, then short bird).

This approach helps your dog practice 1) not returning to an old fall and 2) punching past where they've already been without the added complexity of a triple.

05/21/2026

𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐞

⭐ What is it?

𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: The setup includes two gun stations positioned along the same shoreline. Both marks are thrown down the shore, requiring the dog to swim past the throwers to retrieve them.

⭐ What does this setup reinforce?

🔹 The dog must swim all the way to the marks and refrain from exiting the water early (land grabbing).
🔹 The dog must avoid returning to the old fall when sent for the long bird.
🔹 That the dog must fight the wind factor and not allow it to blow them off course.

⭐ Tips for setting it up:

🔹 Both birds should be thrown down the shoreline, requiring the dog to swim past the throwers.
🔹 Ensure the fall areas are distinct, with at least 40 yards between the short mark and the thrower at the long station.
🔹 The lines to these marks should approach the shoreline at an angle of 30-45 degrees (this is flexible)

⭐ Training Tips:

Start simple!

Run the marks as singles initially, starting with the short bird. Hide the long thrower until the short bird is picked up. Gradually increase the difficulty by:

🔹 Running the setup as a double.
🔹 Increasing the distance of the retrieves.
🔹 Retiring the long bird.
🔹 Retiring both birds (add a 3rd go-bird to your test)
🔹 Have a flyer at the short bird station.

05/19/2026

05/15/2026

You guys told me that one of your biggest challenges is TIME.

Long work days. Long drives to training grounds. Coordinating training partners. By the time everything lines up, it can feel impossible to train consistently.

I get it!

But don’t underestimate how much quality work you can accomplish in your backyard, at a local park, or on a soccer field.

I’ve put together a list of “urban training drills” that focus on important fundamentals like:

- Obedience
- Lining
- Targeting
- Casting
- Mechanics
- Communication

Is it a complete substitute for getting out in the field? Of course not.

But it’s a whole lot better than no training at all.

You’d be surprised how many important skills can be developed and maintained with short, consistent yard sessions.