| Archive for The Brittany Forum For all friends of the versatile Brittany |
| Victoria |
...with bells onI have had people ask whether or not your dogs wearing bells in the rough frighten the birds...the answer to that is no! Although I know it does not, I often wonder why not? Perhaps it is the frequency or maybe the bird has more to think about than worrying about the tinkle of a bell. I love that moment when the bell stops ringing...the Breton is on point |
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| eddieh |
Re: ...with bells on
Or it's been ripped off 
Seriously. Do they get caught at all? My dogs have lost a few tags and I'm sure I've heard of people losing bells. |
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| Victoria |
If they are attached properly they shouldnt...I have never had a dog lose one...I thread them through the florescent collars I bought in France, or the good strong leather collars I found on the web...it would have to be an extreme rough situation for them to lose the bells...because the collars would have to go too!!!! | ||
| Des O'Neile |
I tried using bells when I had my GWP and it worked quite well but I have come to the conclusion that working a dog with a collar on is a risk I don't need to take. | ||
| Victoria |
Des, point taken...but where you would use bells as a rough shooter in close range, the risk is miniscle. At least with a bell, you know if your dog is tangled up. | ||
| eddieh |
So if they get snagged and neither the collar or bell will give????????? |
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| eddieh |
Sorry Victoria. You sort of answered that one didn't you. 
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| doganjo |
They use cow bells in France all the time. Wonder if they have any problems with them snagging | ||
| Victoria |
Eddie!!! when you are working in close rough, you are never very far from your dog...in the extremely UNLIKELY event of it happening, you are going to know where your dog is...even me with 65% hearing loss in my 'gun' ear!!!!! (None of us used ear protection in our misspent youth when shooting deer and opossums for dosh). |
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| Des O'Neile |
If my dogs stayed that close to me I would have more spaniels and less pointers.
If I was on the hill I wouldn't need the bell to tell me that the dog was on point as I could see it. To be quite honest if I was prepared to run the risk of the dog wearing a collar the beeper that tells me where the dog is on point would be a lot more useful than a bell that tells me the dog is on point but not where it is on point. |
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| sallie |
My dogs have never and will never hunt with a collar on ... far too dangerous, the gorse, heather, brambles, thicket and dense hedges they are made to hunt in would be an accident waiting to happen... it doesn't bare thinking about.
Be careful with your dogs and no collars though, as unless you are on private ground, the fine if caught is £1,000! |
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| Des O'Neile |
I'm almost certain that there is a dispensation for dogs that are working. The poor old hunts would have been hit with it long ago if there wasn't. | ||
| eddieh |
If the beak wasn't part of the hunt. 
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| Victoria |
Have a look at this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wepqX8v29RY&feature=related this rough is very similar to the ground where we would find pheasant over here...I am sure these gentlemen are not going to risk their EB's lives anymore than you or I would. |
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