Long before the first flock descends into the decoys, we spend countless months practicing the fundamentals with our retrievers. They work through our many lessons and drills, sharpening their marking, learning to take a clean cast, and building good habits. Then opening day arrives, and the real test begins.
Hunting has a way of compounding the little things. A dog may creep when mallards take one more swing over the spread, or he might ignore a whistle at a distance. A torn paw pad could go unnoticed after a morning in bean stubble. Cold water, travel stress, and several consecutive days in the field can take their toll as well. Most of these issues probably seem minor at the time. Left unchecked, they will likely grow into bigger problems.
We’re not exempt from making mistakes, either. The excitement of a hunt can make us rush decisions, overlook problems, or let standards slide in ways that we never would allow during training. Hunting season is when good habits—for both dog and handler—are put to the test, and they will either hold up under pressure or begin to unravel.
To help retriever owners stay one step ahead this fall and winter, we turned to two individuals with complementary expertise in duck-dog performance. Jared Mophett is a guide at Louisiana’s Honey Brake Lodge as well as an accomplished Super Retriever Series and hunt test competitor. He has spent decades training and hunting alongside elite retrievers that combined may account for tens of thousands of waterfowl retrieves over their careers. Dr. RuthAnn Lobos is a veterinarian and Purina sporting-dog expert who regularly offers science-based insights on nutrition, health, and recovery.
What follows are 10 proven ways to keep your retriever on track and performing at his best all season.
1. Hold the Line on Steadiness
The most common place for steadiness to slip isn’t in training—it’s in the duck blind. Birds are working, guns are firing, and excitement takes over. That’s when a dog that has been rock-solid during the off-season might decide that today is the day to leave early.
For Mophett, the standard never changes. “I hunt like I train,” he says. “The rules don’t change because the season opens.”
When a dog breaks, Mophett focuses on the command that was ignored. “Everybody says ‘the dog broke.’ No, he didn’t sit,” he says. If a dog leaves before being sent, reinforce the sit command immediately. Recall the dog if necessary and don’t reward the mistake with what the dog truly wants—the retrieve.
The temptation is to let this behavior slide when birds are falling and everyone is excited, but, Mophett emphasizes, that’s exactly when handlers need to be consistent. And consistency isn’t just about cleaner retrieves. In a duck blind filled with hunters and loaded shotguns, steadiness is also a matter of safety.
2. Don’t Rush the Retrieve
A difficult retrieve has a way of increasing pressure on a dog and the handler. Maybe multiple ducks are down. Maybe the dog is headed into thick cover. Your buddies start offering directions, and frustration begins to build. That’s where trouble starts.
“You’ve got to leave your emotions at home,” Mophett says. For many handlers, it’s a matter of patience. The bird isn’t being recovered fast enough, so they reach for the whistle. Another cast. Another correction. Before long, they’re trying to manage every step of the retrieve instead of helping the dog work through it with a positive result.
When things start getting hectic, Mophett prefers to slow the process down. Stop the dog, let him look back at you, and give him a moment to reset. Then make a clear cast and let the dog work.
Young retrievers, especially, need opportunities to solve problems and build confidence. Finished dogs should be given more direction, but they still need patience and clear communication.
“The more pressure you put on a dog, the more pressure he’s going to feel,” Mophett says. “A retrieve doesn’t have to happen quickly to be successful. More often than not, clarity beats urgency.”
3. Make Yourself Easy to See
Brushed-in blinds, heavy cover, and low light can make hand signals difficult to see, especially when a dog is at a distance. “If he can’t see you, he can’t take the correct cast,” Mophett says.
It’s an easy mistake to make. If a dog starts hunting in the wrong direction, you might assume that he ignored the cast. In reality, the dog may never have gotten a clear look at your cast in the first place.
That’s why Mophett pays attention to visibility before he gives direction. Sometimes that means stepping into a more open position. Other times it means using a white towel he tucks in his blind bag to enhance visibility. Don’t assume defiance when confusion is just as likely. Good handling starts with clear communication, and clear communication starts with making sure that the dog can actually see what you’re trying to tell him.
4. Fix It Before It Becomes a Habit
If there’s one lesson Mophett wishes more handlers would take into hunting season, it’s this: Don’t wait to address small problems. Most bad habits start innocently enough—a dog whines in the blind or gets sloppy on delivery. In the middle of a good hunt, those mistakes are easy to overlook. “Most of it is on us,” Mophett says. Dogs learn from repetition. If a dog drops a bird and still gets sent on the next retrieve, he’s learning that this particular behavior is OK. If he whines and still gets rewarded with the retrieve, he’s learning that the rules are flexible.
The longer those behaviors go unchecked, the harder they become to correct, Mophett insists. “We should have fixed that on the first hunt,” he says.
5. Watch the Dog, Not the Thermometer
Cold weather may bring the best hunting, but it also demands good judgment from you to ensure that your retriever is safe. One of the biggest mistakes handlers make is believing that there is a certain temperature threshold that’s too cold to bring a dog on a hunt. There isn’t one. Wind, water temperature, air temperature, volume of retrieves, and the dog himself all matter.
“Every dog’s different, and every day’s different,” Mophett says. Instead of watching the forecast, he watches the retriever. A dog that’s shivering hard, slowing down, or losing enthusiasm may be telling you that he has reached his limit. The challenge is that most retrievers have enough drive to keep going anyway.
To help prevent hypothermia, Mophett recommends limiting unnecessary exposure. Keep dogs out of the water between retrieves, dry them off when practical, use a properly fitted neoprene vest, and give them a chance to warm up before sending them again. A portable heater in the blind is even better. But when in doubt, Mophett leaves his dogs at home. “One hunt is not worth it,” he says.
6. Make Proper Nutrition a Priority
Training starts long before opening day for our retrievers, and so does proper nutrition. According to Dr. RuthAnn Lobos, retrievers fuel themselves differently than people do. While human athletes lean heavily on complex carbohydrates for endurance, working dogs rely primarily on fat for sustained energy—especially during long hunts, repeated retrieves, and the constant effort of staying warm in cold conditions.
That’s why performance formulas such as Purina Pro Plan Sport Performance contain higher fat and protein levels than other foods. Fat provides the fuel that keeps a dog going, while protein helps support muscle recovery after a hard day’s work.
Lobos says that one of the biggest mistakes she sees is waiting until hunting season to make the switch. A dog’s metabolism needs time to adapt to and absorb a performance food. “We’re talking eight to 12 weeks,” she says. Instead, she recommends staying on a performance formula year-round and adjusting portions as activity levels change.
7. Feed After the Hunt—Not Before It
Many hunters assume that a hard-working retriever needs a full meal before a hunt. Lobos says the opposite is true. Dogs perform best when they hunt on an empty stomach. “Feeding immediately before exercise diverts blood toward digestion instead of the muscles that support performance,” Lobos says.
In fact, the fuel powering a morning hunt is largely coming from meals eaten the day before, not from breakfast at duck camp. Digestion takes time, and the nutrients from a meal aren’t immediately available as usable energy. Hunting first and feeding afterward helps a dog work more efficiently while also improving nutrient absorption during recovery.
After the hunt, allow your retriever time to cool down before offering him part of his daily ration. Lobos notes that dogs enter a recovery window roughly an hour after exercise, when the body is particularly receptive to replenishing energy stores and repairing muscle tissue. Handlers could also split the day’s food into two feedings—one after the hunt to support recovery and another later that evening to help fuel the next day’s work.
8. Manage Stress Before It Shows Up
Travel, unfamiliar blinds, new routines, and long days in the truck are all part of hunting season. While most dogs take it all in stride, the added stress can affect health and performance. According to Lobos, one of the first places that stress shows up is in the digestive system. Dogs may lose their appetite, develop loose stools, or simply seem off. The key is getting ahead of it.
Starting a probiotic, such as Purina Pro Plan FortiFlora, a few days before travel and continuing it throughout the trip can help support gut health during periods of stress. For dogs that travel frequently during the season—or those that are naturally more sensitive—Lobos says there can be benefits to keeping them on a probiotic throughout the hunting season.
9. Don’t Let Hydration Slip
Cold weather doesn’t eliminate the need for water—it just makes hunters and retrievers think about it less. Working retrievers lose fluids through panting, excitement, and repeated retrieves, even on the coldest mornings. “They’re so locked in, they don’t think about drinking,” Lobos says.
Rather than expecting your dog to catch up later, encourage hydration before and after the hunt. Floating a handful of kibble in the water bowl, adding water to dry food, or mixing in a small amount of low-sodium broth are simple ways to increase water intake during feeding time.
Hydration affects everything from stamina and muscle function to recovery for the next day’s hunt. Staying ahead of it is far easier than trying to make up for lost fluids afterward.
10. Make Tailgate Checks Routine
Most working dogs are remarkably tough. They’ll continue to retrieve despite sore muscles, torn pads, and minor injuries without showing obvious signs of discomfort. That’s why Lobos recommends making a quick head-to-tail inspection part of every hunt. Before loading your retriever into the truck, check between the foot pads for cuts, punctures, or lodged debris. Look under the front legs, around the groin, inside the ears, and around the mouth—places where small injuries often hide. “It’s easy to miss things in those places you don’t normally look,” Lobos says.
She also recommends keeping a basic canine first-aid kit in the truck. Items such as saline eye wash, antiseptic solution, bandaging material, a multi-tool, and tweezers can help address minor issues before they become bigger problems. When you’re in doubt—or if an injury appears to be serious—get your dog to a veterinarian. A quick checkup can prevent a small injury from becoming one that sidelines your retriever for the rest of the season.
