Marks and blind retrieves explained

Watch any duck hunt and you see both. Birds fall in plain sight and the dog marks them. Another bird is hit across the pond, tucked in cover, and no dog saw it. That second retrieve is the one that separates a dog who hunts with you from one who hunts near you. Here is the vocabulary and how each skill is taught.

Marks

The AKC defines marking as the dog's ability to make a mental note of the location of the downed bird when allowed to see the fall, and says dogs can show it by reaching the area and hunting it out or by going directly to the bird. It is one of four abilities scored in the hunting tests.

A retriever training article on the vdd-gna.org site describes marks building once a dog is steady: the dog sits, watches a bumper thrown at an angle and goes only on command. Later two bumpers are thrown to form a diamond, and the dog is sent to one while the other is picked up, which teaches it to remember positions even when its own location changes. See mark and double in the glossary.

Blind retrieves

A blind retrieve asks the dog to run to a bird it did not see, by taking casts from the handler. The same article describes blinds as building on marks: the dog first watches a bird dropped out of sight while the handler uses a raised hand to show the direction, and the dog is sent only once lined up. Eventually birds are thrown where the dog cannot see them, and the dog learns to take a line from hand signals alone. For water blinds it describes starting easy, with a bird thrown from the far bank, and then adding hidden birds and denser cover as skills grow.

Other trainers describe a progression from pattern blinds to cold blinds, starting short and lengthening. Read the blind retrieve and cast entries for the terms.

Both together in a test

Ducks Unlimited describes hunt tests as simulations of field situations built around marked and blind retrieves on land and water, with an example test that included a triple mark and a double blind. Dogs are judged pass or fail against a standard, with scores from 1 to 10 for categories like marking, style, perseverance and trainability. The AKC's Junior level asks for four retrieves, two from land and two from water, up to 100 yards each.

If a test is your goal, the AKC Junior Hunter page shows what comes first.

Practicing at home

Short single marks on grass or in shallow water build the memory for marking. For blinds, trainers describe starting short and visible, then lengthening. Work with a helper where you can and keep sessions to a handful of retrieves so the dog stays keen. A hunt test club practice day is a good place to see both skills run by experienced handlers.

Where Richard fits

Richard Gebhart has run and qualified at an AKC Master National and runs dogs and assists clients at local weekend AKC retriever hunt tests, where both skills are judged. Ask him how your dog is ready for each, or read about the Advanced Waterfowl Program, which introduces cold blinds. Related reading on the line is steady to shot.