TRAINING – CONTINUED
SUPPRESSION
The vast majority of Nick’s bitches are taken off the racing strength as soon as they come into season.
He says: “In most cases they benefit from the rest and they lose form if you try to race them during their season anyway.
“It doesn’t matter so much with graded bitches who are just down graded until their form returns. But I would rather run bitches through a season than put them on the pill.”
It wasn’t always so. During the 1980s, Nick was using the male hormone to suppress the bitches, firstly through Nandrolane tablets. He then switched to the injectable form in Laurabolin.
When the NGRC started to crack down on the use of Laurabolin, he switched to the human pill, Primulat.
But when they then cracked down on that too, he gave up trying to suppress bitches.
He said:“I have never suppressed one since. The only substances that the NGRC allowed acted as natural stoppers.
“They claim that Laurabolin improved performances – but that is rubbish in my opinion. Provided it was used sensibly and under veterinary supervision, it was perfectly safe.
“Mega Delight was injected with Laurabolin throughout her time in Ireland and it certainly didn’t affect her breeding career, nor did it for thousands of other brood bitches.”
It is often said that bitches will run the race of their life immediately prior to coming into season. Nick has mixed views.
He said: “In some cases that is true. I have seen many cases where bitches have run well in the early stages of season. Over the years I have had several bitches who might have been withdrawn by the vet but have performed brilliantly. I wouldn’t have run them otherwise.
“In other cases, bitches lose form even a fortnight or so before they come into season. We had exactly that experience in recent years with Dilemmas Flight.
But even when bitches are in season, Nick does not like them to lose all their condition.
He said: “They are not in training, but you still like bitches to use themselves by being allowed the freedom to gallop and keep themselves in shape.
“The key is usually when they come into milk, though some bitches don’t lactate and it is even easier to maintain their fitness which can be a big advantage.
“I think The Other Toss was supposed to be around 12 weeks in season when she beat us in the Irish Derby Final.
“Other bitches produce lots of milk and you can’t do anything with them. I really don’t know if it would do them any harm to race them, but I cannot believe that they would perform well, and some bitches continue to produce milk for three to four weeks.”
“When Westmead Chick was running, the available suppressants simply weren’t strong enough – at the levels they prescribed – to prevent her coming into season and I had no choice other than to let her have a season, even though she came in season every six months.”
MENTAL ASPECT
But if there are no obvious racing reasons for a poor performance, and no injuries can be found, attention turns to the ‘psychological’
Is the dog trying his hardest? In Nick’s opinion, there are many levels of ‘ungenuiness’.
In the case of a dog like Westmead Special, he would prove a great money spinner because he would always produce his best performance first time around a track.
The son of Mels Pupil and Cricket Dance reached a string of major finals including the Scottish Derby, was favourite for several, but usually ran second or third.
Nick says: “He was a Derby class dog who beat Pat Seamur on merit on one night. He would run either hare, inside or outside, but he would only perform at his best first time around.
“Thankfully we landed quite a number of gambles with him once we worked him out. We feared nothing, in fact we hoped for top class opposition to get a better price.”
But what about aggression? In the early days, Nick forgave Westmead Silver’s red card by labelling it as a one-off piece of retaliation by a pup who had been attacked earlier in the race.
Years later, the kennel’s highly able star (the second) Westmead Tina, had her card marked after fighting in an open at Sunderland.
Nick says: “I blame myself for that. Most of Mega Delight’s pups have a very jealous streak at the pick-up, including Hawk, who would attack other dogs who tried to take the lure off him.
“In Tina’s case, she was returning after a seasonal break and had been running over four bends. We ran her in a race at Sunderland without a six bend trial, and the incident occurred when she was expecting the hare to come off. I can’t condemn her for that.”
Then there are the dogs who simply become jaded. They may benefit from a ‘bit of inspiration’ – a walk in the countryside to catch an up-close and personal glimpse of some wildlife.
While it did the trick to motivate the likes of Westmead Merlin, and on occasion, Westmead Chick, Nick believes the concept might be over rated by some handlers.
He said: “I can only speak from personal experience, but all the totally genuine dogs didn’t need ‘motivation’ and never got it.
“I remember Toms The Best saw a hare on the week before the Irish Derby Final, but he never chased it, and he certainly didn’t need it.
“I remember one occasion when Staplers Jo found himself in a field right next to a rabbit, and he just ignored it. Yet you couldn’t get a more genuine dog, and his pups were the same.”
“It was the same with Westmead County. He never saw ‘anything’ in his entire career.
“Flashy Sir was so genuine that he cut his mouth open trying to get to the box containing the lure. He was a fanatic. Westmead Cannon was another who would go absolutely beserk for the lure, yet he would walk past a ‘myxie’ rabbit by the roadside and not bat an eyelid.”
Nick believes that “villains are born” and it is virtually impossible to turn a bad dog into a genuine racer.
5 training theories that I wish I’d known when I started out
1 – Whatever you decide to do – do it for the dog’s sake and not your own insecurities. Nick says: “I can only speak from personal experience, but when I was a novice trainer with a dog in a big race, I sometimes felt the temptation to do something extra when the pressure was on. That might be to give it some extra tonic, or to take the dog somewhere where it could see wildlife, or give it extra massage or an extra walk. Today, I might change something if I thought it would help, but change for its own sake is just as likely to be detrimental.
Sometimes, it is the opposite, being scared to do something for fear of changing a routine. Whichever I choose, I always try to put the dog’s requirements first. If he is running well leave him alone!
2 – Don’t enter a competition expecting a dog to run himself into full fitness. Nick says: “This applies to any competition, whether it is the Derby or a smaller event. In the case of the English Derby, it is not too difficult to see why. In the early stages, you may have to contest very tough qualifiers. By the time they get to the semi finals, they have run three times in a week and need the last week to recover. Whatever the competition, I would not anticipate having to improve a dog’s fitness between semis and final.”
3 – Don’t take chances leading up to the final. Nick says: “I remember Geoff De Mulder once saying that he galloped his dogs on the day of the Derby Final, though I’m not sure if he was serious. It certainly isn’t anything I would do. In fact, I try to eliminate any chance of injury by carefully choosing where I will let the dogs exercise.”
4 – Be flexible in everything but routine. Nick says: “Dogs have an internal clock which is incredibly accurate and they thrive on routine. They want to know when they will be let out, when they will be fed, and when to relax.”
The problem was highlighted when Nick decided to stay with Ian Greaves during his tilt at the Irish Derby.
Nick said: “Ian could not have tried harder to be hospitable, but there was no routine. Dogs were being fed and exercised at all different times of the day, kennel doors opening and closing.
“Even though Tom had been reared by Ian, he couldn’t settle. I soon had to tell Ian that unless he was able to operate in a more organised way, I would have to move somewhere else. Thankfully he took it on board and things settled down.”
Kelly Findlay said: “I remember thinking I would get a lie-in when the clocked go back in the autumn. No chance. We had to still start at the usual time on the first day and Nick would gradually bring the kennel times back a few minutes each day.”
However, beyond the constrains of the clock, Nick is happy to bring some variety into the dogs’ lives.
It was this aspect that surprised former assistant trainer Gary Slater when he first started working for Nick. Gary had previously worked for Tom Foster and Terry Dartnall, two kennels steeped in countless category one successes over several decades.
While all three kennels share very similar kennel routines, some of Nick’s training methods are quite different.
Gary said: “Take exercise. Terry in particular is very keen on walking. All the dogs are walked religiously at the same time of day.
“Nick works more on instinct. For a start, we do very little walking. We rely mainly on galloping. But for no apparent reason Nick might get up one day and say, ‘We’re not galloping today. Put the dogs in the van and take them to such and such field for a change of scenery.’
“It’s the same with feeding. He’ll basically feed the same all the time, but then he might feed some fish, or some chicken to give the dogs a change.
“You never quite know what he will do next, but obviously it works.”
5 – Prepare your dogs well and you are less likely to get injuries. Nick says: “Injuries are always possible, but I think some are less likely if your dogs are well prepared.
“For example, although we have had our share of hock and wrist injuries, we have not had a serious muscle injury in the kennel since Staplers Jo damaged his shoulder at Hackney – and even then I suspect it was because he was unable to be trotted around before the race (the traps were very close to the paddock).
“I don’t know why this is, but I suspect that it is because we try to get our dogs as fit as possible on the gallop before we take them to the track. I also insist that the dogs are kept warm by moving around before they trial, race, or even go on the gallop.”
AND FINALLY THE ‘X’ FACTOR
Over the years Nick has studied his dogs and inadvertently become a self taught expert on basic canine behaviour.
For example, from just a few weeks old, Westmead pups are taken on leads and given a few sharp tugs, with a quick telling off, if they fight the lead or refuse to walk sensibly. They learn incredibly quickly.
‘Dog Whisperer’ Cesar Milan trains owners of badly behaved dogs in the same way. (He claims to ‘train the owners and rehabilitate their dogs”)
This is not violent treatment, or even primarily about how to behave on a lead – it is about dogs learning their position in the pack.
Nick had heard of the Mexican behaviour expert but totally unaware of Milan’s methods including ‘submission’ strategy for even tougher behavioural problems.
Without harming the dog, Milan will force a dog to lie on its back, physically wrestling it and holding in down if necessary, while ‘the pack’ are allowed to sniff it.
When Nick was first told about the technique, he realized he was already doing something similar.
He said: “Sometimes when we are going racing, a young dog, or a new dog to the kennel, will start to cause trouble in the back of the vehicle.
“My first option is a water spray (something behaviourists call ‘distraction technique’).
“If that fails, and there is someone else to drive, I will sit in the back of the van with the dogs and when the restless or anxious one starts, I will hold him down on his back for a few minutes until he gets the message who is in charge”
The vast majority of dogs do not need to have ‘pack order’ forced on them, but it is widely recognized that even domestic dogs retain behavioural patterns based on pack protocol.
And finally – books on greyhound training seldom talk about the understanding between greyhound and trainer. Some readers may even consider it ‘mumbo jumbo’
Most top trainers don’t talk about it publicly. But privately ask Linda Mullins, Mark Wallis, Linda Jones or Charlie Lister whether they form special bonds with their dogs and they will concede that they do.
Who couldn’t see the special relationship that George Curtis had with Ballyregan Bob? They were a team.
Nick’s modesty prevents him claiming any special gifts or abilities, though he does acknowledge that bonding does exist.
Others gladly give testimony to this ‘X factor’. Shelbourne Stud’s Brian King said: “There is no doubt whatsoever that dogs respond to Nick in a very unusual way.
“Some time ago Nick came to visit and was asking about a litter of pups who were eight months old. He asked if they’d been trained to lead. When I told him I hadn’t had the time, he said ‘got any wellys to fit me?’
“Within an hour he hadn’t only got the whole litter trained to lead, they had also had their first look at the whirly and everyone chased. They just seemed to understand what he wanted. It was incredible to witness.”
Is it possible that some would-be trainers fail because they never establish that rapport with their dogs?
Nick says “There may be all sorts of reasons, but I think that a failure to bond with the dogs could be a significant factor.
“In my opinion you need to form a relationship with a dog to get the best out of him. You need to understand what they are feeling.
“Never forget that dogs can only exhibit their true feelings. They never lie to you. It’s true I have had staff work for me who say, ‘Nick the dogs behave differently when you are around. But why it is I have no idea.”
If the concept holds true, it might explain the reasons behind some of Nick’s famous ‘instinct’ decisions.
For no apparent reason, and often to the bewilderment of the staff, he may decide that a particular dog would benefit from a change in food, environment or scenery.
Do top trainers pick up some form of vibe from their dogs and then respond to it?
The concept would come as no surprise to Milan.
Milan believes that owners transmit ‘energy’ to their dogs which affects their behaviour.
Years ago, Nick formed a very similar opinion. He became convinced that certain people are able to transmit attributes such as confidence and determination to the dog. He believes this can prove an important factor, particularly prior to a race.
He said: “When I take a dog to traps, I’m convinced that he will give his very best. I’ve had people work for me who feel the same way. Does it make any difference? I really don’t know – but I believe it does.”
If so, then someone who had the ability to understand and interpret behaviour would presumably influence the mood and character of the pack members.
Owner Gail May said: “There is a bond of trust between Nick and his dogs. They know what Nick expects of them.
“The first time I came to Westmead was in the week between the semis and final of Hawk’s first Derby.
“I know some trainers could get a bit paranoid at that stage so I originally asked if I should leave it until after the final. Nick told me to turn up anyway, it wouldn’t make any difference.
“When I arrived, there were a litter of adult dogs in the paddocks together, all unmuzzled and wagging their tails. It turned out that it was Hawk and the rest of his litter.
“I couldn’t believe it. I’ve been to kennels where there wouldn’t even put two graded dogs in a paddock together without muzzling them.”
The Henlow racing office staff witnessed something similar when arriving at the kennel to mark up pups.
Much to their amazement, they found half a dozen dogs all lying in the same paddock. Each was happily chewing on a bone. Not a sign of trouble.
If the handler can bring serenity, it seems likely that the opposite is true. Could a handler subconsciously handicap his or her dog?
Former head girl Kelly Findlay said: “I remember the night of the Derby semi finals and I was due to lead Hawk as usual.
“After we had kennelled the dog, we went to the snack bar but I didn’t fancy the meal. Nick saw I wasn’t eating, pulled me to one side and asked why.
I said, ‘I’m not hungry’
He replied: “You’re not nervous are you? If you are, I’ll lead the dog around. He was convinced that any nerves could have been transmitted to Hawk.
This writer saw something very similar seven years earlier.
It was Derby final night 1998 and Nick had the favourite Toms The Best. Nick had never won the Derby and pressure must have been intense.
I stood next to him as the dogs went on parade and with more than a few butterflies, asked, ‘are you nervous?’.
Nick could not have been calmer if it had been a grading trial. He replied: “No, why should I be? I’ve done everything I possibly can. Its down to him now.”
