The Brittany Forum

guy · Posted: Wed Nov 04, 2009 5:45 pm Post subject:

Wednesday
Barney has now been quiet and dry for several nights which is a good thing for my sleep patterns. i think also the hierarchy has settled now after he unwisely chose to tackle two of them at once. We had just had an enormous storm - which took out the electric supply for the following six hours and provided much entertainment for the police who were seen guarding fallen trees in the road. I think the storm induced adrenaline rush got to Barney's head as he was strutting his stuff and had his lipstick out. All is now quiet and his ears are held in a more respectful position. I have even seen Catja play bow to him.

Catja has been having sessions on sit to fall several times a day. I know however flush followed by bang followed by fall is not the same as a dummy falling - but it is a start. Also a little attention to the 'sit' whistle. She can do it like a spaniel - but gets out of the habit quite easily.

Six Brittanys running in the club novice trial - and Topaz 5th reserve. I do seem to get a better deal with other clubs I am not even a member of, let alone having one of their breed. Laughing

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Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk

doganjo · Posted: Wed Nov 04, 2009 6:13 pm Post subject:

guy · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 8:51 am Post subject:

Thursday - several sessions for Catja sitting to fall. She developed a 'coping mechanism' which looked a bit as if she was saying ' If I can't run and get the dummy I will sit here and eat grass - which I was going to do anyway'. Very hard to get the dummy to be coming down as she spotted it and not have her view the throw as well - was i training to the fall or the rise I found my self thinking.

Friday Catja again at lunch time some more sit to fall and as we were in a nice spot a bit of hunting as a reward. Right at the last minute she went on point and flushed a nice cock pheasant on command. But did not stop and disappeared over the brow of the hill. I was half way across the field before she reappeared behind me. I had to change hands several times as we did the walk of shame back to the starting point- dragging a dog by the scruff who doesn't really wish to go is heavy work. Once back at the spot a quiet 'sit' on the whistle and left her there to contemplate whilst I walked away. A couple of minutes in the 'cooler' and called her in.

Saturday
Norfolk and Suffolk Novice FT Titsey. The whole day was run in a field of sugar beet. One dog made it to a 3rd place. imagine the field the shape of a brick the wind coming coming square to a long side. It was worked as an anticlockwise spiral - a strip down the first short edge, wind behind, along the bottom, left cheek wind, up the end, head wind and finally we had a bit in the last strip, right cheek wind - but as it was the windward hedge very very little movement at ground level. To preserve the central strip we were required not to go beyond the left gun. The judge was insistent the birds were sitting tight and close and therefore he was looking for close dog work.
That must have been the crappiest bit of dog handling i have ever done! Fazed by the thought of going out just because she ran wide of the left gun - what did i do? sent her right into the wind, she then started to work the wind correctly but I called her in. cast again this time left, i thought the only way to stop her outrun left was to sit her and recast - what a messy messy exhibition - we went out with her coming on a bird that the judges thought she should have winded (I would humbly disagree - on that one but the earlier one that got up was also not good so quite happy to accept the decision). In hindsight I should have moved my handling position and then 'handled her more' The judge's summing up after teh award said that generally the dogs were not handled enough.

As ever looking for good to take away - she sat on every stop whistle and did not chase either flushed bird - but there are cheaper ways to checking that behaviour. The handling lesson - that sort of experience has to be paid for - i don't have the mentality to dream up situations that put me so far outside my comfort zone. Dog B+ for effort Handler C-

The next two dogs went out for hunting beyond the gun - and not very far, one even had a point there.
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Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk

Dave A · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 8:58 am Post subject:

Hi Guy
An interesting read, you know what will happen next time , you will over handle and the judge will have wanted less !!!!!!!!

Dave A
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Dave A, Fern, Gill and Molly

guy · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 9:01 am Post subject:

That is the first time I have ever been told I should have handled more or hear someone say we should have trianed our dogs on hunting as the retrieves were OK.
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Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk

Dave A · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 9:13 am Post subject:

keep at, all the best for monday.

Dave A
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Dave A, Fern, Gill and Molly

guy · Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 10:01 pm Post subject:

As you so rightly predicted Dave - in the very next Trial the judge was looking for minimal whistle and handling - I will come back to that.

Sunday
Took the crowd down to the New Forest - I needed to take some photos of work we had done down there for a Parish Council meeting on Monday night so thought we would run the dogs as well - some pictures elsewhere here. After lunch i set off for Suffolk at the kind invitation of Pat and Alan, my grand plan was to get there in time to do a little training - but a miscalculation on my part meant I did not get there till after dark. A super evening with good food and wine and conversation. 2pm before we made the stairs.

Monday
Determined to get a bit of training in on the turn (after Saturday's advice) we set of tor a tramp across fields at 6.30. All going OK ish but not great. In the second field she put up a very young hare and chased it. Luckily for me it was in run in a circle mode and instead of disappearing over teh horizon the leveret came towards me and Catja suddenly realised she had heard the stop whistle. She did have a severe telling off (for her) and afterwards was immediately responsive to all commands. The next field - one of well advanced rape she ran into a large hare - well i think that is what happened - hare jumped vertical and she jumped back - she stayed sat and he ran off up a wheeling and over the hill. A good mornings work I felt so returned for breakfast.

Bunwell Novice FT. We all entered the field through a block of cover crop. A bright sunlit morning with clear blue sky and a sea of green leaves as far as you could see - 100 acres of it. Another trial in one field, history was seeming to repeat itself. We ran third after two relatively staid performances. She excelled herself and needed little whistle and even worked the hedge a bit. When we were picked up the judge suggested I would have handled her from a point closer to the hedge as she had indicated a few times and I had failed to maximise the opportunities.
We did not stay in this field after the first run through the card - we went to another one that should hold more birds. There were two dogs ahead of us, the first bumped a bird and went out and teh second a Viszla after a nice bit of work took off into the wind putting up birds as it went and so to was out for being out of control. Catja and I were moved forward 50 or so yards. The trial was there for taking, I knew it and the dog knew it i think. A strip of beet with grass one side and soil the other stubble at teh end and an almost cast iron guarentee there were birds still in there. Anything shot would be easy to pick - we were working int o a side wind, our luck was in. Not quite so. The dog worked her heart out and worked teh wind well, however beausee of my position on the beat she worked to within about 5 ft of the edge of the crop and on one return pass a bird got up a bit downwind of her . We were out. The judges were a bit disappointed I think. If they had been me they would have started at the downwind edge and sent the dog along that so she had a chance of covering ever leaf.

Trevor Rigby was nothing if not succinct in his summation of where the blame lay for our exit. Whereas I left Saturdays trial a mite confused about how to move forward i came away from this one with a crystal clear idea of what I would do next.

It was lvely to see so many Britts in the field. I felt sorry for JP on his very first field trial to get a back wind, Duke handled very crisply, Beau with Andy C ran like a little demon sharp on his whistle, responsive and possessed of great speed, unfortunately Beau decided to work out a patch of scent which took him to places he should not have gone to. Archie and John A had a nice run with only a few independent detours. Baileys became fixated with a particular spot returning time and time again - she found a bird elsewhere which was shot and sat nicely to her stop whistle on her uninvited run to collect it. That was an impressive sit but a little to late to stay in the race.

After the one award of CoM the judges summed up the day. Handlers needed to learn to use their bodies and not their whistles to control teh dogs - To handle by not handling.
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Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk

guy · Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 2:42 pm Post subject:

Tuesday
Took Catja and Barney to ringcraft. Catja just not going to do it - a sack of potatoes would parade better. We stopped, she got up in my lap turned herself upside down and went to sleep with her tongue out. I suppose two days in the field, a night in an unheated car and a trip to London takes its toll on a girls beauty sleep.
Barney was a star - he was Mr Mellow pretty well all evening. Paying rapt attention to all that was going on and ignoring all but two dogs - I don't think he gets in your face puppies. Pictures here http://bit.ly/3n5HFq

Wednesday. Catja - for a change I just took her out to hunt. Most interesting. I did keep my hands in my pocket but did need to use the whistle - she spotted a running cock and thought she would move after it. Working a bit of maize stubble two birds got up that i thought she should have winded - but considering how she worked some later scent I will have to give her the benefit of the doubt. (I think we would have been out on Monday however Laughing

)
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Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk

steve · Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 8:31 pm Post subject:

all intresting stuff guy great reading Smile

guy · Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:22 pm Post subject:

Thursday
Just said goodbye to Tilly and Lacey - Both great dogs in their different ways. Lacey was just so pleased to be out and about and followed Steve like a little shadow, constantly checking back, gambolling off a bit and then coming back. No arm stretching at all.

Tilly - is a little dynamo on legs, lovers her Dad and loves her dummy and loves her hunting and well loves anything and everything I guess. Catja came out with us and I found it most amusing that she did not want anything to do with the puppy when out - it got in the way of hunting.
_________________
Guy, Ellie, Topaz, Catja and in memory Barley
Beauty from Structure
www.epagneulbreton.org.uk