Blind Ambitions

Whew, it’s bene a whirlwind since Christmas. The hunting has been tough but good, and I haven’t had the chance to slow down for long. Later this week I will have several posts about some of the hunts tha thave taken place this past week or so, so please stay tuned. I hopeevryone has a safe and fun filled new Year’s Eve, and look forward to keeping this thing rolling in 2008.

Well the next several days begin the Christmas crazy season. With my family coming up to visit, and a large family of in-laws, it’s going to be wide open. Not to mention the weather is right for some early morning duck hunts before everyone else wakes up. I don’t know how much I’ll be around on the computer until the middle of next week, so I wanted to say Merry Cristmas to everyone who reads this blog. I hope you and your family have a great Holiday Season.

I am really excited about Saturday’s hunt. You see, over the summer I  had this crazy, wide open, yellow dog show up with an owner that wanted a duck dog. The day we met, I threw that dog a bumper and it took me 20 minutes to corral her up and get my bumper back. I was a little concerned considering the dog was a year and a half old and had really no training at all. Well it took about a week to get her calmed down to where we could actually do some training. We got through odedience, made it through Force Fetch and collar conditioning, and she was starting to turn into something. Her owner called about once a week to check progress and one day I mentioned maybe running her in a hunt test. So he decided he wanted to do it, and I ran her in her first HRC Started test. She nailed the test, and earned a ribbon. Her owner took her home that day, and has hunted her this season with success. The reason I am excited about this weekend is that she and her owner will be heading down to hunt with me Saturday. I am looking forward to watching her work after not having seen her for a couple of months. Hopefully we will put some birds in front of her and I can sit back, watch and enjoy. Can’t wait to see you Lucy.

The Boykin Spaniel, also the State dog of South Carolina, is from the Spaniel family, but makes a heck of a retriever in a small package.

The Boykin Spaniel has a very cool history, with the first dog being found in Spartanburg, SC in 1911. It wasn’t until the 1990’s that Boykins were permitted to participate in AKC events.

Boykin’s are a small dog when compared to the labs and chessies of the retriever world. They stand around 16 inches tall and weigh between 30 and 40 pounds. Traditionally the tail is docked, and it’s coat is either chocolate or liver.

Like most of the other dogs discussed, Boykins may be born with hip dysplasia. From what I have researched, there are not many Boykins who have an excellent rating form OFA.

 Boykins make great family pets, and often times are the retriever of choice for duck hunters who are in school and living in an apartment or share a house with a number of folks. Becasue of their smaller size they are an easier dog to make room for in the house. Many folks who hunt alone with only a small boat like the Boykin as well, again it’s smaller size is a bonus for these folks.

Boykin’s can handle ducks and geese, despite the fact the goose may look bigger than the dog. I have never hunted with a Boykin, but I have been around a pile of them running hunt tests. I am a big dog kind of guy; I like a dog in the 70-100 pound range, but if I had to downsize, a Boykin would be the dog I would choose. They are loving and playful but can also get the birds picked up.

For more info on Boykins check out: http://www.boykinspanielclub.org/

Last week I had the opportunity to do an interview with Moose from Moose Droopings. He does a weekly broadcast on the Skinny Moose Radio Network. We talked about picking out a puppy, caring for your new puppy, training a pup and puppy nutrition. If you have a few minutes you may want to check it out and give it a listen, just follow the link and click on the December 14 th show. He does a weekly show every Monday at 1:00PM EST called Moose Droppings the Radio Show.

The Flat-Coated Retriever was another retriever developed in Britian best information says it came from crosses of the Newfoundland, setter, sheepdog and spaniel like waterdogs. The breed became official sometime in the 1860’s, but it really becasme popular a decade later when Mr. E Shirley, the founder of the Kennel Club of England promoted the breed as a versatile gun dog and great family companion.

The Flat-Coated Retriever is well knwo for it’s silhouette look. The breed has two colors, balck and liver this is where the silhoutte looks comes from. It has a moderaltey long coat of fine water repellant hair. it does not have an undercoat, but the longer fine coat allows the dog to work in a variety of weather and cover conditions.

Males stand between 23″ and 24″ with the females being an inch or so shorter.  Males weigh 60-80 lbs, while the females are usually between 55-70 pounds.

Like many of the retriever breeds, they are hard working, energetic dogs, but they make great fmaily pets if trained or exercised daily. I have had the pleasure of training with an Flat-Coated Retirever with a Master Hunter title while in Stuttgart, Arkansas last summer. The dog reminded me of a lab, it was generally the same size, and had the same excited energy to work. Like other retriever breeds the dog was highly intelligent. It had a more graceful gait than most labs, it looked more regal and proper, which in many ways are traits of British gun dogs.

You cna find more info at www.fcrsainc.org

One of the breeds of dog that turns more heads and drops more mouths when it shows up in a duck blind or a hunt test is the Standard Poodle. Most people have no idea the poodle is a retriever, and perhaps this is because over the years the poodle has not been bred as a working dog, but as a show dog or house pet.

Some historians believe  that the original poodles came form Russia, and the French imported the breed and developed it to what we see today. There are three sizes of poodle, the toy, miniature and standard; with the standard being the only gun dog variety.

Poodles have a coat of dense curly fur, that rarely if ever sheds, but does require grooming. They come in a variety of colors and are usually a solid color. An interesting fact I learned while researching is that the “poodle cut” actaully was started with gun dogs. The fur was left around major joints for warmth in cold water, but the remainder of the body was shaved to eliminate as much drag in the water as possible. Standard pooodles are in the neighborhood of 15″ tall, and are slender and “leggy”.

Poodles are considered to be one of the most intelligent breed of dog. They are alert and active, and bond with a family more so than just one person. It is said they have a a deep rooted instinct to hunt, and that even toy poodles may be seen marking or pointing game. The stereotype out is that poodles do not like to retrieve in the water. I ahve seen more than one poddle earn an HRC Title at hunt tests, so they will get wet. I assume it is probably difficult to find a poodle from gun dog lines, but there are folks out there still training and working poodles.

I know a couple individuals who train, hunt and test poodles. It is fun to watch a poodle with it’s grace and elegance working. One of the folks I have met and tested with has a website dedicated to their gun dog poodles: www.redhuntingpoodles.com Check it out and learn more about the French retriever.

I know I said I was gonna post about retriever breeds, but I really just need to vent a little here, so please bear with me. When I the have time I like to check out internet message boards that relate to duck huntign and dog training. Often times you can pick up some good information or learn a new way to look at a situation.

However, recently there have been some things told to people that drive me nuts. I read a board the other day where a hunter said his dog would not cast out of a boat to make make a retrieve. Without asking any questions there were 6 different people screaming Force Fetch, when he said his dog had been through Force Fetch, people said it wasn’t  done solid enough. What??????????????

My question would be, “how much have you worked the dog out of a boat?” “Have you trained from a boat?” Just because a dog has been through Force

The Nova Scotia Duck Toller is a dog that orginated in Nova Scotia early in the 19th Century. This dog was used to toll or lure flocks of ducks into gun range. The dog would run, jump and play along the shore line and bring flocks of birds close enough to be shot and then the dog would head out and retrieve the dead birds.

The Toller is the smallest of the retriever breeds, with males being about 19″ and females 18″. All I could find about weight was that it should be in proprtion to the height of the dog.

Like other retrievers, Tollers were bred to retrieve in cold, icy waters, so they have a water repellant double coat. The outer coat is medium length and straight with a soft dense undercoat. Featherings are common but should be soft and moderate. Their coloring can vary, but it should all be some shade of red, with no black markings.

The Toller, again like other retrievers, is a highly intelligent and highly trainable dog. They are full of energy and very active, so they need to be trained or exercised daily. They are great family pets because they are very affectionate, and they are great with children.

This is another breed of dog that I have no experience with. I found a link to a website a few years ago about a guy in South Carolina that trained Tollers, but I can’t find the info.  For any Toller owners out there, tell us about your dogs.

The Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever Club (USA) can be found at:

www.nsdtrc-usa.org

The Newfoundland or “Newfie” is credited as one of the original retriever breeds. As it’s name indicates, the Newfie’s history can be traced back to the Canadian Providence of Newfounland in and around the 1700’s. It is likely that European settlers crossed various spaniels, bird dogs, Mastiffs, water dogs and Pyrenean with a native black dog to get the origins of the Newfoundland. The Newfie is a very large dog, males stand about 28″ while females are about 26″, males weigh in the neighborhood of 130-150 pounds, and females average 100-120 pounds.

They have a flat water resistant, double coat. The outer coat is longer and more course than the soft dense undercoat. The colors that are accepted are black, brown, grey and white/black. They may have some white areas on the chest, toes and chin.

The Newfie was developed to be a multipurpose dog, it was a sled dog, tracker, retriever and guard dog all rolled into one. A Newfoundland is not a popular duck dog in today’s world, perhaps this is because of the massive size. However for those of us that love our labs and chessies, we have to give the Newfie some love, because he was a big part of those two breed’s beginings.

The avergae lifespan for a Newfie is 8-10 years, and like many retrievers, the breed has health issues with hip and elbow dysplasia.

The Newfoundland is a great family companion and has a wonderful temperment and disposition, but can be protective of young children in the family.

Some internet searches turned up Newfie breeders throughout much of the United States and Canada, but most said there are waiting lists for registered puppies.

For more info you can check out the Newfoundland Club of America at www.ncanewfs.org