Gun Dog Forum

Wagonmaster

I have seen exactly one, one hundred yard (or possibly better) point out of gazillions. It happened under perfect scenting conditions, short grass prairie, early in the morning, moisture in the air, just a slight breeze. It is also possible those birds ran before they flushed, but I doubt it, they w...

Wagonmaster

The run comes right away, when they are pups you can only watch and laugh. If it has a nose, that will make a dog in a couple of years. Although there is often a period when they are first made broke when they will shorten up and you hope and expect that they will gain confidence and move out again....

Wagonmaster

I hunt AA bred pointers and have for more years than some of you have had dogs. One needs to understand that a big running dog does not run by birds 100 yds. away to find birds 500 yds. away. They will range until they find birds or you turn them or they turn themselves. I expect my dogs to stand t...

Wagonmaster

Well, another thing that is my favorite issue, is COMMUNICATION. So people who have dogs that have no style, like to claim that style is unrelated to hunting, if a dog goes on point it does not matter what it looks like. I can tell you that when a dog makes a find on game that far out you will defin...

Wagonmaster

You should be concerned any time you see a coyote, and especially a single coyote, just "hanging out" and apparently unafraid with dogs around. They employ a decoy strategy where a single animal will just "hang out" in the open. When a dog or other animal goes to check it out, the decoy will drop ba...

Wagonmaster

Weather is very nice. A little warm this past Saturday at 73 dF, but it cooled over the weekend so temps are in the 50's. A little rain in the forecast, but the grounds could probably use a little for a change, the gallery is putting up some dust. Grounds are quite dry for AR in the spring. Just abo...

Wagonmaster

I have done that with my adult dogs for several years now with no problem, that is, let them have the run of the house during the day, or at least a specific room of the house. The problem with putting them in a run during the day where we live is what happens in Jan. or Feb. when it is -20F and the...

Wagonmaster

I am not there anymore. Back home.

Wagonmaster

The running order is drawn the night before and goes up on the wall on a poster board. No way to get a copy that I know of except to go.

Wagonmaster

I was there briefly over the weekend. Weather was good, some water on the course but it has been worse.

The NFT Catalog has been posted at www.ngspa.org for those who would like to download a copy.

Wagonmaster

Coyotes have a hunting strategy that can be fatal to dogs. They set out a decoy - one animal will just stand out in the open until the dog comes to investigate. The decoy then runs away, leading the dog right into reinforcements, and the dog is killed. A young pup was lost during a field trial here ...

Wagonmaster

Best of luck to you and JR Jerry. I am hoping to be there for the NC, we will see, depends on whether the weather allows me to fly down.. Sorry, I did not notice your earlier thread until I posted this. The old man is on the couch with me.

Wagonmaster

The Championships start on Feb. 23 in Booneville, AR. The order of the stakes is Amateur Championship, Futurity , National Championship, Shooting Dog Championship (OSD). There are 50 Amateur dogs, 31 Futurities, 18 All Age and 60 OSD. Assuming the weather and conditions cooperate, the expected start...

Wagonmaster

I used to put my two shorthairs in harnesses and have them pull me on a scooter. On the cyclocomputer we would do 23 mph on a packed clay trail. That is pulling a 200 lbs load, albeit on wheels with only minor drag. That pace was slow for them in comparison to running free. However, speed in the fie...

Wagonmaster

I don't see what the fuss is. The NC and I went out with a couple of friends and shot some pheasants in ND last weekend. Cold, crusted snow, and cattail swamps with some difficult retrieves digging them out of the mess. He is getting on in years so it was a little hard on him, but then me too so I t...

Wagonmaster

We are talking apples and oranges when you compare the big show at Ames and the GWP Nationals, you are talking apples and oranges when you try to compare a GWP to a pointer or setter they just are not bred for the same application. Well, I will only say this. I have run in the GWP Nationals and a f...

Wagonmaster

To answer the original question, in a word - no. In two words - not ever. The most important characteristic of a bird dog is nose, and right along with that the characteristic dog people call "birdiness" or "bird sense." A dog with a good nose that gets excited about finding birds early in life, wil...

Wagonmaster

It is common courtesy to wait for the backing dog if it is anywhere close. You don't want to put that dog in the position of seeing the flush, hearing the shot, and breaking simply because it was not ready for what was going to happen. That would especially be true of a fun trial, which is just a tr...

Wagonmaster

What I enjoy most is the things they figure out for themselves starting somewhere between 4 and 6 years of age, if they are hunted every year. Had a GWP years ago that figured out if he trailed a running rooster he would go right up the tailpipe and it would go out, so he would come offwind of the b...

Wagonmaster

If you are thinking about flying commercial, go on the particular airline's website and do a search for "pet" and "travel" or something similar, and you will find their requirements and information. My dogs have flown with me dozens of times, it is a non-event. If you are talking about in the back o...

Wagonmaster

I don't take, and won't allow people in our group to take low shots of any kind. I tell them that in no uncertain terms. I wouldn't know where to start, putting a price on either of mine. I am lucky I guess. In all the years I have hunted neither I nor the dogs have been hit, but I don't hunt big gr...

Wagonmaster

Very sorry to hear that Vern. He was definitely one of the good guys.

Wagonmaster

There is one of those in the Bird Dog Museum in Grand Junction.

Wagonmaster

One place to look would be online at www.ngpsa.com . The NGSPA member clubs (other than the Regional and Specie organizations) virtually all put on dual sanctioned trials. Not all of the club's AKC trials will be dual sanctioned, but usually at least one a year.

Wagonmaster

This is a great subject and I don't think we have even begun to understand it. I have seen a 100 yd. nose, dog went on point in perfect morning prairie conditions and birds raised that far away. Not running birds either. But I don't think range alone explains it. We used to hunt quail with that same...

Wagonmaster

At that age you don't care if one pointed and rest backed or crept in. All you care about is that they are all on birds! and what a great sight it is.

Wagonmaster

Well, that's a bigger issue - if they are zinc diecast and not steel. Cannot withstand much internal pressure at all. One issue is that some .22 blanks (full blanks), are sealed with a wad. The true .22 blank guns have the cylinder aimed at a "splitter," a V shaped piece of metal where the barrel bo...

Wagonmaster

Mine is identical in design to yours, although a fair amount older. I use a Gillis watering system hooked to a hose for water, there is a hydrant not far away. Two suggestions. One is to put medium sized rocks under the edge of the johnny house, where there is a gap between the johnny house and the ...

Wagonmaster

The issue of bitches in heat came up recently in the organization because we are an AF organization and the AF rules do not allow it, while the NGSPA rules always have, as long as it can be done without interfering with other dogs' performances (i.e. the bitch in heat runs in the last brace). Our NG...

Wagonmaster

Stay away from stuffed toys. For one thing, some of them have eyes or noses that are just made wrong, with pins or metal loops that the dog will wind up swallowing. But the worst is the fabric. If the dog gets too much fabric, or fabric of the wrong shape in its gut, it can result in bloat, which me...

Wagonmaster

I found the hard way that antibiotics don't do much good. Much more important is to get quail from a local source, so they have not been stressed by shipment and kept in a crate for a day or two at very high temps, and then in the care of the quail, to make sure they have a water supply they can't p...

Wagonmaster

Some years ago I wrote the story of Reba, a true gift to our house, who took care of my son who was high functioning autistic. Their first meeting was a little like what you describe, didn't know what to make of each other, and at one point Reba barked being a little afraid, and Steven cried. But th...

Wagonmaster

The main issue with the cheap one's is that they come apart or break in use. Often, the center pin for the cylinder is just screwed in, comes unscrewed, and falls to the ground (where you are not likely to ever find it in the field). One trick is to use a little Loctite on that pin.

Wagonmaster

Yes, I doubt that more water will equate to great waterfowl hunting. What seems to happen is that more water means the birds are more spread out on the prairie, because there are more potholes for them to use. It takes a few years of water to bring the population up, and the biggest impact out there...

Wagonmaster

False premise? OF COURSE! What else are we going to do to get a good conversation going? It would be extra boring around here if no one ever posted anything off the wall made up or a hair brained idea. I can start another topic about why navhda sucks and how those dogs all hunt too close, and lack ...

Wagonmaster

The board has been a little dull outside why are GSPs popular (or not). For conversations sake lets get something going. Here is the question if field trials are supposed to be about producing a better hunting dog through competition/comparison and selection, why does it seem that most "pro" field ...

Wagonmaster

Let me tell you what I did, maybe it will help you. I have been involved in dogs and training for quite a few years, and have noticed that some people think the way to train a dog is harsh punishment. I have even found myself wanting to do that in fits of exasperation with some young dog. Some years...

Wagonmaster

Has anyone owned and worked one and how did it turn out? Helpful answers only please So how is it not helpful to tell you to stay away from this "opportunity." Breeding quality hunting dogs is harder than it might seem. Lots of things can go wrong, even when you are breeding like kind to like kind,...

Wagonmaster

I think your pro is right on. from the sounds of it the dog had not had much bird experience before going to the pro, and it is an 18 month old dog. it is very important that the pup get lots of bird exposure under its belt before putting the pressure on it. ideally, the pup should have had that bir...

Wagonmaster

So, did the male springer get into the female pointer's kennel or vice versa?

Why would you want to do this, you will have no way of predicting whether the pups will point or not. And some of the might and others might not.

Wagonmaster

You win some you should lose, you lose some you should win, and then there are others where you need to be able to appreciate the beauty in the day, cause that's all your gonna get.

Worth it just to ride under that big sky.

Wagonmaster

Yeah, so if you are at a very nice Caribbean island with your wife, what are you doing talking to us????

For a summary of what it takes to become a Field Champion, go to Ch. 14 of the AKC Pointing Breed Field Trial Rules, www.akc.org/pdfs/rulebooks/RFTPNT.pdf

Wagonmaster

The GSPCA doesn't either. Years ago, the GSPCA National Championships rotated. What happened was that the GSPCA Nationals were in effect a "regional" national championship. If they were on the East Coast, predominantly East Coast people and dogs came and most often won, if they were in the Central M...

Wagonmaster

Yes, we all admire the well known Ch. Withheld. That dog has won many times, and seems to have a knack for winning when the rest of us just can't get it done. Withholding of RU is a little different than withholding of Ch. In the GSP world, both at the GSPCA and at the NGSPA Nationals, dogs are judg...

Wagonmaster

After watching alot of dogs,and how they are being put up,and then having two young pups(5 months) I ask this simple question. Which would you want to own,and put up for a win. A dog who is a nice stylish dog who is consistant,runs foward and finds alot of game,or the on the edge,big running dog wh...

Wagonmaster

Yes, and then we have the "cross-sanctioned" weekend trials too. I am just trying not to confuse the OP with more than he can absorb.

Wagonmaster

You guys can call the dog "B Ranger" if you want. His call name was just Ranger. Gary is from NE MN, that area is known is the Minnesota Iron Range and is known as "Da Range" and its inhabitants are called "Rangers," hence the name. I believe Gary still has it on his license plate. Ranger was a grea...

Wagonmaster

I gotta tell you, Mark, this is an old theme, as you know. To AKC and AF people, they all came from Germany. To DK people it is existential war, and "nonpure" dogs and breeds should not be allowed to exist. After listening to it for 50 years or so, it sure gets old. I used to think we were all just ...

Wagonmaster

Hotpepper has it right, of course, except there is a book of running rules for the NGSPA, it is just a little difficult to get a copy sometimes. Try Art Armbrust, look him up on the www.ngspa.org website, he will send you a copy. The GSPCA is an AKC organization, so it follows the AKC running rules ...

Wagonmaster

Oh, heck, thanks but it is awhile ago, and the dog did it, not me. I just had fun following along.

Just trying to get our OP set on the right course here.

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