First we let the Spinone hunt the first two birds with Winnie watching on a leash with me. First bird, two shots from my friend (we both brought our 16 ga.), no reaction whatsoever from Winnie.
Next we let Winnie hunt the third bird, but she bounded through the grass so fast she bumped the bird and flushed it. No shot.
On the last bird she was much more methodical in her search, and when she found and pointed the bird she held it until I got there to flush it. One shot with my trusty Model 12 and Winnie's very first bird was down. She searched for a while, found it but kind of lost interest in going through brambles to get it. So I reached in, got it and threw it for her. The thrown bird she retrieved directly to my hand.
I sat on the porch enjoying a Sam Adams Oktoberfest as I picked about 200 burrs off of Winnie. I can't recall ever being so proud. It was a huge step in our training, and now that I know she's okay with the shotgun, I believe our training will really accelerate going forward.
