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SERIES III, DAY 2, FRIDAY SEPT. 1
Scheduled for day 2 was the upland test, a pheasant hunt with live birds planted in a field with ample cover. Scenario : A duck had been tipped from a nearby pond into the field. At the hunter's request, our dog was to quarter and retrieve this dead duck. When this was completed, we heard a cock pheasant in the heavy underbrush and decided to hunt him up as well. In this series, it was the dog's responsibility to quarter the field to find the duck then continue quartering until the live pheasant was located. The pheasants, placed in grass-covered open-ended wire cones, would be released when the working dog knocked over the cone and would then be shot by the gun team. The dog must sit quietly at the flush and subsequent shot then retrieve the bird as instructed. Dog #1 broke on the flush; all others were successful. SERIES IV, DAY 2, FRIDAY SEPT. 1 On Friday afternoon we began series IV, a triple, single blind and honour, with clear and windy conditions. Scenario : Once again a goose hunt was in the offing with those pesky ducks again coming in. The dogs saw three ducks shot but did not see the 4 th bird land (blind). Handlers were instructed to sit or kneel beside their dogs on the top of a slight hill and indicate each mark with the handler's gun. The go bird (left) was a double shot to set up the blind. This mark was thrown left to right at 55yds and was thrown behind a high patch of cover, obliging the dogs to burst through for the perfect retrieve. If not, they ran the risk of scenting the long bird located directly behind the go bird. The right bird, thrown second, was from a winger at about 45yds over a slight rise. This mark once again necessitated a full 90 degree swing. Most dogs did acknowledge this bird, though, and had no problem with this mark. The centre bird, thrown first, was right to left at 100yds and directly behind the go bird. The line to this mark was through a flock of goose decoys and was also well done by most dogs. Upon completion of the marks, the dogs were required to do a 125yd blind through a narrow corridor of high cover, trees and bushes where they could easily be lost on either side. Overall, the work was excellent with one dog (#23) breaking the honour.
Pre-test | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Final Results
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