Tuesday’s Hunt Test Blues

This weekend the G team had another hunt test event they got to go to. This one wasn’t too far from home and both dogs had great judges so we were excited to go to this event. We thought for sure Glory would title this day. We couldn’t of been more wrong!

We started out stopping at the Senior test and John ran Glory. The first series was a land double with a blind. It was straight forward test except the blind was run into the wind so some dogs were having trouble with that. Dogs don’t like to me pushed into the wind. They use there nose and the wind to their advantage but don’t ask me why they don’t like to me pushed into it. Glory did great on the whole test, she got called back to run water.

Waiting to start the test.

Is it my turn yet?

The walk up.

And we’re off!

Still hauling ass.

Lookie what I got.

Here I come.

My second retrieve.

Happy campers.

It all went to hell on water. It was a water double with a really big swim on one of the marks. When Glory was released she ran off, jumped in the water and went completely under, she came up shook her head and then came back to John on land. He stopped her and casted her back to the bird. She remembered then what she was suppose to be doing and got the bird. She came back and went for bird number two, she had no problems with that one. It was near the shore so of course she ran the shore back. You don’t fail from doing that but they frown on it. Next up was the channel blind. We thought this would be no problem because we just trained for channel blinds on Friday. This channel blind was different though, instead of having the bird at the end of the channel and it being a straight line down the middle of the channel it was placed off to the side on shore 3/4 the way down there. Glory had a good line and had to be handled a couple of times then she got out to the spot and she wouldn’t take a over cast to go to the shore, she kept heading back to the end of the channel. She had numerous cast refusals and the judge told John he failed. I tell you, you can’t train for every situation. You just never know what they are going to set up and know what the weather conditions are. We have one finally chance to get that title this next weekend.

Gambler had a handler error moment and this fail was my fault. It was a straight forward triple with the flyer landing to the side of a couple of hills. He got the go bird and I lined him up for the flyer and he took off, ran over it, hunted the area and hunted, hunted hunted, he was leaving the area heading back to the bird he already got and I stopped him and tried to handle him to the mark. He blew me off as he was in hunting mode and wasn’t going to give up. I called him in. Afterwards the judge (whom I know) told me I should of left him hunt. I shouldn’t of tried to handle him and let them decide how he is doing. Learning experience and a costly one. Gambler too has one more chance to finally get that Master hunter pass this next weekend.