Tonight, we took the two boys out to the back part of the yard and brought them in on a tethered pigeon hidden in a bush. When the younger boy hit the second cone, my jaw literally fell open. He locked up on scent only and I swear it was every bit as beautiful and intense as anything I’ve EVER seen Willow do – and she took second at the National Amateur Championship in Eureka. It was absolutely breathtaking. And this is honestly absolutely his FIRST exposure to planted birds. He held for probably a minute, no flagging, tail as 12 o’clock as it can possibly get, quivering with adrenaline. Eventually he repositioned a little closer, pointed again and then picked the bird out visually. Of course, then it was GAME ON and getting it away from him involved quite a wrestling match J I am VERY impressed. The older dog also came in, pointed the bird and then wanted to grab it. Once it was dead, he was the more willing one of the two to pick it up and at least think about retrieving.
With minimal work, they both will be excellent personal gundogs. I believe the younger one truly has NSTRA, NAVDHA or AKC field trial potential. I am tempted to keep him and campaign him, but we have our hands full as it is. He has had no field work, but the good news is, he’s a clean slate. No one has made any mistakes with him. He has unbelievable natural drive.
We will be placing them both in good working or competition homes. As we put our time into them, the price will reflect their level of training. Please feel free to forward this to anyone who may be interested and able to give these boys what they need. |