Trials and tribulations



The four judges searching in the distance for a  'runner'

 The presence in the household of The Bestest Gundog in All the World provokes an interest in all things 'Gundoggy'.  Thus it is that one is learning to shoot and has, indeed, acquired a Shotgun licence and a rather smart, though modest, firearm! Being a Spaniel household, it stands to reason that we believe that breed to be by far the most superior in the shooting field. Others will argue the case for the, mostly labrador, retriever. The old adage that a labrador is born half trained whereas the spaniel dies half trained is often opined (usually by men in tweed). In fairness, both breeds are excellent if properly trained but there is a distinct difference in the work they do. A spaniel is primarily a hunter, expected to find & flush game within range of shot and retrieve only when asked (please note, Gunner). A retriever, of which the most common in the working field is the Labrador, is required to retrieve on command - often from great distances; when not retrieving it remains at heel or 'on the peg' (where the person with the gun stands.)
I had a chance yesterday to go and see how the 'Other Half works' by volunteering at a Novice Retriever Trial being held locally.  The day dawned bright and breezy as people from all over the country drove to a remote field in order to spend the day testing out their dogs across acres of the county's finest sugar beet! Apart from the dogs, their handlers and owners, the assembled company included the landowner, his Game Keeper, 4 judges, 6 men with Guns, a 'Trial Secretary' (assigned the onerous task of ensuring dogs appeared in the right order at the right place - harder than it sounds) and various volunteers, two of us assigned to carrying the 'Bags' (after the first few hares were shot we both had time to regret our impulsive help). The following format was repeated throughout the day: two judges would each have 2 dogs 'in front' of them and those dogs would have 3 Guns on either side of them. They would line up relatively close together across a stretch of field. Also in the 'line' were the Chief Steward, The Steward of the Beat, the two bag carriers (one for each pair of judges/dogs) , the Landowner, his Gamekeeper and three other chaps acting as 'beaters' to tease up the game. The 'gallery' of other entrants was shepherded by the Trial Secretary well away from, but in line with the 'Action'. On command from the lead judge the line would move forward slowly, stopping the moment game (either partridge or hare - and one pigeon) was flushed. The nearest gun(s) shot the game (not always!). Depending on which end of the line the game was shot, a dog from that side would be sent to retrieve.
Now here's the interesting bit (well, if you're a spaniel person!). On being 'sent' for the retrieve, the labrador bolts in the direction indicated by the handler. He may have 'marked' the retrieve. In which case it is picked and returned without further ado. This didn't happen very often. Mostly a whistle command tells the dog where to stop and another tells it to start looking. The amount of whistling varies enormously depending on how well the dog listens and reacts to the commands. Mostly there was a LOT of Whistling. On hearing the whistle the dog would stop, look at the handler, read the hand signals and go look where told (or not as the case may be). More whistling. More signals. Until the dog finds the bird or hare and bolts back to the handler. Each dog was given a couple of chances at a retrieve and a fair amount of time to 'find' it. Some dogs didn't 'find' and were called back. The second dog on that end of the line would then be sent. If unsuccessful in the 'find' that dog would be called back and the dogs on the other side of the line would be given the opportunity for an 'eye wipe'. If unsuccessful, all four judges would set off - to the area the dogs had been sent to - in search of the retrieve (this part of the process would have been much more efficient had a well trained spaniel been employed!). If they 'found' what the dogs couldn't this reflected badly on the scorecards. Mostly, though they spent much time looking, they did not 'find' (this, after all is why we have gundogs - they are better at finding; furthermore, it confirmed another aspect of shooting - that the person who shoots does not always know what has been shot - if anything - and far less where it landed so can be quite wrong when giving instructions to those tasked with 'finding'). When a dog was 'out', the handler would put its lead on and take it back to the gallery, from which it would be replaced with the next contender who would come out from the gallery to join the 'line'.
The best dogs required little 'handling'; they followed instructions and bolted there and back - a pleasure to watch. It soon became clear to all which those best dogs were but all were given a fair chance. Dogs were 'out' for various reasons: not 'finding' at all, not heeding commands, dropping game instead of giving it to the handler, not giving it to the handler, marking the game with teeth etc etc etc. Those not out on the first round went through to the second round 'in front' of the other pair of judges.  And those not out went through to the third round which was made more difficult because the dogs were required to retrieve game shot at the other  end of the line. Those still remaining went into a fourth round and the action was repeated until just three dogs were left. By which time we'd stumbled and staggered over vast acres of sugarbeet under a cloudless blue sky. Lovely for humans, not so lovely for the dogs. Luckily we all had plenty of opportunity to rest our legs or heavy game bags (try carrying several full grown hares and any number of partridge) when the judges went looking for 'lost' birds - and lunch alfresco at 2 pm was a very welcome break.



The 'Line' enjoying a rest whilst the 4 judges search for unfound 'game'

 By the end of the day I'd learned some useful lessons:
- a good working labrador is always under control
- a good dog handler has an excellent eye to mark the fallen game
- a dog is easily confused by too many commands
- a good handler trusts the dog to use its nouse and do the job without constant interference
- in whistle use, less is definitely more

The trials and tribulations of the average shooting day mean that not many of the above factors combine in the same place at the right time..... good dogs, whether labradors or spaniels are rare and to be admired and treasured. The best dog yesterday was Winhocklin Willy, owned and handled by Mr K Broomfield.