Field trial at the Hullet

[BDH]

Am I confused or is the dialogue the issue? This is advertised as " The AFTCA Region 13 Amateur Walking Shooting Dog Championship will be held at the Hullet on May 2 and 3, 2015. More information can be found in the link below.

http://americanfield.villagesoup.com...13AWSDChmp.pdf

it says WALKING! Then I see the following: Sharon *** All horseback. You won't see anything without a horse.

Jakezilla "For the difference between Horseback Shooting Dog and Horseback All Age the short answer comes down to range, with the All Age dog have the larger range."

Now are the horses walking, or is the handler walking? Do you require a horse to view the event?

Dick

[terrym]

It would be time well spent to watch these dogs work. I have hunted over a fully broke all age setter with placements and its impressive as hell.

[fishhawk]

I'm going to have to check this out.

[Jakezilla]

Am I confused or is the dialogue the issue? This is advertised as " The AFTCA Region 13 Amateur Walking Shooting Dog Championship will be held at the Hullet on May 2 and 3, 2015. More information can be found in the link below.

http://americanfield.villagesoup.com...13AWSDChmp.pdf

it says WALKING! Then I see the following: Sharon *** All horseback. You won't see anything without a horse.

Jakezilla "For the difference between Horseback Shooting Dog and Horseback All Age the short answer comes down to range, with the All Age dog have the larger range."

Now are the horses walking, or is the handler walking? Do you require a horse to view the event?

Dick

The event Sharon was talking about being all Horseback is a different event that is being held at the hullet. The Horseback event is the Canadian Shooting Dog Championship. It is best to have a horse if you want to watch the Canadian Shooting Dog Championship.

For the Region 13 Amateur Walking Shooting Dog Championship in my original post, everyone walks except the two judges who will be on horseback.

With the reference to shooting dog vs All Age, in horseback competition there is a difference, in walking competition there is no difference and the terms are interchangeable. Some people like to refer to "walking shooting dog" as "walking all age". to show that it is the top class of walking competition.

[terrym]

What are the companion class stakes listed at the bottom of the premium?

[Jakezilla]

What are the companion class stakes listed at the bottom of the premium?

Those are just regular field trial stakes, you do not need to be qualified for those events. Those are the events you enter to get qualified for championships. The dogs that run in these events are registered in the Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB) registry.

The open events are for professionals and amateurs but if you are an amateur and you place, you can refuse the purse and claim an amateur placement and an open placement from the single placement.

An amateur placement is only good for amateur championships and an open placement is required for open championships so it is common practice for amateurs to refuse the purse on their first placement with a dog in an open stake so they can kill 2 birds with one stone. This can be important at times because there are only so many qualifying events and the competition can be really stiff so it may take several events before your dog can get qualified.

Every dog that is in one of these championships has proven itself at some point in its career to be good enough to compete at that level.

[Ugo]

Sharon, excellent explanation!! Jakezilla is right on as well.
If I may, the Canadian (Region 13) Championship AND the Region 13 Walking Championship are both at Hullett. The prior event is run off horseback and as Sharon stated, you won't appreciate much of what happens if you're not on a horse. You are ALLOWED to walk (ha ha ha...it's more like a brisk jog) but your visibility of the dogs themselves will be rare or at least compromised.
The walking championship is a walking championship and as such handlers walk. It is on a different course as well. Judges can walk or ride - more often they ride for increased effectiveness especially when there are a healthy number of entries! I have judged a 2 day trial on foot but I was a wee bit younger then too.
As for the expectations, they are as described however every judge has an eye that evolves from his own experiences with successful canine competitors, a healthy history of having judged (experience), and a dovetailing of common sense woven in a cast iron decision making attribute. It can break your heart to see a SPECTACULAR dog make an inexcusable mistake in the latter part of the stake.....but it is what it is.
Along with was offered by Sharon/Jakezilla, a champion isn't a dog that just meets the base requirements. When you think about the essence of such a lofty title, you realize how it can alter the future of the sport. A multiple champion even more-so in that many folk may elect to breed to said champion, and so on and so on.......
For me personally, a champion must be a dog that has what I'd call "Wow factor". It should be a dog you can't forget - a dog that overcomes some of the twists and turns that can beset a canine athlete. These twists and turns have eliminated many an otherwise fine dog(s)! This champion should apply himself intelligently. Like any pro athlete, this dog must have both mental and physical attributes. Some people don't understand and place "run/range" (more aptly named "independence") ahead of all other requirements, sometimes at the expense of those other core attributes. A champion puts them ALL together scouring the course to the limits and yet handles like he's on a thread, goes to the right places, is eye candy the whole time they are being judged, with a firey pace, applies herself/himself in intelligent birdy objectives while being both statuesque and mannerly when he is rewarded with finds, finishes the stake as strongly as he started (with no let-down anywhere along the way) even in the face of adversity. He/she makes you stand up in the saddle............along with the hair on your arms! It goes without saying that she/he has met the base requirements BUT takes your breath away in the act. As such, she/he is something to consider for perpetuating the breed which is the fabric, the future of our beloved dogs/sport. And that is why the are called champions!

[terrym]

Just out of curiosity, at what age do these dogs become competitive at an "all age" level? And also at what age do they become no longer physically competitive? Are there any differences in males vs. females in terms of competitiveness ? Not talking about the handlers....LoL.

[Winchey]

There is not a lot of females on the major circuit, you can only get so many litters out of a female, you can make more off stud fees from a Ch., they have heat cycles and it is a bit of a pain to campaign. Some dogs are winning Championships there derby year and are competitive as first year shooting dogs, like this years National Champ. Others take longer to mature and aren't really winning until 4 or 5 if they haven't been washed out yet. Some die young and others are still winning at 9 and 10.

Will there be a wagon Or wrangler this weekend? I think I am going to go anyway, still young enough to try to keep up.

[Jakezilla]

I agree with Winchey. The best years for most dogs are between 5 and 8 when they have the physical ability of a younger dog and enough maturity and experience to put it all together. There are always exceptions to this. As far as the male-female thing goes, I believe there are more males that compete but from my experience it does not have to do with their actual ability. The heat cycle can be an issue. When running in single course trials (all dogs run the same course) like at the Hullet, females in heat cannot compete. In multiple course trials (each brace runs a different course) like in coverdog trials they can compete. At Gladwin females in heat regularly compete. When you enter a female in heat her status must be declared upon entry and she will be braced with another female.