October 17, 2010

Fall is here and pups are off to school.....


     Fall, my favorite time of year.  The leaves are changing, temperatures falling, days getting shorter and hunting season in full swing.   The past three weekends Hailey and I have been hunting fowl amongst the area lakes.  This weekend with the opening of pheasant season I not only hunted fowl, I also hunted pheasant.  I was able to bag a few ducks along with a wary pheasant.  Hailey and I were alone on the duck hunts.  Bella, did however tag along for the pheasant portion.
     The puppies are now 6 months of age and are able to start formal training.  Some of the puppies are returning from Professional Training Courses while other are scheduled to attend within the coming months.  Below is an update on many of the pups.



Bella~
     She's quite the little lady.  She prances her 39# frame around as if she were "queen bee".  We've been working on obedience skills such as walking at heel, come, sit and stay.  She is grasping those skills quite well.  While in the field we've been working with my DT Series dummy launcher along with Dokken's Dead Fowl dummies and doing some retrieval work.  Bella is consistent on retrieves 30-40 yards and retrieves dummies launched up to 70 yards.  That being said, the longer retrieves are not completed on a regular basis.  It seems as though once she gets out to those greater distances she wants to play with the dummy.  So we're now switching gears and beginning the steps of force fetching to get her consistent with those distant retrieves.  Overall I've been satisfied with the progress she's making.

Bella~ (from Iowa)
     We sure have been enjoying Bella! She is a lot of fun. She has been retrieving great, and loves the water! She heads up to Osakis, MN next month to Sauk River Kennels for formal training.  I have shot some 22 cal.  guns over here and so far has been fine with that.  I haven't had any points on birds yet(no opportunities yet) but alot of points in the yard at butterflies and what not. Right now she weighs 44 lbs but she eats like a horse.  She is hungry all the time,  and I think probally a bit over weight.  She has a ton of energy, loves to fetch and very social.  She acts like a diva most of the time and usually gets her way as far as getting out of her kennnel, and coming inside. I'm not sure to what level I will train her to.  If the trainer really likes what he sees I'll probally try and get her titled through the APLA. If not I know she'll be one hell of a
 hunting dog with her natural abilities and gun dog training. I'll keep in touch with you and let you know how she progresses, I look forward to sending you that picture of her locked up on a pheasant.
Cheers
Cory

Tucker~
     I've been working with Tucker with some of the grouse wings, but I haven't had him on any of the trails with me yet while I've been hunting. The other day I took him down to the lake and he swam down about 5 feet and brought me a stick he grabbed off the bottom. I couldn't believe it, it was pretty impressive.
Ashley


Rudy~
     Dave, yesterday Rudy completed four weeks of Intro to Hunting Training with John Luttrell of Luttrell Kennels in Clark, SD.  Rudy will be with me this fall and then travels south with John for three months of Gun Dog training in Arkansas this winter.  Here is just one of the many kind words John has to say about Rudy.  "Scott, you need to start duck hunting, because that dog loves the water and loves to retrieve ducks."
     On the return trip home Rudy and I stopped at a WMA in western MN to get out and stretch our legs a bit.  We hunted it for about and hour.  Rudy flushed two roosters of which he retrieved both for me.  Rudy's off to a good start at his young age.
Thanks,
Scott


Oakley~
Oakley is doing great!!  He just got back from his first two weeks of hunting training where he was introduced to birds and guns. He did very well and loves to chase birds and retrieve. In November he returns to Whistles and Wings, Watertown, SD for more formal training.
Oakley’s favorite activities are going for long walks, especially when he can go swimming and retrieve things from the water and playing with other dogs – he loves them and we have to stop to say hello to every dog we meet. He also has fun playing Frisbee and has even learned to catch them in the air sometimes.
He is a great dog, loves people and we couldn’t be happier with his disposition. He has been a great addition to our family.
Brian & Karen

Bear~
     Bear (Brezee Oaks Brother Bear, Bear-Bear, Big-boy) now weighs 51lbs. Its amazing how much has changed since the last update. Our trip "Up North" was a huge success as Bear became a snorkeler, a boat rider, a golf cart rider, and a fisherman. That trip in early August was Bear's introduction to "school", sit, stay and come were firmly established. Within a couple of weeks of that he was whistle trained to do the same....off leash.  Every morning Bear goes for a three mile walk with grandpa and every night (sometimes my youngest daughter helps) I work with Bear for about a half an hour. He's been introduced to gun fire and pigeons (talk about excitement!!). His single retrieves have been 50-80 yards into medium cover, doubles have been limited to 30-40 yards. We've been working with hand signals (base ball) for 3-4 weeks as well as lining (sight blinds). These I set out at 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 yards, all within his sight. Bear is fast! And a retrieving machine! Sometimes I shake my head because he just won't stop!  With the lack of birds in SE MN I might try to get Bear to a pheasant preserve just to see if we can bring out some points on some tighter holding birds.
     The picture I've included is a striking similarity to Baker, same head, tail, body and broad shoulders for a little boy. When he chews his rawhides he lays on the floor with his legs spread straight back just like Hailey. I think he's a good mix of the two. He is loved by all, especially his new momma and is very spoiled, just like every retriever should be!
Thanks Dave!
Jeff & Teri

Sasha~
     Sasha is now up to 47#. She has been a wonderful addition to our family. I have taken her out grouse hunting a couple of times. She has done pretty
 good with only limited training by me. She has been very eager to work the cover and has shown very good instincts in the field. I look forward to seeing how good she can be when she is fully trained. She gets very excited when the shotgun gets brought out and she retrieved a grouse that Jody shot. The boys play with her every day and she has developed a love of playing football with the boys. She loves to steal the football from them.
Thanks,
Sean & Jody

Ruby~
Ruby is doing great! She had her first hunting trip last weekend and retrieved 5 ducks and kicked up multiple pheasants. She is a true hunting dog! She loved every minute of it and is now catching up on all of her naps. She continues to be a great addition to our family, especially with the kids. Not a day goes by that she's not wrestling with them, or following them around the house, or trying to eat their snacks, which she loves, of course. Ruby still has tons of energy and loves her daily walks and chasing squirrels and rabbits around the neighborhood. She and Maggie are getting along very well now also. They sleep together, play together, and worked well together in the field last weekend.
We hope all is going well with you!
Lynne and Nathan

Sage~



Sage is weighing in at 45 pounds and still growing like a weed. She has been doing pretty good with everything. She absolutely loves to be in the field on our almost daily walks. She does a good job sniffing things out. Her retrieving is very strong out to about 40 yards. She has a lot of excitement to go get the dummy and bring it back. As far as obedience goes I haven't pushed it too far yet but she is doing alright with sit, stay, and come, for some reason way better in field than at the house. She has been on grouse up north and even locked up on point after one flushed into a tree. I could tell she was learning the game quickly just after one weekend up there. My family has a lot of fun with her and we couldn't ask for a better dog.
Thanks
Lucas, Misty and Kendra