Into an Open Gun Dog stake

These are a few pictures taken from horseback during an Open Gun Dog brace yesterday.

I rode two braces in Open Gun Dog and watched great dogs being directed by excellent handlers.

I can see a lot of training in my future if Bailey and I are going to give these dogs and handlers competition.

More Vizsla field trial pictures from last weekend

Spring time.



The sun felt good on cold skin. Saturday had been cold but Sunday the sun came out and the spririts rose with the sun.

I like these people that play this game. Fields, dogs, horses, good food, good drink along with friendships both new and old. Everything miles away from the grind.








Little Panoche is a great place to run and watch a trial.





The below picture shows a brace being run below a bluff where spectators can watch the action.



Nowhere else I have run Bailey have I been where a brace can be seen better.

Vizsla Trial Spring fun

March 6th and 7th. The Northern California Vizsla Club Spring Field Trial at Little Panoche Wildlife Area (Central California Valley).

Good people, good food, and great dogs.

Bailey finished second in Amateur Derby on Sunday. In Saturday we ran in Open Derby. We had some problems and didn't place, but then again there were some very good dogs and handlers.















































There were some excellent field dog trainers at the event. These folk love these dogs. The good ones have learned how to communicate with Vizslas and know the temperament of the breed.

Not all pointing breeds are trained the same.

Along with training the dogs, the professionals have learned how to play the "sport of field trialing game." This is a tough sport to learn and harder to teach.

The professional has to know how to communicate with the dogs and also with the dog's owner. A paid pro to stay in business has to win for the people who put their dogs under his instruction. I have a great respect for these individuals.




Bailey gets ready for a brace against his buddy Hank. They both ran great braces. Hank came in third.














Chloe got to enjoy the spring fields also.









Bailey is professionally "stacked" for his second place finish picture. Such a good looking boy.

Walking song with Vizslas

Vizslas, like most dogs, have excellent hearing. They can hear sounds from miles away.

A Vizsla can hear voices and sounds from a much greater distance than humans can.

I walk with Bailey during our field trial training in the open spaces, singing or humming "The Happy Wanderer." Here is a version I found on You Tube.



And here are the words translated from the 1810 German folksong:

The Happy Wanderer
I love to go a-wandering,
Along the mountain track,
And as I go, I love to sing,
My knapsack on my back.

Chorus:
Val-deri,Val-dera,
Val-deri,
Val-dera-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha
Val-deri,Val-dera.
My knapsack on my back.

I love to wander by the stream
That dances in the sun,
So joyously it calls to me,
"Come! Join my happy song!"

Chorus:
"Come! Join my happy song!"

I wave my hat to all I meet,
And they wave back to me,
And blackbirds call so loud and sweet
From ev'ry green wood tree.

Chorus:
From ev'ry green wood tree.

High overhead, the skylarks wing,
They never rest at home
But just like me, they love to sing,
As o'er the world we roam.

Chorus:
As o'er the world we roam.

Oh, may I go a-wandering
Until the day I die!
Oh, may I always laugh and sing,
Beneath God's clear blue sky!

Chorus:
Beneath God's clear blue sky!


I have been humming or singing the words to this song for over a year now. Bailey knows where I am from the sounds and doesn't have to keep coming back to "check in."


Bailey can be out 1/4 mile away, and since he hears me, he knows where I am.


Since he knows where I am, he is comfortable staying "out there" and hunting.




Judges during a field trial do not want a dog to keep coming back to the handler. This is one of the harder parts in training a pup to run in a competitive derby stake.
A rookie handler might want their dog close by so that he/she doesn't get lost. I make it Bailey's responsibility not to get lost, not mine.




Field trial judges, I have come to find out over my rookie season, are looking for those hunting dogs that can independently hunt and work the field out in front of the handler.
So, if you ever hear me singing "The Happy Wanderer" on a walk or at a field trial, don't be overly concerned.

I haven't totally lost it. Not totally.

It's all a part of the communication skills Bailey and I are developing.