This week we have been training hard.  We are working on those areas where Thunder was weak last weekend.  We also have Storm back so we are also training her to hopefully finish her Seasoned title.  She is doing very well and her handling is nice.

After last weekend, we decided that we really needed to challenge Thunder this week.  He got long marks that were close together and long blinds run in between the marks he had just picked up.  In a Senior test they are not allowed to run blinds between the marks, but we trained it anyway just in case the marks and blinds are close together this weekend. Both Thunder and Storm did well on this.  Blind 1 was at least 100 yards long.  For Thunder both birds for the blinds were placed in the field before we started running them.  Thunder could smell Blind 2 on his way to Blind 1. He really wanted to go toward Blind 2.  However, the training was to handle him away to Blind 1.  He had a couple of corrections but did fine on this.  It was good training.

We also ran water blinds along the bank of the pond with long and steep angle entries.  Thunder had no problems taking that steep angle entry into the water.  We still don’t quite know why he wouldn’t do it on Sunday, (maybe he was just having an off day?).  His handling once in the water could have been a bit crisper, but all in all he did well.

Unfortunately it has been raining every night so my camera has stayed home.  Instead I am sharing a great video taken by at the test last weekend.  You can see how absolutely beautiful the grounds were.  These grounds used to belong to a very famous Field Trialer so they are open and rolling with beautiful clean ponds.  There is a little explanation of the history of the grounds at the beginning of the video.  The video is of the Master test.  A Master test is run over two days and must have at least three series.  Each series has many elements.  The marks may be close together.  There may be multiple blinds in each series and a lot of factors involved that make it difficult for the dogs.  I understand that this test was quite challenging.  If you have a sharp eye, you might recognize Storm and Thunder’s trainer.  He is coming to the line in the first series with his very nice yellow lab JR.  JR is a great dog and already a Master Hunter.  He is trying to re-qualify for the Master National and he earned a pass at the test last weekend.  (I bet you thought that once a dog earns a Master Hunter title that the fun is over.  No, no.  Each year you can qualify your dog to run in the Master National by passing 6 Master tests during a year-long period.  Storm and Thunder’s trainer routinely has several dogs which qualify for Master National each year.)  You may also notice the dog trailer Storm spent a lot of her time in this summer.  🙂

Thank you to for this fabulous video!  If you have some time check out his other great videos of other tests.  They are all really well done.