Freighter is entered in his first Master Hunter test this weekend.  Master level tests are quite a bit different from Junior and Senior level tests so I thought I would write a short series to explain what is involved.

There are some titles that a dog can earn over the course of a day, or even after passing just one test.  The Retriever Master Hunter title is not one of those.  Each Master Hunter test has three series (more about those later), and is held over the course of two days.  In order to earn a title, a dog must pass 6 tests, (5 if the dog has its Senior Hunter Title).

One of the difficulties with testing toward the Master Hunter title is finding tests to enter.  As I said, each test takes an entire weekend so opportunities are limited.  In Michigan this year, there were only 3 tests offered so most certainly Freighter will have to travel for some tests.

Most clubs limit Master entries (usually to 60, 90, or 120 entries).  Many times this is due to limited club resources such as land available for testing or workers to work the test, (remember the club must also offer Junior and Senior tests along with Master tests).  As a result, it can be difficult to even get a spot.  When we first started running tests, the Master tests rarely filled so you could decide and enter a test just before it closed.  No more.  If you want to run a test, then you had better be right at your computer and enter the moment it opens.

These are the basics required for Master level tests according to the Rules and Regulations:

“Dogs shall be tested in a minimum of five hunting situations as follows: multiple land marks, multiple water marks, multiple marks on water and land, a land blind and a water blind (at least one that shall be a double blind in any combination). There shall be at least three series.  At least one of the series shall include a walk-up. Diversion birds and/or diversion shots such as described in Chapter 3, Section 24, must be used at least once.”

Marks are where the dogs watch the birds thrown in a field or pond.  Blinds are where the dogs does not watch the fall and does not know where the birds have been placed.  The dog is directed to the bird by their handler using whistles and arm signals.  A walk-up is where the dog walks at heel next to its handler and a bird is thrown in a surprise situation from a distance of 35-45 yards away in a surprise situation.  This tests steadiness.

A diversion shot is sometimes fired as a dog is returning with a mark to signal a blind.  Diversion birds must be presented in front of the dog while it is returning with a bird.  The dog should not drop the bird it is retrieving in order to pick up the diversion bird.

Notice the rules say “there shall be at least at least three series”, the judges can elect to have the dogs run more than three series, but this does not happen very often.

Tomorrow I will go into more detail of what a dog might see during each series.