Well, Blaze had an absolutely brilliant run at gun dog nationals. Ran big, rimmed fields, and had 4 beautiful finds!! I couldn't have asked for more from my little boy.
Conditions were tough with strong wind gusts, so his first find was taken as a non-productive (handler couldn't produce a bird). Turns out the bird had run 30 yards down the edge and someone in the gallery rode it up after we left.
The judges were loving him, 2 different judges told handler and scout that "he didn't need anymore birds, just get him done"....and then it happened!
He rounded a corner at 59 minutes and as we came around we found him standing on point. What we (and the judges) didn't see was the hawk that swooped down and took the quail right out from in front of him! The gallery saw it from the other side of the edge and the photographer got pictures of the hawk with the quail in it's talons!
BUT that was his 2nd non-productive in a championship stake, so he was ordered up with less than a minute left in his hour brace.
If you'd like to see pictures of Blaze at Nationals, check out:
www.trialdogshots.com and click on the 2008 OPEN NGDC link at the top of the page, and then go to the OPEN Tuesday PM gallery. For some reason Page 4 comes up first for me, but if you go back a page, Blaze's pictures start at # 8566 and go straight through to the end of that gallery (she took LOTS of pictures of my boy).
My absolute favorits are 8571 (a picture of Blaze with John, who has handled him for me since I broke my arm), and 8900, though I have to sort through them and figure out which ones I'd like to buy. 8571 is getting matted and framed and given to John as a thank you gift though....that's for sure! The photographer even blew up 8900 and put her website/contact information on it and hung it in the clubhouse to advertise!
This weekend Blaze did a great job and came home with a red ribbon in a 25 dog Open Gun Dog stake, so he's already requalified to run at Nationals again next year!! Woo Hoo!!!
Blaze's run at Gun Dog Nationals
Moderators: Barb Wright, Lisa
. Go on vacation to Mt. and we'll go hunt birds . Levi will be ready and Blaze can teach him . 
Dave-
Muddy Creek Britts
- Zinger
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Dave-
Jacksbuddy
- Field Trial Champion
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Congrats Karen and Blaze. You must be really proud of him. The pictures are fantastic.
Hey Dave, My hunting partners friend from Craig (who was a great host) has never hunted birds over a dog, we are talking about meeting up in South Dakota next year to do some hunting but Montana would work too
.
Hey Dave, My hunting partners friend from Craig (who was a great host) has never hunted birds over a dog, we are talking about meeting up in South Dakota next year to do some hunting but Montana would work too
.
"In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog."
- Edward Hoagland
Blazes run at Gun Dog Nationals
If my mutt wasnt gun shy he would be the best Squirrel dog around. He can spot and tree them buggers from a mile away.