The Puppy, Special Puppy and Novice Dog/Novice Handler tests were held at The Fishing Lodge, near Bourton-on-the-Water by kind permission of Tim and Charlotte Earnshaw.
The judges were Laurie Pittaway and Charlotte Earnshaw, who kindly stepped in to judge for us at short notice when Sandra Onens was taken ill. We were blessed with good weather and managed to get packed away before a heavy shower in the afternoon.
The puppies attempted four exercises in the morning. The first exercise was a seen retrieve in woodland followed by an unseen retrieve in the same place. The second exercise was a seen retrieve thrown over the shallow, reed lined River Dikler. The third exercise was a test of steadiness; a seen retrieve was thrown onto the track in front, the handlers then had to turn and walk the dogs to heel away from the retrieve until they reached a small jump. There, the handler was then asked to recall the dog over the jump; before sending for the memory retrieve thrown earlier. The fourth and final exercise was a hunting exercise in long grass. There were three unseen dummies placed and the dogs had to pick one of them. A lot of dogs struggled to go in a straight line on this exercise as there were several rides cut in the grass which took the dogs off course.
After lunch, it was the turn of the special puppy and novice dog/novice handler groups who were put through their paces with extended versions of the morning's exercises. The first exercise was a double seen retrieve thrown in the woodland; one short and one long. The second exercise was again over the River Dikler, but this time a seen retrieve was thrown over the river followed by a second seen retrieve at 90 degrees to the left, which was to be retrieved first. The third exercise was an extended verison of the steadiness test in the morning; this time the distance for the memory retrieve was slightly longer and over a dry ditch. This was followed by a blind retrieve in the same place. Finally, the fourth exercise was a two dog walk-up with marked retrieves in front.
A friendly and relaxed atmosphere made the day a pleasure. A big thank you to our judges and all the helpers for giving up their day. Also thanks to our sponsors, Skinners.
The results were as follows - please note no awards were made for Special Puppy:-
Puppy (photo above)
| Position | Name | Dog Breed/Sex | Dog Name |
|---|
| 1st |
Mrs M Jarrod |
GR D |
Crystlstream Harris |
| 2nd |
Mrs P Constantine |
Lab D |
Roxhart Red Rum |
| 3rd |
Mr J Cornforth |
Lab B |
Roxhart Winnie |
| 4th |
Mrs H Cadman |
Lab D |
Fendawood Kurtis |
| COM |
Mr K Phillips |
Lab D |
Fendawood Jacob |
Novice Dog/Novice Handler (photo above)
| Position | Name | Dog Breed/Sex | Dog Name |
|---|
| 1st |
Mrs J Justice |
Lab B |
Finnians Girl Scout |
| 2nd |
Mr A Doyle |
Lab B |
Macmillane Halle Lady |
| 3rd |
Mrs L Carse |
Lab D |
Shipka Heron Ridge Sandwort |
| 4th |
Mrs A Jackson |
Lab B |
Beatrisa Joy |