A Novice Handler and Puppy at the Volunteer Brittany Club Walking Field Trial

 

Chakotay Du Pond View, an eight month old Epagneul Breton from breeder Dennis Hartsell, had his first AKC Field Trial experience March 22 and 23, 2008, in a foot handled Field Trial put on by the Volunteer Brittany Club at their field trial grounds east of Memphis, Tennessee. Chakotay's sire is Tango Du Hameau De Sorny, and his dam is Urmi Abigail Du Hartsell. For our first Field Trial, I entered Chakotay in three stakes, Amateur Walking Derby and Puppy on the 22nd, and Open Walking Puppy on the 23rd. He took a second place in Amateur Puppy, and a third in Open Puppy. Not only am I a novice handler, but Chakotay was running against some older dogs, so I am extremely pleased with his placements.

 

When I settled on an EB last summer, I told Dennis I wanted a dog who would grow up to be more "assertive" than my last dog, one I could train not to balk at ladders on trails in my local Blue Ridge Mountains, for instance. Overall, I wanted a dog who would not quit on me. Well, that's this dog. He has asserted himself right into the world of bird hunting, someplace I didn't think I was going.

 

Fortunately for me, we live near NSTRA pro Nolan Huffman, so I've been able to give Chakotay an opportunity to point pigeons, and now quail, about once a week. As each week passes, I've asked Nolan somewhat hopefully if he thinks we should stop coming down for workouts. I've finally stopped asking him, as I can now tell on my own that this is a little dog who lives for the field. It is, of course, the dog's fault that I now own a 20 gauge shotgun, and spend my weekends driving ridiculous distances to give him the opportunity to hunt birds. 

 

At our most recent bird-finding adventure in western Tennessee, other pointing breeds were well-represented, but I was most interested in seeing the many American Brittanys. Though I admit to being nervous about the reception for my tri-color black Epagneul Breton, I needn't have worried. Many people were already impressed with Ken Blackman's EB, Tank. The American Brittany folks were eager to share their show and trial knowledge regarding their breed, and were interested in my puppy. Louise and Danny Brown of Big-Oaks Kennels in Mississippi helped me to feel at home right away, while Nan Crites constantly filled in the gaps for me, even as event secretary she had to fill in the gaps for everyone and everything over the weekend. 

 

The weather in western Tennessee was gorgeous both days, with a strong wind a constant reminder to participants that it was still early spring. There was great fellowship among all participants from the start of the field trial. Judge Ken Blackman allowed me to hold his horse, Red, while it grazed which gave me an opportunity to introduce Chakotay to horses. Chakotay is still very much in the bouncing joys of puppyhood stage, so Red has to be considered most tolerant for putting up with a puppy interested in every blade of grass Red tried to nibble. It was opportunities like introducing Chakotay to Red that made the long drive from Boone, NC worthwhile regardless of how we faired in the competition.

For me, the course had a challenging start, but I was determined to to learn by watching as many braces as I could. The start was steep enough to make me out of breath keeping up with the horses, but after the first couple of rolling hills the course lent itself to observing the interactions between handlers, dogs, and terrain. After a slight (for a horse) rise, the course gave dogs several options, a scramble to a raised plateau, a hidden marshy pond area, and a wide, heavily vegetated depression in the ground in addition to the obvious straight ahead path for the handler. It was fascinating to see how dogs of different ages and degrees of training sorted out the choice of objectives. As a first time participant in not only a Field Trial, but in an AKC event of any kind, it was helpful to get an open invitation from judges and handlers to follow along on the course, which was a great learning opportunity. I felt rather small next to all the mounted riders, but never out of place, which again, I think, is a testament to the good will of the participants.

 

The foot handled field trial was great exercise and a great experience for both dog and handler. I learned that Chakotay needs more opportunities to use his nose in a variety of situations; the windy, dry conditions seemed, at times, to confuse him. So as long as he keeps loving to search for birds, I'll have to keep looking for places to take him. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for more AKC foot-handled field trials.