Marvin S
05-21-2012, 11:42 AM
Sarge posted this on another thread, IMO it deserves it's own thread. So here goes.
I'm presently inactive - made my wife (same one I started in the sport with :cool:) a promise that I would spend more time with her when this old boy was done. Putter is now 12 & a retrieve is now an adventure. Time with the family is a very important part of who we all should strive to do. I still have the training equipment necessary & though chronologically challenged can see well enough to do a 400 yard blind though wonder about the necessity for that distance. Whether I get another Lab is a work in progress as I'm leaning to a Brittany - smaller package.
But there were other times, starting seriously in 1963, so I have seen the sport evolve somewhat - just not sure if it's gone the way it should. But there are many more people who can honestly call themselves "Dog People", though not sure most have a clue about the effort that's required to play on Retrieverdom's largest stage :-P.
Over the years I have been fortunate enough to have trained with some very successful Amateur's & Pro's. Have seen some very good dogs developed including a few of my own. The bumpers I still have were retrieved by dogs with every title available except CNAFTC. My goal when I bought my 1st dog was to have a well mannered hunting companion which has not changed, the bonus is how well a trained FT dog performs in the upland game. I've been to a few Nationals as both a worker or a competitor & can appreciate the effort that goes into these events.
As for my own dogs, started from puppies & except for a couple short stints at the pro, with the aid of pro day training, some amateur groups & the available training aids along with my wife helping it's been generally a self directed venture, FWTW. I can not emphasize enough being around other successful dogs & paying attention to what the workout leader is attempting to accomplish!
From that I was able to, 1 dog at a time, end up with 7 placing Derby dogs including a Derby lister, 3 AA placing dogs including an AFC & numerous QAA dogs that for one reason or another did not make it to the main dance. There is a required talent level to play & the idea of driving numerous miles, incurring expenses better spent elsewhere to exhibit a dog that can't get through the 1st series never appealed to me, though some do it regularly, I guess that's where a majority of the judging pool originates. I've owned one pup that was a $1K price, the rest have been less than that & some of those were too expensive :). I can sympathize with a breeder who gets all the clearances & recognize that is necessary for the "Does the dog have Papers buyer". Knowing what you want goes beyond papers.
My goal in training a dog was to leave as much in the dog as possible, hence my dog's looseness on the line, though I have seen others that deserved a disqualification that seemed to continue. With that I will conclude this post.
I'm presently inactive - made my wife (same one I started in the sport with :cool:) a promise that I would spend more time with her when this old boy was done. Putter is now 12 & a retrieve is now an adventure. Time with the family is a very important part of who we all should strive to do. I still have the training equipment necessary & though chronologically challenged can see well enough to do a 400 yard blind though wonder about the necessity for that distance. Whether I get another Lab is a work in progress as I'm leaning to a Brittany - smaller package.
But there were other times, starting seriously in 1963, so I have seen the sport evolve somewhat - just not sure if it's gone the way it should. But there are many more people who can honestly call themselves "Dog People", though not sure most have a clue about the effort that's required to play on Retrieverdom's largest stage :-P.
Over the years I have been fortunate enough to have trained with some very successful Amateur's & Pro's. Have seen some very good dogs developed including a few of my own. The bumpers I still have were retrieved by dogs with every title available except CNAFTC. My goal when I bought my 1st dog was to have a well mannered hunting companion which has not changed, the bonus is how well a trained FT dog performs in the upland game. I've been to a few Nationals as both a worker or a competitor & can appreciate the effort that goes into these events.
As for my own dogs, started from puppies & except for a couple short stints at the pro, with the aid of pro day training, some amateur groups & the available training aids along with my wife helping it's been generally a self directed venture, FWTW. I can not emphasize enough being around other successful dogs & paying attention to what the workout leader is attempting to accomplish!
From that I was able to, 1 dog at a time, end up with 7 placing Derby dogs including a Derby lister, 3 AA placing dogs including an AFC & numerous QAA dogs that for one reason or another did not make it to the main dance. There is a required talent level to play & the idea of driving numerous miles, incurring expenses better spent elsewhere to exhibit a dog that can't get through the 1st series never appealed to me, though some do it regularly, I guess that's where a majority of the judging pool originates. I've owned one pup that was a $1K price, the rest have been less than that & some of those were too expensive :). I can sympathize with a breeder who gets all the clearances & recognize that is necessary for the "Does the dog have Papers buyer". Knowing what you want goes beyond papers.
My goal in training a dog was to leave as much in the dog as possible, hence my dog's looseness on the line, though I have seen others that deserved a disqualification that seemed to continue. With that I will conclude this post.