Well, many of you had been very helpful and encouraging with my rescued golden experiment, and it has run it's course. She just doesn't seem to have the chops. She gets excited about the work for a bit, and then just wants to lay down and watch the world go by.
Well, a few weeks ago, we had to put my beloved Bronte down. She was a 14 yo Aussie who knew she was my dog long before we ever met. It was a day that we knew was coming, because she had some arthritis that couldn't really be contained, and she was having "episodes", where she'd lose lucidity and panic.
Even knowing what was coming, I took it hard. Then I had a series of odd things happen to me. First, I had a dream about a litter of golden retriever puppies I saw advertised here on the RTF. Not a dream about puppies, or "the" dog ... merely me looking at the website (I guess that's one of the drawbacks of being a computer nerd, by trade). I had mentioned that to my wife, and said that I wasn't all that sure that I was quite ready for another dog, or if this was the right time for a puppy. But that I really wanted a hunting dog, I knew she really wanted another golden, and there aren't all that many golden litters to choose from with hunting pedigrees. So I said that I thought that we should think and pray on it. Well, that night, I was watching a TV show about dogs. They had a section in it where they were talking about labs, and they talked about losing a cherished friend (actually, Amy Dahl was interviewed for it). The narrator followed that up by saying something along the lines of "... and the best way to deal with the loss of a cherished friend is ... TO GET A PUPPY!". My jaw dropped open and my wife, whose back was turned to the tv, stopped and turned around, and said "They did not just freaking say that, did they?".
After all that, and some very hard thinking and praying, we have welcomed Cypress Creek Belle of the Ball to the house. She is beautiful, wonderful, an absolute joy, and an absolute pain in the rear! Potty training is proving to be difficult, but otherwise, she's really sharp, and seems to really be ready to hunt. I took a trip to the booming metropolis of Floydada, TX this weekend for a pheasant/duck/goose/crane hunting trip. I took her with me to 1) get her introduced to the field, the dogs and maybe some birds, and 2) make sure my wife didn't give her away before I got back (Belle REALLY seems to have no interest in potty training). Man, she was great. We got some teal, and I brought them back to her to see what her reaction was. On the first toss, she ran out after it, grabbed it by the wing, and took off running with it. The second and third tosses, she went out, grabbed the wing first, rest to get the body, then brought it right back to me. The highlight of the trip for everyone was her grabbing ahold of the sandhill crane wing, and trying to bring THAT bird to me.
Unbeknownced to me ... we also found out that she isn't gun shy (at the moment). My dad had stayed back at the truck while we had driven the field out to a playa, hunted for some waterfowl, and drove the field back. Well, he isn't versed on the nuances of introducing dogs to guns. So, he had her out of the box so she could play around a bit, while about 5 of the guys were driving the field back to the truck. About 50 yards out, a rooster flushes and they pop off a few shots. Her response was to run towards the shooting to see what was going on. Apparently, later they were all sitting around when some cranes flew over, and they ALL emptied their guns. Everyone there said she just sat there and looked around and wagged her tail. I know I really dodged a bullet on that one, and I'm still planning on working her slowly as far as getting her aquainted with the gun.
Sorry for the long post. I don't post often, so I guess I try and get my money's worth. But, I've dug out all the books whose puppy sections I had take a very cursory look at, and I will be much more active with all kinds of obnoxious newbie questions.
Well, a few weeks ago, we had to put my beloved Bronte down. She was a 14 yo Aussie who knew she was my dog long before we ever met. It was a day that we knew was coming, because she had some arthritis that couldn't really be contained, and she was having "episodes", where she'd lose lucidity and panic.
Even knowing what was coming, I took it hard. Then I had a series of odd things happen to me. First, I had a dream about a litter of golden retriever puppies I saw advertised here on the RTF. Not a dream about puppies, or "the" dog ... merely me looking at the website (I guess that's one of the drawbacks of being a computer nerd, by trade). I had mentioned that to my wife, and said that I wasn't all that sure that I was quite ready for another dog, or if this was the right time for a puppy. But that I really wanted a hunting dog, I knew she really wanted another golden, and there aren't all that many golden litters to choose from with hunting pedigrees. So I said that I thought that we should think and pray on it. Well, that night, I was watching a TV show about dogs. They had a section in it where they were talking about labs, and they talked about losing a cherished friend (actually, Amy Dahl was interviewed for it). The narrator followed that up by saying something along the lines of "... and the best way to deal with the loss of a cherished friend is ... TO GET A PUPPY!". My jaw dropped open and my wife, whose back was turned to the tv, stopped and turned around, and said "They did not just freaking say that, did they?".
After all that, and some very hard thinking and praying, we have welcomed Cypress Creek Belle of the Ball to the house. She is beautiful, wonderful, an absolute joy, and an absolute pain in the rear! Potty training is proving to be difficult, but otherwise, she's really sharp, and seems to really be ready to hunt. I took a trip to the booming metropolis of Floydada, TX this weekend for a pheasant/duck/goose/crane hunting trip. I took her with me to 1) get her introduced to the field, the dogs and maybe some birds, and 2) make sure my wife didn't give her away before I got back (Belle REALLY seems to have no interest in potty training). Man, she was great. We got some teal, and I brought them back to her to see what her reaction was. On the first toss, she ran out after it, grabbed it by the wing, and took off running with it. The second and third tosses, she went out, grabbed the wing first, rest to get the body, then brought it right back to me. The highlight of the trip for everyone was her grabbing ahold of the sandhill crane wing, and trying to bring THAT bird to me.
Unbeknownced to me ... we also found out that she isn't gun shy (at the moment). My dad had stayed back at the truck while we had driven the field out to a playa, hunted for some waterfowl, and drove the field back. Well, he isn't versed on the nuances of introducing dogs to guns. So, he had her out of the box so she could play around a bit, while about 5 of the guys were driving the field back to the truck. About 50 yards out, a rooster flushes and they pop off a few shots. Her response was to run towards the shooting to see what was going on. Apparently, later they were all sitting around when some cranes flew over, and they ALL emptied their guns. Everyone there said she just sat there and looked around and wagged her tail. I know I really dodged a bullet on that one, and I'm still planning on working her slowly as far as getting her aquainted with the gun.
Sorry for the long post. I don't post often, so I guess I try and get my money's worth. But, I've dug out all the books whose puppy sections I had take a very cursory look at, and I will be much more active with all kinds of obnoxious newbie questions.
