[WRL]

Unca Jerry,
Are you tryin to be obstinate? I ain't saying that hunting makes you a good judge. I ain't saying hunting makes you know jack about setting up a good test. I definitely ain't saying I'd go try to set up and judge a spaniel trial after seeing 1 or 2 hunts or trials, but I wouldn't go judge with even the most experienced spanial judge in the world without having ever even seen a spaniel hunt! ALL I am getting at here is that to before becoming a hunt test judge of any sort, I believe a person ought to have been hunting with a retriever, preferably a trained one. And that is just my opinion, the worth of which I am well aware :wink:
Tina

And NBA refs need to have played the game before they can ref a game.....and a HS math teacher should have worked for the government crunching numbers before being able to teach in a school.....and a politician should be required to live in the "bad neighborhoods" in order to fairly represent those constituents (hey not a bad idea???).....

Anyway, as you see...it can go on and on and on....some of the WORST tests I have seen have been put on by "serious" hunters....

I think the BEST judges are judges who have trained and run their dogs. Hunting experience is a plus....but those hunters that pay pros to train their dogs don't necessarily have a clue about how to set up a test to TEST the dogs to the best of their abilities. I don't care how many days they spend in the field or how many birds they have shot.

I haven't hunted in a while. Frankly, if the ducks aren't flying and falling, I'd just as soon take a nap. But if you want a REAL hunting situation, then test a dog for sitting all day not eating your food you left out while you empty your shotgun on a flock of birds and don't touch a feather. THAT"S A REAL HUNTING SITUATION!

Hts and Fts are about TESTING dogs for learned abilities and natural traits that would be helpful in locating downed game for a hunter.

WRL