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| Anne and Shooter (Braque du Bourbonnais) |
Although most of the state is covered with a blanket of snow, the training season is nearly upon us - the Three Forks Training Camp is just a month away. We had a great turn out this month for the Annual Meeting, considering the nasty weather throughout the state over that weekend - thanks to all who ventured to Great Falls to set the path for the coming year. Although we'll be adding plenty of training opportunities, the following dates were adopted:
Testing:
May 3 & 4 - Billings NA, UPT & UT
May 31 & June 1 - Whitefish NA, UPT & UT
August 8-10 - Wisdom NA, UPT & UT
All of the Test Dates have been accepted by NAVHDA and we have secured most of the Judges we need for the tests.
Training:
Three Forks - March 27 -30 (Directions and Camping Info Forthcoming)
Wisdom - August 2-7
Whitefish - Dates forthcoming
Billings - Dates forthcoming
Other Locations and Dates to be come.
NAVHDA Handler's Clinic:
August 2-3 (Approved NAVHDA Clinic Leader to be Named)
Snake Avoidance Clinic (Snake Breaking):
Whitefish - June 1
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| Derek Jennings, training "Stop to Flush" with his Griff at the first Three Forks Training - 2011 |
DOGTRA DONATION
Dogtra Company donated a 2500 T & B collar to the Montana Sharptail Chapter. We will use this collar as the Grand Prize for a raffle benefiting the Youth Scholarship Fund. More info can be found here: SHARPTAIL YOUTH RAFFLE
Directions for purchasing tickets are on the raffle web page. If you are interested in helping sell tickets, please contact Tom at 406-212-5767 or montanasharptail@gmail.com .
THE 'PROGRESSIVE VERSATILE DOG DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM'
Admittedly, it is a program in search of a better name, but it was unanimously approved as a priority for the Sharptail Chapter at the annual meeting. In essence, it is formalizing a chapter project that puts "Training for Hunting" on equal footing with "Training for Tests" at all of our Training Camps. The following encompasses the goals of the PVDD program:
“Natural
Ability” or “NA” testing and training is usually how people are introduced to
NAVHDA. The elements of Natural Ability
are key components to the foundation of any versatile hunting dog – swimming,
tracking, field search, pointing and use of nose in addition to understanding
and developing “desire” and “cooperation” are the first stepping stones to
developing a solid and productive relationship with your companion.
Once a team of dog and owner have completed “Natural
Ability,” the goal of the Montana Sharptail Chapter is to stay dedicated to the
continued development of that partnership, whether or not a member decides to
pursue continued testing such as “Utility” or “Utility Prep,” through the
NAVHDA system. The mission of NAVHDA and
the Sharptail Chapter certainly pertains to testing and the dissemination of
information, however, it also includes helping members learn the fundamentals
of training versatile hunting dogs in a manner that results in the safe,
ethical and efficient taking and recovery of game. As a result, the Montana Sharptail chapter is
developing a “Progressive Versatile Dog
Development” program (PVDD) devoted to assisting chapter members who are
unsure about, or simply not interested in the continued testing of their
dog. In its program development, the
chapter is fully committed to giving equal footing to PVDD, in conjunction with
seminars, clinics, training camps and testing.
The “Progressive Versatile Dog Development” program will begin with a survey and
assessment of the dog’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as help identify the
inclinations and priorities of the owner/trainer. There will be no tests, judges, scores,
prizes, or awards within the program – simply a framework that should help the
owner identify priorities while working both with the chapter and while at
home.
Elements
of the program will include, but are not limited to:
* Improvement of the "Field Relationship of dog and owner
* Developing
“Retrieve” – from polishing a “Natural Retrieve” to a fully “Trained
Retrieve”
* Establishing “Stop to Flush” and “Stop to
Shot”
* "Lining Drills" for blind retrieves on both land and in water
* "Marking Drills" for singles and multiples on both land and water
* Development of "Manners in the Blind" for Waterfowl Hunting
* "Backing" or "Honoring" from point through the retrieve
* Steadiness to "Shot" and/or "fall"
* "Trash Breaking" including Deer, Porcupines and Snakes
* General Obedience Skills
The goal is to develop PVDD as a Montana
Sharptail Chapter project through at least the coming year and assess our gains
at year end. Input from novices through
experienced chapter members will be key to its success.
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| Christine, Natalie and GSP Double Dutch in Wisdom, MT |
FACEBOOK:
The Montana Sharptail Facebook Page is a great way to keep in touch with Chapter Members, folks who have moved away from Montana, and the greater NAVHDA community. It is very important that the page reflects the mission and objectives of the chapter and NAVHDA at large. We strongly encourage "Facebook Group Members" to be chapter members, although we also understand that folks move away, or occasionally test with the chapter, and "Chapter Membership" is not absolutely essential to "stay in touch." That said, we are in the process implementing some new administrative controls on the page, simply to make sure that all posts comply with our 501(c)3 status (For example, no posts should be political in nature, or conduct commerce such as offering "goods for sale" or "looking to buy". Another good example is the posting of photo of a litter of puppies - that would be fine - mentioning that they are 'for sale,' however, would NOT be okay. Additionally, we need to make sure the page complies with our insurance policy. For example, what may seem a harmless statement of - "Hey, I caught a bunch of pigeons - if anyone wants to come to my place and train - just let me know" - could be construed as a sponsored event in which case we'd need to make sure all insurance parameters are met. It should be fairly easy to keep the page consistent with the chapter objectives, and 99% of what has been posted in the past is great and appropriate stuff - our great and beloved dogs, hunting, training, state land status, how to release your dog from traps, testing, etc. Hopefully the page becomes both more popular and more useful, as well as an avenue for informal chapter communication. Please visit the page to request "Facebook Group Membership."
WISH LIST UPDATE:
First of all, a huge thanks goes out to folks who have contributed to the Chapter Wish List . To-date, we have received gifts for a 12 gauge Single-shot, 8 Bird Crates, an "Easy-up Tent, 2 Launchers, a Set of Decoys, a Garbage Can and several Bumpers. Folks have asked, and we certainly will take "in-kind" donations - we just want to make sure, for example, that things like chairs nest together and are efficiently transportable.