A big thank you to everyone from far and wide who have been in touch hoping we were all ok and had survived the terrible floods that followed the heavy rain last Friday in and around South East Wales. This was very much appreciated. The speed at which the rain and flooding came was a shock to everyone. We had a shoot day planned Gloucester side of Ross-On-Wye. The day started damp but nothing out of the ordinary, the shoot captain decided that we would shoot through doing 3 possibly 4 drives depending on the weather. No partridge to be shot. The first 2 drives were like normal with damp rain. There were plenty of birds making for some very good retrieves. By the middle of the third drive the heavens opened and down it came. The drive was cut short. I had 3 runners and several birds to pick. When you have wounded game to pick you pick regardless of weather. For all those who work Chesapeakes will know they love the rain so the dogs were as game as I was.
Well done to those who took the high road to The Gundog Breeds Of Scotland. The judge was Mr Hans Stigt without CCs, there were 11 entries. BOB BD & BP Mahon-Hunns, Middleton & Heskin’s Susqudilla Yankee Shadow (imp USA); RBD Boyles & Boyles’ SH CH Pixierock Mr Tumnus By Bleyos JW; BB Watts’ Oakmarsh Little Acorn JW; RBB Watts’ Oakmarsh Galatea; BV Mahon-Hunns, Hunns & Newton’s SH CH Arnac Bay Huron At Bergelle JW.
At Camberley & District Open Show BOB Middleton & Mayhew’s Arnac Bay Jellicoe JW, handled by Emily Evans.
If you have any results from open shows please let me know.
Here I am having another whinge again! This time it’s working dogs wearing collars. I can understand that the type of hunting many people do in other countries has called for the need for hunters and their dogs to wear bright orange clothing, with bright orange collars on the dogs. Much of this type of hunting is walked up in wood or high cover where camouflage clothing cannot be seen by other hunters. A Chesapeake especially can disappear into surrounding cover making them almost in visible which was and is one of the qualities of the breed, but not when you’re shooting in company when you need your dog to be obvious. One of the biggest differences between working a dog in other countries as opposed to working a dog in the UK is fences. I remember putting a fence in a working test I was judging on the continent, not one dog would jump it. They had the capability but not the training, why would they – they have almost no fences. I now see tests run when there are jumps to negotiate, these usually have a top tail. Fences in the UK are almost always wire and are lethal for any dog wearing a collar. I know dogs can get legs tangled and or cut themselves but I have seen dogs wearing collars and get caught up. The worst incident was when I first started working my own dogs I remember seeing a gun’s unruly dog tear off after a bird, following the fowl into a wood surrounded by a fence. The badly trained dog tried to climb the fence, his collar a metal choke chain, became hooked. No one could get to the dog in time.
If your dog is not steady on a shoot keep it on a lead and even if it is steady no collars. If you are on a shoot or rough shooting you will have had permission to have your dog there, you are not required to have a collar on your dog.
Janet Morris
07739 592323
penrosechesapeakes@gmail.com