A vibrant mixture of gun dog enthusiasts came from as far as Austria to participate in a gun dog weekend which was
aimed at raising funds for Help For Heroes and ABF (The Soldiers Charity).
Twistmount Gun Dog weekend was held in the beautiful location of Moorwood Farm,
by kind permission of Mr & Mrs Drinkall. The stunning farmhouse and grounds
were the perfect setting for this unique event and offered all the ingredients for various
challenging tests and scurries. The event
seemed like just a glimmer in Neil Varney's eye last year and after months of hard work and dedication it was
transformed into reality. For my husband
and I it was an invitation to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life and
immerse ourselves in the beautiful Somerset countryside, raise money for a
worthwhile cause and enjoy watching some of the top gun dogs in the country.
The early morning mist was beginning to clear in the fields
as we arrived in Bruton. A thin layer of
silver mist cloaked around the huge oak trees in the field as we parked up.
The
grey sky was overcast and there was a light breeze. Neil's team were on standby at the entrance
and directed us towards the farmhouse. We had an optimistic feeling that the
last dregs of our wet weather were behind us...just for today. The aromas of coffee and bacon
sarnies emanating from the catering van wafted down the drive. The competitors for the AV/KC novice tests were
registering at the check in desk and we could
feel a sense of excited and anticipation of the day ahead. A mixture of gundogs
and handlers gathered together. Neil had also organised fun tests and scurries
for the public to have a try. Chris Walton had been invited to judge the fun
working test. She said "This fun test gives handlers and dogs an
opportunity to gain an insight to the working test environment and have a go at various tests aimed
at spaniels and retrievers. It's a great day out and something for
everyone."
It was clear that Neil and his team had been inspired to
create something they were passionate about and make their chosen idea more
than just an event. It was a unique opportunity to raise money for ABF/HFH and invite the gun dog community to come together and enjoy their
passion and interests.
I had entered Ivy into the AV KC Novice Retriever class and I was a little nervous as it was my first
official AV working test. For me handling is about enjoying the tests and I believed as a team we were ready for the
day ahead. Once all competitors had
registered we headed off in groups towards the first retrieve.
Test 1: Two blind retrieves in a fir plantation.
Gilly Nickols was our
first judge and explained we had a tricky start with a double blind. The test
was challenging and Gilly was extremely supportive. I managed to stay calm, focus and think about my
commands as I sent Ivy out. She successfully
retrieved the first blind with little encouragement from me. On the second retrieve I needed to stop her several times and send her back further which enabled her to pick up the
dummy and deliver nicely to hand.
Test 2: Seen retrieve off to the left into undergrowth.
Another shot fired and blind retrieve
straight ahead.
No problems with the first retrieve and Ivy delivered nicely
to hand. The challenge for me was the second retrieve. I
sent Ivy out to the right but due to handler error I pushed her too far to the right. With some handling I managed to
get her back and she winded the dummy and retrieved it nicely to hand. This was
a challenging test and fully tested some
of the dogs as well as the handlers.
Test 3: Long seen retrieve with shot in open woodland
followed by a blind with shot in the same area.
Ivy marked the first retrieve and went out clean with very
little commands from me she delivered perfectly to hand. The second retrieve
took some time! I managed to get her in the right area but she just couldn't
wind the dummy. I persevered and with lots of verbal handling she eventually
winded the dummy. The judge was patient, supportive and
encouraging!
Test4: Split seen retrieve marked by 2 shots into water. Handler had to indicate which dummy was going
to be picked first.
As I took Ivy's lead off I had a feeling she wasn't steady.
Being a young dog and her love of water made me think I had a challenge here
with her steadiness. Did she pick up on my concern? Within two seconds
of the second shot being fired Ivy had ran in. Keith Broomfield who was the
judge suggested I let her retrieve the dummy. Once she delivered it back to
hand I sent her out for the second dummy. The judge was very supportive and
encouraging with his feedback. My lack of training in this area was evident and something I need to work on.
The retriever judges
were all very approachable following the prize giving
and offered some valuable feedback. In the afternoon I
asked the judges for some general feedback. Keith Broomfield said "I've seen lots of good dogs on my water test today but just need more training to be able to get
it right. They were all keen and enthusiastic and there wasn't one that didn't
want to do the water retrieve. There were a few which had a couple of problems
like dropping the dummy, a few ran in, some went for the wrong dummy but with a
bit of work in training they'll all make good dogs."
Keith added " I gave a lot of zeros today but it wasn't
because they were bad dogs. It's just a lack of training. There were some
novice handlers that haven't done a lot of training yet to get the dogs right.
In a year's time I imagine they will be different dogs. I enjoyed watching
them today and there were plenty of dogs with potential."
The judge for test 2 said "There were a good range of
standards in my test ..some dogs getting 20 and others getting 0 and a few in
between."
One particular handler who certainly caught the judges eye
was Toby Boatswain with Aquacadisns
Irvin. His outstanding performance gained him 1st place for the KC Novice
Retriever Test.
Beaming from ear to ear
Toby said " We got on well today. There has been a good atmosphere
throughout the day. The tests might have seemed simple but they were challenging for the dog and handler.
"
Toby added " I need to work on blinds. There's always room for
improvement!"
Hilary Hardman with Willow Creek Flint of Luvixolbeck was awarded 2nd place and was delighted with
the result. Both worked hard as a team and stayed focused throughout the
morning. I was able to observe Hilary work her dog in the water retrieve and I admired
her quiet and confident handling. I also
saw this with Ben Thompson. I was fortunate to watch Ben in most of the tests
and his handling was calm and focused. Both a pleasure to watch!
Participating in Twistmount tests gave the opportunity to demonstrate the dog's abilities and the skill of the handler. It has highlighted areas I need to work
on and I have seen Ivy's progress and identified her strengths. I left Twistmount with
a sense of personal achievement. I was
so proud of Ivy and it felt wonderful to be part of a HFH charitable event.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable and fun day. Working tests are part of my gun dog journey. I'm observing and learning fundamental skills from the judges, handlers and dogs which I hope to embed in the
future. My blog with Ivy continues...
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