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Mike and
Teasel's Story
On a warm
Sunday afternoon this April, my dog and I were
award a Certificate of Merit at a Novice Working
Test for Spaniels. I had watched my cocker spaniel
hunting and retrieving in front of two judges
together with fellow competitors and was very proud
in the knowledge that in the same week we had also
passed Grade 4 of the Gundog Club Training Awards
Scheme for hunting retrievers.
So how did I
get here ? - If anyone had asked me 18 months
earlier if I had heard of working tests for dogs, or
knew of terms such as “quartering” I would have
replied with some disinterest that I had no idea.
I am an ordinary chap - a decorator by trade, who
had through unforeseen circumstances been left with
a 9 month old brown coloured cocker spaniel dog
called Teasel who seemed alert and full of energy
and it had been my responsibility to take care of
him.
The prospect
of bringing up a young dog who seemed keen to zoom
off at the first chance was indeed daunting . Whilst
out walking with Teasel I had met with some owners
with their dogs who were attending training
classes in a local hall each week, but this appeared
a chore rather than an interest, so I turned to the
internet for help !
Teasel I
discovered was known as a Field Spaniel, a breed of
Gun Dog and my search swiftly led me to the “Gun Dog
Club” and an article on their site entitled “The
Benefits of Gun Dog Training”. Whist I had no
intention of taking up shooting it did state “Give
yourself and your lively, intelligent dog a great
new hobby” and it explained that the courses
offered would teach me how to control and enjoy my
dog outdoors. Here was something that not only
offered training, but that I would possibly find
enjoyable as well !
The Gun Dog
Club web site helpful and informative and I booked a
Grade 1 course which was being run by one of their
instructors, Andrew.
Arriving with Teasel on the first day I met the
rest of the group and by the end of the session I
knew that it was not my dog who had been assessed,
but me as well and it was clear that success would
be best achieved when a really good relationship had
developed between Teasel and I. We had received
instructions on handling and had also been given a
brief demonstration by couple of Andrews dogs and
rather than seeing the road ahead as long and
arduous, we all went home enthusiastic to practice
the basic tasks we had been given before the next
session.
It would be
wrong to suggest that it has all been plain sailing,
and indeed I am indebted to Andrew for both the
patience and skill he imparts in order to ensure
that all of us on the courses achieve our goals. As
I reflect on the last eighteen months, I am very
grateful to Gun Dog Club for introducing me to what
seems like a different world. Teasel and I have
passed Grades 1 to 4 of the Training awards and I
have met with many different people who share
similar interests and who are like a team who
support each other.
I have even
taken Teasel on a number of shoots where the skills
he has learned have been put to a practical use. It
is this that perhaps surprises me the most as it was
far from my mind when I first joined the group in
a field for a “bit of training”. It now gives me
great pleasure to watch my dog enjoying life to the
full doing what he was bred for.
Michael Hazell-Smith April 2010
For more information on Gundog
Club training courses or one-to-one tuition,
telephone 01428 717529
To find a beginner's course in
your area
click here
If you have a story to tell us
about your dog, please email it to
admin@thegundogclub.co.uk with a digital
photo of your dog. We publish a selection of
stories from our readers. Please do not send
hard copies of your photos. We regret that we
cannot use or return them.
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