Many years ago, a friend and I attended an all age field trial held near Mortlach, Sask. A highlight for me was riding the brace when Ferrel Miller handled his 2002 National Champion, a liver-and-white pointer male named Miller’s True Spirit.
Ferrel is well-known in the bird dog field trial world. He was highly successful as an amateur handler who also bred a string of mostly white pointers. He was honored by the sport when he was elected to the Field Trial Hall of Fame in 1993. But his penchant for bending ownership rules and falsifying pedigrees for dogs he bred cost him dearly. Ferrel was banned for life from competing in American Field trials and from registering any dogs in the Field Dog Stud Book.
Ferrel Miller and CH Miller’s Happy Jack (from dogsanddoubles.com)
The brace broke away in late morning on a course of sparse, slightly rolling, short-grass fields and cattle pastures, bordered by brushy tree lines.
Twenty minutes into the heat, as we all passed through a barbed wire pasture gate, True Spirit stopped. He was directly ahead about 30 yards, but on the opposite side of the fence. We rode parallel to the fence line and stopped to watch. The other handler and his judge continued across the pasture.
True Spirit stood amid that short grass—little cover for a bird—but Ferrel dismounted, crawled through the fence strands and did his best to flush. The birds weren’t there. Ferrel walked back to his dog and released him to relocate. True Spirit moved cautiously down the tree line 50 yards and stopped again.
This time Ferrel vigorously and thoroughly kicked the grass far in front of True Spirit in his attempt to flush the birds. But again, nothing flew. And again, Ferrel tapped his dog to release him.
By now, the gallery had ridden off to catch up to the other handler and judge, which left only Ferrel, his judge and me.
We watched True Spirit continue to work the tree line. About 60 yards ahead, almost to the last of the scrubby trees, True Spirit pointed. Ferrell hustled to flush and, this time, a nervous covey of Hungarian partridge lifted about 40 yards out.
Ferrel fired his gun, walked back to the still-composed True Spirit, patted him a couple times on the side and then led him through the barbed wire fence and released him.
As Ferrel mounted his horse, he turned to us, smiled knowingly and said, “Trust your dog.”
Trust your dog. That’s a great line. What does it mean?
Trust in a bird dog means the handler intimately knows the dog and is confident in its ability to do its job. When the dog smells game and points, the handler trusts there are birds. When the dog makes a far cast around some distant objective, the handler trusts the dog will check back or be found on point. When another dog is on point, the handler trusts his dog will back. And yes, when the dog is working running birds, the handler trusts it will get them pointed.
But trust in your dog doesn’t just happen. Trust is earned by the dog but created by the handler. Trust starts when the dog is a puppy.
The puppy needs to be developed properly, exposed to different situation and allowed to exercise judgement. Trust grows by letting the dog make mistakes without constant fear of reprisal. Trust matures by consistent expectations, more exposure and coaching. Trust does not develop with micro-management, reprimand and intimidation.
Northwoods Nickel (CH Shadow Oak Bo x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2014)
Jerry and I have just released three setters for sale. Northwoods Nickel, a six-year-old female, is a “10” in every aspect. She is beautiful and intelligent, stellar in the field and a calm companion.
Northwoods Istanbul and Northwoods Geneva are two-year-olds out of Nickel by CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock. These young dogs have it all—wonderful disposition, physical conformation and fully trained on ruffed grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, woodcock and bobwhite quail.
Nick Larson, on left, of Project Upland, interviews Jerry in the kennel office for Nick’s podcast.
On a recent summer morning, Nick Larson of Project Upland visited the kennel. Although he brought his six-year-old setter Hartley (Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Belle’s Choice, 2014) for a nice run in the pasture, his main purpose was to interview Jerry for the Project Upland podcast.
Besides lots of talk about bird dogs and grouse hunting, specific topics include how we raise puppies and what a new buyer should do during the puppy’s important first season.
Northwoods Madison (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2018) and Jerry. Photo by Ben McKean.
At the age of one, Northwoods Madison (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2018) is precocious—and not only in desire and focus but in stamina. From the moment she’s released at the breakaway, Madison has one thing on her mind. Birds. During this morning’s session, she finds and points four coveys.
The sun was warm but the wind was chill. You know how it is with an April day. When the sun is out and the wind is still, You’re one month on in the middle of May. But if you so much as dare to speak, A cloud comes over the sunlit arch, A wind comes off a frozen peak, And you’re two months back in the middle of March.
~ Robert Frost
Northwoods Geneva (CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock x Northwoods Nickel, 2018) on a sunny afternoon in the woods.
Evening meal of sharp-tailed grouse from last fall.
The first place win for Northwoods Rolls Royce (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Chocie, 2013) garnered lots of hardware for Jerry and Royce’s owner, Bob Senkler.
After the close of the Florida bobwhite quail hunting season, the Georgia-Florida Field Trial Club gathers for its annual trial. This year, the trial was held March 7 on the Aucilla Plantation near Thomasville, Ga.
The club is comprised of dog trainers, handlers and scouts, many of whom work for the 100+ private plantations in southwestern Georgia and northern Florida. The trial is open only for dogs used on plantation hunts.
The 2020 Georgia-Florida Hunting Dog Invitational Field Trial attracts a big gallery to watch the 24 dogs in competition. Photo by Hope Doolittle.
Three placements are awarded. Winners must be steady to wing and shot but otherwise are no different than the kind of dog our foot-hunting clients would love to own.
Pointers are the dominant dog—by far—used on plantations. This year, only two of the 24 dogs entered were English setters. Jerry, of course, ran a setter. He chose Northwoods Rolls Royce, a handsome seven-year-old, tricolor son out of a favorite nick of ours, Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice. Royce is well conformed and even tempered and he always finds birds—lots of birds. Royce is owned by Bob Senkler of Florida.
Jerry flushes on one of Royce’s four covey finds. Photo by Hope Doolittle.
Royce ran in the first brace after lunch, not a coveted draw anytime but especially in a wild bird trial. He was outstanding! He pointed four coveys with perfect style and manners, handled like a dream and always showed to the front.
Congratulations to Royce and Bob!
Jerry and Royce, on left, pose with the second and third place dogs, their handlers, the judges and some members of the Georgia-Florida Field Trial Club. Photo by Hope Doolittle.
“What do you want this dog for?” I was asked austerely… “I want him,” I answered, “to be my friend.”
~ One Brown Dog, by Dorothy Margaret Stuart
Here’s a last-minute gift idea for that hard-to-buy-for dog lover. On Dogs: An Anthology is a small, lovely book with simple, charming graphics and very nice black-and-white dog portraits.
“There is a profound connection between humankind and dogs that has existed for thousands of years. What began as a mutually beneficial hunting partnership has developed into a deeper emotional attachment.”
~ Tracey Ullman
That blurb is from the introduction by Tracey Ullman. It perfectly sets the stage for the thoughtful, heart-warming, sometimes humorous writing by authors as luminary and disparate as William Shakespeare, Alexander Dumas, Charles Dickens, Virginia Woolf, Vita Sackville-West, John Steinbeck, Jack London, Alice Walker, A. A. Gill, James Thurber and David Sedaris.
“To get through to a dog’s mind…You need hands that on touching the dog send messages of love and sympathy to its brain. You need eyes that tell the dog who watches them what you are feeling…you need telepathy so that the dog thinks with you.”
~ Barbara Woodhouse
“…and she’s watching me…What she’s doing is learning me. She’s reading me like a book. The truth is, I’m the Fool to her Lear.”
~ A. A. Gill
“Dogs are the leaders of the planet. If you see two life forms, one of them’s making a poop, the other one’s carrying it for him, who would you assume is in charge?”
~ Jerry Seinfeld
Northwoods Minerva (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2017), in front, and Northwoods Aphrodite (RU-CH Three Leaf Shamrock x Southern Grace, 2018).
Recognize these tricolor setters?
That’s Northwoods Minerva and Northwoods Aphrodite on the cover of the newest catalog from Kevin’s, Fine Outdoor Gear and Apparel. The blurb on the inside page states: “Great wild bird dogs can handle both our beloved Bobwhites and the king of the north woods, the Ruffed Grouse.”
Chris Mathan shot the photograph last spring at Pinehaven Plantation in Monticello, Fla. Chris, of Chris Mathan Sporting Dogs, is an excellent outdoor photographer and graphic designer and also a long-time business associate and friend. She lives in Pavo, Ga., and is in high demand to photograph the myriad bird dog hunting and field trial gatherings in the area.
Kevin’s is an institution in this plantation-rich region of south Georgia/north Florida. Kevin Kelly and his wife, Kathleen, run a business that includes the catalog and stores in Thomasville and Tallahassee. The Thomasville location on Broad Street couldn’t be more charming. Complete with a high ceiling, squeaky wooden floor, gorgeous antique display cases and top-quality merchandise piled in every nook and cranny, the shop is always bustling.
Jerry and I own Minerva (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2017). She inherited wonderful traits from her sire and dam, including her spectacular posture on point. She is part of the grouse and quail guiding string and has whelped two fine litters.
Aphrodite (RU-CH Three Leaf Shamrock x Southern Grace, 2018; Shamrock is out of Northwoods Chardonnay by CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock) now hunts quail for John Downing on Long Brow Plantation in Green Pond, S.C.
CH I’m Blue Gert (I’m Houston’s Image x Blue Silk, 2006)
Jerry and I mourn the loss of two great bird dogs in the Northwoods family.
Blue Riptide (Blue Chief x Blue Blossom, 2006) was owned by the Rodney and Monica Klimek family of Osakis, Minn. Rip was beloved by Rodney and his sons as they hunted the fields of western Minnesota.
CH I’m Blue Gert (I’m Houston’s Image x Blue Silk, 2006) was owned by Dave and Rochel Moore of Big Lake, Minn. Gert was a 2X CH/2X RU-CH grouse champion.
Blue Riptide (Blue Chief x Blue Blossom, 2006)
Both dogs made distinguished contributions to our breeding program. Riptide produced 19 wonderful puppies by three different dams: Blue Ghost in 2010; Northwoods Carly Simon in 2014; and Northwoods Chablis in 2017. Gert was bred to Northwoods Grits in 2014 and produced three outstanding females. She had previously been bred to CH Tom Jones which produced a two-time grouse champion.
RIP Handsome Rip. RIP Dirty Gert. We will always remember.
Northwoods Hartley (Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Belle’s Choice,, 2014), owned by Nick Larson.
“Owning my first bird dog forever changed the pursuit of upland birds for me. Hartley has inspired me to become a better hunter, a better shooter and a better dog trainer.”
~ Nick Larson, Project Upland
I recently read a wonderful magazine piece written by a client of ours, Nick Larson. He brought a unique perspective to owning a bird dog.
Jerry and I first met Nick Larson in the fall of 2013. He and his wife, Lacey MacLean, were living in the Twin Cities but had plans to move to Duluth, Minn. Even though Nick had never owned a bird dog, we thought he would be a perfect fit for one of our dogs. He was a passionate hunter and enthusiastic to learn. The couple was sharp, friendly, warm and clearly loved dogs.
Nick and Lacey gave us a deposit and about 10 months later, they picked up their eight-week-old puppy, a tri-color male setter out of Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Belle’s Choice. They named him Hartley after the Duluth city park near their new home.
Nick’s article, along with several stunning photos of Hartley, appears in the Fall 2019 issue of Project Upland, a new magazine which is part of a wider offering including podcast, film, newsletter and more. (projectupland.com).
Here are excerpts.
“When you have a bird dog and you love watching him or her work, the possibilities of exploring new covers, encountering new birds and making new friends are all exciting. Without the dog in my life, I’d likely still be walking the same old two-tracks chasing the same old birds in the same old covers. Instead, my eyes have opened and my breadth of experience broadened, thanks to my four-legged friend.”
“…the drive to go deeper and deeper while taking the passion further than I ever thought possible has resulted in countless connections while opening some very unique doors along the way.”
“My evolution as an upland bird hunter has been a direct result of Hartley’s development into an experienced bird dog. From the guns and gear to my own knowledge and skillset, everything looks different today than it did before Hartley, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
“Hartley has changed my hunting, my family and my life forever.”
