A September hunt on the North Dakota prairie: 2012

Frankie and Northwoods Blue Ox with sharp-tailed grouse.

North Dakota in early September is for one thing only—sharp-tailed grouse and Hungarian partridge hunting. Ian MacTavish and I were fortunate to be included when Frankie Kartch planned a hunting trip at his farm in western North Dakota. Frankie grew up in the area and knows it well.

Frankie brought Ranger, his setter, and Ian had four setters, Pearl, Maggie, Eli and Chet. I never like to be under-dogged so I hauled our dog trailer and brought 12 dogs. In addition to my guiding string (Oscar, Prancer and Lucy ), I brought client dogs Morris, Franny, Harmon, Gale, Tyler, Liz, Jill, Sean, and Grits to train.  That country is vast and can eat up dogs in a hurry. We had just the right amount!

As it seems with most sharptail openers, the weather was warm and dry.  Making it tolerable for the dogs was the abundance of ponds—that is if they could squeeze between all the ducks. The small grain harvest was almost complete so there was plenty of stubble. We hunted native pastures and alfalfa fields also.

Ian’s salad of greens, asparagus, cashews and grilled sharp-tailed grouse.

We didn’t see as many Huns as we would have liked but the sharptail coveys were large and plentiful. Most of the birds we shot were young; in fact a few of the Huns were very immature.

For three guys, if I must say so myself, we did a fine job in the cooking department.  Every night included what became my famous sharptail kebabs, Ian’s delicious sharptail salads and main courses masterminded by Frankie.

A cold beer while preparing dinner and a nightcap of the single malt Laphroaig was all it took to put us to sleep after a long, fun day in the field.

Northwoods Aerosmith with two limits of sharp-tailed grouse.

To start:  grilled sharptail shish kebabs.

A nice mix of prairie hunting ground.

Northwoods Parmigiano backs Merimac’s Westerly Gale.

Houston’s Blackjack wins championship!

CH Houston’s Blackjack (CH Can’t Go Wrong x CH Houston’s Belle). Photo by Chris Mathan.

Our good friend and prairie camp partner Frank LaNasa handled his four-year-old Houston’s Blackjack to the dog’s first championship at the National Amateur Prairie Chicken Shooting Dog Championship held near Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, beginning September 21. Jean, Frank’s adept and vivacious wife, was also on horseback and scouted the dog to his two-find, country-eating race.

Jack is co-owned by Leroy Peterson.

Jack was bred by Paul Hauge and us in 2008 out of Paul’s superb 2X CH/4X RU-CH Houston’s Belle and another grouse champion, Can’t Go Wrong. That such a powerful horseback competitor was whelped by Belle is really no surprise to us. In fact, Belle placed in several horseback stakes herself due to her strength, far-reaching range and bird-finding ability.

In a cool bit of destiny, Jack won the companion derby there in 2010. If the definition of derby winner is the potential to win the championship, Jack’s derby judges definitely got it right.

Frank and Jean recently won a very nice derby stake with Jack’s son, Northwoods Nirvana, by our Northwoods Chardonnay. He bested all other young dogs at the Region 19 Amateur All Age Derby held near Solon Springs, Wisconsin.

Our congratulations to Frank, Jean and Leroy!

Frank waters Blackjack during training run in North Dakota.

Jerry featured on the radio

On Saturday, September 22, at 7:35 a.m., Jerry was interviewed by Bob St. Pierre and Billy Hildebrand from KFAN radio out of the Twin Cities. Bob and Billy are two of the three hosts of FAN Outdoors, a radio show dedicated to the outdoors.

The topic was grouse dogs and grouse hunting.

KFAN is at 100.3 FM. Unfortunately, the podcast is no longer available.

Prairie 2012: another season wraps up

Frank prepares two horses for an early morning training run.

Frank LaNasa and I shut down our North Dakota training camp recently and, as usual, the closing was bittersweet. The birds were plentiful and all dogs gained invaluable experience. Plus, we had a blast.

Good friends and clients Steve Snyder and Barry Frieler made the trip west to see their dogs in action on the prairie. Leroy Peterson spent a weekend with us, also. (Leroy founded the “Peterson” setters, which produced the famous Houston, owned by Paul Hauge.)

Lager and Frank’s CH Homemade show intensity and style during a morning workout.

I had derbies Grits and Vixen and four shooting dogs–Lager, Liz, Parmigiano and Kate. Frank had his three pointers plus two setters, Houston’s Blackjack and young Northwoods Nirvana.

But now it’s time to move on. Frank will travel with his string to several horseback championships. Our dogs will transition to their respective roles:  compete in the Wisconsin and Minnesota walking championships; be members of our Bowen Lodge guiding string; and/or be returned to their owners for a season of grouse hunting in the woods.

Hank ground ties in a pasture shared with windmills and round bales.

Liz cools down after her training session.

Kate and Frank’s CH Homemade share point on a nice covey of sharptails.

First aid kit for bird dogs

Even though the cupboard in our kennel office has shelves full of pills, bottles, solutions and salves, Jerry keeps his traveling first aid kit to about two dozen supplies. Whether he’s training, hunting or guiding, this red box (a fishing tackle box) is always handy. Over the years, Jerry has performed countless field dressing and stapling jobs which, not only help the dog in need, but speed recovery and reduce long-term complications.

Listed below are the general supplies and the field supplies Jerry considers essential for his traveling first aid kit.

General Supplies

• Amoxicillin:  general antibiotic
• Benadryl:  allergic reactions
• Buffered aspirin:  pain
• Duct tape (of course!)
• Metronidazole:  giardia
• Pepto Bismol:  diarrhea
• Q-tips
• Rimadyl:  anti-inflammatory (by vet prescription only)
• Thermometer
• Vaseline

Field Supplies

• Betadine:  liquid disinfectant
• Dog Booties:   protect pads
• EMT Gel:  use on cuts, tips of tails
• Eye wash (sterile):  flushes out seeds and other debris
• Gauze
• Nutri-cal:  quick supplement for low blood sugar, weakness
• Scissors
• Stapler
• Tape
• Triple antibiotic ointment:  prevents infection and provides temporary pain relief due to cuts, scraps and burns
• Triple antibiotic ophthalmic ointment (non-steroidal):  works for minor eye irritations but not scratches
• Tuf-Foot:  heals and toughens pads
• Vet wrap

Many of the supplies are the same that people use and so are easily purchased. We also buy certain supplies from our vet, including the prescription-only Rimadyl. Otherwise, we order from catalogs such as Lambert Vet Supply and Lion Country Supply.

Silk chills…or air-conditioning at Northwoods Bird Dogs

Silk has exalted status at Northwoods Bird Dogs. She is the eldest dog at 13 years of age and at the top of the pecking order. Much like a Dowager Duchess governing her estate, Silk rules our kennel with gentleness and wisdom but will tolerate no fools.

Silk was only bred three times but whelped our two best-producing setter males. Blue Shaquille is out of a frozen semen breeding to Houston in 2004 and from CH Peace Dale Duke, Silk bore Northwoods Blue Ox in 2007. Through her sons, she has shown up in every setter puppy’s pedigree for many years.

Silk herself has an impressive pedigree. Her dam was our extraordinary Blue Streak, a four-time champion/four-time runner-up champion, and her sire, First Rate, was a multiple champion in horseback field trials. Besides a very sweet disposition, Silk inherited an accurate nose, uncommon stamina and a tenacious application. Prior to retirement, she amassed several placements in grouse trials and was a first-string member of our grouse-guiding team.

Silk has earned her special treatment and now spends evenings and nights with Jerry and me in the house. But before we head to the house and while we’re finishing feeding and kennel chores in late afternoon, Silk is free to roam. She trots outside the building and seemingly inspects everything—puppy pens, gates and perimeter fences. She then comes back to do a quick look-see at the dogs and runs inside the kennel.

One hot afternoon last week, Silk rested in front of the fan while she waited for us to finish.

CH Ridge Creek Cody wins presitigous award & national championship

Betsy and I are very proud of CH Ridge Creek Cody and his latest accomplishments. He won the 2012 Elwin G. Smith Setter Shooting Dog Award that honors the top setter shooting dog in the nation in open horseback competition.

Four-year-old Cody accumulated his points by winning the Idaho Open Shooting Dog Championship and placing runner-up in the All America Open Shooting Dog championship. Placing in these stakes is quite an accomplishment for a setter because his competition is mostly pointers and some outstanding ones at that.

In addition, Cody was just named champion in the National Amateur Pheasant Shooting Dog Championship held in Circle, Montana. Cody bested a field of 38 dogs with three finds and, according to one source, “a scintillating ground race.”

Cody is owned by Larry Brutger of St. Cloud, Minnesota, and handled by pro Shawn Kinkelaar. He was co-bred by us and Paul Hauge. He is out of Paul’s 2X CH/4X RU-CH Houston’s Belle and CH Can’t Go Wrong.  He was whelped and raised at our kennel and I worked him at our North Dakota prairie camp his first summer.

Congratulations to Larry and Shawn!

Are we sad when puppies go?

Northwoods Blue Ox x Northwoods Chablis female puppy gives her new owner a kiss.

A common question Jerry and I hear when a family picks up their eight-week-old puppy is:  “Aren’t you sad to see your puppies go?”

It seems such an innocent question but, as with many things, the real answer is complex.

First of all, it’s our business. Even though we train dogs, guide hunters and sell gear, a key component of Northwoods Bird Dogs is breeding dogs, whelping litters and selling puppies.

The reason we’re in this business, though, is because we love dogs and sometimes it is difficult when puppy dispersal time comes around. For whatever reason, a certain puppy will become a favorite of Jerry’s or I’ll fall hard for the littlest male or the perkiest female. In fact, I still remember very special puppies from years ago…puppies we named Lily, Linus, Moxie, Cotton, Pete, Peanut, Zeus and Jingles.

Northwoods Blue Ox x Northwoods Chardonnay female puppy takes a nap on her new owner.

Ultimately, the whole thing becomes a win-win-win situation:  Jerry and I make a living, the new owners gain a treasured pet/hunting companion and the puppy has a great life.

To borrow from Ina Garten, how gratifying is that?

P.S. I’m happy to report that puppies from our three litters this year seem to be relishing their new lives. Many thanks to the Gudenkauf, Blomberg and Rader families for sharing these photos.

Blue Shaquille x Snyder’s Liz female puppy loves rides in her family’s boat.

Prairie 2012: how sweet it is

Great things can be accomplished by prairie training in summer.
~ Jack Harper, Bird Dogs and Field Trials, 1983

There is no better place to evaluate a bird dog than on the prairies. In this vast open countryside, every move the dog makes can be followed and analyzed. You see how the dog uses the wind and what objectives it chooses to hunt. Often the temperatures are warm and the ground is hard so you learn how the dog copes with stress and how much desire and heart it possesses. Plus, an inefficient gait, unattractive carriage or poor ground application can’t be hidden.

This summer as usual, my good friend and training partner, Frank LaNasa, and I head out to a camp we’ve had in North Dakota for 13 years.  We spend long weekends working our small strings of dogs from horseback. Our days are lengthy ones that start at 4:30 in the morning and end after dark but we love it.

Northwoods Lager points in the foreground while Frank handles his dog Northwoods Nirvana.

Running side by side with some of the very best dogs is an excellent way to observe and learn. Frank’s string is as good a yardstick as can be found. His five includes two female pointer champions, CH Homemade and CH Lil’ Miss Sunshine, a pointer male True Confidence and setters Houston’s Blackjack and Northwoods Nirvana.

Northwoods Parmigiano.

Our string consists of five setters—Northwoods Highclass Kate (owned by Barry Frieler), Northwoods Lager (Jim Bires), Northwoods Parmigiano (Paul Hauge), Northwoods Grits (Bob Senkler) and Snyder’s Liz (Steve Snyder)—and Betsy and I own the lone pointer, Northwoods Vixen.

A more spectacular place to train dogs can’t be found. And if the dog work doesn’t attract your attention, the vistas surely will.

Northwoods Highclass Kate.

Raising puppies at Northwoods Bird Dogs

Seeing little puppies on point is definitely exciting but that cute stance is just the beginning. Developing puppies into a top-notch hunting dogs or finished field trial performers will take years. The paramount time for that development is during the first few months of life.

Our goal is to raise happy, healthy, well-balanced puppies. Over the years, Jerry and I have developed a program that works. At a minimum, we feel puppies need:

•  mental and physical stimulation
•  exercises and introductory training to develop their natural instincts
•  exposure to different situations, people and dogs

We also provide structure, stability and consistent rules. Equally important, though, we want them to enjoy life and have fun.

Detailed below are some of our puppy development and training ideas.

Time in the exercise pens

Ample time in our exercise pens allows the puppies to play and to rest at their choosing. We believe this freedom develops a physically sound dog with a calm, well-adjusted mental disposition. They also learn the invaluable lesson of how to interact with other dogs.

Barrel work

We put our puppies on a barrel where they learn to stand still with confidence. They love this exercise because they have our full attention and receive lots of praise through touching.

Retrieving

We encourage puppies to retrieve because they’re at a stage when they really want to please. Starting with a retrieving dummy we progress to freshly killed birds. A few retrieves two or three times a week is plenty and we always praise them lavishly when they bring the dummy or bird back.

Time on a stakeout chain

Especially when puppies are young and getting used to wearing a collar, we clip them to stakeout chain. They learn to give in and to be comfortable with restraint. They all struggle at first—some more than others—but all eventually do relent and relax.

Gang run

We gang run puppies from foot at eight weeks and later introduce them to group runs from four-wheeler as the next level in physical exercise. During these runs we also teach them to turn on a whistle, run to the front and handle to our voice.

Swimming and finding water

On our gang runs we swing by ponds. Not only do the puppies learn to swim (they follow May, our Labrador retriever) but they learn to cool off and drink. This method teaches them independence to find water on their own.

Some Simple Commands

We introduce preliminary commands such as HERE, KENNEL, and call their NAME using pieces of wieners as rewards. This encourages puppies to obey simple commands and create a positive association with people.