Gallery: A tribute to older dogs…and younger ones

Alzada (CH Ridge Creek Cody x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2013), age 10 years
“Thanks for sharing a dog of a lifetime.”
~ Tom Condon, Montana

Northwoods Carly Simon (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice, 2011), age 12 years
“More than a minor celebrity, many have traveled to the hunt camp just to hunt with Carly Simon and spend time with her on ‘her’ couch.”
~ Chris Bye and Jessica Kramer, Wisconsin

Northwoods Rudolph (CH Southern Confidence x Northwoods Comet, 2023), age 6 months, on left, and his grand-dam Northwoods Vixen (CH Westfall’s Black Ice x Northwoods Prancer, 2011), age 12 years
“Young and a little goofy vs. old and wise. A fun brace!”
~ Both owned by Northwoods Bird Dogs

Maisy (RU-CH Northwoods Atlas x Houston’s Nelly Bly, 2023), age 6 months
“The star of last week was Maisy. She handled well, made beautiful casts, and pointed a grouse!”
~ Zenas Hutcheson, Minnesota

Caddie (CH Southern Confidence x Northwoods Comet, 2023), age 6 months
“This last week, Caddie has really turned it on. Her first woodcock!”
~ Brian Smith, Pennsylvania

6X CH / 2X RU-CH Tian Elhew Verbena

CH Tian Elhew Verbena (CH Elhew G Force x Northwoods Vixen, 2013)

Not much is more gratifying for Jerry and me than hearing from happy dog owners. It is thrilling to see how our puppies have grown up and how they’ve fit into their lives—whether hunting, competing in field trials or sleeping on a pad near the fire.

And not much saddens us more than when we hear of the death of a beloved dog.

Multiple champion Tian Elhew Verbena (call name Bena) was owned by Angela and Tim Schillereff of Sauvie Island Kennels in Portland, Ore. Bena was whelped in 2013 out of Northwoods Vixen by CH Elhew G Force.

Of the nine puppies in the litter, seven were females. Angela and Tim had the fourth pick and they chose a pretty black and white puppy.

The G Force x Vixen litter was whelped on April 21, 2013. Bena is the puppy on the upper right.

Angela has kept in touch with photos and news periodically throughout the years. She recently informed us of the passing of Bena. Heartbroken, she wrote, “It’s been hard to think about her no longer with us.”

“She was an amazing dog and all who hunted her or saw her run in trials recognized how special she was.”

Angela and Tim campaigned Bena in American Field/Amateur Field Trial Clubs of America horseback shooting dog stakes where she won six championships and 2 runner-up championships.

She also earned several AKC titles:  National Open Champion, National Amateur Champion, Grand Field Champion, Field Champion and Amateur Field Champion.

RIP dear Bena. We will always remember.

CH Northwoods Sir Gordon adds RU-CH placement

Northwoods Sir Gordon (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2016), on right, was named RU-CH at the NBHA Sharptail Championship.

On a soggy, humid weekend in late September, the NBHA Sharptail Championship held its Eastern Regional at the Namekagon Barrens Wildlife Area near Danbury, Wisc. The trial was hosted by the Chippewa Valley Grouse Dog Association.

In a field of 46 dogs, Northwoods Sir Gordon (call name Gordie), was named RU-CH with three sharptail finds. Gordie is owned and was handled by Ben McKean.

Northwoods Eddie Setter (CH Northwoods Sir Gordon x Northwoods Valencia, 2023), on left, placed first in the Puppy stake.

Derby and puppy stakes were also held. Ben was called back to the winner’s circle when the placements were announced for the Puppy Stake. Northwoods Eddie Setter placed first with an impressive run and a sharptail flush.

What’s extraordinary is that Eddie is Gordie’s son out of Northwoods Valencia.

Congratulations to Ben and his two fine setters!!

Gallery: RU-CH Northwoods Atlas

RU-CH Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017)

As the sun rises on a recent morning, Atlas points with style and confidence on a covey of sharp-tailed grouse. He is on a training run before the fall field trial season begins. Atlas is owned and handled by Greg Johnson of Wisconsin.

The Natural Way: Steadiness

Mama, an 18-month-old female setter, shows excellent style and composure due to training the Natural Way.

No old-fashioned equipment such as boards, barrels, posts or rope slings. Also, no yard training. Other key elements include no dominance, no talking and no pressure on the dog as indicated by licking, swallowing or looking away.

These are all parts of our Natural Way to teach steadiness.

In the field, I plant pigeons and use low-level, linear ecollar stimulation on the flank and as a motivator. For bird dogs, that motivation is birds.

Combining dog psychology, birds and ecollar stimulation, the dog is taught a behavior without knowing it’s being trained and, therefore, no pressure.

The Natural Way works for the toughest and softest dogs; there are no failures.

In July, I trained Mama the Natural Way. Mama is an 18-month-old female setter owned by Josh Matel of Minnesota. Mama is a sensitive young dog with lots of desire but when trained with our method, her composure and confidence on birds is outstanding.

*** The Natural Way is a term Betsy and I dreamed up to describe the method of training I developed over decades in the field. We introduced the concept in a March 2, 2023, blog post, “A Different Approach to Steady Your Dog.” On July 26, 2023, we followed with The Natural Way: Puppy Development. This post includes videos of marker training, first bird encounters and letting puppies learn on their own how to cross a creek.

More 2023 field trial placements and news

Northwoods Dexter (CH Snyder’s Pioneer Scout x Northwoods Cedar, 2022), on right, is posed by owner and handler Mike Rosario.

In an auspicious start to his field trial career, Northwoods Dexter (CH Snyder’s Pioneer Scout x Northwoods Cedar, 2022) won third place in a competitive stake of 17 puppies at the Grand Valley Bird Dog club trial near Ionia, Mich., last spring. Dexter is owned and handled Mike Rosario.

Dexter then went on a tear, continuing his impressive placements at subsequent stakes held on the Gladwin Field Trial Grounds near Gladwin, Mich.
• Third place in the Ruffed Grouse Field Trial Club John R. Stuart Derby Open Classic with 23 entries.
• Second place in the Ruffed Grouse Field Trial Club Ruth Stuart Open Puppy Classic with 19 entries.
• Third place in the Beaverton Grouse Dog Club Eaton Spring Derby Classic with 34 entries.

What made these placements even more thrilling is that Dexter was only eight-months-old. Most of his competition in these stakes were older than him; in case of the derby stakes, up to 18 months older!

Northwoods Cedar Edge (CH Snyder’s Pioneer Scout x Northwoods Cedar, 2022), is posed by handler Lindsey Saetre, earned a blue ribbon for owners Eric and Lindsey Saetre.

Northwoods Cedar Edge (CH Snyder’s Pioneer Scout x Northwoods Cedar, 2022), a littermate sister to Dexter, owned and handled by Eric and Lindsey Saetre, also had a winning start. She placed first in the Region 19 Open Puppy stake and third in the Minnesota Grouse Dog Association’s summer quail trial.

Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017), on left, is posed by owner and handler Greg Johnson.

RU-CH Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017), owned and handled by Greg Johnson, continued his winning ways by placing first in the Northwest Field Association Open Walking Shooting Dog stake. This trial was held using liberated quail at their trial grounds near Hankinson, N.D.

CH Erin’s Three Leaf Shamrock. Photo by Chris Mathan.

In perhaps the biggest award of the year, and for the second year in a row, CH Erin’s Three Leaf Shamrock (CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2015) is the recipient of the prestigious Elwin G. Smith Award for 2022. This is bestowed on the nation’s winningest English setter in open shooting dog horseback field trials. Shamrock is owned by S. Tucker Johnson and handled by Tracy Swearington.

Peanuts: Snoopy in the pool

(c) Peanuts Worldwide LLC

Besides the obvious charm of this strip— Snoopy in his bathing suit, Lucy content in the pool—there is more.

Some clients already know the trick. (I’m thinking especially of Chris Bye.) For many years, Jerry and I filled up two pools with cold water. After a summer morning conditioning run, the dogs loved those pools. They drank, plopped down, and swirled and splashed around.

In other words, dogs allowed.

The Natural Way: Puppy Development

Plenty of physical exercise is crucial to happy, well-developed puppies. They play hard until they tire; then they rest.

Betsy and I believe the first six months of a puppy’s life is crucial to its development. We put tremendous effort into preparing the puppy for situations it will encounter as it matures.

Everyday examples include exposure to different people, exposure to dogs of different ages, introduction to water and getting comfortable going into a crate and loading into a dog box. In early training exercises, exposure to birds, marker training, leash training and spending time on a stakeout chain are all extremely valuable.

Time on a stakeout chain teaches puppies to be comfortable with restraint. In addition, they learn to give to the chain when another puppy moves around.

A simple and often overlooked key to a happy, balanced puppy is plenty of physical exercise. Our puppies spend mornings in the exercise pens and go for walks of suitable length in various places.

Essential to how we develop puppies is that we rarely force the puppy to do a desired behavior. Instead, we set up the puppy to succeed by making the right choice easy and the wrong choice difficult. We then reward it with a treat when it chooses the desired behavior. We say very litte to the puppy, using verbal cues only when it has learned the behavior. This teaches the puppy to think.

Life experiences, though, are not all positive. Often, puppies learn more from choosing the wrong behavior and suffering the consequence. For us, jumping up on people and excessive barking are two undesirable behaviors that are met with soft “bonks” from a “bonker,” a rolled-up and taped hand towel.

Most behaviors are taught during the normal course of the day. When specific training is required, we keep the sessions very short, usually five minutes or less.

Below are five videos of puppies during our development process this summer. Enjoy!

Tink, Molly and Queen (RU-CH Northwoods Atlas x Houston’s Nelly Bly) are introduced to navigating a stream crossing.

How easy is this? With their bowl of dog food as enticement, littermates Rudolph and Cupid (CH Southern Confidence x Northwoods Comet) can’t wait to load into a truck box.

Fifteen-week-old sisters Tink, Molly and Queen (RU-CH Northwoods Atlas x Houston’s Nelly Bly) learn to use their noses and read littermate’s body language around birds.

Molly learns to choose behaviors that will earn a treat.

Boots (RU-CH Northwoods Atlas x Northwoods Stardust) learns an invaluable lesson. During the first few bird contacts, young puppies often stay on point because they are not bold enough to jump in on the bird. We never flush the birds on these early contacts; instead we allow the puppy time to jump in and flush the bird itself. The puppy becomes bold and confirms that it had the bird well located.

Mary Oliver: Pulitzer Prize winner and dog lover

Pointers Northwoods Comet (CH Rock Acre Blackhawk x Northwoods Vixen, 2018) and Northwoods Vixen (CH Westfall’s Black Ice x Northwoods Prancer, 2011).

Poetry is an entirely different form of creative writing from fiction and nonfiction. There are fierce devotees and equally strong detractors.

Mary Oliver might make at least some of the latter group enjoy a poem or two.

Over Oliver’s lifetime (1935 – 2019), she wrote 20 books of poetry and six of prose. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for American Primitive, a collection of poetry. She won many other distinguished awards including the National Book Award in 1992 and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

She was an introverted, private person and also a lover of dogs. She devoted one collection, Dog Songs, to them. Here is a poem about Percy.

Little Dog’s Rhapsody in the Night

He puts his cheek against mine
and makes small, expressive sounds.
And when I’m awake, or awake enough

he turns upside down, his four paws
in the air
and his eyes dark and fervent.

“Tell me you love me,” he says.

“Tell me again.”

Could there be a sweeter arrangement? Over and over
he gets to ask.
I get to tell.

~ Mary Oliver
Dog Songs

English-bred May, sired by CH Conneywarren Jason of British Labradors.

Oliver lived for about four decades in Provincetown, Mass., where she developed her passion for the ocean, tides, birds and the Cape Cod seashore. She always carried a pad and pen on her solitary daily walks and, as inspiration came to her, she jotted down lines. Here is a poem about the Cape shore.

I Go Down To The Shore In The Morning

I go down to the shore in the morning
and depending on the hour the waves
are rolling in or moving out,
and I say, oh, I am miserable,
what shall—
what should I do? And the sea says
in its lovely voice:
Excuse me, I have work to do.

~ Mary Oliver
A Thousand Mornings

Region 19 has a new champion: CH Northwoods Sir Gordon

CH Northwoods Sir Gordon (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2016) and owner/handler Ben McKean.

A key element of any field trial is the quality of the judges. They can name worthy winners or they can, by ignorance mainly, screw up it completely. They perhaps are more important than anything else—including weather, venue, dogs or handlers.

In other words, if the judges are good, then the trial will be good.

In early April in the Eau Claire County Forest neat Augusta, Wisc., Ben McKean ran his male setter Northwoods Sir Gordon (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2016) at the Region 19 Amateur Walking Shooting Dog Championship. Ben was fortunate for not only were Scott Anderson and Bill Frahm judging but they decided on a bold finish.

Gordie is a leggy male setter, ruggedly built with a reaching gait. He is a powerful dog and ran a strong, mature race, always searching in likely cover. He was marked with an unproductive in heavy tangled alders and ended his hour birdless. 

Scott and Bill did have a dog with a find on one woodcock in the first series but they obviously didn’t feel it was a performance deserving of a champion. What do good judges do in a case like this?

Scott and Bill decided on a call back.

Wasting no time, the judges called handlers, dogs and the gallery together. Emotion and excitement were sky high. Scott and Bill chose two call back dogs and two reserve dogs. Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017), owned and handled by Greg Johnson, was a reserve dog while Gordie was their choice to see first on a course known to hold birds.

It took only 12 minutes for Gordie’s bell to stop. Scout Ryan Hough found him on point and when Ben walked in, two woodcock flew. Ben shot his gun and walked back to his dog.

Nothing more was needed. The good judges, by deciding on the call back, had their worthy champion.

Congratulations to Ben and Gordie!

Here is the official report written by Kyle Peterson and published in the American Field:  https://www.americanfield.com/result?result_id=977