Grouse vs. goshawk

Photo courtesy of Ruffed Grouse Society

“He was watching a ruffed grouse that was poking along the forest floor, as grouse will do, foraging for seeds or fallen berries, perhaps some remaining leaves of clover.”

So Sam Cook wrote in the opening paragraphs of his piece in the November 30 edition of the Duluth News Tribune. Cook related a story about a friend of his who was deer hunting in the north woods.

“Most deer hunters would agree that it’s pleasant to have a grouse come mooching along during a morning on the stand. Grouse are enjoyable to watch—the way they seem to step carefully over the landscape or hop up to cross a deadfall. They cock their heads to the side often, presumably to get a better look above them, where most potential danger is likely to come from.

“Suddenly, he (the deer hunter) said, he caught the movement of a hawk on the wing. A goshawk, he said. A goshawk on a mission. A goshawk whose eyes were trained on the grouse feeding on the forest floor.

“Goshawks are among the primary predators of ruffed grouse. These raptors are designed to dart and weave through dense aspen forests where ruffed grouse live.

“But, in this scenario, the grouse my friend was watching had caught a glimpse of the goshawk at the last second. The grouse burst into flight and made its escape to heavier cover, just evading the predator’s dive.

Photo courtesy of Cornell Lab of Ornithology

“The goshawk, foiled this time, winged away to continue its hunt for a less wary grouse.”

On that day, there was a happy outcome for the grouse. But as Jerry and I frequently discuss and acknowledge, the natural world is at once beautiful and ruthless.

Sam Cook had been the outdoor writer for the Duluth News Tribune for 38 years. He retired in 2018 and now freelances for the paper. I first knew of Sam Cook in 1977 when we both lived in Ely, Minn. I worked for the original town newspaper, The Ely Miner, and he worked for the rival paper, The Ely Echo.

Northwoods Atlas named RU-CH in Wisconsin championship

Greg Johnson, on left, with RU-CH Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017) and Ken Moss with CH Moss Meadow Seeker. Back row: Tucker Johnson, Judges Ben McKean and Ryan Hough.

Most people involved in wild bird field trial competition acknowledge that it is a game.

Not only must handlers navigate uncontrollable vagaries like running order, weather conditions, bracemate and the often unpredictable behavior of grouse and woodcock but they also must handle their dogs flawlessly around a one-hour course and abide by the rules of the game. Among those rules are that the dogs should: run a strong, forward race; never lose focus; point with style and intensity; be steady to wing and shot; have no unproductive points; honor the bracemate; finish strong. No mistakes are allowed or the dog is “picked up,” i.e., leashed and walked out of the woods by the handler.

To persevere and win trials—especially big championships—competitors must keep paying the entry fees, showing up and running their dogs.

So it is especially sweet and satisfying when everything aligns and the handler and dog win an important stake—especially a big championship.

The Chippewa Valley Grouse Dog Association held its Wisconsin Cover Dog Championship last week in the Eau Claire County Forest, near Augusta, Wisc. A large entry of 52 dogs was under consideration by judges Ben McKean and Ryan Hough.

After five days of running, Moss Meadow Seeker, owned and handled by Ken Moss, was named champion. With three finds and a strong race that often strained the bell’s limit but always stayed within range, Northwoods Atlas, owned and handled by Greg Johnson, was named runner-up champion.

Five-year-old Atlas, call name Jet, is no stranger to the winner’s circle. Throughout his young career, he has consistently placed in 11 field trials. This is his first championship placement.

Jet was whelped in 2017 out of Northwoods Nickel by Northwoods Grits. Grits was infamous for his bird finding and never-give-up attitude while Nickel added an uncommonly strong yet graceful gait.

And that sweet and satisfying part? After it was all over, Greg commented, “I am walking on air right now.”

Dogs and Homo sapiens

“A 15,000-year bond has yielded a much deeper understanding and affection between humans and dogs than between humans and any other animal.”
~ Yuval Noah Harari, Sapiens

No wonder Jerry, me and all our clients form such strong bonds with our dogs. It’s in our DNA.

Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari, is not, as the subtitle suggests “a brief history of humankind.” Rather it is a sweeping history of the genus Sapiens and its impact on our planet. Harari is well qualified to write a book of this magnitude. He holds a PhD in History from Oxford University and teaches History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

One aspect that makes this such a good book is the clear, direct writing style of Harari. Another is simply the compelling subject. Where did we come from and how did we get where we are today?

About 50 pages into the book, this passage leapt off the page. From perhaps “15,000 years ago” to perhaps “thousands of years earlier,” dogs and humans began living together.

“The dog was the first animal domesticated by Homo sapiens, and this occurred before the Agricultural Revolution. Experts disagree about the exact date, but we have incontrovertible evidence of domesticated dogs from about 15,000 years ago. They may have joined the human pack thousands of years earlier.

“Dogs were used for hunting and fighting, and as an alarm system against wild beasts and human intruders. With the passing of generations, the two species co-evolved to communicate well with each other. Dogs that were most attentive to the needs and feelings of their human companions got extra care and food, and were more likely to survive. Simultaneously, dogs learned to manipulate people for their own needs. A 15,000-year bond has yielded a much deeper understanding and affection between humans and dogs than between humans and any other animal.”

* Readers of this post shouldn’t need visual proof of the deep bond, affection and love between dogs and people…but just in case, scroll through the photos in our posts and on our sidebar.

2022 spring field trial winners; Northwoods Chardonnay produces 2nd Elwin G. Smith award winner

Northwoods Cedar (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2019), setter female owned by Eric and Lindsey Saetre and handled by Lindsey, earned a red ribbon in the Don Didcoct Amateur Shooting Dog Classic.

Field trial competition is a bug that some owners of pointing dogs catch. Betsy and I are proud of owners of our dogs who put forth the effort to compete. It’s a fun, rewarding game attended by fellow serious bird dog aficionados. We’re also proud of our setters and pointers that have the ability to compete in the various venues across the country and also that pass on that prowess to future generations.

MINNESOTA & WISCONSIN TRIALS

Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017) is a setter male owned and handled by Greg Johnson. Atlas gets the nod for consistency, winning three thirds and one second place ribbon in six starts and in three different venues; the Minnesota Grouse Dog Associations (MGDA) grounds in the Rum River State Forest; Chippewa Valley Grouse Dog Associations (CVGDA) grounds near Augusta, Wis.; and the Four Brooks Field Trial Area near Milaca, Minn.

Northwoods Atlas (Northwoods Grits x Northwoods Nickel, 2017), on left, setter male owned and handled by Greg Johnson, placed third in the open shooting dog stake at the Chippewa Valley Grouse Dog trial.

Placing third behind Atlas at the second MGDA trial was Rhett (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2018), setter male owned and handled by Dave Moore.

Northwoods Cedar (RU-CH Erin’s Prometheus x Northwoods Carly Simon, 2019), setter female owned by Eric and Lindsey Saetre and handled by Lindsey, placed second in the highly competitive Don Didcoct Amateur Shooting Dog Classic held by the CVGDA.

As a puppy, Northwoods Fallset Hope (CH True Confidence x Northwoods Comet, 2021), on right, owned and handled by Mark Fouts, placed third in a huge open derby stake.

Northwoods Fallset Hope (CH True Confidence x Northwoods Comet, 2021) is a pointer female owned and handled by Mark Fouts. She placed third in the gigantic, 28-dog open derby stake at the Moose River Grouse Dog Club spring trial held near Moose Junction, Wis. Very impressive for a 15-month-old pup!

Tony Misura handled his Northwoods Thunderstorm (Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Nelly Bly, 2020) to second place in the 14-dog open derby at Four Brooks. This was the first field trial for both Tony and Thunderstorm. Again, very impressive!

NORTHWOODS CHARDONNAY PRODUCED BIG-TIME WINNERS

Northwoods Chardonnay (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice, 2009)

Northwoods Chardonnay (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice, 2009) was co-bred and basically co-owned by Paul Hauge, Betsy and me throughout her life. She had the basics of a winner—big race, strong bird-finding, natural staunchness and composure around game. But she excelled in many of the finer aspects of field trial competetion. Her long, strong, graceful stride produced a style in motion that was both exuberant and exciting and her loftiness on point was breathtaking.

Chardonnay placed in every grouse trial we entered her in and won the Minnesota/Wisconsin Derby of the Year award in 2011. After her derby year, we retired her from competition.

In a feat perhaps never accomplished before, Chardonnay produced two Elwin G. Smith English Setter Shooting Dog award winners. This award is bestowed on the nation’s winningest English setter in open shooting dog horseback field trials.

CH Northwoods Charles (CH Ridge Creek Cody x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2013), owned and handled by Bill Owen, won the 2020-2021 award.

CH Erin’s Three Leaf Shamrock (CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2015), on left, owned by S. Tucker Johnson and handled by Tracy Swearington, won the Southeastern Open Shooting Dog Championship.

CH Erin’s Three Leaf Shamrock (CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock x Northwoods Chardonnay, 2015) is owned by S. Tucker Johnson and handled by Tracy Swearington. Shamrock is the recipient of this year’s Elwin G. Smith award. He also won the prestigious Southeastern Open Shooting Dog Championship, a wild quail trial held on the Senah Plantation near Albany, Ga.

A Chardonnay granddaughter, Mauck’s Wyeast Owyhee Dalee, owned and handled by Alex Mauck, recently won runner-up in three all age horseback championships, including the California Quail Championship. Dalee’s dam, Hidden Jasmine, is by CH Erin’s Hidden Shamrock x Northwoods Chardonnay.

Mauck’s Wyeast Owyhee Dalee, on right, is owned and handled by Alex Mauck. She won runner-up in the California Quail Championship.

OTHER WINNERS

Others with Northwoods dogs in their pedigree but not bred by Betsy and me also had impressive wins. Pointer derbies sired by JTH Cooper (CH Rock Acre Blackhawk x Northwoods Vixen, 2016), owned by Jeff Hintz, swept all three placements in the 19-dog CVGDA Open Derby stake.

Meredith Grade Katie, winner of the Thomas Flanagan Setter Award for the top Cover Dog derby in the nation, is out of I’m Blue Sky (Northwoods Grits x CH I’m Blue Gert, 2014). Katie is owned and handled by Mike SIngleton.

Hearty congratulations to handlers and dogs!!

A visit to T’s Doghouse in Utah; Northwoods Bird Dogs featured in YouTube video

Northwoods Big Sky, our T’s puppy, at 18 weeks of age is a hefty 30 pounds and a handsome, bold, spirited, fun puppy.

First, a little history…

When Jerry and I started Northwoods Bird Dogs in 2003, training was our primary service and primary source of income. Breeding setters and pointers was definitely secondary and more a means to personally keep us in good bird dogs. Field trial competition and guiding were a distant third and fourth.

But, as businesses usually do, ours gradually morphed into primarily a breeding facility as more and more clients—especially returning clients—want our puppies and dogs. While we’re extremely proud of our line breeding program that consistently produces our high quality puppies, we’ve known for some time that we’ve needed to find good outside sires and dams, too. But where to find those dogs?

Fast forward to this April…

Jerry and I drove to T’s Doghouse in Farr West, Utah, to pick up an eight-week-old male setter puppy. Jerry had contacted Talmadge Smedley, owner of T’s, and not only did he find excellent bloodlines and dogs but, in Talmadge, he discovered a kindred spirit. Over several conversations last winter, those two discussed training methods, puppy rearing and breeding and all manner of industry issues.

Unfortunately, we were on a very tight schedule when we were in Utah which left little time for face-to-face conversation. But early one morning, Talmadge and his son, Tanner, filmed a session featuring Jerry for their YouTube channel, titled “Training and Breeding Bird Dogs with Jerry Kolter of Northwoods Bird Dogs.”

One reason we love Snoopy

Copywright Peanuts Worldwide LLC

Northwoods Grits: January 2011 – March 2022

Northwoods Grits (Northwoods Blue Ox x Northwoods Chablis, 2011) Photo by Chris Mathan

Grits. A perfect name for an extraordinary dog.

Each year Betsy and I choose a theme to use when naming our puppies. Not only is it fun to do but it can help us remember the years and litters. When Grits was whelped, we were training dogs in northwestern Tennessee, a.ka., the Mid South. At a quintessential southern cafe where we stopped for breakfast one morning, grits, biscuits and sweet tea were on the menu. We looked at each other and that was it. We had our theme for 2011. We named the first three puppies we kept, Grits, Biscuit and Sweet Tea.

Though “grits” is actually ground corn, the first four letters defined the dog. According to one definition, grit means “firmness of mind or spirit, unyielding courage in the face of hardship or danger.”

Grits had that grit. No matter the distance or what might lie in in the way, if Grits thought a bird could be there, he was going to find it. Nothing stopped him—whether handler or terrain—and he had the scars to prove it. From countless fence lacerations and tears, sticks, broken tail, a serious snake bite, nothing stopped Grits.

His personality, like his sire, Northwoods Blue Ox (CH Peace Dale Duke x Blue Silk, 2006), was a 10.  He got along with any dog, male or female, young or old, and had an incredible off switch. In the hunting cabin at night or in our house, he only wanted to be petted.

For as much go as Grits had in the woods, he was lover in our home.

Grits didn’t have one or two outstanding qualities of a bird dog, he had them all. He was an extraordinary bird finder. He was naturally staunch, backed and could find dead birds. Too, he had the conformation, build, carriage, gait, speed and nose.

GRITS AS A YOUNG DOG

Grits was whelped in the first breeding of Northwoods Blue Ox to Northwoods Chablis (Blue Shaquille x Houston’s Belle’s Choice, 2009) – a breeding repeated five times. He was precocious like Ox and displayed desire and bird finding even as a puppy.

At nine months of age, I had Grits on the ground on a guided grouse hunt out of Bowen Lodge, northwest of Grand Rapids, Minn. I was out with Ken Taylor and Jim DePolo, hunting in a remote area when we heard Grits make a funny sound, like he was hit in the chest. When he came out on the trail, he acted a little dazed but I didn’t find anything obviously wrong. I leashed him and we headed back to the truck.

But after 10 minutes, Grits was straining at the lead, ready to go again. I released him and we hunted our way out. Grits pointed several grouse on the way—one of which Ken shot which was the first grouse killed over Grits.

Back at the lodge Grits cleaned his food bowl (he was a tremendous eater!) and acted normally. But on a hunch that something wasn’t right, I checked on Grits at about 10 p.m. Dr. Wayne Grayson, another hunter at the lodge, took one look and declared he needed to get to a vet. Under sedation, the veterinarian removed a five-inch stick embedded in the back of his throat.

Grouse woods or wide-open prairie, Grits excelled at bird finding and poise.

During Grits’ early years, Frank LaNasa and I had a prairie camp near Forbes, N.D. Frank is a serious and hugely successful amateur breeder, trainer and handler on the horseback circuit. He only works top-tier performers and back then was no exception. I worked him alongside some of Frank’s most accomplished champions, including CH Lil Miss Sunshine, CH Homemade and CH True Confidence, a little known up-and-comer at the time. With all those champions, Grits held his own.

GRITS IN COMPETITION

Betsy and I weren’t competing much when Grits was young, but he did place in several field trials. Most notably he won the Northwest Field Association Open Derby stake, held at the Crow Hassen grounds in Minnesota with three broke finds, a back and a big race. That tail injury (see third paragraph!) unfortunately ended his field trial career but our belief is he would have been extremely competitive in the horseback trials in the piney woods.

Happy owner Bob Senkler poses with his extraordinary brace of setters: Grits, on left, and Houston’s Belle’s Choice, Grits’ grand-dam.

GRITS AS A HUNTING DOG

When Grits was about one year old, we sold him to Bob Senkler, a passionate grouse and woodcock hunter from Minnesota, with the arrangement that Grits lived at our kennel. Grits was a lot more dog than most people would be comfortable with in the woods, but Bob loved it. Grits always found and pointed birds—many times more than 300 yards away. Grits never wanted to quit. When he saw the truck, he’d make one more cast, usually a big one, as he wanted to find one last bird. Often, Bob just waited at the truck until Grits came back.

Grits made a couple trips with me to North Dakota and Montana—and what a prairie dog he was. Even at 10 years of age last fall, he out-ran and out-birded many younger dogs.

I had tremendous hunting with Grits on the prairies of North Dakota and Montana.

For nine years, Grits was part of our Georgia guiding string on several high-end bobwhite quail plantations. Although he ran bigger than most hunters appreciated, one afternoon in 2017 on the Dixie Plantation, Grits soundly out-birded a future National Champion pointer, trained and handled by Gary Lester. 

GRITS AS A PRODUCER

Grits was a tremendous sire for us, producing 78 puppies from litter after litter of talented wild bird dogs. Betsy and I bred him to our best females, including Houston’s Belle’s Choice, Northwoods Carly Simon, Northwoods Carbon, Northwoods Bismuth, Houston’s Nelly Bly, Northwoods Nickel, Northwoods Minerva and Northwoods Stardust; and CH I’m Blue Gert, owned by Dave and Rochel Moore.

We’re grateful to have two daughters, Northwoods Valencia (out of Carly Simon) and Northwoods Gale (out of Minerva), that exhibit his traits. Most of his offspring are owned by very serious hunters but a few have been campaigned. Some daughters of note include Northwoods Rocks A Lot, out of Houston’s Belle’s Choice, owned by Joe Byers, I’m Blue Sky and Northwoods Elle, both out of CH I’m Blue Gert and owned, respectively, by A. J. Kalupa and Tom Beauchamp. In addition, young Northwoods Atlas, out of Northwoods Nickel, owned by Greg Johnson, has already placed in several shooting dog stakes.

Bob’s son, Chris Senkler, kneels with Grits after what turned out be Grits’ final hunt last fall.

IN THE END

Frank LaNasa said it best when he learned of Grits passing.

“As a performer, Grits ranks right up with the very best that I’ve been around. He would have excelled at anything you asked him to do. An exceptional animal in every way a dog could be. All of our dogs eventually die. Truth is we bury more of ourselves with some than we do with others. Grits was one of those few.”

Over the past 30 years, Betsy and I have been blessed to have had incredible dogs, each defining an era. In the early 1990s, we had CH Dance Smartly. Late that decade and into the early 2000s were defined by Ch Blue Streak, CH Blue Smoke and Blue Chief. The mid 2000s brought us CH Houston’s Belle, Blue Shaquille and Northwoods Blue Ox.

Forever, the decade beginning in 2011 is the era of Northwoods Grits.

RIP Grits. We will always remember.

The winter of 2021/2022 in Minnesota

Our current group of puppies love the snow. From left, Rose (Rufus Del Fuego x Northwoods Valencia, 2021) and littermates Mac and Van (Northwoods Sir Gordon x Houston’s Nelly Bly, 2021) soak up the sun on top of a dog house in the exercise pen.

This winter of 2021/2022 is the first Jerry and I have spent at our home base in Minnesota in 15 years. Stints in Texas, Oklahoma and Tennessee preceded Thomasville, Georgia, a place we called home for nine winters.

It’s been “interesting,” as we say in Minnesota. Seemingly endless shoveling of kennel runs and clearing of driveways and sidewalks is losing its charm. The adult dogs seem bored. Playing in a fenced-in area—no matter how big—doesn’t compare to hunting wild bobwhites.

But our three puppies from late fall litters are tigers in the cold weather…and 15” of snow doesn’t faze them at all. They run around on paths Jerry has cleared, climb up on snowbanks and play tug-of-war with ropes.

It’s now March and we can sense the downhill slide of winter. The angle of the sun—much higher in the sky—is starting to generate real warmth. Too, we’ve gained more than two hours of daylight since the winter solstice.

On sunny days now, snow drips off roofs and driveways reappear. In the woods, chickadees begin their spring “fee bee” song. And for dogs and humans alike, enticing scents arise from the previously frozen landscape.

The dog houses in the exercise pens look like igloos.

Mac (Northwoods Sir Gordon x Houston’s Nelly Bly, 2021) aces his training of the Up command. Other commands Jerry is teaching our three puppies include Place, Sit, Kennel and Down.

Native Americans named the full moons to help track the passing of time. Different tribes had different names but one for February seems especially suitable: The Snow Moon.

In the evenings, we stoke up the wood stove, pour an adult beverage or two and hang around with bird dogs.

It’s always good to laugh

“Good Dog” by Alex Gregory. Originally published in The New Yorker.

The month of January can be brutal in Minnesota, especially for residents who like to be outside with their dogs.

Although not the coldest state in the country (Alaska and North Dakota are #1 and #2), the winter weather here is formidable. Single-digit days, sub-zero nights and a biting wind from the north are bad enough but most troublesome are seemingly endless systems called “clippers” that drop enough snow to force Jerry and me outside with snow blowers and shovels and brooms to keep the driveway open and the kennel runs clean.

The dogs are snug inside the kennel due to in-floor electric heat and comfy Kuranda beds. In the evenings, Jerry and I hunker down. The NFL playoff games have been spectacular; and we can totally escape by bingeing on Yellowstone episodes.

As always, though, it’s good to keep things in perspective…and to laugh. We spotted this New Yorker cartoon by Alex Gregory while at Dr. Wayne Scanlan’s Otter Lake Animal Care Center last week.

Ho ho ho! And best wishes for love, comfort and joy in 2022!

This is a framed greeting card by very clever cartoonist Sandra Boynton. I bought the card at least 30 years ago in The Bibelot Shops, a favorite St. Paul store, sadly now closed.