Thought you may like to see the judges report:
Critique - Spring Pointing Test 2011
22-03-2011
Friends of the Bracco Italiano Grouse Pointing Test
Burncastle Saturday 19th March 2011
A beautiful, sunny, spring morning, following a sharp overnight frost greeted participants at the grouse pointing test organised by the Friends of the Bracco Italiano at the Burncastle estate on Saturday the19th March by kind permission of the Duke of Northumberland.
The field was comprised an interesting selection of HPRs made up of six GWPs, four GSPs, a Hungarian Vizsla and a wirehaired Vizsla. Unfortunately, one of the three Bracchi entered had to be withdrawn, nevertheless, the remaining two gave the judges a rare opportunity to observe the distinctive style of this breed in ideal surroundings. The dogs were fairly equally split into their respective groups made up of eight juniors and seven adults.
Following the introductions, the company made their way onto the moor in 4WD vehicles, where the ideal weather conditions allowed unrestricted views of the excellent ground made available to us by head keeper Mr. Colin Adamson.
Moving straight forward into a steady, westerly breeze, the dogs were able to make contact with the numerous grouse which could be seen and heard proclaiming their territories from every direction throughout the day. This enabled each dog to demonstrate both its scenting abilities and pace on the superbly keepered heather in full view of the judges.
Not only were there ample grouse available there was, in addition a varied selection of other species of game present to add to the interest, including, partridge, pheasant, woodcock, snipe and duck. However, most remarkable were the large number of mountain hares present, looking somewhat incongruous still in their bright, white winter pelage and which must have numbered in excess of fifty seen throughout the day.
In fact, they were so numerous, that practically every dog encountered at least one during its run, with one unfortunate dog having five on its beat. Their presence proved to be a mixed blessing depending on the individual opinions of the various handlers. For whilst some dogs were able to demonstrate a remarkable standard of steadiness in the face of such temptation, others were unable to resist and paid the penalty. This in itself was no great discredit, as almost certainly, few of the dogs would have encountered such odd looking creatures on a shooting day
And this is certainly true for the senior judge.
Towards noon, the cloud which had been steadily building up all morning became quite overcast whilst the wind freshened with a noticeable drop in temperature. However, this did not seem to unduly affect scent and all dogs were able to complete their runs with adequate opportunities to demonstrate their skills.
By 14.30 the judges had made their decisions and the company returned to base, where a very welcome meal was available.
Three dogs were graded EXCELLENT, all of which were juniors, whilst two other juniors were graded GOOD, of the adults two were Graded GOOD.
The judges would like to express their appreciation to Mr & Mrs Abraham for the invitation to judge such a well organized event and for the splendid food. They are also grateful to the keeper for his enthusiasm and professionalism and to His Grace for allowing us access to such an outstanding ground. And not least to all the competitors for their entries and for the opportunity to observe some first class dog work
Geoff & Robert Hargreaves
Judges
Results
Juniors
Excellent
Mr.T.Brechney’s GWP Moorrunner Musketeer
Mr.C.Gray’s GWP Trudvang Gandalf
Ms J Hay’s GWP Moorrunner Marksman
Good
R Hall’s GSP Jhebron’s Ruby
Ms S Irvine’s HWV Falcongreen Durcas
Adults
Good
Mr.J.Abraham’s Bracco Italiano Gunstrux Rosa Caro at Ardenstorm
Mr.C.Gray’s GWP Trudvang Balder
Critique - Spring Pointing Test 2011
22-03-2011
Friends of the Bracco Italiano Grouse Pointing Test
Burncastle Saturday 19th March 2011
A beautiful, sunny, spring morning, following a sharp overnight frost greeted participants at the grouse pointing test organised by the Friends of the Bracco Italiano at the Burncastle estate on Saturday the19th March by kind permission of the Duke of Northumberland.
The field was comprised an interesting selection of HPRs made up of six GWPs, four GSPs, a Hungarian Vizsla and a wirehaired Vizsla. Unfortunately, one of the three Bracchi entered had to be withdrawn, nevertheless, the remaining two gave the judges a rare opportunity to observe the distinctive style of this breed in ideal surroundings. The dogs were fairly equally split into their respective groups made up of eight juniors and seven adults.
Following the introductions, the company made their way onto the moor in 4WD vehicles, where the ideal weather conditions allowed unrestricted views of the excellent ground made available to us by head keeper Mr. Colin Adamson.
Moving straight forward into a steady, westerly breeze, the dogs were able to make contact with the numerous grouse which could be seen and heard proclaiming their territories from every direction throughout the day. This enabled each dog to demonstrate both its scenting abilities and pace on the superbly keepered heather in full view of the judges.
Not only were there ample grouse available there was, in addition a varied selection of other species of game present to add to the interest, including, partridge, pheasant, woodcock, snipe and duck. However, most remarkable were the large number of mountain hares present, looking somewhat incongruous still in their bright, white winter pelage and which must have numbered in excess of fifty seen throughout the day.
In fact, they were so numerous, that practically every dog encountered at least one during its run, with one unfortunate dog having five on its beat. Their presence proved to be a mixed blessing depending on the individual opinions of the various handlers. For whilst some dogs were able to demonstrate a remarkable standard of steadiness in the face of such temptation, others were unable to resist and paid the penalty. This in itself was no great discredit, as almost certainly, few of the dogs would have encountered such odd looking creatures on a shooting day
And this is certainly true for the senior judge.
Towards noon, the cloud which had been steadily building up all morning became quite overcast whilst the wind freshened with a noticeable drop in temperature. However, this did not seem to unduly affect scent and all dogs were able to complete their runs with adequate opportunities to demonstrate their skills.
By 14.30 the judges had made their decisions and the company returned to base, where a very welcome meal was available.
Three dogs were graded EXCELLENT, all of which were juniors, whilst two other juniors were graded GOOD, of the adults two were Graded GOOD.
The judges would like to express their appreciation to Mr & Mrs Abraham for the invitation to judge such a well organized event and for the splendid food. They are also grateful to the keeper for his enthusiasm and professionalism and to His Grace for allowing us access to such an outstanding ground. And not least to all the competitors for their entries and for the opportunity to observe some first class dog work
Geoff & Robert Hargreaves
Judges
Results
Juniors
Excellent
Mr.T.Brechney’s GWP Moorrunner Musketeer
Mr.C.Gray’s GWP Trudvang Gandalf
Ms J Hay’s GWP Moorrunner Marksman
Good
R Hall’s GSP Jhebron’s Ruby
Ms S Irvine’s HWV Falcongreen Durcas
Adults
Good
Mr.J.Abraham’s Bracco Italiano Gunstrux Rosa Caro at Ardenstorm
Mr.C.Gray’s GWP Trudvang Balder
Commenta