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Gunning for Miss DaisyMae (and other tails from the WC test) Part I July 2007
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Sunday July 22, 2007 was an early day for two people who dislike mornings. We were up before the sun to travel north to New Hampshire for the 2007 LRCGB’s WC/WCI/WCX test. We entered five dogs: Ganni (WCX), DaisyMae (WCI), Dazzle, Lola and Mango (WC). All the dogs were also in contention for the Triple Crown Award. This award showcases that Labs are more than just a pretty face…they can also perform in the field and in the obedience rings. The Triple Crown starts at the match show in May where the dogs get to trot in the breed ring and then earn obedience points. The competition finishes at the WC event in July. For the Triple Crown this year, 10 dogs began in May and there are only four placements. All participants get a rosette, but only four get the placements. To place in the Triple Crown, a dog has to place in breed, earn their obedience scores, and then pick up as many ducks as the test requires. For the WC, the dog has to pick up all three ducks, earning a pass and another 200 points towards the Triple Crown. For the WCI and WCX, the dogs need to pick up four and seven ducks respectively, and a pass earns the dog more points, like the WC. First place in Breed gives the dogs 200 points, 2nd place 150, and so on. The dogs have lots of chances to rack up Triple Crown points. Gerrie over slept a little, so our morning started a tiny bit later than we planned. The dogs and I got a ride to our meeting place, and we transferred the pups and my stuff to Gerrie’s van. Two hours later (the drive goes fast when you’re chattering about this and that) we arrived to find people calling us to the line. Mango was #3 on the WC running order, and Dazzle was shortly after her Mum. I had breathing space before Lola and DaisyMae had to run, and Gerrie had LOTS of time before Ganni had to perform. Between running dogs in the tests, we helped work at different stations. We didn’t sit still much all day. There were 60 dogs pre-entered, and walk-ins were being encouraged. I think the club had about 65 dogs for the day. Some dogs (like Hildi…recovering from an injury) couldn’t come. There was a lot to do to keep the tests moving along. Water was first for the WC so the other tests could move along on land. Our judge was Scott Shaw, and I don’t think he expected what he saw when I came to the line followed by Gerrie in the blind. We both wore pink camo shirts and matching slacks. He laughed when I told him I was Danny and Gerrie was Arnold (TWINS….remember that film?). He called me and Mango to the line. Lucky dogs…a live flier was the first mark! Mango did a fine job, as did Dazzle. Lola was raring to go after Dazzle and did very well too. All three WC dogs passed their water marks with no issues, so we put them away to rest until it was time for their land bird. Gerrie took over as Marshall, and I went to look at the WCI test so I could prepare to run DaisyMae. A WCI in our club consists of both land and water doubles, one on lead honor, no blinds, and the dog must be steady off lead. The dog must deliver to hand. A double is when two birds are shot in succession. The dog must wait at heel off lead for the judge to release the handler to release the dog. The dog must remember the first bird down after retrieving the second bird down and delivering it. DaisyMae had just begun this double concept. After earning her JH in June,I couldn’t see repeating a WC when she’s ready to move along. My worry was the possibility of her breaking with the live flier and big guns on land, and forgetting her ‘memory’ bird on water. We hadn’t had a chance to practice with big guns and live fliers, and she’d had only one time to practice a water double. In essence, this was going to be a real training situation for DaisyMae, pass or fail. She’s come a long way since spring. It was time to graduate to the next step. I watched a couple of dogs run the test and asked the Marshall what the judges’ instructions were. I listened to a couple of handlers discuss body position and dog position. I reviewed in my head all our instructor’s pointers every time we trained with him. I decided to take a deep breath and get DaisyMae to the line. DaisyMae gets nervous and excited, and she shows it by panting and whining. I’ve learned to try and keep things light, but under control for her as we move up the line. I could tell she was happy and excited, but not too nervous, so I must be learning my job as her handler. My heart beats, but I don’t want DaisyMae to hear it thumping! We got in the holding blind, and as I was getting ready to remove her leash for the heel to the line part, I accidentally squeezed her ear making her squeal! I felt kind of bad, but what could I do but tell her it was OK and we were going to get DUCKIES! ‘Dog to the Line’ I heard, so we stepped out and I was pleasantly surprised to see DaisyMae do a rather nice job staying close to me without a lot of nagging. When I think about it, she hadn’t practiced without her e-collar or heeling crop before this test. We got in just about the most perfect position, again without a lot of re-adjustment, and I waved that we were ready once I saw DaisyMae look both ways and lock onto the memory bird station. There was lost of quacking from behind and out at the station, the bird flew and was shot BANG BANG BANG BANG, and DaisyMae’s ears came up and forward. I waited the five seconds, heard the quacking from behind and at the second station, and turned my body slightly to help DaisyMae. She lifted her butt, turned her body and froze, staring at the duck fly and fall. I heard ‘dog’ whispered from behind, said “DAZE!!!” and she took off with a bark and a yelp, faster than I thought a dog could go, tripping over a little ditch on her way out. In two seconds she had the duck in her mouth and was in heel position, pointing towards the memory bird.
The judge took the second duck saying “You can’t do any better than that!” and invited me to honor. I slipped her lead on her and set her up where I was instructed. I knelt beside her so I could continually whisper in her ear “No bird. Sit” And she did it. Little Daze had just passed her first WCI land series perfectly. As we came off the line DaisyMae pranced and smiled and danced a happy doggie dance. She knew she was GOOOOD! Gunning for Miss DaisyMae Part II After lunch was made and served, Ganni was up for her WCX land series. She had to do one land blind and a triple, all off lead, and then an honor off lead. Ganni is always so cute. She works for cookies, so Gerrie puts little treats in her pockets before heading to the line with Ganni. When she’s all done and coming off the line, I can always see Ganni nibble at Gerrie’s pockets for her reward.
The blind was close to the center bird station. There was
a gunshot just before the dog came out of the blind, and the dog could
hear the The WCI/WCX judges finished up and went to their water set-up, so we had to wait for a little while. With only one land bird for the WC, Scott and the workers set things up fast and we started that series. Once again, Mango, Dazzle and Lola got another live flier and performed beautifully. Dazzle did her little bunny hop when she found the duck, making the judge and workers laugh out loud. This is pure doggie joy when you see Dazzle do her ‘signature’ move. Once we knew our WC dogs had passed, I headed back to water to watch and listen for the WCI instructions. There was quite a discussion between the judges after the test dog about a stump sticking up on the bank. If any dogs were belly floppers, and they aimed just right, they might land on this stump causing injury. The judges decided to do two things. 1) cover the stump with heavy padding taken from a truck. And 2) ask the handlers to do a modified walk up once the dog was released, so the dog was walked closer to the water before being sent by the handlers. Many of the dogs are ‘green’ so we knew this wouldn’t work. But the judges did say we wouldn’t be penalized in any way for sending our dogs the best way we could once released. I decided to just let DaisyMae fly, since usually she isn’t a belly flopper. The memory bird was going to land to the left in lily pads, just past a canoe on the opposite bank. There was a blind on land to the left to prevent cheating on entry. The live bird (go bird) was supposed to land in the middle of the stream in full view of the judges, dog and handler, and gallery. This bird was sent by gunners hidden in bushes to the right. I watched a few dogs before I got in line with DaisyMae. She was loose and happy, not nervous at all, so I had some hope we might pass the test. She had done only one water double in her life. Could she remember? I didn’t know. Water changes things.
DaisyMae got sucked in by the feathers, and I could hear the one judge behind me say “I can see the duck…can you?” No….I couldn’t see it….and then I did see it with its head UP and it was swimming AWAY from DaisyMae…DaisyMae saw it and then LOST IT! The duck was MOVING FAST TOWARDS THE BANK AND COVER! I heard the judge call to the gunners “Did that duck dive?” “No, but it’s swimming this way!” I heard one call back. Oh, brother….I thought the judge might just have me call DaisyMae back in and have a pick-up dog handle to the duck once the gunners killed it. But no….the judges waited and waited, DaisyMae swam and swam and started back to me….. So, I called to her “DaisyMae FETCH IT UP….” And she went back to get it again. I told the judge that the last I saw of the duck, it was swimming with its head straight up. The other judge said “I guess it wasn’t as dead as I thought it was.” Sheesh….no kidding! I lost sight of DaisyMae, and I think at that point the judge called to the gunners asking if the dog was on the bird. “She’s after it” I heard. Then I heard the first judge say “Call her in and we’ll have the gunners sluice it”. I whistled and called but I still couldn’t see DaisyMae in the thick bushes. I couldn’t see my dog or the duck and had no clue if she was returning to me when I heard more gunshots. GUNSHOTS! I turned to the judge and said “Are they shooting with my dog right there?” I was getting more than a little nervous! The judge looked a little concerned because he never told the gunners to shoot again that I heard. The judge said “Yes….they are shooting again.” His brow was wrinkling with concern. My dog was where I couldn’t see her and there were gunners with live ammo shooting a duck I couldn’t see. My heart was racing and I was shaking. All I hoped was that someone was keeping DaisyMae safe on the land while the guns were going off. I kept thinking “These guys own dogs…they won’t let Little Daze get hurt” but I was still worried.
Then I thought about the memory bird that SOME dog would have to pick up. I asked the judge if I should send DaisyMae for it. He said “Sure…send her.” I lined DaisyMae up, thinking she’d NEVER remember this fall after all the rigmarole she’d just been through, but it was worth the try anyway.
Wouldn’t you just drop your teeth but DaisyMae remembered
the fall and took a straight line to it, found the duck in seconds, and
came back I did manage to ask someone more experienced than I am about the meaning of the term, and found out that the judges decided to ‘discuss’ the pass/fail on my dog. Was I still in the ribbons after that? Or was I going to fail anyway? My one strand of hope was that I could hear the judges say as they stood behind me watching DaisyMae get the memory bird: “She remembered the memory bird after all that.” I was hanging on that statement….. I got to rest and call home, and change my clothes and have a drink, and watch more dogs run the test before Ganni’s almost perfect performance…triple on water with one handle. She’s a smart little thing! Gerrie kept saying “I don’t think Ganni would remember the memory bird if she’d been through what DaisyMae just did. I’m sure she wouldn’t remember it!” Gerrie kept telling me that DaisyMae was AWESOME even with the flunk. According to Gerrie, the gallery remarked on DaisyMae’s wonderful performance, and wasn’t it too bad about her flunk. Yes, DaisyMae is just plain awesome. We helped the gang break down and clean up the test before feeding and walking our dogs….and we still had to wait for the WCI and WCX passes to be announced, as well as the Triple Crown ribbons to be handed out. There was plenty of time to let the dogs run and run in the field. All the dogs had a good run and wrestle before we leashed them back up to head for the snacks table and ribbon ceremonies. Gunning for Miss DaisyMae Part III The Awards Ceremony Yes, we walked five dogs to the Awards Ceremony. The leashes twisted and turned as five dogs wanted to go in five different directions, but the five Labs were as happy as their people on the other ends of the leads. Who pulls the hardest, you might ask? LOLA! Because whatever Lola wants, Lola wants to have. All day Karen Kennedy kept telling me “You have to stay to the VERY END…..don’t you leave early!!!!....you’re going to be VERY HAPPY…..” I assured her I’d stay till the end…. The first awards to be given out were the WCI ribbons. Even though I knew DaisyMae was really iffy, I wanted her at the ceremony because she’s part of the gang. And I was really proud of her…she deserved to be out and socializing along with the winners. DaisyMae is a winner in my eyes! The club gives out nice certificates and nice rosettes for passing, along with duck bands to hang on our lanyards. The rosettes for the WC are baby pink. The WCI rosettes are baby blue. “BOY, would I be proud of one of those!” I thought as I watched the other handlers accept theirs. I listened to dog after dog’s number and name called, and clapped as best I could with three leashes in my hands for all the passing dogs. DaisyMae thought all the applause was for her. She smiled at me every time the people clapped. Did she know something I didn’t know? I held my breath. Dog # 5 passed. Dog # 6 passed, and I was waiting for Dog #7 to be skipped or called. DaisyMae’s number was #7. Then I heard “Dog #7, Snowden Hill Miss DaisyMae, JH, RN, WC, CGC, CC” and I let my breath out. The bubble we were on didn’t break…WE PASSED! HOORAY FOR MY GOOD GIRL! Everyone clapped for Miss DaisyMae and she wagged and leapt up and smiled at me. She knew she was GOOOOD! Ganni got a nice baby green rosette and her certificate and duck band too. Ganni is smart and she knows it, but all she really wanted was the cheese on the snack table! She’s a Goon and we love her.
Lots of applause and cheering ensued, followed by photos for the club newsletter. We packed up once again for the long, tiring drive home. We stayed awake by eating snacks and talking about the day and lots of other nothing that I can’t remember. We had five great dogs in the van, all snoring peacefully. I think the best dog of the day wasn’t the Mango, Triple Crown winner. The best dog of the day in our van was her baby sister: Miss DaisyMae. She’s not always the star, and she’s not always the one people look at with amazement and admiration, but I know she’s awesome and wonderful and she knows I adore her. What a dog.
Robin and DaisyMae take lessons from Jim Pickunka, Pond View Retrievers
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I
took the duck from her. I said to her softly: ‘ready?’ I pointed my
fingers towards the fall, and called “DAZE!!!” Off she flew….and again,
in a matter of seconds, she was back in heel position with her nice warm
duck. On her way back there were gun shots close by from the WC test.
DaisyMae did a Texas Two Step when she heard the shots, but she never
dropped the bird and came right back to me. I was so pleased with her I
was going to bust my zipper.
I
told the judge my number, removed DaisyMae’s leash and walked to the
line with her….she acted SO ready for this. I had to get her in a
better position because she was looking to the right and wasn’t willing
to move her little butt to the left very much. Eventually she moved, and
I signaled we were ready. Her head turned when she heard the gun shots
to the left, and then she turned her head to the right when she heard
that set of shots. And they shot and shot and shot…and then I couldn’t
see the duck. All I saw were feathers in the air and water. Oh,
dear….where did that duckie go? And then DaisyMae was sliding into the
water and I can’t remember if the judge ever gave me the release
word….Oh, well. Flunked on breaking, I thought, but I let her go….some
dog or other would have to get the duck anyway.
