The Wicklow-Wexford Gundog Association held a Summer Grouse Trial at Kippure, today 2nd August 2008.
The trial was held under Irish Kennel Club Rules and Regulations and the Judges were Jim Sheridan, Joe McGill and Pat Dooley. There were a couple of showers in the morning and it threatened rain in the afternoon but it never amounted to much. There was a showing of grouse but if I remember correctly none were made use of in the body of the stake until the end of the second round when the eventual second placed dog had a find on a small covey. There was then a series of involvements with grouse in the extension to the second round but I had departed by this time.
Results :-
1st Silverseeker of Shannonbally Ned Flannelly’s Irish Red & White Setter dog.
2nd Mienvee Jack the Lad Jim Crotty’s pointer dog.
Club awards;-
Best English Setter/Crinalisk Sam Eoghan Marshall’s dog.
Best Wicklow-Wexford dog/Capparoe Tintreach Kieran Walsh’s English Setter dog.
Chris.
The big Dane set about his work with a bit of passion today. At first he seemed one sided because he insisted on hunting in a valley full of very rank heather but eventually he got on to better ground and he really got going. There was a time I thought Chris might lack a bit of pace but this performance dispelled all those doubts. Handling, or rather failing to handle is still the problem but we are definitely making progress. Chris got on some scent that drew him forward and eventually he got a bit out of hand so the judges asked for the dogs to be put down again together. It took Ross a while to get the big dog on the lead and while walking back to the centre of the beat a grouse arose from behind his last line of quartering and he was eliminated for leaving it behind. The chances are that no dog would probably have hunted the area of broken heather the grouse errupted from but that’s not the point.
Judy
Covered a heap of ground (running against her son), was flat, fast, handled well and was also very wide. Our brace mate had a long workout but Judy did nothing wrong so I am totally mystified why she didn’t get back. It was just about her best performance ever so I am doubly confused.
Roxy.
Covered a heap of ground in her first round. The beat was down hill, into a stiff breeze and on recently burnt and only partially resprouting heather. Her second round started off really well. Having been told to ensure we did both sides Roxy did both sides, about three hundred yards either side. Several nice wide flat casts and then she stole defeat from the jaws of victory by having a nonproductive point. Bugger.
All in all a well organised and run event. Judges seemed to know what they wanted and what they were doing and the stewarding was well done as well. Something that doesn’t always get the highest priority, unfortunately. My dogs are all finding a bit of form just now but I get the feeling we are desperately short of bird work.They won’t get the bird work sitting in the kennel so I will just have to keep at it. I must be due a bit of luck?
