Normally my cousin brings his chessie to do the dirty work while duck hunting, but yesterday he came directly from working the night shift. So Dez gets his first opportunity to sit and wait while we attempt to shoot some ducks. Sitting and waiting he needs a little work on, retrieving ducks he is a natural. He figured out to watch the sky after the second flight comes through and we knocked a couple down and he got the retrieve. He wasn't really wanting to lay down and wait when he would see them pass after that, so we will begin working in earnest on that. He had been worked on ducks and through decoys as a pup so that wasn't a big deal. The first duck we knocked down WAY like 90 or so yards, it took a pretty good bit of coaxing to get him to go all the way to it until he saw it splash after that, it was all over. He managed several nice retrieves one a double he did a remarkable job of marking the second bird and being resent with no effort at all just a fetch command. He wasn't perfect but a nice first effort.
As many of you know I have been very impressed with him since he was a puppy, my enthusiasm for this dog has not declined.
Here are a few pictures, from the duck hunt.
After the ducks slowed down we headed out to see if we could find some quail and pheasants, we managed some decent dog work on both.
He had loosened up quite a bit by the time we got to him, but he stuck this covey on the edge of a cut bean field.
My older female saddle with a nice point on a running rooster that it took a lot of dog work to finally get pinned.
Just a photo of some of the cover we hunt, CRP and hedge apple trees surrounded by cut beans.
All in all it was fantastic day out with dogs, my dad and several friends.
....... He's lookin good Andy ! Sounds like a great time....
