by Kerry Webster » Sun 12 Jan 2003 3:23 pm
Wayne, it is interesting that you brought up the topic of guns; getting a license for them, and inexperienced persons handling them.
You may or may not be aware that in W.A. competitors in retrieving trials do not have to have a personal gun license for the state, any more. We are covered under a corporate license held by the Canine Association of W.A. All the shotguns are held in a gunsafe at the CAWA headquarters and are signed out for their use in trials. There are still some who have a private gun license, and own their own guns, and these people usually go shooting themselves during the year, but for the average trialer who really doesn't have a need for a license, this necessity has been eliminated.
I feel this is a giant step in the right direction from our controlling body, and now there are hints that other state bodies are being influenced to do the same.
In regard to inexperienced handlers, and guns, I agree, that this is and will always be a problem, especially amongst some of the female handlers.
But, without the handlers actually getting out there and having to learn how to handle the gun and cope with the inconvenience of it, then they and their dogs are never going to advance. It is the same old story, "Practice makes Perfect".
If, in other states, you have as we do, a training day every Saturday morning during the season, where Novice and Restricted handlers and dogs can attend and learn all there is to know about trialing, then this would be the ideal opportunity for new handlers to familiarise themselves with the guns, feel their weight, their bulkiness, and how to cope with them whilst running their dog. It is also the time when they could accustom their dogs to the sound of shot, if need be.
Just getting off the subject of guns, and going back to a comment in a previous post by another person, regarding minor breeds, and goldens and labs dominating the trials.
I would like to point out that in W.A. we have a large assortment of breeds competing, especially in Novice and Restricted.
Several GSP's and cockers, Vizsla, Pointer, Irish Setter, Brittany, GWP's and Nova Scotia D.T.R. as well as the Labs and Goldens. Sure, Labs and Goldens are in the majority, but it doesn't mean that any of the other breeds are less capable of winning a trial. There are some very good dogs competing, many with owners with little retrieving experience, but, that is how we all started out, and as long as there are people to offer help to these owners, then they will keep on trying. It isn't a point of the individual breed winning/placing in a trial, but whether the actual dog is capable of doing so. Having a GR in trials myself, has shown me first hand how difficult it is to overcome prejudice, especially the fact that all breeds will tackle a run in the method peculiar to that particular breed.
A Cocker spaniel does not run like a GSP, etc. Some breeds use their noses better than others, some quarter, some figure out a slightly shorter route that doesn't involve brambles. They are all different, and should be accommodated by the judge for their individual differences in retrieving.
Kerry