Yup, it’s true!  Our’ “old” guy, Kosmo (CH Derby’s Read Em And Weep MH) took a pretty impressive placement in the Rocky Mountain Vizsla Club’s inaugural walking field trial April 30-May 1 (head over to our blog if you want to learn more about the basics of AKC field trialing and how this game differs from AKC hunting tests--read our “What Exactly Is This Field Trial Business About Anyway” post).  We entered our little guy in the Amateur Gun Dog retrieving stake to let him get out and have fun.  Plus, we really do love watching Kos hunt and compete in his own way.  Over these many years, he’s learned so much about real hunting as well as how to play these hunting test and field trial games. He *loves* it all!! Anything to do with game birds and he is SO IN!  This “let me at ‘em” attitude and strong bird desire are among just a couple of the many things we love so much about our clever boy. 

A few years back, we decided we wouldn’t actively pursue a field title on Kosmo.  We based this decision on a number of reasons but primarily because years ago Kosmo, like Remus (CH Shakin' My Booty Rezzamatazz CGC SH), drew the short straw with the universe and was destined to be one of our “learner” dogs.  :-/  Unfortunately, because of some of the training decisions we made with him as a young pup, his range, independence, and style all took a hit.  These are some of the most critical pieces field trial judges evaluate when deciding which dogs they’ll award points and placements to.  Kosmo’s bird desire withstood our training decisions and never faltered so we decided to focus on qualifying him in AKC hunting tests.  He proved to be great at these hunting test games and picked up his Master Hunter title fairly quickly (passing 5 of his last 7 tests, http://www.fusionvizslas.com/vizslas_latest20.html).  Along the way, we've entered him in a handful of field trials and he's earned a handful of placements--including a 1st place in an Amateur Derby stake worth 2 points.  We almost always travel with our entire crew.  We didn’t feel it was fair to bring Kos along to a trial and have him just sit in the kennel all weekend while his four-legged siblings had all of fun.  Heck, given his level of training as a “finished” or “broke” gun dog, we knew he would at least be a polite bracemate and besides, he wouldn't know he was running "just for fun."  I suppose this in itself is a good lesson—our dogs should never know the difference in a “fun run” or one that really counts!

(Very Important Sidebar: We train MUCH DIFFERENTLY now and have learned over these many years better ways to train bird dogs. We have a much better understanding of how dogs learn and the mutual respect we must have for each other in order for the learning process to occur. Our combined years of experience have also taught us the learning goes both ways. It should flow actually, between dog and trainer, and each dog is an individual therefore flexibility and patience are key. We no longer view mistakes the dogs make as personal infractions against us. Instead, our dogs are allowed to make mistakes without the fear their world is coming to an end. We see these mistakes as critical pieces of information we need in order to help them better understand what we're trying to teach.

As this hobby became a passion, our desire to learn became a sort of an obsession. We sought out a variety of experienced trainers who's methodologies aligned with ours and who would actually teach us rather than just try to take our dogs and train them for us. Perhaps the most influential to us have been Jon and Cindy Hann of Perfection Kennels. We've incorporated a mix of their methods, as well as methods we've learned from other trainers, into our overall training. We now build a solid foundation in our young dogs and train for the long term rather than immediate gratification of the "gotta have the title right now no matter what" mentality. Our Vizslas, now, are quite successful when they test/trial. Mind you, our idea of "successful" is likely different than how others view success. Success to us isn't just a ribbon in hand or a new title. Our idea of success is that our Vizslas have a clear understanding of what is expected of them in a huge variety of situations when they are in the trenches without a human right there thinking for them. This clear understanding deepens their own passion for hunting, testing, and trialing which means they won't burn out as young dogs. Rather, will just keep getting better as they age. You can see this passion and confidence in our dogs when you're in the field with them. They run with big smiles on their faces! 'Nough of that--let's return to the story about Kosmo's big day.   :-))

...where were we? Ah, yes...

Then, an interesting thing happened over these past couple of years—something we would never would have predicted.  After his big bro Remus died, Kosmo started showing more independence in the field.  He began to reach out more—moving easily from one objective to the next without coming back around to "check in". He always quartered naturally but now he was driving further out in front and quartering in bigger patterns.  He would stay out longer, feeling less like he needed to maintain visual contact with us.  I remember vividly the first hunt we took Kosmo on after Remus died.  It was like I was watching Remus out there.  It was so awesome!  Mind you, Kosmo was never what an experienced hunter or competitor would call a “boot licker”.  An accurate description of his range is that of a true “gun dog”—he’s always been such a joy to hunt over.  Thus, his range was perfect for the hunting test game (he did get very high scores through all of the levels he tested at—Junior, Senior, Master) but not so much for the field trial game—and sadly, not even the walking field trial game (especially here in Colorado). 

The other thing we noticed was his style—his points began to tighten up more.  He’s always pointed his birds with “high style”—head up (if the weather allowed)—but he could sometimes look a little softer on point than we prefer.  Over these past couple of years though, his style on point has noticeably changed.  I love watching him stick a point or dive into cover on scent then come up later to find him standing like a statue.  The look in his eyes = All Business.   

Though he finished his AKC Master Hunter title a few years ago, we’ve kept his training up.  He gets to work his birds just like the rest of our Vizslas.  This past hunting season, we really liked what we saw every time we put him down to work.  He was looking great—competitive—and so our wheels began turning…

Then, the perfect opportunity arose.  We were asked to judge at the Montana German Shorthaired Pointer Club hunting test this April (2011).  The club was running a one day walking field trial in conjunction with their hunting tests.  We love the Three Forks area of MT and the club members are a wonderful group of people.  We decided to accept the assignment and run our crew where we could.  Amante shined—qualifying for her first Master Hunter pass AND winning the 3 point retrieving major Amateur Gun Dog stake, http://www.fusionvizslas.com/vizslas_latest29.html.  This was her debut testing as a Master dog AND her debut as competing in a Gun Dog stake.  :-) We entered Kosmo in the Amateur Gun Dog stake as well so he could stretch his legs and do what he loves most.  We also wondered how he would look competing in a gun dog stake given what we had seen recently.  Though he didn’t make it around the course clean (the judges said he pushed a bird too hard causing it to flush—though he stopped at the flush field trial judges give very little latitude when it comes to wild flushes or bumped birds), he put down a very respectable run!  Again, we were impressed with our little guy’s increased independence and style.  We received some nice compliments on his run from other exhibitors.  So…we decided to enter him our local Vizsla club’s, (The Rocky Mountain Vizsla Club), inaugural walking field trial scheduled for April 30-May 1.  We decided to enter Kos in the Amateur Gun Dog stake—the stake we prefer to run our crew in.  It was a retrieving stake and to our surprise, by the time the trial closed it was worth 4 points (18 gun dogs).  Wow!

Aaron handled Kos in the stake and they looked like a million bucks!  I was so very proud watching them from the gallery.  Kosmo shined as his experience and maturity set his run apart from many of the other dogs competing in the stake.  He ranged out a perfect distance for a walking gun dog stake, for the cover of this course, AND for our breed.  He pushed down the tree lines and dove in when he caught scent.  He had multiple finds, one of which was a covey of quail that were walking rather than holding tight—tempting!  And, his finish was as strong as his breakaway.  I smiled as I saw the look of disappointment roll across his eyes when Aaron whoa’ed him then pulled out the leash after the judge called “time”.  “I’m not ready to come in yet Dad!” his eyes so clearly said.  That’s my boy!

I joined Aaron and Kosmo as they left the course.  I knew from Aaron’s smile he had loved Kosmo’s run too.  And that was enough for us—having lost our “once in a lifetime” Vizsla, Remus at the too-young age of 9 years, we have a different perspective now.  Now, we work hard to really be present with our Vizslas and to live in the moment—as they do.  We didn’t think the judges would use Kosmo for a callback in this Amateur Gun Dog stake and we were okay with it.  He had just given his all and his run would be the memory we would keep for years to come—regardless of whether a ribbon was attached to it or not.

Given it was our club’s trial and Aaron and I (along with several other hard-working club members) were busy, busy keeping the trial running smoothly (we had 98 entries and two courses!!) we put Kos back in his kennel and dashed off to get back to work.  A couple of hours later, the judges handed over their “callback” list…and there was our lil guy’s name…among 2 German Shorthaired Pointers, an English Setter, and another Vizsla who is already a Dual Champion (Note: one of the GSPs on the list had just won the 5 point Open Gun Dog stake the day before).  YOW-ZA!!!  Kosmo was among an elite, and oh-so classy group!  I got butterflies in my belly thinking about the callback.  I know Aaron didn’t—he’s mister stone-faced when it comes to callbacks. :-)

As the time approached for Kosmo’s callback, Aaron pulled him out of the kennel and got him ready.  Kos is a *very, very* smart Vizsla.  There’s no foolin’ him—he knows this callback game.  Aaron walked him to the designated area and released him.  The field used for the callbacks was an easy read for Kos and really any experienced bird dog—low grass with one objective.  Wasting no time, Kos moved to the objective and stopped.  Not too pretty but I had to laugh (I know Aaron was groaning inside)—Kos was on the wrong side of the wind to have been able to even scent the bird.  His lack of intensity told the whole story.  Aaron kept cool and approached Kos with all of the confidence in the world. He released Kos so Kos could actually use the wind to locate the bird with his nose.  Kos moved around the objective and hit a point as soon as he came into the scent cone.  Much better!  The rest of the callback was textbook with a strong flush (good job Aaron!), a solid hit (good job gunners!), and a rock-solid Kosmo.  Aaron showed off Kos’ steadiness and calmly walked back to where Kos stood to give him a physical release to retrieve.  What a picture! On Aaron’s tap, Kos shot out like a furious little red streak, snapped up the shot bird and bolted back to Aaron—a perfect delivery to hand.  My heart soared again!  By gosh, I think we were “in the ribbons” in this very competitive all-breed retrieving stake! 

The judges handed in their placements and we all headed back to the clubhouse for the awards.  I know there are many trialers out there who are unimpressed by the 3rd or 4th placements their dogs are awarded.  Not us.  We don’t trial our crew that often.  But when we do, we’ve been so very fortunate to usually take placements.  And, so—though we prefer the “blue”—any color is just fine by us!  Then, when our almost 9 year old Vizsla takes a placement in such a competitive entry, well that's just like adding the cherry on top!

Vizsla Kosmo standing on point on a quail covey in the Amateur Gun Dog stake - The Rocky Mountain Vizsla Club's Walking Field Trial

A GREAT RUN! Aaron and his Vizsla boy Kosmo leave the Amateur Gun Dog course after making it around clean--and with a whole lot of style!

The "Callback Crew" waits for the Open Limited Gun Dog and Amateur Gun Dog retrieving callbacks - The Rocky Mountain Vizsla Club's Inaugural Walking Field Trial

Vizsla Kosmo and owner/trainer/handler Aaron in a callback for the Amateur Gun Dog retrieving stake

Kosmo is sent for the retrieve in a callback Amateur Gun Dog stake

Vizsla Kosmo finishes with a perfect retrieve to hand -- Good Boy Kosmo!!

Aaron and Kosmo leave the callback field - Could that be a smile on Aaron's face?!??!