 Foxy´s son, FTCH Birk was trialled at the end of April. The snow was pretty "rotten", as we use to say at this time of the year, and hence the conditions were testing to the dogs. Birk had run for a very long time without showing any fatigue, and the judge had become impressed of him. However there had not been any birds on his ground and the judge had walked up to the handler and said "I really wish we could find a bird for him also, he is doing so well otherwise!" Was this a prayer? If it was, it was heard and answered! The good Lord who protects the birddogger`s but who does not do much birddogging himself, misunderstood the petition a bit. He sent a cock grouse straight down from the blue heaven, over the dogs head and made it land on the rock, far left in the picture!  What Birk did was not finding the bird by scent but by sight - in the air! He did not scent point but sight pointed. He wanted to "nail" the bird by putting pressure on it by closing the distance to it. The bird was not in the mood to be nailed. It was a cock in high heat, as they are this time of the year, and hence totally unpredictable in its behaviour. Birk closed the initial distance of some 50 - 70 meters in short rushes with short points between, obviously he was searching the scent of the bird in the very hard wind. When he did his last short rush the bird was just about 10 meters away and as Birk rushed the bird took of and pulled Birk with him for a few meters, maybe 6 - 7, and that was it - he was out! The wisdom from this incident could be that you should never pray for anything unless you know it is something the good Lord for sure understands! |
photo Maud Matsson & text Torsti Mäkinen ©