You have a whole pet.
June 28, 2012
- Sulli and Boone
I will always cherish the time I spent training with the the best group of Marines ever and their 4 legged Marines in South Carolina and in California. I enjoyed my time with them and wanted to share some tid bits over time with everyone.
This group in my book receives an A+ all the way. They came to school tough. We wonder how we will get them trained. Once their training is over, we are proud. We cry. They leave. They leave but they will never be far away from us. They come to us and they steal our hearts. They are now a part of our family. They always will be.
They are a young group of Marines with heart, fight and fire. On the exterior they fear nothing and no one. Meet 1/9, The Few And The Proud.
- E and Ivy
Everyone should be as fortunate to meet each and every one of the 1/9 Marine Handlers and their Canines. At least once a week, I plan on showcasing one of the fine Marines from 1/9 here on my blog.
It is my hope that my blog will allow you to get to know them like I have had the opportunity to. They are our hero’s. We hear about them but we aren’t able to meet many of them if any at all. Sometimes we hear about them on the news like this evening when it’s too late. It is my hope that you will thank each of these men and their dogs personally and get to know them here on my blog.
Please feel free to comment to them and thank them for their service. Without these fine men, we wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.
Please pray for each of the men and women who are serving our country. I think of them every day and pray that they come home safe and sound.
Training
August 22, 2011
Blu Gateway HRC Hunt Test
We have had such beautiful weather for training. Is there anywhere on earth that the weather is like it has been all year around? If so, I would be there in an instant!
I trained with Blu and Angel yesterday. They both had a great training day. Both took all casts. Blu didn’t break, both left the diversions be, both took a line to the blind so it was nice. Blu was awesome on his triples. One memory bird was thrown out front and he went straight past it to the last bird thrown. He then went to the second bird thrown and then to the last bird that was right in front of him. I thought for sure he would pick up the shortest bird but he left it. That’s my dog!
I”ll begin training early this morning once again as soon as the sun comes up. I’ll take them out around 6:30 p.m. to train again. I’m going work with Angel on land with casting. She has gotten very good but I don’t want to rush her. I want her to have possibly another hour of casting drills before we go any further.
I’ll work on obedience with both dogs first. I do this every time we train and even when I air the dogs. They are both fine with obedience but I feel that obedience drills should be done daily. It’s the foundation of any dog. If you fail to provide your dog with a solid foundation, things could go drastically wrong and even be life threatening.
Training Day
August 20, 2011
Off to help Peg move then training the retrievers.
It’s a great day for training.
http://www.totalretriever.net
http://www.shadowhillretrievers.com
My Three Labradors
August 19, 2011
Blu
Angel
Kimber
Hunting and Training. Gun Control. Politics are important.
August 14, 2011
Yes, politics are important. Better yet, who we vote for is MOST important.
Guns aren’t banned yet but if this administration had its way, they would be. What this party can do it make it nearly impossible for us to own guns by making it a law to have outrageous insurance. Another way to keep us from owning or using guns would be the outrageous price of ammo.
Peaceful decent human beings have the right to own guns. We don’t use our guns as weapons. We obtain them legally. We use them legally whether it be when we are hunting, trap shooting, shooting at ranges and training/competing our hunting dogs.
Think of what we could lose if the wrong person were to be elected into office. The responsible people who have purchased, trained, acquired titles and who love their Retrievers would be out of business. That is just for starters. If we are not allowed to use or are not able to afford to use our guns, we can’t hunt, train and compete our beloved Retrievers. Some of us pay thousands of dollars for our healthy Retrievers.
There would no longer be hunting shows on television or the Internet. That means that photographers, video masters, production companies and many more would be out of business. Networks would lose hunting shows, which leads to subscribers dropping stations. Training supply stores and firearm stores would be out of business. No more hunting licenses. The list truly goes on and on.
Crime and mortality statistics are often used in the gun control debate. Controls often create burdens for law-abiding citizens and infringe upon constitutional rights provided by the Second Amendment. Some would argue, including myself that nationwide gun ownership is one of the best preventatives to crime as well as to a potential dictatorship, whether it be by our government or gangs.
Please pay close attention to who you vote for. The wrong party could and would try to strip away the rights of law-abiding citizens. To take away our right to bare arms and defend ourselves against criminals. They will not only take our right to defend ourselves away, but this action could strip us everything that we have worked hard for. They could and would try to take away our American Dream, the TRUE American Dream.
Trump for President? Ted Nugent for President? It’s a thought! A great ticket might be Trump and Nug for his running mate. Crazy or not so crazy?
Trump:
- Has nothing to hide. We know it all about his professional and personal life. He lost millions and billions. However, he did work to get it all back and is now better off and has even moreso than before. He knows how to run a business.
- He has enough money to run his own campaign without asking for millions and promising a bunch of pork. No need for him to bribe anyone for votes.
- Trump has back bone. He would say “NO” and he would mean it.
- He would bring jobs back to the States.
- He is very informed when it comes to the US Constitution and our rights.
- Illegals? What illegals? There would be no more. Especially if Nug is his running mate!
- I could go on and on and on.
Me? I’m in hopes that Trump decides to run. I think he would be the best choice for the US.
Possible running mates for Trump? Palin. Bachmann. Nugent.
Hunters, Retriever breeders and trainers, Target Shooters and more….please remember that politics are most important. Please study everyone running and make your choice wisely.
Labrador Retriever Training
August 13, 2011
Training is starting up again. Getting ready for fall. Will have beautiful Labrador photos to post.
http://www.totalretriever.net
http://www.shadowhillretrievers.com
Kimber
November 19, 2010
Kimber was to have come into season the first of September. She still hasn’t come in. Now I’m hoping she will wait until the end of December.
For me, I would rather purchase a puppy in the spring for potty training. Also, by fall, the puppy would be ready to pass his/her first hunt test!!
Kimber’s litter mate didn’t come into season the first time until she was 2 years old. The second time she came in at 3 years old.
Maybe Kimber is telling me she wants to nail down her HRCH before she has a litter of pups!! Sounds like a plan to me! At this point, I’ll probably wait to breed her with Tick until she does have her HRCH title.
Kimber Earns Her HR Title
October 24, 2010
“Kimber” The Hunter’s Gunpowder And Lead earned her HR title at Southern IL HRC Hunt Test last weekend at Rend Lake.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
I realize Kimber is my Chocolate Labrador Retriever but she truly is a special girl. Kimber is the daughter of FC AFC Cuda’s Blue Ryder MH. Ryder was an exceptional Chocolate Labrador Retriever as well as his father, FC AFC CFC CAFC Barracuda Blue MH.
Kimber’s siblings are all doing rather well. Her brother is with Chris Akin working to earn his CH and already has his MH.
She loves to retrieve and has a lot of drive and desire but let me go back a little bit in time. I first saw Kimber when she was 11 months old. I was told she was almost two. Once I received her AKC papers after purchasing her, I found out she was 11 months old. Her home? A garage. She had a kennel inside of the dark garage. I knew her pedigree but didn’t care how good it was or wasn’t once she bolted out of that dark home of hers and ran to me. She loved on me as if I had owned her since she was a puppy. We bonded immediately. I knew then that I wasn’t leaving her there a day longer.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
The “trainer” who had her in MI where I found her said the Cuda pups were rather stubborn and hard to train. I soon found out that his statement was truly off base. Once I bought her, 2 other trainers that watched her work said that she had not had much if any proper training at all and that the collar had been used on her and not in the proper manner. Kimber is very easy to train. She learns quickly and loves to work. She was just in the wrong hands.
When I got her home, I took her out to retrieve bumpers. She was just insane about it. Loved it. Alert and marked well. I sent her to a trainer for a month or so to work on her force training. When she came home, she and I worked on her “back” for blind work. She was catching on very fast. This past spring Kimber and I earned her SHR title with HRC and then she went to a trainer to work towards her HR title.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
When Kimber and I worked and I handled her for her SHR title, we worked like a team. We had a very strong bond and still do to this day. People commented on our bond running at hunt tests and they still do. People see us together and comment on how much she loves me and how close we are.
I’m trying to make a very long story short but it’s not very easy to do!
When Kimber went to the trainer to get ready for her HR title, she did well with training. Please keep in mind how she lived the first year of her life, not much outside time, in a garage with a garage door closed so neighbors wouldn’t hear dogs barking. It was a man who was over using the collar on her.
Kimber started running hunt tests with the new trainer since he had been spending more time with her than I had. She was doing the work but wasn’t working to her full potential. Something was missing. She and I earned her SHR title and went 4 for 4 passes. She was happy and had and still has excellent line manners. She’s a dream to run with.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
She began to fail at her hunt tests. It was not the trainer. The trainer loves Kimber and she loves him to pieces. What was missing? To this day, I believe it was that she and I were not running together. She had 1 pass towards her HR title and 2 failures. After another failure, I told the trainer I wanted to try. I knew she missed her partner. I felt it in my heart. We ran together at Gateway and she and I got our 2nd pass towards her HR title. We then ran Saturday at Southern IL HRC hunt test and earned her title. Kimber was happy running, her tail was wagging, she was alert and very happy. She was a different Retriever altogether.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
I truly believe that the reason she works well with me is because she knows I saved her from her prior living conditions. I know she is thankful. Some may think I’m nuts. Let them. I don’t care. I know my dog. I love her as if I had owner her since she was a pup.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
What Kimber and I need to work on now is her confidence. Her lack of confidence was man-made in her first 11 months of life. She was born with drive and desire. She had and still has plenty of that. Judges and handlers enjoy watching her run and think she’s a great Retriever.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
From now on, this special girl goes nowhere else to train. No one else will handle her. We are a team. She stays with mom to train. I will ask a million training questions, train with my friends, and she and I will learn all about earning her finished title together. I am looking forward to working with her. There is nothing more rewarding than training and handling your own Retriever. She’s an amazing gal and she has a great future. Together, Kimber and I are 6 for 6 passes. Let’s see if we can go ten for ten and get that finished title next year! Once she does that, it’s on to AKC!
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
Once Kimber comes into season, I am breeding her with Ten Bears Road Trip QAA “Tick.” I am keeping a puppy from that litter. I love Kimber with everything in me. Her temperament is out of this world, her drive and desire are fantastic and Tick, well everything about that boy is amazing. This will be a special litter of Chocolate Labrador Retrievers. It will be one of the best bred litters of Chocolate Labradors. I want this breeding to take place because I want a Tick/Kimber pup so bad I can taste it. The best thing is that I will be training this pup myself from start to finish. I’m looking very forward to this special event.
Please enjoy Kimber’s title hunt test photos from Southern IL HRC Fall 2010 Hunt Test. Wayne Greenwell took them for me with my camera. He did a fantastic job!! Thank you, Wayne. Josh Ward took some of us at our first HR Test together at Gateway HRC Hunt Test. Hopefully he will edit and send them soon so I can post them here as well.
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title, Going for the Diversion!!
"Kimber" The Hunter's Gunpowder And Lead working for her HR Title
Please feel free to read about Kimber and Tick at my Kennel Website: Shadowhill Retrievers please click on upcoming litters.
Wendy Porch 