# wish us luck



## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

Taking Ruby on her first pheasant shoot this saturday. it's a driven shoot and we'll be on beating duties. It's not what I ultimately want her to do but it's a foot in the door so to speak. Also we should be quite a distance from the guns so it should be a gentle introduction to shotgun noise


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## flynnandlunasmom (May 28, 2012)

Best of luck to you!


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## dmak (Jul 25, 2012)

Exciting stuff. You guys will have a blast


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

Have a great time. 

A "drive" the field was my first pheasant hunt experience three years ago.

http://redbirddog.blogspot.com/2009/11/pheasant-hunt-opening-day.html

Good luck and happy hunting.

RBD


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## Darcy1311 (May 27, 2012)

I would love to get Darcy involved in a local beat...only on an amateur basis but it would be great to see what, if any potential she may have...But most of all she is a house pet first and foremost.


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Har - if your PUP has not been broken to gun - stay back from the line - an easy introduction to gun is the only way to go - gun shy takes a long time to correct - see how the pup reacts to gun fire - if it's go & show move on - if not - leave the field & reintroduce the pup to gun - good luck - VVe all love 2 hunt - You and the PUP will be fine! Hunt well & hunt often!


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

we often hear farmer blasting crows about 400 yards away from our house, Ruby stands looking alert and not at all distressed so I'm guessing she'll be okay, but point noted Ron and I'll be watching her like a hawk.


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Dar - intro to birds & gun is so importment - start mine at 10wks old - neVer about us haVing a good time - it's about having a pup that will hunt for the rest of their life - shoot more & shoot more often !


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Dar - POST Script - PIKE is my 4th 'V' - they have been lap MUTTS first & trained to HUNT - to do less ? why have a V - if not in the field VVith a great pointer - VVe will neVer C what they were bred 2 do - sorry - just on the HUNTING side of this FORUM!


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## Ozkar (Jul 4, 2011)

Woohoo... I bet Ruby just loves it!!


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## born36 (Jun 28, 2011)

Good luck.

No bird is safe from the Rubs!!


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## Ozkar (Jul 4, 2011)

Is Ruby counting the sleeps till Saturday, or are you doing that for her instead???


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

Ozkar said:


> Is Ruby counting the sleeps till Saturday, or are you doing that for her instead???


both of us are I think ;D ;D


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

tick tock tick tock,,,,another 12 hours we'll be on our way ;D


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## ForestFriend (Sep 24, 2012)

Good Luck...have a fab day both of you


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Hope you and Ruby have a great day tomorrow. Look forward to hearing all about it. ;D


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

what a superb day ;D, a few things to hone, but no negatives. When we first got to the meeting hut I noticed a lot of people looking at Ruby with the "what is it??" look on their faces, they'd never experienced a Vizsla before  as it was all labs and cockers....come the final flush on every drive and all eyes were watching Ruby as to how she made it look all so effortless, whilst the labs and cockers were busy sticking their noses in tree roots and brambles Ruby just did a perimeter search and flushed the errant pheasants back over the guns....strangely enough people were asking me a lot more questions about her when we got back to the hut 
What she wouldn't do though was pick up a bird that a black lab had pegged (it had flown into a pen fence, got injured, lab had pegged it, I knocked it on the nape, yet Rubes wouldn't pick it up).
Gunshot's she loved  I got a little vid of her as guns were being shot, (I'll upload it later), all I could see was eagerness, no nerviness at all thank god ;D....she's curled up asleep now, probably not physically exhausted but certainly mentally she's had a helluva workout


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## dmak (Jul 25, 2012)

Excellent report. Glad to near Ruby did so well. I'm sure it was a very proud moment for you guys


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

what I really felt proud of dmak was what the gamekeeper said after the final drive..."so what is she again? " I explained that Rubes is a cross smooth/wire vizsla and this was her first shoot
"well we've got 9 more drives here this season so please bring her as often as you can"...
i thought my heart was gonna bust with pride ;D


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## dmak (Jul 25, 2012)

Sounds like Ruby has a lot more field work in her near future. Seeing a hunting dog do what it was originally bred to do is such an amazing sight. Its like watching a totally different animal from the cuddly house mate you are so used to. It's like they are truely happy and in their purest element


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

dmak said:


> Sounds like Ruby has a lot more field work in her near future. Seeing a hunting dog do what it was originally bred to do is such an amazing sight. Its like watching a totally different animal from the cuddly house mate you are so used to. It's like they are truely happy and in their purest element


that my friend is hitting the nail right on the head!!!, _*the moment*_ she got out of the pick-up it was as if her all demeanour had changed ie not a pup anymore,she was totally focused,,,she wasn't even grumpy with strangers lol!


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Har - giVen the truth or giVe me a 'V'- I was raised with English pointers - in the field they are still classic on point - the 'V' GOD rest my soul - just make's me SMILE !


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Well done Ruby, sounds like she was a star. Also sounds like you could taking bookings for puppies if you did want to breed from her!!! Mrs Doug might not be too keen on that 8)

Glad you had a great day and looking froward to seeing the video.


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

the vids I took weren't very good tbh, but here's the best of the bunch showing Ruby when shots were being fired, I'll try to get some better ones next week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iczro9u9lzM&feature=plcp


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

thought I'd try and have a bit of fun with pheasant wings to get her used to mouthing them
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTt0gz0IEN4&feature=plcp


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Har - Ruby wanted to go to the sound of the gun - you have a hunter on your hands - on the wings - try hiding some in the field - give ruby a sniff - my command is DEAD BIRD - let her loose and point her in the right direction - then it becomes work and not play - good luck


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

even better day today, alas my filming skills seem to be sliding backwards. She's really growing out of puppyhood and into a good steady birding dog. Even with strangers on the drive there was none of her usual "stranger awareness", just seemed soooo content to be in the field atmosphere, also pointed and flushed at least a dozen pheasants today ;D


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## dmak (Jul 25, 2012)

*Re: Re: wish us luck*



harrigab said:


> even better day today, alas my filming skills seem to be sliding backwards. She's really growing out of puppyhood and into a good steady birding dog. Even with strangers on the drive there was none of her usual "stranger awareness", just seemed soooo content to be in the field atmosphere, also pointed and flushed at least a dozen pheasants today ;D


How is she on retrieval?


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

it's driven shoots we're doing at the moment dmak, so she's not getting chance to retrieve yet, mainly she's on flushing duties at the end of each drive, towards end of season I'm hoping to get her onto "picking up" then next year getting her onto upland grouse moors where I think she'll come into her element


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

bit of a mixed day today :, as most dogs are spaniels, cockers etc, Ruby gave a lot of beaters their first sight of a dog holding a good strong point on pheasants then flushing on command, great, I was proud as punch as she was off her lead and quartering quite well and not wandering to far ahead of the line.....until she put up a hare, then all sense went and she gave chase and didn't respond to recall until she was satisfied it was a lost cause ,,,so more steady training on fur needed now. 
We did bag 84 pheasants and a duck today though ;D


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

What a gorgeous creature! In the pheasant wing video, she looks so graceful, almost like a dancer. 
Congrats on her performance in the field.


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