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NAVHDA: Leaving a Lasting Impression

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by Erin Kalpin I was 12 years old, sitting in my bedroom nestled at the back of the small home I was growing up in. There, I touched the golden wings on the ruffed grouse pin before placing it on my blaze orange Ruffed Grouse Society hat. The following day I’d be heading to a North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA) test, where we’d be running the small 7-month-old puppy I claimed as my own, named Ben, in his Natural Ability test. During the test, I proudly stood next to my dad when we reached the water and we paused for...

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Purina – Body Condition System

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by Keith Schopp The Purina veterinarian took one look at Emma, my 8-year-old Labrador retriever, and noted: “She hasn’t missed any meals lately.” Then Dr. RuthAnn Lobos announced Emma’s score on the Purina Body Condition System. “She’s a solid 6, maybe even a 6.5,” said Dr. Lobos. I was crushed. View a PDF copy of Purina’s Body Condition System With apologies to Bo Derek, when you’re a Labrador retriever competing in the Purina Body Condition Scoring game, you don’t want to be a 10. That would be a 55-gallon barrel with legs. You want to score a 4 or 5, which is “ideal” according to...

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Danger Zone!

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by Keith Schopp, Purina Out along the edges Always where I burn to be The further on the edge The hotter the intensity Lyrics from “Danger Zone” by Kenny Loggins Hunting dogs cover hundreds of miles every year searching for birds. A lot of those miles are logged on the edge — navigating rugged terrain in extreme conditions with danger lurking. Call it the “danger zone.” As you and your faithful companion venture forth this season, it pays to be aware of places and scenarios that can pose potentially life-threatening danger. Here’s a random list of 10 dangerous places or situations that could pose trouble for...

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Terrible Ticks

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By Meg Puchlerz, DVM, CRPM Photo by Jake Perry When folks think about the dangers of hunting, their minds often go to things like lacerations, wildlife encounters and orthopedic injuries. Flying below the radar is the tiny tick. Ticks are found on every continent — including Antarctica! Large numbers of ticks are most common from spring to late fall, but they can be a year-round problem. Tick distribution in an area can vary widely. You can hunt one field and not bring back a single unwanted passenger, and your buddy hunting one field over may bring back double digits.  According to the Centers...

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Investing in the Bird Dog Bank Account – A primer on pet insurance

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by Michael L. Neiduski If you have a bird dog, you know the feeling: that queasy, questioning feeling that comes the moment it’s time to load up and go to the vet. Sometimes it’s obvious – the flap of skin from barbed wire or a mouthful of quills staring you in the face as they lope back to you. Other times, it’s just in your gut – the loss of appetite, low drive or not wanting to get out of the box on a hunt, when in normal moments they’re ready to breathe fire like a “Game of Thrones” dragon to...

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Don’t Get Beat by the Heat

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by Tom Keer Summer is a difficult time to get a string of gun dogs ready for the upcoming grouse and woodcock seasons. Hot and humid temperatures combined with sunny, windless days make for tough pre-season training. If we want to build our gun dogs’ foundations so we’re ready to roll on opening day, then we’ve got to run our dogs during this hottest, most humid time of the year. Avoiding heat-related illness (HRI) is key. What is Heat-Related Illness? HRI occurs when the dog’s core body temperature rises faster than he can cool off. Dogs can experience one of two types of...

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