I've made post about dogs before, and I'm still a dog lover. With good treatment, every dog I've ever had, has returned this good treatment, with loyalty. With fall coming up, I'm always reminded of my granpa,. He was a farmer here in Missouri, and an avid quail hunter, during the late fall. My grandpa always had three or more bird dogs on the farm, and most were usually given to him. They were the runts of the litter, and were never expected to be good hunters.
Most of the hunters dismissed them as weak, too small, timid, and would say they were gunshy. My grandpa knew better. Here's how he trained them: he kept some wings from the qauil, from the year before, and froze them. He would thaw one out, and tie it to a piece of fishing line about 4 or 5ft long. This went on the end of an old cane pole about 10ft long, which hung in the barn. Getting the pup out in the yard, he would give them a good smell of the wing. At first, all the pups would just try anything to get the wing. Every time the pup made a lunge for the wing, he would jerk it away a few feet. After a few times, the pup would start to approach slowly, and wait cautiously for the wing to move again. Without realizing it, the pup was learning to go on point, and stand still when he caught the smell of the quail wing. Over several years back in the 60s, I watched my grandpa take the frail, weak pups, and turn them into outstanding dogs. Our best one ever was an English Setter named Butter. Butter was born with a slight yellow tint to her fur, and didn't have the proper look of an English Setter. I entered Butter in the pup class in a field trial her first year. The day was hot. They would plant dead quail in a field, and see how good the pup could locate them, and hold on point. That day, there was a large hatch of yellow butterflies in the field. Butter approached the birds slowly, but couldn't keep her attention on them, and would chase a butterfly. The man who was running the field trial told me" son, you better take your butterfly dog home, she'll never be any good". At 12 yrs old, I was devestated. My grandpa said " don't worry, she needs a little time". We worked with Butter through the whole summer. The following fall we entered her again in the first year class. She took first place, and outperformed every dog that was there. Many were expensive, full bred pointers and setters. Some guys offered to buy Butter from granpa, but he'd have none of it. That hunting season, my granpa, dad, my older brother, and to an extent me, shot full limits of quail on many days,with Butter leading, and the first on point every time. When Butter retrieved a quail, my grandpa would kneel on one knee, and open his hunting coat. Butter would drop the quail into the pocket of his coat every time. She had a great, long life on the farm, and loved being in the field every year. It was a huge loss to all of us when she passed on. My grandpa loved all of his dogs, and gave them only the best treatment, almost spoiling them. He took the runts, the losers, and the dogs that nobody wanted. Through kindness, and good training, he turned them into loyal, trustworthy champions. Years after, I realized he taught me a huge lesson through all of this. Get a dog, any breed, and treat him with kindness. He'll return this kindness with a trust and loyalty that is second to none. This is why Ive been a dog lover all my life, and will be for the rest of my days. They are, and always will be, our best companions.
