Re: Triumphs, Trials and Tribulations of Great Bay Babe & Be
07/05/14
It was Parent's Day at Quail Ridge Summer Camp today. My bride and I left NH at 0600 still in the grips of the torrential rain and wind from Hurricane Arthur. Midway through MA we could see blue sky on the Horizon. We drove from pouring rain into bright blue sunny sky. Not many times in my life have I witnessed the defining line of the end of a hurricane.
We arrived in CT to one of the most gorgeous summer days in memory. Temps in the 70's, a steady breeze and low humidity. A great day to see all the arts and crafts the pups have been working on.
Trad was up first on a triple memory retrieve which he aced. Mike knows the vocabulary much better than I for all the other tasks that TRAD performed like a senior in all aspects.
The Madra (Dog) Whistler with TRAD.
Mike asked Karen and I to ignore Belle when she was first let out of her kennel in order to limit any distractions. Belle acknowledged our presence with eye contact and fell in line with Mike.
Belle's arts and crafts table was full of accomplishments. You could tell from watching her that Mike has been concentrating on an upland aspect rather than a waterfowl aspect per my request.
I was so proud of both it made my eyes water.
Well the ignore portion didn't last long. As soon as Belle had completed half a circle through the training grounds it was all we could do to keep her tongue from giving each of us a bath. Our reunion was sweet. We love that dog and could tell the feeling was mutual.
The "Yellow Rocket".
Note where her eye contact....isn't.
What summer camper doesn't enjoy the water sports the best? With the field training review complete each dog had it's day in the pond.
TRAD starting a land, water, land retrieve. He also did a double retrieve going across to the point with one dummy and the second thrown 90 degrees into heavy vegetation. TRAD could have used the land for the memory bird but Mike's command kept TRAD in the water.
Next it was Belle's turn.
She is even dock diving.
When the pups retired to their cabins the adults settled in for a New England boil.
Corn on the cob, potato salad, little neck clam and mussel pasta, steamed clams and Great Bay lobsters, finishing out with strawberry shortcake. All along with a compliment of adult beverages.
Thank you Steve and Nancy owners of Quail Ridge for opening your home, supplying all the cooking utensils and sharing with us the edible bounty.
You can see the distraction Karen and I caused Belle when Mike was reviewing his training by her eye focus in a couple pictures above. It was squarely on Karen and I.
Later in the afternoon I went down to Belle's cabin for a little one on one that I have sorely missed. I duplicated Mike's approach and took her on the same circle she displayed her gains with Mike earlier in the day.
That yellah dawg did everything for me that Mike had demonstrated to us earlier in the day. The part I loved the most was the eye contact. Belle demonstrates personality through her gaze.
Thank you Mike for your commitment to training Belle. It shows!!