2015 American Brittany Club Central Futurity 2015 | Page 38

nationals and we remain friends and hunting companions to this day. The brace would prove to be
powerful, forward and exciting, both dogs having multiple finds, backs, and with good derby
manners. In the end, this memorable brace produced “Kota” as Runner-Up and “Dubb” as Winner.
As the week unfolded another part of the story came full circle. Rev (Dubbs father) the dog that did
not place in the 1996 Futurity, he had earned his DC title in 1997 and took 4th in the inaugural
running of the ABC National Amateur Gun Dog Championship. On the way home we realized that
“Dubb’s father had finally proven himself and earned the respect that he deserved and that “Dubb”
was a keeper, and finally earned a spot in our kennel.
The story does not end there. The next 2 years proved to be challenging. Getting Dubb
broke to wing and shot. He still had a lot to learn
and we were still learning even more from him.
But, we took our time, telling friends that if we
did not screw him up, he would turn into a fine
gun dog. At the age of four, things really started
to click (for the handler and the dog) and Dubb
started winning some adult gun dog stakes. It
looked like he would be ready for his first stab at
the Gun Dog Nationals in May of ’05. However,
his effort there ended with a handler error and a
young dog following directions. So it was back to
the training field for the handler and dog. Our
second try at a National event would be the
following Oct., with the ’05 National Amateur
Gun Dog Championship moving to the fall the
previous year. Our training leading up to this event was coming along nicely, with very little handler
error.
Again our brace mate would be a fine competitor, but because of drawing the 1st brace,
both handlers’ confidence was low. The up side was that we were running our dogs during the time
of year that we should be afield in search of game, the course was in great shape and the fall colors
in MI at this time of year are breathtaking. 29 starters could care less about the scenery or the brace
that they drew and Dubb was as strong as he ever was and his manners were flawless. At the end of
the week his performance was still the one to beat and there were no more dogs left to run.
The very next fall, just wanting to have another good performance (and to prove his
worthiness from the previous year) at the Gun Dog Nationals, we headed back to Ionia. Ho