Going the distance

A lack of consistency when it comes to judging a spaniel’s hunting pattern in field trials is making the sport tricky for newcomers to navigate and frustrating for competitors, says Ryan

- Ryan Kay KCAI (WG)

Back in 2014 I wrote about my first experiences of trialling a spaniel. Transitioning from the HPR trialling scene I was excited by the prospect of competing with my new cocker Charlie, as I ventured rather innocently over to the spaniel side. Will I ever have another HPR and look to trial once again in the rangy world of the Hunt, Point, Retrieve breeds? Hmm... that’s a whole other subject. Nevertheless, I have most certainly enjoyed the faster-paced spaniel environment, where I’ve been able to enter and compete in more trials than I would have previously in the HPR arena.

Spaniels, as we know, are more popular than HPRs and gain a higher interest from shooting folk everywhere. This means that there’s additional interaction from organisers and spaniel triallers, which in turn increases the availability of field trials and working tests to compete in. And, whether they admit it or not, everyone in trialling is most definitely competitive! And so they should be – it means a great deal to have your hard work and training recognised by means of a trialling award – highlighting that you have trained your dog to be successful amongst others; that you yourself have been acknowledged by your peers as a worthy handler displaying your skills and meeting a high standard with your dog. Something that many others have perhaps struggled to do so.