Today my spaniel Tassla started on a water test in the Swedish town Halmstad – and she did a great job. There are two different types of water tests for spaniels: A beginner test and an “ordinary” water test – the first one is easier than the second one. Among other things, the dogs have to swim a longer distance (about 40 yards today) and they have to “change environment”, that is they have to swim through both flat water and water with reeds or water lilies. We made the test for beginners last summer so now it was time for the more difficult one.
Today there were water lilies in the water, and it may sound simple to just swim straight out in the water and retrieve a duck among water lilies, but it might actually be quite tricky. Today’s difficulties were many. The wind came from an angle behind the dogs, that is, in principle fair wind, so the wind wasn’t helpful at all. The dogs should swim rather close to shore and therefore several dogs actually just walked up on land. The duck was thrown in such a way that it ended up in a small field of water lilies, but a little closer to the shore there was a larger and denser field of water lilies that many dogs seemed to be drawn to. Additionally, the duck landed quite deep down in the water, it could as well have been a leave from a water lily …
Unfortunately I don’t have a film from this adventure because the audience must, as usual, stand quite far away (with some trees and bushes in between) so that they don’t disturb, and that is of course good, but it would have been great to have this test on film – because we struggled, both Tassla and me.
The steadiness was really good, and I thought that Tassla did a great job. She began to swim resolutely straight out towards the duck, but soon she began to hesitate. She raised her head to see, but all she could see was water lilies so that didn’t help her. Instead, she began to swerve, towards the shore (where the throw came from). I blew the stop whistle and sent her to the right. She turned, swam one yard, came back, and I cued “right” again, she turned, swam one yard, turned again … and then she started to swim towards me again. I blew the stop whistle and gave her the cue to continue straight ahead, she turned around after some hesitation, then I blew the signal that means that she should start to hunt in the area, even though she was in the wrong area she actually searched a little in that area, but since the wind was as it was, she got no help from it when she tried to get the scent from the duck.
Now she decided to go up on land (!). Several dogs had done that before her so there was probably some scent from them in that area. Once she went up on land, I couldn’t see her (she was apparently only in the water’s edge, said the people who could see her, but I didn’t see her at all) but I shouted at her and said either “out” or “right”. I don’t really remember what happened now because I thought that it was over. We have never practiced this – that she should go so far away from me and therefore I was a bit nonplussed. But Tassla jumped into the water again and began to swim. Towards me. Thank God.
This time I didn’t stop her until she was two yards away from me and then I firmly pushed her back out with my “out-cue”. She turned around, swam again towards the wrong area, I stopped her, she turned, swam back to me, but again two yards away from me I got her to go out again, and this time FINALLY in the right direction. As soon as she headed for the right spot I supported her by calling “yes” a couple of times, which means “you are on the right way, continue to swim” and five yards away from the duck she saw it and picked up speed. She took it at once, then turned around, and … swam towards the place where she had been on the shore. I whistled at her to come to me (yes, today I really got to use the whistle!) and she actually turned around but she swam so close to shore that she soon touched the ground and she waded the last bit.
Just as she was leaving the lake she put the duck on the ground to take a new grip (yes, spaniels are allowed to do that) and she took it again, but half a yard from me she and the duck were both caught in a protruding branch and then she dropped the duck, but then I made a fast move and caught the duck in the air with a “thank you”.
“Well done”, said the judge and we were approved. If you have a retriever you have probably noticed that spaniels and retrievers are judged a little differently. I train a lot with people who have retrievers – and that is fortunate. The casting that we did today was pretty good, even if it was a bit tedious. And for that I thank my buddies with retrievers who train precision when they cast their dogs in a way that I have learned a lot from. In addition today’s trial was a very good opportunity to train. To give the dog a chance to struggle and try again and again, and finally find the duck is a great training. I want Tassla to think that I know where there is game and therefore she should trust me and always do as I say. And it can be a little difficult to organize a training situation like that in the water.
It feels good that we have done the water test. Now we are qualified to the start in open class, and even if I don’t plan to start yet, we are at least allowed to, form
And that’s a victory.