10/13/11 GOING TO THE DOGS

ATTICUS AND RAVEN RETRIEVING

SUCH GOOD DOGS!

Friday, 8:00 AM.  46 degrees, wind WSW, moderate with stronger gusts.  The sky is overcast, although it was clear with a full moon most of the night.  The barometer is heading up so it will probably clear again later.   
    It rained pretty much all day yesterday and the night before, a total of perhaps 1.5”,  but we managed to plant the rest of the 7,000 daffodils in spite of it.
    As regular readers may recall, our family is interested in hunting and working dogs as well as other aspects of nature and the out of doors.  So, I have a report from the world of sporting dogs.
     Daughter Greta’s  yellow lab, Atticus, was a Finalist in the 2011 National Master Hunt Test on October 9th.  Atticus has been trained primarily by her, and was handled at the Maryland event by Mitch White of Gamekeepers Retrievers, Frazeysburg,  Ohio, see Gamekeepers.com.
    Not to be outdone, Greta’s black flatcoat retriever Raven, handled by Greta, passed her first Master Hunt Test on the same day at an Ohio Valley Retriever Club field trial.
    If  you are wondering about the name Atticus, the dog was named after one of the principal characters in the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird.”  Our daughter is an English teacher, you see.
    Lucky is getting along pretty well, eating and drinking again and going for short walks.  Like his master, he is a stubborn old cuss.