vom Wüstenjäger

Xantara vom Riverwoods     

 

    At the age of 4 months Tara was pointing pheasants and having them shot over her. Two months later when she was 6 months of age she completed her Derby Prize I with a 4-H in Nose. The 4-H designation was given for Tara’s use of nose in tracking a bird that had been planted for a previous dog.

    One month after returning home from the Derby in St Louis, MO Tara and I went to the northern reaches of Montana to run in the NAVHDA NA. Tara received a Prize I 108 points at 7 months of age. There were 4 points removed because Tara failed to point, but instead retrieved, the 3rd and 4th very wet and cold birds.

After the Derby and NA tests I went to work with training to run the Solms that fall and force fetch was completed in the summer and early fall with the coaching of Roy Ames via phone and email. Tara went on to receive her Solms Prize II at the age of 11 months with a first time handler and trainer.

    In the fall of 2007 we traveled to Illinois for a visit to the Engelking kennel to look at potential stud dogs and to rerun Tara in the Solms. Tara and I had our 4th testing experience on October 14th, 2007 and received a Solms Prize I. Following the Solms at Birmingham, Illinois we were off for two weeks of hunting and fun!

 

    On November 7th, just one week after returning home from hunting in North Dakota and Montana, it was decided that Tara would run in VGP on December 1st and 2nd! At the age of just 25 ½ months, with just 2 weeks to prepare… after flying 6 hours, then driving for another 6 hours and spending the night in the car, Tara ran the VGP the following morning, saving the blood track for the morning of December 2nd. With a new handler at the helm Tara completed the VGP with a Prize I 300 points!

 

    The next task for Tara will be the BTR this spring. Then qualified, Tara will be making the trip to Germany in the fall to compete in the 2008 Dr. Kleemann – Zuchtausleseprüfung. This is a dog that is highly capable, has accomplished every task asked of her, and has done so with high scores and an inexperienced first time handler and trainer who has never competed in or tested in any system.

 

    It is the opinion of us at vom Wüstenjäger that Tara is a well accomplished and worthy bitch. She has been rated in two Zuchtschau’s (conformation shows) and received the highest possible rating in both. SG2 of about 14 in St. Louis, MO as a Jr under Hermann-Josef Schomakers of Germany, and V1 as an adult under Herbert Hasemann of California.

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Pictures below from VGP

























A huge thank you to Rob Engelking for handling Tara in VGP
when I was not able to make it to the test.










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Tara received Solms Prize I fall of 2007 at Birmingham, IL on October 16th.

After Solms test Tara went with us to North Dakota and Montana hunting,



Below is a picture of Tara after successfully completing the rabbit drag with a fairly large rabbit!

9/17/05

Tara working on feathered drag.

Solms test next weekend!

Nervous?! Naw...
You betcha!

Tara loves to swim, reeds are no issue.

I expect her water search will score high
in her future tests.

July 26, 2006!

There's a cottontail who is often in those black-berry bushes.

May 28th, 2006
Tara - at 7 months old completed NAVHDA Natural Ability Test
108 points - Prize I


Here Tara is doing the water work,
retrieving a bumper in swimming depth water.

Field work and pointing portion of the test.
The weather was raining, windy and cold. The birds could not
fly well, this was day 2 of the test with the same weather.

And the final portion of the test was the track of the live pheasant.

We would like to thank the Big Sky Chapter of NAVHDA
for their hospitality and work to put on this test!

While I don't have any pictures of Tara during her Derby test,
she finished the Derby test with the following scores at 6 months of age

Derby Prize I(j)
Search 4 - Nose 4h - Pointing 4 - Cooperation 4 - Obedience 4

Zuchtschau SG2

Pictured below
Tara as a pup not long after we brought her home.

 


                                                             Tara working pheasants at about 5 months old.