Particularly when I ask my dogs to join me so much in my endeavors, and they do so with such willingness, I do what I can to acknowledge and fulfill their essential nature. It is the essential nature of the Springer Spaniel to run, hunt and find game. So on this Christmas morning, at dawn, we find ourselves at the Cherry Valley Wilderness Recreation site just north of Duvall, WA, about 15 miles from home. I don’t shoot, but since it’s a release site, I can at least hope for a pheasant or two to get flushed up. When we arrive, the fog is still heavy but the sun is trying to break through:
The young springers haven’t had much hunting experience, but mom has. Yet they all instinctively know to cast out, the two girls one way…
and Reardon sweeping in from another direction.
Then the resident guppy, Rozzie, finds a canal to get into…
Later she dives into one and can’t get out. I have to lean down in the heavy grass and haul her out. We’ll avoid the canals after that! I am also pleased to see the young dogs instinctively seek out cover in the hedgerows, the favorite hiding spots of pheasants…
We work on whistle commands. They quickly respond to the whistle command to turn in the direction I’m headed (tweeet-it!), but the recall command (twee-twee-twee-twee) is a little less reliable. Finally I get a good response…
and they get lots of praise and cookies.
Afterward I send them back out again. When we’re out running, I make sure that the recall is not always associated with “leash back on, fun’s over.” At least 75% of our recalls mean come in, get praise and cookies, and then release for more fun. This approach seems to ensure happy, willing recalls.
Finally it’s time to go home. What a wonderful way to spend dawn on Christmas morning!
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES, AND HAVE A WONDERFUL 2010!
The Spaniel Annals 
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