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The most recent training day was Saturday, August 31 at Mt. Ararat Farm in Port Deposit MD to get some training in before MSDA’s fall hunt test weekend. The information below is specifically for that session, but it will give you an idea of what to expect. Fall training dates are TBD.
Note: preregistration has closed for this date.
As usual, there will be two different training groups (Skill Building and Advanced Work). Preregistration was open for several days starting at 8 am on Monday, August 12.
Registration preference will be given to MSDA members who also have dogs entered in the MSDA Spaniel Hunt Tests on Saturday, September 14 and/or Sunday, September 15.
Skill Building: The Skill Building group will be led by Trish Jackson and Janet Ciarico and will begin at 9:30 am and finish by 1:00 pm. The group will be limited to 5 or 6 dogs. In general, the Skill Building group will assist handlers and their dogs to develop and refine the skills needed to run spaniel hunt tests at Junior and beginning Senior levels and/or to develop a well-trained flushing/hunting dog. In addition, Trish and Janet will provide specialized guidance to the working teams in the Skill Building group that are entered in the upcoming MSDA Spaniel Hunt Tests at Rebel Ridge Farms.
Advanced Work: The Advanced Work group will be led by Steve Surprenant and Brian Schmidt, and will begin at 8:00 am and try to finish by 1:30 pm. The Advanced Work group will be primarily a practice session aimed at master-level experienced handlers. This session will be a somewhat larger group of handlers and will offer peer-to-peer advice (but no instruction) and needs to operate quickly and efficiently. We will be running a quartering/finding/flushing/steady “live fire” field with live flyers, clip wings and fresh dead. If you’re not actively running in the field, it may be possible to work on hunt dead or water work if two or more people get together with approval from either Brian or Steve.
Observer: We welcome observers to the day. If you are attending as an observer, you may not participate in the training, and we ask that you listen and learn, but not interrupt the group during the session. There is no charge to observe, but you must fill out the preregistration form so we know who is on the property. The applicable liability releases are also required. Observers may not bring dogs, even just to sit on the sidelines.
Fees, Registration and Other Important Info:
Preregistration was open starting at 8 am on Monday, August 12 and will close at 5 pm on Saturday, August 17. Preregistration is online only via a form that was made available at the very bottom of this page. Registration is NOT first come-first served. Instead, the form is open for several days, after which priorities are applied and the training day list of attendees is established.
Completing the preregistration form does not guarantee you a spot in the upcoming training day, since these sessions are often oversubscribed and some registrations may be waitlisted.
The participation fee is $30 per dog, plus $11 per chukar and individual bird orders will be allowed for both groups. There is a maximum of two dogs per registration and four birds per dog for the Advanced Group. For Skill Building, there is a maximum of one dog per registration and two birds per dog; the Skill Building session leaders also will have birds available specific to their training for the day.
If you are interested in receiving specific information about training with MSDA’s Flushing Dog Program, including timely email notification when dates are selected and when registrations will open and close for each date, sign up for our mailing list, which is managed by MailChimp (or edit your preferences if you’re already on the list). On the form, be sure to click “Yes” for “Interested in Training for Flushing Dogs”.
Please direct Flushing Dog Training Day questions to the Event Chair, Steve Surprenant, via Surprenant@mdsportingdog.org.
All attendees are required to sign an MSDA liability release. Many of you have already signed this on your membership form or when attending an MSDA activity. If we have your form on file, you do not need to sign again. Otherwise, please read it and be sure that you are willing to sign before you register for the Training Day. In addition, for these sessions at Mt. Ararat Farms, all attendees will also have to sign the liability release for Mt. Ararat Farm in 2024.
Owners and handlers are reminded that they are responsible for their own dog’s actions and that good sportsmanship is expected at all times. If dogs (or humans!) exhibit inappropriate behavior or aggression, you will be directed to leave immediately and may be excluded from future MSDA activities. Such decisions are made exclusively by the event chair, or other event committee member in the chair’s absence.
Preregistration has closed for the August 31 training date.