Anyone sending their dog to summer camp???

[gspman]

Hey all,
How many of us are sending our pooches to summer camp and where is summer camp? What are you expecting your pup or dog to learn at summer camp? Or are you going to do it yourself?

I'm thinking of sending my 9 month old GSP pup to Kansas for July and August. I want her to be able to point reliably, retrieve semi-reliably, handle reasonably well, and have a clue about what she is doing when she's out in the field. Maybe a primer hunting dead too. Generally just putting the foundation in place for her career as a bird dog. On top of that I want the trainer to evaluate her to see if she could be competitive in field trials. She definitely has the instincts but needs some bird exposure and experience that I know I won't be able to give her this summer.

Let's hear it!
gspman

[setterguy]

I will be sending my dogs to Texas in August, no training just conditioning. Hour and a half off horseback in the morning, roading with the atv in the afternoon and more horseback in the evening. You should see the animals when they get back, they look like that govenor from California.

[mistermom]

Hey Guys!
Man am I cluless. I don't know a thing about sending dogs to camp. My immediate question is sending your dog to Kansas or Texas in August risky? I'm curious to find out more about this. Thanks!

mm

[Sliderfishn]

Summer camp yes! I am going fishing for two weeks and the 15 month gsp goes to finnishing school for a month. Whoa is the main reason also for more birds under his nose never hurts.

[setterguy]

Mistermom - conditioning a dog in any heat even the stuff here in Minnesota should be done at appropriate times, for appropriate durations always with a watchful eye on the dog for any signs of overheating. They run early in the morning and again in the evening when the heat has subsided. The reason that my trainer runs in texas is because of the large bird population. They don't do any formal training but the dogs can encounter upwards of 200 birds a day. Anytime you are thinking about sending your dog with a trainer, check references and make sure that saftey is at the forefront. I don't know about you guys but I checked into my dog trainer like I did with my daycare provider, very thouroughly. Any other questions just drop a line.

[gspman]

Setterguy,
Are you by chance sending your dog with Bill Holtan? I met him at a trial this spring and it sounds like he has a pretty good setup down in Texas.
gspman

[setterguy]

As a matter of fact I sent her down with Bill last summer, and if I can get in again thats who she will be going with. Bill is a super guy and great with the animals, very patient person, if you saw him and his boys you know what I mean. One of the smartest bird - dog men in the area, a true pro. Were you at a grouse trial recently? That usually where Holtan is this time of year.

[gspman]

Setterguy,
Yes, I was at one of the MGDA trials at Mora in April. Bill was the first person I met there. He is a really nice guy, as where all the other folks I met. There were some former GSP'rs there that were fun to talk to as well. I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the trial and thought the dogs were just phenominal. How they handled in the woods at those ranges and how they kept contact with the handler was amazing. Excellent dog work from almost every dog I saw run. Very classy animals. I'm definitely going to attend more of those grouse trials. Heck, I might even run my bobtailed pup in a derby stake just for kicks.
gspman

[setterguy]

I know, if your not used to dogs ranging that far a grouse trial can really freak some people out. If you trust your dog, then anything within ear shot is OK by me. As I see it if your dog is 200 yards to your west and kicks up a bird, thats a bird that you would have never found anyway, but if it points and holds it then at least you have a chance.

[gspman]

Amen on trusting your dog. I can see where it would take alot of faith to let your dog hang out there like that. Most of the time you could barely hear the bell tinkling. Only one dog was truly lost in the braces I saw. The others all came back. The ones that came back to the front were the most impressive. The setters for some reason seemed to do a little better the day I was there. I'm sure that's not always the case though. Both the pointers and setters looked good but the setters seemed to catch my eye a little more.

[newtobirddogs]

How do I get in touch with Bill Holtan if I wanted to send a dog to camp with him?

[gspman]

You can try this address. [email protected]

His regular email which I think is [email protected] was fubar as of 6/30/2004 and this is his alternate email. I think he's in Texas now and might be hard to contact. His string may already be full too. Setterguy might have better contact info. You could try and post on the coverdog field trial message board because Bill manages it.

Here's some more info...
Bill Holtan
5727 Arnold Rd.
Duluth MN 55803
Home: 218 721 3435
Cell: 612 242 1252

[setterguy]

Bill has moved to North Dakota. I don't have his address but I do have his Cell phone # 218-349-1777. I just talked to a guy that said Bill is going to be in town tomorrow to pick up a dog, and is here about every two weeks to drop off or pick up dogs.

[This message has been edited by setterguy (edited 07-20-2004).]

[newtobirddogs]

Thanks for your help, I'll check with him for next season.