Have found some old photos of her. I do have some on my laptop but the battery has gone and a certain little 10 week old Border Terrier pup has eaten the power cable!!





I only work one pointer/setter/hpr at a time but most people will work them in pairs. Pointer trials are run with two dogs running at the same time and when one goes on point, the other one has to back up the point so that's why pointer people will more often than not, run more than one dog at a time. I like to run one and have always done so. I can do a 4 hour count with one dog, as long as it is fit, which they usually are.

When a pointer goes on point, I walk up to them and encourage them to go on, as the pointer is expected to flush. If the grouse is right under their nose, it does take some encouragement, although my setter will sometimes back out of this point as she gets nervous when they are so close, particularly when I am doing the brood counts and there are chicks about lol. They will then get the flush and I will record how many and the grid reference of where they are. If I was shooting, I would shoot, and either send an hpr to retrieve or there would be a spaniel or lab for that job. Pointers don't retrieve in this county, although other countries do get their dogs to retrieve as well.

Sorry for waffling on - I love working on the moor. I have been lucky that I have been able to do it for the last 7 years.

Lovely photos, Pointers are far too much dog for me, but I love watching them run.

I went on one of the KC pointing weekends a few years ago on the grouse moor and it was fascinating watching the Setters and Pointers working instead of the HPRs I was used to.

tbh, pointers are too much for me as well and Lucky (who is 14) will be our last. We have found the gwps (Harvey and Teal) and setter (Dotty) much easier to live with. Don't get me wrong, Milly and Lucky, and Goldy before them were fantastic on the moor but hard work to live with. I will never say never but it's setters for us at the moment. As Milly was part of our counting team, we have to replace her so have got a young setter pup coming to us in September from the same breeder that all our pointers and Dotty came from. Quite difficult to get my head round because the only reason we are getting him is to replace Milly

I heard about the pointing weekends and a friend went to one and enjoyed it. The really is nothing better than working a pointing dog on the grouse.

Helen

Gosh, she was a beauty. Very similar markings to my girl. Thanks for all the info about how you work the dogs....I'm fascinated. Your work sound wonderful. Sadly no grouse moors around here!

Saba will flush, but I haven't trained her to do it on command, so she just flushes when she thinks she should. I'll work on that this winter, although she's never going to be used for working, so it's not vital, but I like to keep teaching her new things...keeps us both young! And I'd rather teach her the things she's bred for, than doing tricks.

What makes setters easier to live with? Are they less fizzy?

Yes lol. Although Dotty is a bit bonkers lol, she was relatively easy to do the basic training with. She doesn't run off like the pointers do/did. I have found, having worked 3 working pointers, that they are a lot more independent than the setters. They want to go out and find game because they want to. Dotty seems to want to work with us. She hates being out of sight of us, similarly to the gwps. They panic a bit if they can't see us.

The 3 pointers we have had, would be counting in the next county! lol Bit tricky when they go on point and I have to walk to them! lol Really lovely dogs with fantastic temps but I just think they don't suite my personality. I loved Milly to bits and she pointed hundreds of grouse for me but she certainly had me pulling my hair out at times lol. I am extremelly grateful that I knew and worked Milly as she really was a fantastic game finder and don't regret getting her for one moment.

Whether show line pointers are a little less to handle, I don't know as my experience has been of 3 working pointers.

Helen

Wise Woman speak truth about pointers! I was a nervous wreck for the first 18 months of having Saba...it's easy to forget how hard the initial training was now that she's so fantastic. But I still ocassionally have walks (why do I insist on calling them that...they're run,run,runs) where I feel I'm tagging along, and she couldn't give a stuff if I'm there or not Having said which, she spent all morning helping me in the garden by pointing at lizards while I weeded!!

I only see working line pointers down here...the French are pretty passionate about bird shooting with dogs. There is always a pointer or two in the local pound, sadly, left there by people who couldn't/wouldn't cope. My girl was absolutely shell-shocked when I rescued her...I guess someone had been too harsh with getting her used to guns.