Hunt Test Update
The winter weather blast changed my travel plans. I was loaded up and left Portland, TN at 5 AM Friday morning in the rain headed north to Frankfort, KY to find a room ahead of the snow and ice headed into middle TN. I was fortunate - I got north of Bowling Green before any freezing rain cause issues. Scotty travels good in the back seat and we were able to find Capital Plaza Hotel easy enough.
We got checked in and then we headed north to Owen County and the community of Monterey where the Bluegrass Antler Dog Club were conducting the Shed Dog Hunt Test on Saturday, Jan 13th. I had John Ballard's home address and found his house but the Hunt Test was about 2 miles away on his farm. Friday was a day of rain. I returned to Frankfort for lunch and received an updated address and Scotty and I then drove the farm.
On Friday the judges and a few club members that would be working on the event Saturday ran their dogs in the rain. I knew I wanted to wait until Saturday to get a chance to run in the snow and I had talked a friend into coming to this event to run their dog so I just wanted to wait.
Saturday the fields were snow covered and frozen. The temps were around 12 but the wind was not difficult. Scotty found 5 antlers in about 6:45 which meant we had plenty of time to find the last one. We timed out at 15:00 with 5 antlers. The 6th antler was beside some cattails on the pond bank. The pond has a thin sheet of ice. Because the air was so cold Scotty hit the pond about 3 or 4 times to drink. The antler was about 6 feet to his left in the snow. He never saw it nor smelled it. I walked with 8 feet of it at least twice and I never saw it. My first experience with antlers in the snow - very challenging to me. I had heard others speak of this - now I know. Scotty hunted very hard and never stopped.
We moved to the second course and he found 5 at about 7 minutes and we struggle locating the last antler but we finished with 6 antlers at 12:47 for his 4th Pass in the Junior Division. He made some excellent retrieves on the second course.
Competition Summary - Scotty has completed on 6 courses in three states. He has passed 4 courses. He has found 34 out of 36 antlers. His performance is more impressive than mine as a handler. I am improving but cost him his first run in early September. I believe Scotty will be an outstanding dog at finding wild sheds because he hunts hard, checks back regular enough and handles my direction. My primary goal all along was a dog that could put antlers in the truck. Also, Scotty likes to travel.
Hunt Test are fun and you learn so much from all the dog handlers. Each Hunt Test requires us to practice and train which pays off. The people that attend these events are great people and eager to share what they know. I don't believe I will ever get tired of watching Scotty and Perry running toward me with an antler held in their mouth. Labs are amazing dogs!!!
At the event Saturday, we had MS, TN, NC, KY, OH, IN & MI participants that I know of - there might have been other states represented. John Ballard, his wife and the other club members worked hard and provided a great Hunt Test in harsh weather conditions. We lost a few participants that could not make the trip due to closed highways.
I have one photo that shows the snow.
![Scotty Passes in Kentucky Hunt Test.jpg Scotty Passes in Kentucky Hunt Test.jpg](https://deerhunterforum.com/data/attachments/11/11223-3902f11c89d99c3d0efd206af76ab5f8.jpg)