we rescued a brittany

[glassman48]

I posted this in the parker forum and it had a pretty good response. After a 40 year lay off from hunting, I started bird hunting again in the 2017 season with a guy that has 2 brittanies. I told my wife that i "was thinking" of getting a brittany someday. My wife likes dogs, every day she goes into craiglist to look in the pet section. That morning our "johnny cash" was listed, its the only time my wife ever saw a brittany in craiglist. We got cash in november of 2017. The couple that had him kept him in a kennel during the day, and had just moved into a condo so they had to give him up. Cash is akc registered, never been trained to hunt and weighed 69 pounds. I took cash over to one of the top brittany breeders that lives about a mile from me for advice. About a month later we recieved his akc papers and it turns out it was one of the local breeders pups. My wife walked that dog every day, the breeder helped me train him with quail, and my friend with 2 brittanies took time out to help me. He took me out in the woods, explained a lot of what his dogs were doing and why so I could train cash better. Between the two of those guys we ended up with a real good hunting dog. On opening day cash found 8 partridge and 1 woodcock. I hunted him almost every day for an hour or two during the season. I watched him get better by the week, in 1 season I have gotten so many good memories I cannot believe this happened sometimes. If I can figure out how to post a picture, the first picture will be a week after we got him, he weighed about 65 pounds then. It says the file is too big, don't know how to make it smaller.

[glassman48]

Is there anyone that can explain to me how to make picture smaller so it will fit on this post? We tried to make the picture smaller, not sure how to do this.

[glassman48]

hopefully picture will post now. This is a couple weeks after we got cash, he was 69 pounds when we got him, he was about 65 pounds in picture.

[glassman48]

This picture was just before hunting season, he weighed about 47 pounds in this picture. Between my wife walking that dog so much, and with the help of the breeder Hap and my hunting friend Fred, we ended up with such a good hunting dog. We have 3 dogs, 2 havanese and our brittany cash. Those dogs have changed my life for the better. I am much more patient, I am learning how to relax and not be in "business mode" as much. Every time one of our dogs wags his tail, my life gets better. Now if I can get an old side by side life will be good:)

[vaturkey]

Think you have something there. Good continued luck for sure.

[Jim Cloninger]

G-man, good looking dog. Jim

[Jeff S]

That's a good looking dog and it sounds like you are a proud "daddy". Have you had any luck in the Williamsburg area?

[glassman48]

thank you guys all, I guess I am a proud daddy When I met my wife about 10 years ago, she had 2 dogs. I am very allergic to cats, and most dogs. She moved in, she knew I was allergic to dogs, and she asked if we could "try" having them over for a day. She rescued a doberman that had already been to 5 different homes, somewhere along the way he didn't like men. She walked that dog every day and that got his anxiety down and he started to trust her. The day he came over, I swear he realized that I was ok to be around her and we had a bonding moment. He ended up climbing up on the couch where I was going to take a nap and layed down with me. About an hour later my voice was constricting, and eyes bloodshot and starting to swell up. I got her a hypo allergenic havanese 2 weeks later. Now like I said we have 2 havanese and a brittany. So lots of tail wagging:) Jeff, I have only hunted around kalkaska area this first year, my new friend fred with 2 brittanies took me to a few of his spots, then I found a few more of my own. Cash found 8 grouse and 1 woodcock opening day. It took a week and a half before I could get a bird down for him. I think I went through a box of shells:) The brittany breeder suggested that I hunt mostly alone with cash the first year and keep him in wild birds as much as I could. His thoughts were he will learn he has to approach the grouse more careful and not flush them. He said as soon as woodcock season opens, get him around as many of those as you can. They hold much better. Everybody that has hunted with him has said how well he is doing for a first year hunting dog. I took cash and the breeder took cash's mom to a pheasant farm after grouse season was over. He could not believe how cash was doing, first bird he went on point and his mom backed him she was 2 feet behind him. She retrieved every bird that day, and cash pointed almost every bird, it was a day I won't ever forget.

[WPGRIFFON]

Glassman

Cash looks great, sounds like you are being rewarded for your effort and training time with him. Cash probably thinks he won the lotto moving in with your family after living in crate all day.

WPGRIFFON

[glassman48]

WPGRIFFON,
Thank you very much, and yes we are being rewarded, he loves us, my wife will talk to him and tell him you've got a pretty good gig here don't ya:) Even when he found his first porcupine, that was pretty tough, when my wife took him for a walk and she said I could see him bouncing his head up and down on the ground near a tree, that was his 2nd porcupine, a young one. The vet kept all the quills 85 of them and said this is a record, then he gave us a break for a while from porcupines and decided to point a skunk, that didn't end to well:) His latest and best was during this hunting season, my buddies brittany went on point, cash sort of honored, until he saw the porcupine moving, I couldn't get to my shock button quick enough, ran him to the vet, he had a couple in his mouth he wouldn't let me take out. Then took him out later that day, finding 2 porcupines in 1 day is a record I hope he never equals again:) Those were the downs, but watching that dog run after being so heavy is something, he cleared a 5' snowdrift last winter (I measured it) he really is the happiest dog I have ever seen. The breeder and I have become good friends, he is always encouraging us, and helps me "think like a dog" to understand that brittany better. Thanks again WPGRIFFON

[glassman48]

This was this last hunting season, cash went on point, I walked around him, he stayed on point, so I got a picture, I figured the bird had just flown off before I got there and didn't hear or see it so he was probably pointing old scent.

[glassman48]

This 2nd picture is the same bush, I released cash, he moved about a foot, went back on point, I took another picture, while I was putting my phone away a grouse took off. I doubt that will ever happen again. After we got him in november 2017 later in the winter, we had a blizzard, wet heavy snow going sideways. I took him for a walk down our street in a small subdivision, cash was running, he got on the downwind side of a large pine tree, he went on point for the first time since we got him. ( he would sight point chickadees but never a real point) The branches of this pine tree were hanging down on the ground weighted down from all the wet snow. I walked up next to him, lifted the branches some, looked underneath branches and saw nothing. Cash was still on point his whole body was almost white from snow. I walked around the other side of him, lifted branches on that side saw nothing there, I remember the wet snow going in his eyes and all over his face, he never moved, just blinked his eyes. Then I walked all the way around the tree (probably 20' in diameter were the branches hanging down) lifted branches from the opposite side of the tree, saw nothing again. I came back, cash still on point, almost completely white now. This seems like it took 5 minutes, it was probably more like a couple of minutes, I released cash he dove under the tree branches, and I saw a starling jump and fly up through the tree branches to get away. I could not believe his first point, I hugged him, and praised him, he was still bounding around looking up the tree while I was bounding around on the ground like a little kid. After our walk I took him right over to the breeders and told him what happened. I think our breeder Hap was happier than I was.

[Jim Cloninger]

G-man, I will say it again, Cash is a beautiful dog. One of the best looking Brittanys I ever saw.
Jim

[Mike of the Mountain]

Glass, well done rescuing that Brit. Seems like he's responding in kind for you too. Enjoy!!

[glassman48]

Jim,
Thanks, I went through an adjustment phase with our 2 havanese, more responsibilities etc. My wife watched me fall in love with dogs. That brittany is way different because of all the exercise he needs, but it helped my wife and I get more exercise. She looks at me and cash in wonder anytime she sees cash go on point with a bird, and how he holds his point. She just is in awe that any dog could do that. When she told me she wants to go hunting with me some of the time I couldn't hardly believe that. You have had dogs to I see from your signature. It sounds like you have had great moments and memories just like we are having. Mike I have enjoyed all your dog pictures too. I was lucky enough to have 3 healthy kids, now 3 healthy dogs. Mikes pictures tell that same story. Mike if I ever get to one of the get togethers, I would enjoy watching you shoot. I invited one of the members in here to hunt with me next year. When one of my businesses get sold soon, I will have a little spare cash to look into maybe getting a couple of nice guns. I really think theres going to be a nice over under for sale if those side by sides work out:)