Innholdsfortegnelse for July 2016 i Shooting Gazette

A NEW charity founded by members of the rural community is aiming to tackle food poverty across the country. The Country Food Trust has already distributed over 6,650 pheasant Country Casserole ready meals in Bristol and Newcastle through FareShare, a food distribution charity that distributes food to charities and community groups nationwide. The Country Food Trust now aims to feed 1,000,000 people over the next five years. Tim Woodward, chief executive of the Country Food Trust, said: “We launched the charity because food poverty has become such a major issue in this country. According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation nearly 6,000,000 people in the UK live in ‘deep poverty’, making it hard to access a good meal regularly. We chose pheasant meat because it is in plentiful supply and it…

Q In a recent interview with Amy Bates, noted gundog breeder, trainer and handler John Halstead said of trailling: "Once you've been bitten by the trialling bug, it's hard not to carry on." We posted the article onto our website and then asked our Facebook followers if they agreed… Steve Lane posted: “Nope. Tried it. Hated it. Just want to shoot and work the dogs without the pressure of a competition judged by less than impartial judges.” Tony Appleby posted: “It's okay for him saying that, he does it for a living, the ordinary working man can only dream.” Paul Ainsworth posted: “Been out shooting and dog training with these two, [it’s] brilliant and yes they are right.” Nicki Morley posted: “Yes, true!” TWITTER.COM/SHOOTINGGAZETTE…

How were you introduced to shooting? My Dad was the one who got me into shooting but to be honest it was in my blood. My grandfather was the ex-headkeeper at Windsor for HM The Queen for 28 years and a phenomenal shot. Growing up on a farm meant that I had the opportunity to go out all the time shooting pigeons and rabbits. I would go out after school every night to see what I could find. I had my first taste of a top level shoot loading at Duncombe Park in North Yorkshire for the late Brigadier Watson who used to run the shoot days for Lord Ashcombe. The brigadier used to shoot five days a week running up to the age of 80 and was a wonderful…

Charles St. John has gained a kind of notoriety over the past few decades as the definitive Victorian sportsman. During the course of his life in the north east Highlands, he amassed an amazing bag of game, from stags to wildfowl, in the days before any real wildlife legislation had started to encroach on the traditional sporting world. He killed otters and wildcats, herons and swans and recorded the details of every species in copious notes and diary entries. In later life when ill health forced him to England and left him disabled, these records were compiled to form an extraordinary volume called Sketches of the Wild Sports and Natural History of the Highlands, which stands as a testament to his fascination for life (and death) in the Scottish countryside.…

Q: I know some people are permitted to own a handgun for the humane despatch of deer wounded in traffic accidents, but how do I go about qualifying for this? A: It’s true that handguns are not prohibited for the humane despatch of deer by legislation in England, Wales or Scotland. Section 3 of the 1997 Firearms (Amendment) Act provides an exemption to the prohibition on handguns providing the Firearm Certificate is conditioned for the handgun to be used for the humane killing of animals alone, and a number of recreational stalkers have been successful in their applications for a handgun for this purpose. Home Office guidance says: “The humane killing of sick, injured or lawfully trapped animals with a firearm is normally confined to those who may deal with…

The Firle Estate near Lewes in East Sussex, home of the Gage family for over 500 years, has long been recognised as one of the best game shoots in the south. But for the past five years teams have also had the opportunity to enjoy simulated game days on the same ground. “We do more than 30 days and demand is high,” John Newton-Brown, shoot organiser and host, told me as the guns gathered at the Ram Inn in the pretty village of Firle. “And we shoot throughout the year.” I asked if there was a conflict with the game shooting. “We rub along,” John said, “but the estate is some 7,000 acres, which helps!” Coffee, bacon rolls and safety talk over, we set off in convoy and soon left…

“In the last Olympics we were treated to a virtuoso display by Dorset dead-eye Peter Wilson.” Some 15 years ago I took part in the British Open Sporting Championship. I did it because my editor at the time had a slightly sadistic streak and thought it would be interesting to see how an average game shot got on with the rather more serious business of competitive clays. In fairness at least he had the good grace to send me on a course of lessons with one of Shooting Gazette’s own tame instructors, Dr Watson, in order to prepare for the ordeal ahead. The good doctor would also take part in the competition, along with another colleague who worked on a clay shooting magazine, so I had some moral support. I…

There has been much criticism recently of high bird shooting. Perhaps high bird missing might be a better term, as it is normally the high cartridge to kill ratio that is in the firing line. Critics of high bird shooting assume high ratios equate to many birds pricked and therefore left to suffer, and because of this we should all shoot birds at ranges where we can comfortably kill them. The impression given is the critics never prick birds. It can be assumed that, because of their moral stance, they don’t attend high bird shoots and never shoot at those screamers that occasionally grace the more normal height shoots. So, do they actually know what happens when the cartridge to kill ratio is so high as the often quoted 10…

Stephen Grant .500 Express rifle no. 4029 was originally ordered by Lt. General Sir Reginald Pole-Carew, a distinguished army officer who took part in the Afghan and Boer Wars. He was born at Antony in Cornwall on May 1, 1849, and after education at Eton and Oxford joined the Coldstream Guards in 1869. He was private secretary to the Governor of New South Wales between 1876 and 1877 and A.D.C. to the Viceroy of India between 1878 and 1879. It was no doubt during this period that he used the rifle. He took part in the Second Afghan War (1879-80) and commanded the 9th Brigade, Guards Brigade, and 11th Division of the South African Field Force. He was awarded several decorations, winning three clasps for services in the Afghan War…

“Would you believe my luck to find that the surgeon was a shooting man?” Accounts of other people’s ailments are not exciting reading but perhaps my recent problem will amuse you. I sit writing this in mid May, off games after a hernia operation earlier this week. What caused it? Carrying a heavy sack of pigeons out of a wood in early February after an exciting roost shoot. Having picked-up and loaded myself with gun, shooting bag and the sack on my back, I was making my way out of the wood in the gloaming when I tripped, and to prevent myself falling must have strained muscles in my lower abdomen and triggered a hernia that had been waiting to happen for sometime. “Serves you right,” I hear you cry,…

Those buying an Artemis new are spoilt for choice with a bewildering array of options, with 12, 16, 20, 28 and .410 bores available and standard barrel lengths of 28” or 30”. Those in the market for a high bird gun may have 32” or 34” barrels on 20 bore guns and above for an extra £268. You may have your individual stock measurements built into the gun for £700, though this will increase build time, and the gun may be made left-handed for £202. This test gun is a proper man’s gun with its 30” barrels and not inconsiderable weight, though the balance of the gun is excellent – it has often been said a well-balanced heavy gun is superior to a poorly-balanced lighter gun. It has a nicely…

“For as long as my memory will reach I always remember drawing,” says Staffordshire-born Jessica Lennox. “I started off drawing my favourite Disney characters and then once I started school, I tried my hand at everything!” Now living in Sutton Coldfield, Jessica, who studied fine art at Stafford College before taking a degree in textiles at Loughborough, clearly lives to work. “I get up and draw every day because it is my first love in life. I have no idea what I would be doing or where I would be without art. I’m a self-confessed workaholic. I draw in high detail and strive to achieve realism with my pencils – I have spent a lot of time working with other mediums but I just love the control pencils give me.…

THE KENNEL Club has approved a new official DNA testing scheme for hereditary nasal parakeratosis (HNPK) in labrador retrievers, following consultation with breed health co-ordinators. To find out which laboratories the Kennel Club is able to record results from, and which will send results directly to the Kennel Club, please refer to the worldwide DNA testing list at thekennelclub.org.uk/health/breeding-for-health/ dna-testing-simple-inheriteddisorders/worldwide-dna-tests. Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club secretary, said: “The labrador is the most popular breed in the UK, so ensuring the resources are available for breeders to make informed breeding decisions is paramount. “We are pleased to announce this new DNA test, which will assist in responsible breeding and enable potential puppy buyers to be aware of an issue that could affect their chosen breed, and ultimately protect the health of the…

THE KENNEL Club’s Hunt, Point and Retrieve (HPR) Championship, supported by Skinner’s, will be held at Tollishill and Longcroft in Berwickshire, by kind invitation of Messrs A.W. Young and A.W. Young Jnr, on November 15-16, 2016. The schedule and entry form for the competition are now available online. The championship is designed specifically to test the competing dogs’ quartering, hunting and retrieving abilities at a championship level and will offer the chance for owners of HPR breeds to demonstrate the working skills of their dogs in a competitive setting. Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club secretary, said: “We are looking forward to seeing the high standards of gundog work showcased by the HPR breeds again this year for the 15th Hunt, Point and Retrieve Championship. It is a great opportunity for the…

PERCENTAGE DECREASE IN POPULATION OF RING OUZEL SINCE 1968 (BASC) £40,000 sum raised (at latest count) during the recent Whitfield Annual Clay Shoot (Countryside Alliance) 750 number of calls for assistance BASC’s specialist firearms team took from its members during April (BASC) £39,000 amount spent by Kent's new Police and Crime Commissioner to clear the firearms licence backlog (Folkestone Herald) 10,000 the number of times the BASC smartphone app has been downloaded since its launch in 2015 (BASC)…

A good shoot day is all about pace and timing – it can’t be crash, bang wallop all day long. And the elevenses break comes as the perfect opportunity to stop and reflect on the privilege of spending a day in the field. So in recognition of this most excellent of sporting traditions we have teamed up with Foxdenton, makers of traditional drinks for the perfect elevenses and famous for their Goliath bottle, to select one shoot to feature in excellent elevenses each month. And this month’s winner is the offering from a simulated game day at the beautiful Firle Estate in West Sussex which is also featured on pages 20-21 of this issue. As you can see from the pictures which were taken on a glorious late spring day…

What do Olympic bobsleigh, Yorkshire county rugby, ballooning, offshore powerboat racing, a 1930 Bentley in the London-Sydney car rally and Kaiser Wilhelm’s steam yacht Scharnhorn have to do with Scottish land reform? Precious little on the face of it until, that is, they are linked via the mildly eccentric Keith Schellenberg. This millionaire with all the interests above became the laird of Eigg in the Western Isles in the 1990s, but his modus operandi did not mesh with the demands of his flock. Acrimony followed and after selling the island to an even more eccentric and unhappily impecunious German, the locals eventually captured the island for their community land trust, thus paving the way for wider land reforms. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016, which entered the Holyrood statute book…

Congratulations on your selection for Team GB’s skeet squad in Rio. That must have been huge; can you remember where you were when you were given the good news? “It was fantastic, just amazing to hear I was actually selected. I was down at Bisham Abbey when everything was launched. We had all of the media down. It was just amazing thinking, this is real. I am actually going to the Olympics. Then, to be able to tell all my friends and family as well, it was just an amazing day” Dream come true stuff? “Definitely. I went to London 2012 to watch the shooting and it was being there which made me think, actually, I really want to go to the Olympics. It’s been my dream every since” Do…

Human It is too soon perhaps to be pacing the corridors chewing one’s nails to the elbow, or indeed seeking the solace of the hop or the malt, because we do not know whether the spaniel is pregnant or not. What we do know, because the Batty Spaniel Woman (BSW) has told us, is that the first step on the road to puppydom has finally been taken. And by all accounts the spaniel took to it with considerable gusto. I won’t go into details; at least not to anything like the extent the BSW did with me, because I don’t know that every reader is of the same robust demeanour that I am. The BSW went into the whole thing in rather more detail than, frankly, I think was necessary.…

“Today we are not only custodians of the countryside but, equally important, we are ambassadors.” “You must have the best job in the world when the weather is like this,” said a man I met recently. The sun was shining, bluebells had carpeted the woodland floor, summer migrants had swelled our songbird numbers to a complete choir and life was indeed wonderful. But then, in all honesty, I love all of our seasons and whatever the elements throw at us we are always grateful. When one is suitably attired being out in the rain is no hardship, and a stout wind, white-painted hoar frost or a blanket of snow are all welcome and special. Each change brings with it new challenges and rewards, and it is the changes in our…

The most remarkable and instantly recognisable characteristic of this gun is its outstanding balance. Unlike many over-unders, the Artemis’ point of balance is directly on the hinge pin, meaning in the hand it feels significantly lighter than its 7lbs 12oz would suggest. The gun’s weight is likely a significant factor in its recoil control, with virtually no recoil felt when mounted properly and very little muzzle flip, even with 26gram No.5 loads. However, the contribution the balance of the gun makes to its sweet handling really cannot be over-stressed – this gun is an absolute joy to use. Instructor Bruce Marks and I tested the gun on a very windy day at Grange Farm Shooting School, and the sweet, instinctive handling characteristics of the Artemis entirely suited the range of…

Every now and then a car comes along that defines a new niche in the marketplace. The Bentley Bentayga is one of those vehicles. You may think your Range Rover is luxurious, but this thing makes it feel like a Defender. It really is that spectacular inside. The designers have done a fabulous job but let’s hear it for the bean counters. It would have been really easy for them to have decided to use the odd bit of cheap plastic instead of beautifully-knurled aluminium, but every component in the Bentayga feels like it has been specced as if money were no object. All this would be a bit of a waste of time if it didn’t have the tech to go with it, but this thing has every whizzy…

Based on initial early signs we anticipate increased activity in the Scottish estate market in 2016. We are seeing a number of sellers testing the market privately ahead of the EU Referendum with a view to going public post-referendum, should a private deal not be achieved. The political situation in Scotland from an independence and land reform perspective has settled down. We are seeing bullish interest from southern buyers again who perceive Scottish estates to be good value. This is clearly illustrated by the fact that in 2014 eight sporting estates were sold in Scotland, all selling to EU based buyers; last year it was 22 and more than half were bought by UK buyers. A prime example is the sale of Suisgill Estate on the Helmsdale River in Sutherland…

No-one in their right mind becomes a field trial secretary. So, those that allow themselves to be inveigled into assuming this most demanding of roles or, perhaps, even choose to do it, are a rare breed indeed. And those that put in long years of service become, quite rightly, objects of wonder. It’s easy to see why: after all, the job description is an exacting one. The patience of a saint and the wisdom of Solomon are obligatory, as is the ability to make and deal equably with last minute changes to best laid plans. Such paragons are not two a penny and those who tick most of the boxes make a very special contribution to our sport. And as that sport has grown the demands have only burgeoned. In…

THE URC Bucks Area held an open working test on the Hambleden Estate, near Henley-on-Thames, by kind permission of the estate manager Major A. Dick and with the assistance of the headkeeper Brad Smith, writes Lorne Kentish. The judges were Lindy Higham, Colin Pelham and Barry Taylor and the event was again generously sponsored by Skinner’s. Results 1 Ken Green with lab.d. Autumn Willow Tag 2 Sue Jordan with gr.b. Tulleysedge My Belle Nell 3 Laura Dearlove with lab.b. Waterford Ghillie of Wendearose 4 Shirley Carew with lab.b. Cypher Black Mamba of Sullington CoM Rob Smallman with lab.d Tuscanni Viking…

Q IS SCENT IMPORTANT in dog training and what should I look out for? ASCENT IS VITAL. With a huge proportion of a dog’s brain devoted to smell, it is something we have to work with in any training situation. As a hunting dog, it is what they rely on the most. A human has on average five million olfactory senses and your trusty canine friend has around 220 million. With any dummy or hunting work, consider where the wind is coming from (if there is any) and work into it or try to direct the dog downwind for any retrieve. If you have reached the stage of directing your dog to whistles and/ or hand signals, this is the time to use them. Also consider what type of scenting…

AT THE END of last season we met a man at a trial who was keen to chat. It transpired he had a nice bitch he wanted to trial and was after some advice – not from me obviously but from Mr Levenghyl. What it boiled down to was that he was having some lessons from a few local trainers and he had a feeling they weren’t really giving him what he needed. So we invited him over for tea and had another chat. Well, sure enough he was being strung along by people who a) probably didn’t really know what they were doing and b) didn’t want to run against a better dog than they had and would only take him so far. After tea and cake and much…

THE GAMEKEEPERS’ Welfare Trust (GWT) has established a memory tree on its website to give the loved ones of late gamekeepers the opportunity to share memories in tribute to them on their own individual ‘branch’. The branches will be open to anyone who has lost a member of the family who served as a part of the gamekeeping community, including stalkers and ghillies. For more information on how to post your poems, messages, eulogies and images, or to reserve your branch, visit thegamekeeperswelfaretrust.com…

Shooting Gazette has increased its social media presence by joining Instagram, the photograph and video sharing service. The online mobile platform will allow us to share a variety of content from the field with readers already using the app, one of our first opportunities being the recent Field & Country Fair at Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire. To follow us, simple visit instagram.com/ shootinggazette – don’t forget to tag us into any shots you’ve taken while in the field.…

WIN TWO pairs of Westfield Wellingtons in this easy to enter competition. The Westfield is a smart, truly robust and grippy wellington which comes in sizes 3 to 12 so it is truly unisex, with a 3mm neoprene lining and a textured embossed matt finish. It also features a steel shank for durability and support. Easy to use quick release straps at the calf enable you to create a tighter or looser fit. It comes in four colours: burgundy, chocolate, green and navy. caldene.co.uk To enter, fill out the form below (deadline is July 29) and post to; Westfield competition, Shooting Gazette, Time Inc, Pinehurst 2, Pinehurst Road, Farnborough, Hants, GU14 7BF.…

Woodpigeon with wild cherries and gingerbread SERVES FOUR PEOPLE Ingredients • 8 woodpigeon breasts• 200g wild cherries• 20g sugar• 20ml red wine• 100g gingerbread• Cornish sea salt• Milled black pepper Method Place the cherries in a thick bottom pan with the wine and sugar. Cook slowly until a soft and sticky compote. Make the gingerbread crumbs. Season the woodpigeon and sear in a hot pan for one minute each side. Place into a hot oven 200°C for two minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a further two minutes. Place the wild cherry compote on the plate. Cut the woodpigeon and place next to the compote. Finish with the gingerbread crumb and serve.…

Dear Uncle Giles Last summer, during the family beach holiday, the dog got its nose into the lunch basket of our neighbours in the dunes. It had done pretty well for itself before the alarm was raised, I'm afraid, and some words were exchanged which, while perhaps justified, left me without any effective response. Is there any protocol for such an eventuality? And, if so, what is it? Because we are just packing for the seaside once more and we are looking forward to it - especially the dog – but would rather not be embarrassed this year. Mr & Mrs JEL, by e-mail Uncle Giles writes It would be easy to say you should train your dog not to thieve or that you should corkscrew it into the dunes…

For your chance to win a bottle of Taittinger Champagne for Picture of the Month, send us a team photograph or a picture of something unusual from your shoot. Send high-resolution images or prints with captions to Shooting Gazette Gallery, Time Inc (UK) Ltd, Pinehurst 2, Pinehurst Road, Farnborough, Hampshire GU14 7BF or email: will.hetherington@timeinc.com. This picture was taken on ‘Christmas Jumper’ shoot day at Gibsons Farm, Diss, Norfolk, last season. The guns/guests, from back left to bottom right, were: Robert Spink, Martin Townshend, Ian Caunter, Nick Scantlebury, Charles Potter, Tom Macfarlane, Antony Redsell, Freddy Barker, Jim Mcnair, Oliver Gooderham, Stuart Flatman, Robert Coe, and Ryan Shannon (a New Zealander who had just experienced his first English shoot day). The guns, beaters and pickers-up from the day at the Wyresdale…

TRAVEL Eagle Hall Shoot is located within Long Farm just outside the village of Eagle in north west Lincolnshire. Access is via the A57 from the north or the A46 from the south and then the A1133 out into the open countryside for a few picturesque miles. Long Farm is a busy working farm, so drivers are advised to take it easy when heading the 500 yards down the farm track towards the shoot lodge. Anyone thinking of travelling by train on the East Coast Mainline should alight at Newark Northgate (the shoot can arrange for their collection if necessary). STAY The beauty of Eagle Hall’s proximity to Newark means that you can be at the shoot relatively quickly from anywhere in the Midlands. If you’re coming from a little…

What makes a good shoot? Is there such an institution as the ideal shoot? Indeed, what are the main constituents of your ideal shoot? I am fortunate to be a member of a predominantly partridge syndicate with a sprinkling of pheasants. We shoot fortnightly, six sometimes seven Saturdays per season into early December. There are seven full guns with each gun encouraged, indeed expected, to invite a guest. Our ground is pretty flat, easily walked and spread over about 800 acres. Often, 14 guns are never enough - never under-estimate the partridge's acuity in assessing the best avenues of escape. The format is unchanging: meet in a nearby hostelry for a seriously good full English (£10 a head) at 8.45am. At about 9.30am, guns and guests waddle out to their…

“Traditional rearing techniques trusted more on natural instincts... producing a higher quality bird.” Looking back on my attempts to rear and release grey partridges, one or two moments stand out. My goal was always to produce a small number of birds that would ultimately become self-sustaining; perhaps this is the Holy Grail of all shoot conservation, but I was specifically interested in encouraging the birds to use hill ground on the moorland margins. I’m not sure if I ever expected outright success, but in terms of a fascinating learning opportunity, the project was hugely satisfying. From the outset I was determined to use Edwardian theory and technology. I built sitting boxes, broodie coops and tiny release pens so I could hatch off all my own home-bred eggs under bantams, and…

The gun world is interlinked to a very large extent. The “maker” of a gun is often simply the retailer or a finisher who has applied his name and little else. Numerous Birmingham manufacturers specialised in building complete guns for the trade, even down to engraving their “makers” names. In other cases outworkers were used, individual craftsmen operating out of small premises, stocking, engraving, actioning and so on. For many small gunmakers it made economic sense to have the parts of a gun built elsewhere and then finished in their own workshops. It was a practice that had gone on for centuries, and many flintlock guns were built in Birmingham or London and then finished by country makers. The use of outworkers is still quite prevalent today due to the…

Stephen Grant was born in 1821 and served his apprenticeship under the Dublin gunmaker William Kavanagh of 4 Upper Ormand Quay. He then went to work for Charles Lancaster and in around 1850 joined Thomas Boss. Upon Thomas Boss’s death in 1857 he became managing partner of the firm, renaming it Boss & Co, continuing in this post until 1866. In that year he set up on his own at 67a St. James’s Street, close to Boss at No.73. On August 18, 1888, as part of its “Crack Gunmakers” series, the periodical Land And Water wrote an article on Stephen Grant, which said: ‘To lovers of the trigger and to those who are desirous to see what London can produce in the way of highest class gun manufacture, a visit…

As many experienced shots will know, quite a number of manufacturers engrave the name Rizzini on the actions of their guns thanks to the fairly astonishing abilities of a modern Italian gunmaking dynasty. There is E. Rizzini, once best known for making entry-level guns but now a part of Fausti, a high-end manufacturer. More in the line of a boutique manufacturer, producing a small number of best quality guns, one finds Fratelli Rizzini. There is also Isidoro Rizzini, whose company FAIR makes guns for the likes of Lincoln. Finally, we have the maker of our test gun, perhaps the best known and most highly regarded Rizzini, Battista, whose company has been manufacturing guns in Italy’s Gardone Valley since 1966. While all these names may lead to a little confusion, you…

Q I'm a normal sized 40-year-old man and want to spend approximately £2,000 on a gun for clays and game. Do I need to get one fitted for me or can I just buy off the shelf? A A question I am often asked when people are buying a new or second hand gun is whether to spend more money on the gun or buy a cheaper gun and have it fitted? In these situations my instant response is always to have the gun fitted. Most people buy a new gun to try and improve their shooting and they are assuming they will shoot better with a new gun. Wrong, it can make your shooting worse. Buying a gun that doesn’t shoot exactly where you are looking in my opinion…

The Pigeon from Dixon’s of Birmingham (1910); the Special from F. Thrasher of Birmingham (1910); the Kynoch Gastight Perfectly from J. Ward & Son of Worcester (1900); and the Kynoch Perfect from Kynoch of Birmingham (1900). The Sallinoid Waterproof from Saville & Waller of Woodbridge (1910); the Hard Hitters from Bartram of Braintree (1910); the Bulzi from Sayer of Watton (1927); and the Pheasant Special from Stebbings & Son of Attleborough (1927). The Clan from Alexander Henry of Edinburgh (1910); the Pegamoid Special from James Kirk or Ayr (1900); the Killer from John MacPherson of Inverness (1927); and the Parvo from Nobel of Glasgow (1924). DIAMOND SHOTGUN SHELLS A box of 25 metal-lined ‘water resisting’ gastight cartridges from Eley. This box of No.5 shot cartridges would have been used in…

TWENTY-FIVE golden retrievers convened for the running of the Eastern Counties Golden Retriever Club’s novice, open and veteran working tests at Grove Farm, Raveningham, by kind permission of Mr and Mrs Pip Warde, writes Di Ewings. Our judges for the morning were Phil Allen, Mike Skipper and Sharon Coby. We were grateful for the support of a full set of judges, dog stewards and dummy throwers. We were also grateful to Skinner’s who provided sponsorship. The dogs were divided into three groups and the tests were set out in a loop so that the safari system could be employed. First came a straight mark into some rough with shot, next a mark into a pen that our host had erected especially for the event, and then a mark into water…

THE ARFON Working Gundog Club held an a.v. spaniel working test at the Penrallt Shoot on the Lligwy Estate in Anglesey, by kind permission of Simon and Chrissie Lees-Jones, writes Gwilym Jones. The judges were Mike Smith and Jason Toon. Our thanks go to our host, the judges, helpers, the competitors and our sponsors CSJ Specialist Canine Feeds and Gary McCarthy of Gundog Gear for making it a successful day. Results NOVICE 1 Thomas Humphreys with Ess.d. Lambsway Bracken Boy 2 Noel Parry with Ess.b. Clodahill Scarlett Heather 3 Peter Wilkes with Ess.d. Edwardiana Jake OPEN 1 Noel Parry with Ess.d. Clodahill Phoenix 2 Peter Wilkes with Edwardiana Beebalm 3 Thomas Humphreys with Ess.d. Lambsway Bracken Boy…