RAFT SUBCOMMITTEE

For discussion on anything retrieving related - trialing, training equipment, news, etc.

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RAFT SUBCOMMITTEE

Postby Graeme Parkinson » Sun 09 Feb 2003 2:58 pm

We have the rediculous situation here in the ACT that neither the ACTCA nor any of its affiliates has held a field trial for 13 years but we have a field trial representative appointed to the RAFT subcommitte. Even more incredibly our RAFT subcommitte is made up of three people. The chairperson whom I am not sure has ever owned a gundog in their life, a field trial rep but we don't run field trials and I am not aware of any ACTCA members who are currently competing in field trials, if you know of any please tell me their names and a Retrieving rep. So we have the rediculous situation were a 100% of the active competitors in the ACT only have 1/3 of the representation on the RAFT. Good Grief lets get rid of this system of appointing members to the RAFT.

GraemeP
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lets see some results

Postby Peter Betteridge » Sun 09 Feb 2003 4:43 pm

graeme sadly the act is not the only RAFT committee to be accused of inactivity. Members must be elected and must be accountable. We desperately need some can do people, movers and shakers who will not get bogged down in red tape and paper shuffling.I'm hoping that the addition of Paul Littlejohn and Bob Tawton to the national body will give the whole process a kick along.I am symphatic to the absurd situation in ACT. Could anyboby please document the achievements of ANY RAFT committee over the last 5 years. I hope to get a flood of mail proving me wrong
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Postby Prue Winkfield » Fri 14 Feb 2003 5:14 pm

graeme - I think there is one P&S person who trials in Canberra and of course Kevin Walshaw but don't think he trials any more. prue
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RAFT SUBCOMMITTEE

Postby Guest » Sat 15 Feb 2003 12:29 pm

Prue, Kevin W has trialled GSPs and a Springer Spaniel, but never a Pointer or Setter.
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RAFT

Postby Prue Winkfield » Sat 15 Feb 2003 1:06 pm

yes, I realise that but there is a P&S man - Alan Sohier who lives in Canberra
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RAFT SUBCOMMITTEE

Postby Lab Assistant » Thu 20 Feb 2003 1:10 pm

The RAFT committee system should be more open and more representative. Minutes of National and state RAFT committees should be sent to affiliated gun dog clubs and be readily available to any interested trialler. Greater use should be made of canine control websites to provide information on retrieving and field trials.

The effort put into the HoF would have been better used to promote gun dog trials.
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what do you mean?

Postby retriever staff » Fri 21 Feb 2003 10:56 am

"The effort put into the HoF would have been better used to promote gun dog trials".
can you please elaborate? what is HoF????????
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query lab assistant

Postby guest » Fri 21 Feb 2003 12:53 pm

lab assistant
I presume HoF is hall of fame. you wrote
"The effort put into the HoF would have been better used to promote gun dog trials."
as far as I can tell there has been NO effort put into the HoF by anyone. As for promoting retrieving trials I believe that the working retriever Club in NSW is organizing some training days for 2003. I dont know about the other states. Are you avaliable to help with the promotion?????. Any good ideas will be gratefully received.
guest
 

Postby Lab Assistant » Fri 21 Feb 2003 1:11 pm

What I meant was that someone must have put an effort into getting full pages re the HoF in canine journals and magazines - and a page on the ANKC website. The same sort of effort could be used to promote (or even just maintain) interest in gundogs doing what they were originally bred for.
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Postby Maureen Cooper » Sat 22 Feb 2003 1:10 pm

Re training days and information on gundog working and in response to the previous two comments I submitted a page for inclusion in a book at the front office of the RNSWCC at Erskine Park on what you can do with your dog. There was all sorts of info. in the book such as Earth Dog tests and Endurance tests etc so I did one in a similar vien for retrieving trials and will check whether it was put in there as I gave it to a RAFT member for inclusion.

The Gun Dog Society of NSW held two well supported training days last year at Erskine Park and hopefully a few new triallers might come through but none have been scheduled for this year yet due to the drought,lack of both water and cover. and the heat (= snakes)Victoria also holds well supported training days run by some of the clubs.

I think you have to bear in mind that the sport cannot be WELL publicised due to the use of game, albeit being humanely disposed of feral pigeons or rabbits. We had 'greenies' turn up at a trial and create a problem a few years back. I know the reactions of some people I have spoken to in the past and a newspaper once had an unpleasant heading for a report on a big trial. The wording I used for the RNSWCC info.sheet was very careful. Field trials are having big problems.
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Postby Kerry Webster » Sat 22 Feb 2003 7:05 pm

You have hit it on the spot Maureen. Advertising to the general public creates more problems than it is worth.
We had a situation a couple of years ago where one of our bigger All Age trials was being held in a country area, and a very small piece of land adjoining the main trial site, was council property. Being polite, the committee made an inquiry to obtain permission to use this rural piece of land.

The issue was put before the council members and ultimately reported in the local paper. They decided that the club could hold their trial as long as there were no pigeons used, as they considered it inhumane.

The column writer relating the events, compared it to a hot dog stall without the frankfurts, and thought the kerfuffle, laughable. So did we; but even with the RSPCA approval, and pigeons being vermin throughout the state, we still receive ludicrous determinations such as this council gave.

Care must be taken by all in this sport obviously, as to whom the details are divulged, and just how much at a time to tell.
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Postby Flattie » Sat 22 Feb 2003 9:57 pm

As Maureen has said, in Victoria a number of clubs having training days to promote our sport. The Flatcoat Club of Victoria is running for the third year a Training Day followed the next day by a Beginners and Novice Retrieving Trial.

The format is that the training day is held on the Saturday at a local Obedience Clubs grounds with basic retrieving instruction given from baby puppies through t0 Novice/Restricted. A demonstration is given during the day by our more experienced All Age handlers to show the level that the dogs (and handlers) can try to achieve. Entries for the Beginners Test are closed at the completion of the training day, which has resulted in new handlers entering their dogs into the following days trial. To enable the Beginner handlers to run their dogs, a gun steward is organised that can shoot for the handler. This allows the new handler to concentrate on their dog rather than worrying about a gun and a dog. This format has been extremely successful with up to 30 new dogs and handlers attending the training day and from this we have had new triallers come into the sport!

From this format it has now progressed to other clubs planning follow up training days. It is also interesting to note that we have had a number of handlers return from year to year.

With the advance planning for the training days it enables the clubs to send flyers to Obedience Clubs in the vicinity which is where most of the participants have come from. The advance planning has also enabled the current competing trialers to be aware that the training days are on, to the point where I have been contacted this week to send a flyer out as a result of one of our trialers exercising their dogs and striking up a conversation with a gundog owner who was not aware of what trialing was but now wishes to attend a training day.

It's not much but the more we can get out and about showing others what our sport is the more opportunity we have to entice new trialers. It is important that clubs recognise that there is a need to continue to have Beginners Tests to encourage new competitors and it is also important that when running the tests everything and anything is done to ensure that it is not a stressful time for the new competitors, encouragement regardless of the dogs performance is essential.
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Postby Pat Thorn » Sun 23 Feb 2003 9:07 am

webian wrote:Advertising to the general public creates more problems than it is worth.
Care must be taken by all in this sport obviously, as to whom the details are divulged, and just how much at a time to tell.

Maybe it's time to think more about the future of where retrieving should be going. Having to "watch what you say" to people keeps us continuously on the defensive about this wonderful sport of ours.
I have noticed that in the US they have some of their competitions televised, do they use "humanely" killed game? If not, then why don't we initiate moves to do the same, then we can open this sport right up.
I am very interested in what people have to say on this.
Pat
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Postby Maureen Cooper » Wed 05 Mar 2003 6:07 pm

In response to Pat, it must be remembered that trialling, shooting and the training of dogs in the US is BIG BUSINESS and cannot be compared to the situation here.The US have a very large shooting fraternity and the 'right to bear arms' over there is very strong. Pat should go to duck opening here on a public area and watch the reaction of the 'greenies' or ask any duck shooter what they experienced! I saw enough on TV here.

In 1992 when I won the NSW State Championship, the local paper gave me a good write up ( to encourage the sport ) and gave my works number as a contact as I was more there than at home. ' Greenies' then jammed the company switchboard by ringing up, asking for me and then quacking down the phone and hanging up and re-dialling! My boss came in to ask what the h...was going on as did the switch lady who had a board lit up like a starry sky! I live in a semi-rural area too! Greenies are opposed to anything being killed for 'dogs to retrieve' as they perceive.
Maybe Pat should ask the Greens what they are proposing in the coming in the NSW elections... no cage birds, no tail docking etc etc.

A trial was televised in NSW for the Saturday afternoon sporting programme some years ago as was a training session by a handler, Ken Howarth, and neither got any newcomers to trials.

I love the sport too over the 16 years I have been involved in it, but reaction from most people has been less than enthusiastic and that includes one of my sons who would reduce me to tears when humanely disposing of pigeons with his comment ( which I wont repeat). We also seem to have got away from the RAFT heading so maybe this is one area that should be cleaned up on the site.

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Postby Pat Thorn » Wed 05 Mar 2003 6:37 pm

Pat Thorn wrote:I have noticed that in the US they have some of their competitions televised, do they use "humanely" killed game? If not, then why don't we initiate moves to do the same, then we can open this sport right up.

I guess I should have spelt out more of what I had alluded to. That is if we DON'T use "humanely" killed game then we can open up this sport. We should think about not using "humanely" killed game and go for something like I have seen on TV in the US where they use a form of dummy. Then we don't have to worry about the greens or any other idiotic group.

I can imagine what the greens (most of them are sheep, they just follow a leader and create a total nuisance of themselves) have done in the past. I'm not surprised by your experiences with them.
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