Hunt test today! I judged all day yesterday, had a great time. I have not run my dogs in a hunt test since last November, so needless to say they are pretty rusty. I did train several times this week, with mixed results. Well, today wasn't so mixed, it was pretty much all dismal.

Noodle was in the first Master brace. She was more like her old self - running big and hunting hard. She had a nice stop to flush from a distance and waited for me to walk across the field to release her. She did a good job not doubling back since the bird landed only about 8-10 feet behind her. The other dog was on point, and she went towards him, saw him and went to stop to honor, and then snapped on point as there was a bird right in the spot where she was stopping, go figure. She had to stand on point during the other dog's shot and retrieve. By the time it was her turn, she was vibrating, and when the bird was shot she jumped forward about 2 steps. We completed the retrieve so the honoring dog could count the honor, and then she was picked up.

Pizza was in the 3rd master brace, she hunted really well. She went on point, and I found a cold, dead bird. I threw it for the gunners to shoot, and they shot it to pieces. Pizza ended up completing the retrieve, but the bird was old and messy so she put it down a lot. After that, she was hunting way across the field from me when she come across a wild flush. She stopped, and then took 3-4 steps towards the bird because I wasn't there. Dang, picked up! Two fails, so unusual for my rockstar girls.

The most disappointing was Bacon. She had her very first junior hunter test today, mainly so I could see how she acted in a pressure situation and I could know what to train this summer. She took off from the start and was really annoying to her bracemate for most of the backfield. She was running pretty hard, but once we got into the bird field it was like someone flipped a switch. She was struggling to breathe, and dropped down to a walk and trot. This is the first real sign of her heart condition that I have encountered. The temperature was around 60 degrees and sunny, and the sun was making things very warm. She really struggled to keep hunting. Thankfully she hit a really stylish point right at the end of her brace, but it was a rough go as she was so exhausted. When I walked her back to the van she had no spring in her step. Let me tell you, my own heart was broken when I saw this. No more burying my head in the sand about this heart condition she has. Her athletic future is not looking good, and it was all I could do to keep from crying. Now what do I do?