I have to admit I
never thought I would ever bring another boy
into the house. I adore the boys but I
prefer the girls to train and work with.
However sometimes outside forces intervene and this causes you to do things that you weren't planning on. This outside
force has a name...nope not a higher power (although he may like to think so) his name is Jay.
Jay is my husband and had become tired of being in the back seat with the training
of the girls. (I am not very good at sharing) He kept saying how he wanted a "boy of his own" to work with and train.
So back in 2005 while I was down in Alabama playing nanny to the babies Jay kept referring to the boys as "his".
After a long talk
with Jay, I finally gave in. <I was adamant
that he was to train the dog> I really
couldn't say no to Jay anyway. The man who now spends his
vacation time driving cross country to dog shows, reads all ingredients prior to buying any dog food and treats, and
understands the importance of "the kids come first".
Jay and Luka spent the
first year learning how to work together as a team.
As this is
Jay's first time training a dog there was a
lot of up and downs. After a LOT of hard
work Jay and Luka finally started to come
together as a team. In October of 2006 Jay and Luka sailed through their certification
track. That December they made their first
attempt at the TD title. Unfortunately, Luka's head was not in the game that
day and he felt it was more fun to chase
after mice! Jay did not give up and in May
of 2007 Jay and Luka flew through their 480
yard TD track in 4 minutes!
2008 was
a busy year for Luka. He wowed the judges in
the show ring and earned Reserve Winners Dog
despite being sidelined from an injury. The
next day he walked with a 5 point major to
finish his championship with ease at the
National Trailer Supported Entry. Luka
finished with a total of 4 Major 3 of which
were at LARGE supported entries. In the fall
of 2008 Jay and Luka did the best job at
tracking I have seen in a long time. Jay
handled Luka like an expert on an extremely
difficult TDX track. Despite down pours and
wind gust he and Luka earned their TDX!
In 2009 Luka was working hard in the
field- He finished his Junior Hunt title
handled by Jay and went on to pick up 2
Senior Hunt legs handled by Karen. Jay and
Luka also entered their first VST tests- By
their third attempt of the fall they were
working extremely well together and passed
their VST after a VERY long 45 min track.
Jay did a superb job of handling Luka to
this prestigious title.
This makes
Luka the 2nd CT Field Spaniel- We are VERY
Proud of The Boys.
Currently Luka
is working on his obedience skills. He displays a beautiful heads
up heeling, and quick responses to commands. However as Luka is an extremely soft dog, training has been at a slower pace
as to not dampen his spirit. Jay hopes to
pursue the Companion Dog title with Luka in
2010 and we plan on finishing up that Senior
Hunt title as well.
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2-28-09 We are happy that the over 115
inches of snow finally melted away and we
were able to get back out in the field. Luka
is back to his old self and was having a
blast at hunt training today. Although
steady to wing and shot we still have some
work to do on marking and taking directions
at a distance. However we are VERY pleased
with the progress Luka has made this last
year!
03-27-09 Jay and Luka ventured back into the
Rally ring and finished their Rally Novice
title. Jay did a pretty good job handling
Luka to this title. Luka was a little rusty
in his skills but Jay kept him on track. Way
to go Jay!
0
5-18-07-
Jay and Luka have added activity to their
schedule. They have begun agility training!
Right now the training is the beginners
level and its all for fun! It will be up to
Jay to decide if he wants to pursue an
agility title later on or not!
07-30-07 Although Luka has
been heating up the show ring he has also
been hitting the hunting fields. Jay and
Luka have been working on hunt training
these past few months and we are seeing
marked improvement with both boys. They
still have a long ways to go before
attempting to achieve any hunting titles.
Luka has incredible enthusiasm and drive in
the field.
10-21-07 Jay and Luka
participated in their first hunt test this
weekend. On Saturday lady luck was not on
their side as Luka failed to retrieve the
bird on the land portioned of the test.
Although disappointed Jay remained
optimistic. On Sunday Luka and Jay pulled it
all together and put on a stellar
performance. It was a pleasure watching this
team work together in the field. They walked
away with their first JH leg. I am very proud of
both boys as they have worked extremely hard
to get to this point.
10-28-07 Jay and Luka
participated in their first TDX test.
Although they started off well and made it
halfway through the track Luka lost his
concentration. <darn potty breaks> As it was
their first time ever in a TDX I thought
they both did extremely well and just need
to get a bit more test experience under
their belts. Watch for Jay and Luka to hit
the TDX tests in the spring as these 2 are
destined to get their title!
05-23-08 After suffering an
injury that left Luka subjected to crate
rest for over a month, we were un-sure of how
he would fair at the National. He was
underweight and out of his normal muscular
condition. However he didn't let us down and
walked away with two impressive wins; reserve
winners dog at the National & Winner's Dog
for a 5 point major at the supported entry
trailer show. Luka
was only showed 7 times in the past year. In
that time he earned 4 majors <3 at supported
entries> and 3 reserve winners to majors. We
are very proud of our boy.
We hope to have Luka back in
the field for hunting and tracking by the
end of June...and I am sure he is looking
forward to being a working dog once again.
08-28-08 Due to an injury
that happen in April Luka was sidelined
until now. We are happy to report that after
3 months of rest and physical therapy Luka
has now recovered from his muscle injury and
has recently returned to the fields for both
hunting and tracking. Our trainer for
hunting was very impressed that Luka has not
lost any of his previous training and that
we were able to pick up where we left off
back in April. Luka will not be ready for
any tests this fall but we do hope to have
him ready for next years tests.
Above: Jay and the NEW Champion Tracker Luka
Above: Luka at a Senior Hunt Test
Above and below Luka at his first JH test
Our boy Luka is currently
working on his hunting skills!
05-23-08 5 point major FSSA National
Supported entry Trailer Show
05-22-08 Reserve Winner's Dog FSSA
2008 National 
