april newsletter final

april
from our President...
Record breaking weather day after day after day! I don’t know about you, but I have Spring Fever. Training
tables are out, yard is raked, got a few quail in the pen and there are woodcock courting in the woods. I keep saying Mother Nature plays games with us, so be aware. Remember the April Fools storm of last year? Well, whatever
happens next week, it was a great week!
March has been a fun month. Every year I say how wonderful Bubba Day was, but this year, this year, was
really the BEST yet! Eiders, animal traps, kids camps, search and rescue dogs and an amazing falcon just filled our
Saturday with a wealth of knowledge. What I noticed this year was how we are all networking our connections. The
new friends we made that Saturday will be lasting. The speakers came early and stayed late. They all enjoyed each
other’s presentations. We all ended the day wanting more. The speakers were offering ideas for next year. Remillie
took notes feverishly so we can share the info with you all. Next year put it on your calendar early. I hear it’ll be better!
Blaine, Jason and I attended the New England Seacoast Chapter’s indoor clinic in Westbrook. Great group
and a few familiar faces made for a great day of training. They want to welcome Yankee Chapter members to their
events anytime.
Members of the Yankee Chapter are working with a variety of other groups to put on a Veterans Hunt this
coming September. I thank Matt, Chip, Nick, Casey and Scott for your time, talents and passion to help others in
creating a day for our veterans. Stay tuned…
State of Maine Sportsmans Show will be in full swing by the time you read this month’s newsletter. Hopefully you’ll have a few minutes to stop by the booth, answer a few questions or show your dog’s skills at one of our
four demos. We continue to be the biggest draw of the show. Thanks also to LLBean for supporting us through their
Partners in Conservation.
Thurston’s Clinic is just three weeks away. I can’t wait to run my dog on Fred’s beautiful property. It was so
darn cold last year. Let’s hope for a great day. No matter what, we’ll have chukar for training, obedience scenarios,
retriever drills, heel courses, backing opportunities, tracking and drags. As usual we’ll have the famous YC lunchtime Bar-B-Q and a “you name it- we’ll have it” RAFFLE.
Vermont Clinic ~ Terry Wilson and Nancy Anisfield along with Scrub, Rimfire, Tank, Scratch and Rudder
are hosting another day of fun and training at their home in Vermont. Training slots are limited so
reserve your slot early. See info in this newsletter.
We’ll have our 28 gauge over-and-under Fausti shotgun raffle tickets available. We are halfway
to our goal. If you’ve already purchased your ticket, would you mind selling a few for the chapter?
There will be merchandise galore available as you register for the day, so rob that piggy bank and
support the chapter.
I look forward to seeing you all at an upcoming Not-so-Normal event. Fun times are ahead in 2012.
-- Patti
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS!
MICHAEL HESKANEN, BRUNSWICK, ME
DENISE PARLIN, MANCHESTER, ME
www.yankeenavhda.org
...not your normal chapter
In this issue: Bubba Day Photos and Report, TRAPS 101, April Clinic Info, Member News, Cranky Yankees,
Hunting Stories, Poetry, Laughs, Dog Photos, and much more!
Page 1
Congratulations to Sarah Wade who
made the Maine team competing in
the Eastern High School Ski Championships!
member news and photos
The Chapter would like to extend its
sympathy to Bob Brey and his family upon the loss of his sister, Sharon
Withington. Sharon passed away
peacefully at her home in Wray, Co.
after trying many experimental drugs
in her battle against brain cancer.
These beautiful Yankee Chapter pins
are now available! Featuring our logo,
based on a woodcock painting done
by chapter Prez, Patti Carter, the pins
will look great on your hat, bird vest,
field bag, or hunting shirt. Wear ‘em
proudly! Only $6! Available at all chapter clinics and events.
Paul and Joan von Hardenburg -- and
Dusty -- are enjoying time in Florida.
As Paul points out, though, “No search
for the duck here - gators!”
Anders Nilsson reported in last month
on going to the SNE Pointing Dog
Championship.”Really no expectations
other than Gracie is always a contender (Winner 3 yrs ago). ... Well, well
Lulu came away as runner up! Missed
it by a hair. She dropped a bird 3-4
yards away from me instead a bringing
it back and that was the difference.
Still very happy. There was a field of
18 dogs running in 9 braces (Lulu had
two solid backs). Three dogs were
called back for that final retrieve, 2
VC’s and Lulu!” Great job!
Be sure to check out the videos
posted on www.navhda.org:
2011 NAVHDA Memories
and
What is a Handler Clinic?
Congratulations to the clan at Merrymeeting Kennels, especially to mama
Tiza who gave birth to six puppies this
week-- three boys, three girls!
Best wishes to all
Yankee Chapter members
and their families for a
Happy, Healthy
Easter and Passover!
She was an avid gardener and antiques collector who loved spending
time with her basset hound.
2012 YANKEE CHAPTER
GUN RAFFLE
Tickets are on sale now for the
28-gauge Fausti side-by-side donated
by Terry Wilson. This super light gun
has an English stock, 28” barrel, and
full set of choke tubes. It’s built on a
true 28-gauge frame and retails for
$2000. 150 tickets will be sold at $20
per ticket. For tickets or more information contact Patti Carter: mmkennels@
myfairpoint.net
EMAIL LIST UPDATES, PLEASE!
If your email address has changed
or if you haven’t received the newsletter or announcements regularly,
please make sure our communications guru Judie Bayles and our
chief accountant Cindy Tracy have
your correct address.
As Judie explains, “With five group
email lists now for the Yankee Chapter, it gets a bit crazy. When each
one gets close to 30, I have problems sending as some email providers would look at that as spam....
so have to keep adding new groups
and keeping each around 25.
Judie: [email protected]
Cindy: [email protected]
Thomas Edling and Blaine Carter had
a successful rabbit hunt, thanks to help
from Glenn Flanders and a couple of
talented beagles.
THANK YOU
to the following
contributors to the
Kenny King / Bob Bisson Fund:
Ron Volk
Thomas & Isabelle Edling
Page 2
Ben Norton and friends had an awesome day in February hunting snow
geese. Great shooting!
Other reports in: Jeff Ledoux has two
new Llewellan Setters that will be
keeping him busy this season. Have
fun, Jeff!
And Mike Healy’s Venus and Ron Budescheim’s Sadie had lots of points on
the spring woodcock migration. Nice!
Spring Training Clinic -- Thurston’s Farm
April 21st, 9:00 a.m. -- New Gloucester, ME
Springtime is training time, whether you’re testing a dog this year or not! Come join us for our first outdoor clinic of the season, held on Saturday, April 21st at Fred Thurston’s Farm on Route 231 in New Gloucester, Maine.
We’ll be doing all kinds of field work for all levels -- steadiness, tracking, retrieving, heeling, obedience, etc. (No
water work yet.) The clinic will start at 9 a.m. At noon, we’ll fire up the grill for lunch. Please bring a side dish,
salad or dessert to go with our bbq.
Parking is tricky because we don’t want to damage the grounds. If it’s muddy or wet, plan to drive in, unload
your gear, then park back out along Rt. 231. Be careful, as this is a very busy road! And don’t forget your boots
and layers. We never know what the weather will be, having had some April clinics with temps in the 70s and
others with snow!
RAFFLE TIME! We will hold our first raffle of the year during the lunch break. Any and all donations are welcome. Funds raised at our clinic and test day raffles are used to offset costs such as shotgun shells, port-apotties, training equipment, etc. Thank you for your continued generosity and dedication to our Yankee Chapter
“family.”
Because of problems with quail in past years when the weather was very cold, we’ll only be using chukars at
this clinic. The chukars will cost $10 per dog.
And the weather will be...?
DIRECTIONS TO THURSTON’S FARM:
2011
From the north: Take Rt. 4 south to Rt. 231 at
the blinking light. Turn left onto Rt. 231. After
you go through the town of NEw Gloucester,
you will drive through open fields and cross two
sets of railroad tracks, then go up a hill. The
farm is at the top of the hill on the right.
2008
From the south: Take Maine Turnpike to Exit
63 (Gray). Turn left onto Rt. 4; turn right onto
Gloucester Hill Road. Continue to Rt. 231 and
turn right. Go over two sets of railroad tracks,
up a hill. The farm is at the top of the hill on the
right.
PLANNING AHEAD...
Saturday, May 5th, Terry Wilson and Nancy Anisfield will host the Vermont
Training Clinic in Hinesburg, VT. This clinic introduces local folks to NAVHDA
and gives them access to training expertise unavailable in the area.
TRAINING CLINIC
REMINDERS...
**Sign up for birds as soon as you
arrive. We try to have enough for everyone, but if the crowd is big, it’s first
The clinic is open to non-NAVHDA members, and to retrievers/flushers as well as come-first served.
pointing dogs. There’s no charge for attending, just for the birds. Space is limited
**Other than when your dog is working
to just 30 participants, so sign up early! To sign up or for questions, contact
in the field or water, please keep him
Nancy at [email protected] or Terry at [email protected]
or her leashed, staked or in a crate.
**We ask that bitches in heat run last
to minimize distraction for other dogs.
**Help out and have fun! When your
dog isn’t in the bird field or at the
water, there are plenty of things to
do: help another handler with retrieving drills, be a bird planter, practice
heeling and place board obedience,
walk the field as a “gallery” for other
handlers, etc.
Page 3
**Encourage your family to come
along -- Yankee is a very family
friendly chapter!
Bubba Day Report
March 10th at the Phippsburg Sportsmans Association
Photos by Betty Blackman
and Patti Carter
Over 20 guests and presenters enjoyed
a day of information, entertainment and
good food at the Phippsburg Sportsmen’s
Club for the 4th annual such event; it was
the 3rd named Bubba Day in honor of deceased member Bill Norsworthy, who
first suggested the idea in 2009 of a day dedicated to member skills, interests
and connections outside dog training. Participants this year received a commemorative goose band, green—appropriate to St. Patrick!—with number and “Not Your Normal Chapter” engraving. After each of the 5 presentations, generous
door prizes were drawn, and a final drawing of a bird vest capped the day for Bill Tracy. The Chapter’s new enameled
pins were first unveiled for sale. Raffle tickets were also available for variety of donated items including a 20” decoratively
painted paddle won by Dick Dilley, and for the 28-gauge shotgun being raffled by the Chapter until all tickets are sold.
As in previous years, a great deal of fascinating information was provided by our talented presenters. Notes on each presentation will appear in the next several editions of Barking Dog Express, beginning with “Traps 101” by Troy Wallace.
-- Remillie Norsworthy
The Yankee Chapter would like to thank the Phippsburg Sportsman’s Association for the use of their hall
during Bubba Day. If any Yankee members would like to join and support their work with the youth, dues are
only $12.00 which includes a free membership to the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine ( value $25.00 ) and
discounted subscription costs to Maine Sportsman and Northwood’s Journal. They would greatly appreciate
Yankee Chapter’s support.
Phippsburg Sportsman’s Association
http://www.psassoc.org/ 207-443-9426
Special thanks to all the generous donors
who made our raffle so special:
Dog Not Gone
Blaine and Patti Carter
Kittery Trading Post
Bill and Cindy Tracy
Remillie Norsworthy
Ugly Dog Hunting
Page 4
CRANKY YANKEES
This column offers advice by Nick Racioppi and Jason Carter about Maine’s hunting laws and regulations.
The Cranky Yankee’s are not lawyers. They give their best interpretation of often complex laws. Is there a
hunting regulation you don’t understand? A situation in the field you weren’t sure how to handle? Send the
Cranky Yankees an email and let them look into it for you
Jason: [email protected] Nick: [email protected]
QUESTION: If someone bothers you while you’re hunting, training or fishing or tries to stop you in
some way, who should you call – police or the game warden?
JASON: Personally, I’ve had an experience that gave me reason to call a game warden instead of the police. I know of
someone who had a run in with a landowner and the police were called. So we don’t incriminate anyone lets say, the person’s name was “John Doe.” In December, “John” was out in a tidal marsh jump shooting ducks, and a nearby landowner
yelled down that “John” was trespassing and he had called the police. “John” knew he was okay in the tidal marsh but
wasn’t sure if he hadn’t crossed the landowner’s property as he accessed the marsh. As he returned to his truck, the blue
lights came down the road and the officer stepped out of his vehicle and shouted orders from behind his open door. “Put
your weapon down and step away,” he ordered. “Do you see these posted signs here?”
The point of this story is that most police officers are not trained to handle hunters and their hunting situations. Instead,
he had treated this hunter, in a situation that was only alleged trespassing, as an armed criminal. Wardens get these calls
all the time and know how to better handle these type of situations. It would be my recommendation to always start with
a warden. Keep in mind, though, that the only problem with calling the Maine warden service is that their funds are very
strapped, which means too few wardens for the large areas they have to cover.
NICK: Anything to do with harassment of your legal hunting privileges, you call the Game Warden. If a neighbor hears
shooting, they can call either to report the incident, and I’m guessing this person wouldn’t be from Maine! (That’s a nightly
thing around here…) Let’s stick with Hunting. It’s illegal to interfere with our hunting privileges and if you can’t convince
the offender they are violating the law, take their name, walk away and call the Warden. The regs state:
Harassment of hunters, trappers and anglers
1. Interference with taking. A person may not intentionally or knowingly interfere with the lawful hunting, fishing or trapping of a wild animal, wild bird or fish.
A. A person who violates this subsection commits a civil violation for which a fine of not less than $100 nor more than
$500 may be adjudged.
B. A person who violates this subsection after having been adjudicated as having committed 3 or more civil violations
under this Part within the previous 5-year period commits a Class E crime.
2. Disturb or attempt to disturb. A person may not intentionally or knowingly disturb or attempt to disturb a wild animal,
wild bird or fish with the intent to interfere with the hunting, fishing or trapping of a wild animal, wild bird or fish.
A. A person who violates this subsection commits a civil violation for which a fine of not less than $100 nor more than
$500 may be adjudged.
B. A person who violates this subsection after having been adjudicated as having committed 3 or more civil violations
under this Part within the previous 5-year period commits a Class E crime.
NAME DAT DAWG!
The first person to figure out who this
featured canine is wins a Yankee Chapter
pin. Email your best guess to anisfield@
gmavt.net.
Last month Cheryl Brackett and Patti
Carter won, both guessing Dick Dilley’s
Sede at the same time (their emails came
in together).
Page 5
Bubba Day Seminar: Traps 101: Troy Wallace
Notes by Remillie Norsworthy
Trap Legalities:
•
Traps/snares must have owner ID tags attached, but the tags are small and tucked out of sight.
•
Trapper must have landowner’s written permission, but paper-company land is handled differently, with verbal
permission still being accepted since few paper landowners give written permission.
•
As with firearms, there are distance laws from dwellings.
•
Neck snares are no longer legal, but foot snares are. The more dangerous bear snares must have a minimum
closure diameter of 2½” or larger, so a dog could easily slip out of it. Snares for smaller fur-bearers, however, could catch
a dog’s foot.
•
Traps with teeth are illegal, except for #14 beaver traps, which must be set underwater or ice. These can be fatal
to dogs if somehow the dog is deep enough in the water to contact one. These traps should be reported if found on land.
•
Fisher sets are large and powerful enough (#220 or #280) to be dangerous to dogs, but must be up a pole no
larger than 4” diameter with no flat sides (to discourage lynx), and must be 4’+ off the ground.
•
Foot traps must be checked every 24 hours. If you find an animal in a trap, it should be gone the next day; if not,
report it.
•
Tampering with a trap is illegal, but if your dog gets caught, obviously you must release it.
When and Where: Although the majority of traps are not set until November, fox and coyote circle foot-traps may be put
out the last 2 weeks of October. Some trappers flag their sets as a memory aid for later checking, but most do not mark
their sets, as traps are expensive and theft is a reality. Therefore, those of us who run dogs need to be aware of likely
clues to trap/snare locations:
•
in a pathway between rocks,
•
near dung placed as lure,
•
near other strong lure scent (skunk, weasel, even deer)
•
around hay bales left in the field
•
at isolated sprigs of goldenrod or brush
•
at the base of a boulder
•
on the sides of paths
•
on a pole 4” in diameter or less (fisher set)
It would seem that these are all the places my dogs check out first when they are running for exercise, so handlers need
to be extra aware of these tempting sites when traps may be on the ground!
Types of Traps (see photo): Troy stipulates that legal traps do little damage. He has found fox calmly asleep in a trap in
the morning, and has never seen a broken bone in a fox. Traps should be fixed firmly to the ground from a short length of
chain; he uses 2 pieces of rebar driven to cross diagonally underground below the chain.
•
Circle foot-trap—Open jaws form a circle with trigger pad in the center. To protect lynx, the largest size of this type
trap is #175 (1-3/4) with maximum jaw spread of 5-3/8”. Anything larger should be reported. This type of trap has “spring
ears,” slotted tabs that snap up around the trap jaws to hold them shut once the trap is sprung. It is these spring ears that
must be pushed back down and locked to open the trap.
•
Conabear—For mink and muskrat, it can be set dry or underwater. Its square frame reminded me of a fireplace
toaster. This trap has a spring that is coiled like the end of a safety-pin with its sides attached to the base of the trap. To
open the trap, the sides of the spring must be squeezed together where they slide along the trap.
•
Long-spring trap—The jaws are rectangular in shape and the spring is as long as the jaws.
Traps may have one spring or two that are under tension when the trap is open, which then release to close the jaws
when the trap is triggered. The larger traps have springs on each side and may have a catch-latch to hold the spring
closed when the trap is being opened.
Spring ear, press down on both
to open trap
Conabear
Circle foot traps, SPRUNG and SET
Spring ear
Squeeze spring under tension (set)
Setting tong
Page 6
Long-spring trap
TRAPS 101 continued...
Getting Your Dog Out of a Trap: Trap springs are made to be hard to squeeze closed. Troy makes it easy on himself
by using a scissoring tool called a setting tong (see photo) with various notches that squeeze the rings where the spring
slides on the trap itself. Troy passed the various types of traps around to see if participants could open the sprung trap; he
demonstrated several methods:
•
Bare hands (very difficult, if not impossible, for me as female with small hands)
•
Foot pressure on single or dual spring(s) with trap flat on the ground; works well on the ears of a circle foot-trap
•
Setting tong, that special, long plier with key-type serrations for catching the trap’s spring and levering it in the
direction needed
•
Shoestring/rope lever: A participant mentioned having read an article about how to use a shoelace or piece of thin
rope to thread through the springrings for leverage to pull the spring closed.
But all of these methods must be accomplished while your dog is going nuts in the trap.
Suggestions for dealing with this difficult situation came from the floor:
•
Invest in and carry a setting tong—efficient and gets your hands/face a bit away from the dog
•
Always carry a muzzle, a knee-hi nylon or panty hose, or a piece of soft rope to secure the dog’s muzzle
and keep you safe. In a pinch, a flat leash can be wrapped around and crossed under the muzzle, then the ends
pulled behind the dog’s head and tied.
•
Train your dog in advance to respond to “whoa” when his leg is being pinched and also while you kneel
very close and handle the leg or are placing your feet very close to and on either side of his foot.
•
If possible, practice opening real traps—but NOT those a trapper has legally set, of course.
The Ballad of Blaingo
--Remillie Norsworthy…Defeated But Not Done, Bubba-Day Weekend 2012
(With apologies to Lorne Green’s cowboy ballad “Ringo”—1964)
I came from the North that fine March day
With a new deck of cards for his cribbage array,
And almost the first thing he said was, “Let’s play!”
That Blaingo.
By eights and by tens he increased his score
When I remained stuck with only four
And in my crib there was rarely more.
Drat Blaingo.
The next day we settled to play game two.
I plotted and planned just what I should do,
But instead all the cards almost always came through
For Blaingo.
NOTE:
I started to pray for just one little five
Remillie sent us this fine poem
To help keep my reputation alive.
she wrote after many hours of
Despite twenty-four, other hands failed to jive.
cribbage with Yankee ChapBlame Blaingo.
ter Director of Training, Blaine
Carter. They played four games
over three days, and accord-
By that afternoon, he’d conquered a triple.
ing to Remillie, “Blain-go” Carter
I felt like a Conabear had clamped on my nipple trounced her every time.
And soon I’d be labeled the Cribbage Cripple
By Blaingo.
“My song is loosely based on the
It’s anthropomorphic—yes, I know—
To say those new cards seemed to hate me so,
But what else could keep my counts so low
Against Blaingo?
Day three, game four, he was just plain mean!
Who else ever scored a seventeen?
I folded my cards and fled the scene
From Blaingo.
Sporting dog owners wage an ongoing battle against legislative action
that can inhibit or compromise our
use of our dogs in traditional sporting
pursuits. States from Maine to California have enacted -- or attempted
to enact -- legislation on a variety of
issues from tail docking to kennel requirements to mandatory microchipping and regulating how many dogs
we’re allowed to own.
While some of these proposed laws
have good intentions, like fighting
puppy mills, most are shortsighted
and draconian when it comes to
responsible breeders and individual
pet owners’ rights.
The United States Sportsman’s Alliance has formed a Sporting Dog Defense Coalition. For info on pending
legislation and other issues facing
sporting dog owners and breeders,
go to www.ussportsmen.org.
old Lorne Greene “talk” song of
1964, “Ringo.” ...Upshot is that we
had a lot of fun, I took 17 pages
of notes on all the fascinating
presentations at Bubba Day, and
I GOT MY BUTT WHIPPED at
cards!,” says Rem.
So if you ever dare to go to that town
With cards in your hand and some cribbage renown,
Be aware there’s a guy who will slap you down—
That’s Blaingo.
(Blain-go, Blain-go)
Sporting Dog Defense
Coalition
Yankee Chapter License Holders
Every hunter and angler needs one! Blaze orange (so you can
find it quicker when you drop it on the floor of your truck), with
the woodcock from our logo and “not your normal chapter” on the
front. The license holders will be just $1 (ONE DOLLAR!) or free
with a gun raffle ticket.
Page 7
And
What a Season it Was!
By Mark Cote
This past year, by utilizing unpaid time off and going to work even
on the hottest days of the summer, I managed to start the bird
season with six weeks of vacation time.
Hunting season actually started in August with crow hunting, and
September brought a few chances at the early season Canada
goose. I had the good fortune to participate in a pheasant shoot at
the Thurston Farm in New Gloucester, a fund raiser for Operation
Game Thief. After the competition, the participants were grouped
up and allowed to hunt clean up. The group I was with included
two veterans from the Iraq war who had not hunted over dogs.
Cosmo put on quite a show, giving these novice hunters plenty of
opportunity to try their luck at wing shooting.
October provided the start of serious hunting. A typical day would
find me sitting at the edge of a local beaver flowage at the crack of
dawn. After the morning flight of ducks I would bring the Lab home, exchange waterfowl gear for upland sport and head to
the local covers.
The first hunting excursion of the season found the dogs and I on the shore of Moosehead Lake with my brother Tony. On
the second Saturday, a trip up the 490 road put us into a good number of grouse. Exiting one cover, we were met by Bob
and Alison England; Bob was very curious as to why we were in his cover. (Apparently Bob and Tony have an eye for the
old grown-in wood roads.)
Over the next two weeks, I stayed pretty much with the usual routine, ducks in the morning, upland game for the rest of
the day. The third week of the month brought the woodcock flight into central Maine. I had the delightful pleasure of discovering a new cover that proved to be a favorite hang-out for timberdoodle. Cosmo and Izzy did a fantastic job of finding
the artful little dodgers. On my first two hunts with the 20 gauge side-by-side, I did manage to scratch down a limit before I
ran out of shells. On my last hunt in this cover, due to inclement weather, the tried and trusted Ruger was given the shooting assignment. The end of the hunt found me back at the dog wagon with three woodcock and a rabbit, having expended
only four shells.
The last week of October Tony and I nestled into a wonderful little cabin on the shore of Big Lake. Chets’ Camps hosted a
week of searching new covers in the West Grand Lake area of Down East Maine.
November was a tough month for work; I spent the weekends putting the ship’s generator system through its paces and
the weekday’s scouring the covers for grouse. On November 17th, I worked in the morning then declared it was time to
hit the woods, for there were critters out there that needed snuffing out. With mere minutes of legal shooting time left, I
peered through my scope at a young doe and thought “maybe a bigger one will come out, maybe not.” POW! My deer
season was thankfully over.
I headed back up to Moosehead Thanksgiving day, met up with my brother for a late season hunt. We searched in vain for
grouse on the east side of Moosehead lake. I speculated that the Thanksgiving day storm must have driven the birds into
heavy cover. It was not until Saturday afternoon that we finally moved some birds.
December is my favorite month to hunt grouse. The woodcock are usually gone except for the occasional hold out. The
cover is bare, only young beech trees seem to hold onto some dead leaves, leaving pine patches as the likely hide for the
now spooky, wise old survivors. Cosmo and Izzy have been brace mates long enough now to effectively work together.
Two dogs, two bells equal confused birds in sparse cover. Flight ducks provided great sport on the waters that where still
open.
From October through December I hunted 42 days. I filled my freezer with 2 geese, 28 woodcock, 14 grouse, 5 rabbits,
16 ducks, 8 pheasants and one deer. Success, though, was not found in the amount of game put in the bag, but of the
number of days spent in the field. The development of a young dog’s prowess on game, the increased cooperation of the
old timer’s habits and the new covers marked on the map. And what a season it was.
The “Not Your Normal Chapter” wishes
everyone a
HAPPY APRIL FOOL’S DAY!
Page 8
LOOKING AHEAD: 2013 NAVHDA ANNUAL MEETING!
Host: Northern Illinois Chapter
Contacts: John Calandra / Roy Ames
January 25-27, 2013
Illinois Beach Resort & Conference Center
1 Lake Front Drive, Zion, IL 60099
(847-625-7300)
Check out this great photo of woodcock eggs taken by Jason Carter.
According to Andy Weik, Ruffed Grouse Society Northeast Regional Biologist, “Grouse eggs are cream colored without the dark mottling, and usually
number about 10+/- whereas woodcock typically have 4 eggs -- and notice
how these 4 fill up the nest bowl. Woodcock have a huge egg for the size of
the bird.”
Chip Bonde wrote Patti in early in March, “This is the first year in a long time
that I did not email you and tell you that they were back in Maryland....Why?
They never left. I have been lucky enough to find at least one bird every
day I walked the dogs behind my house since January 2011. On Maryland’s
Eastern shore this January was SPECTACULAR. Ken McAdow and I were
averaging 25 points a day on public land. We only each shot 3 a day but
what a month.”
Page 9
YANKEE CHAPTER CALENDAR OF EVENTS
April 21
Thurston’s Clinic
Thurston Farm, New Gloucester, ME
May 5
Vermont Clinic
1067 Silver Street, Hinesburg, VT
May 19
Training Clinic Green Point Wildlife Management Area, Dresden, ME
June 2
Pre-test Clinic Green Point Wildlife Management Area, Dresden, ME
June 8, 9 & 10
Testing Green Point Wildlife Management Area, Dresden, ME
July 13, 14 & 15 Spinoni Only Days Bowdoinham Wildlife Management Area
July 21
summer water clinic location and details TBA
August 4
Dean Croxford Memorial Shoot Varney’s Clay Sports, Richmond, ME
August 25
Pre-test Clinic
Bowdoinham WIldlife Management Area
September 7, 8 & 9 Testing
Bowdoinham Wildlife Management Area
January 6, 2013 Yankee Chapter Annual Meeting
January 25-27, 2013
NAVHDA Annual Meeting
Zion, Illinois
BOARD OF DIRECTORS CONTACT INFO
President
Patti Carter
33 Simpson’s Point Road, Brunswick, ME 04011
[email protected]
Vice Pres
Nancy Anisfield
1067 Silver Street, Hinesburg, VT 05461 [email protected]
Secretary
Nick Racioppi
55 Hedge Bridge Road, Woolwich, ME 04579 [email protected]
Treasurer
Cindy Tracy
37 Eider Lane, Topsham, ME 04086 [email protected]
Director of Testing: Jason Wade
Director of Judge Development: Dave Trahan
Director of Gunning: Matt Lorello
Delegate at Large: Bill Tracy
Director of Communications: Judie Bayles
Test Secretary: Margo Maloney
Director of Training: Blaine Carter
Director of Grounds: Dick Dilley
“Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive
evidence that you are wonderful.” -- Ann Landers
“My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is
up to $3.00 a can. That’s almost $21.00 in dog money.”
--Joe Weinstein
Barking Dog Guidelines
Litter Ads - 1/4 page max size
free for members
$15 / month non-members
Business Card Ads $25 /year members
$35 / year non-members
Display Ads - 1/4 page max size
$35 / year members
$50 / non-members
Story submissions -500 words max!
DID YOU KNOW...
Analyzing the DNA of 85 dog
breeds, scientists found that
genetic similarities clustered them
into four broad categories: wolflike, herders, hunters, and mastifflike. Check out the Februrary
2012 National Geographic magazine for a fascinating article on
canine DNA.
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207-725-8229
802-482-2561
207-442-7252
207-725-4562
Change of address or email
address? Don’t forget to let us
know! Send any changes to Judie at [email protected] or
Cindy at [email protected].
Got a boat, gun, trailer or something you’d like to sell? Send me
the info in an email -- 50 words
max, including price and phone.
Make sure you get it to me by the
Monday of the last full week in the
month.
[email protected]
New Listing: New Alpha 32 caliber gauge starter pistol (see
photo below) with leather holster and case. The Z-MAC zincaluminum frame with a rust resistant blued finish and the high
strength heat-treated steel parts promise trouble free usage.
Bright orange grips; six shot swing out cylinder. Value $250.00.
Will sell for $175.00. Contact Patti Carter, 207-725-8229,
[email protected].
Easy Loader two-dog kennel (see photo above), excellent
condition, welded wire doors, high density polymer, 33 pounds,
fits full size pick up. Dimensions 21 high x 49 wide x 23.5 deep.
New 260.00. Selling for $150.00. Call Blaine Carter 207-7258229.
SS Shamrock 4 Kennel Dog Topper for a full size truck.
Comes with fans and a ladder. The kennel is in excellent
condition. Owner wants $1,500 for it. Contact Nick Racioppi,
207-442-7252, [email protected].
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Pre-season Points...
LEGEND
WYATT
TIZA & DIVA
GRACIE
Page 12