Bogey: owned by Jeff Malone of Holly Michigan            
                                                                                       

Training

I joined NAVHDA winter of 2004 in order to have a regular place to train and a reliable bird source. The people were great and I do not regret my decision to join but the training grounds were often much busier then ideal. After speaking at length with a few hunting buddies I finally decided to join the South East Michigan Bird Dog Club and Farmland Pheasant Hunters, Inc. Having access to private fields and strong flying training birds year round erase all of the up front costs of membership.

2007 Training Album

2006 Training Season Album

Scouting/Training Trip

     Labor Day Weekend 2005

Over Labor Day weekend I snatched up the vizsla and a tent and headed up to northern Michigan to get in some serious training and relaxation [including some trout fishing of course]. After a summer full of long work hours, scorching heat, and poor training conditions, 3 or 4 days alone on a river with the pup recharged some of my batteries just in time for the start of hunting season.

Along with a good friend and his English Setter, we hit several types of cover. We trekked through the river bottoms, aspen cuts, oak hills, berry fields, cherry stands, and pines with little success. The few grouse we put up all came out in areas of 5-12' aspen trees next to open areas.
 

Overall I was disappointed by the lack of birds but considering I had never hunted the area, had no topographical maps, no knowledge of coverts, and only a few days to spend in the area, it was still a successful trip. I was able to spend valuable time afield with the young dog, which he greatly needed, and got to work on several things with him away from the environment he is used to.