Field trials

CONTENTS

Field Trials in the UK

The following comments are my own personal views of Kennel Club licensed field trials for pointers and setters on the UK mainland which I have attended and competed in (and won!) since the late 1950's. The regulations as stated apply to all gundog field trials in the UK but as I have little experience of field trials for other gundog breeds I do not feel qualified to comment on how they are organised. I have received many positive comments from field trialers, including KC field trial judges and KC members, who agree that my comments stated here are true.

BANNED!!

Since being outspoken about the flaws in our field trial system I have been subjected to the usual personal attacks whistle blowers must expect when they fight against dishonesty and corruption. These attacks are mostly initiated by "middle management" who manipulate opinion through lies and deception. The secretary of one club (who seems to think he has been elected for life!) has issued a lifetime ban on my entry into field trials run by that club. (Amusingly, I have been informed that an official of the same club had been exposed in the Sunday newspapers for sexual dalliance, which may account for the paranoia over anything critical in the Press!) I forwarded a copy of his letter to the Chairman of The Kennel Club who condemned it utterly, so confirming that these problems are caused by silly people who have too much power and are out of control.

My first experience of what happens to whistle blowers at KC licensed field trials occurred many years ago. An Irish priest noticed that a competitor had swapped arm bands so he could run his best dog in the second round after it had been eliminated in the first round! It was the priest, a charming and honest man, who was banned, not the competitor who happened to be the gamekeeper of a big land owner. The chairman of one club told me that the secretary of his club had falsified the club minutes to keep me out. Unknown to the secretary, the chairman had been a close friend for over 25 years. Another person lied to gain access to my home. Three days later he was assisting the chairman of the KC Disciplinary Committee stage a gundog demonstration at The Game Fair. I was also asked to leave a field trial on the allegation that I was training my dog on young grouse during the trial. In fact, two puppies I had on leads were pointing where birds had recently left and there was another competitor not three yards away! But that is all par for the course and to be expected. Sadly, most of the knowledgeable people are so sickened by UK field trials they have now given up and all that are left are people who have to judge by "fancy points" because they cannot read dog behaviour and body language.

British Field Trials

All field trials for gundogs in Britain are run under a license system operated by The Kennel Club (KC) in London which is primarily a dog showing organization. Only gundog clubs registered with The Kennel Club will be granted a licence to run a field trial; it takes many years for a club to become registered and many more before it can get a licence to run an Open Stake.

Only KC registered dogs may compete in a licensed field trial run by these registered clubs. Nearly all pedigree gundogs in the UK will be registered with the KC which has a total monopoly on these registrations. It is generally accepted that no KC registered dog is permitted to run in any trial except those authorized by the KC as above or terrible things will happen. An application to enter such a dog in a field trial does not guarantee that it will get to run.

Entries to run in a field trial should, according to KC Field Trial Regulations, be drawn by lot with preference in the draw being given to dogs owned by members of the club and to dogs which have won previous awards. Becoming a member of some clubs is like getting a membership to a golf club -- nothing much to do with dogs and more to do with who you know. Dogs not drawn to run may be placed on a Reserve List, i.e. so if a dog drawn to run does not turn up for some reason, one from the top of the Reserve List may take it's place.

It is openly admitted that this draw for entries to a field trial is generally "fixed" although this is obviously both unfair and against the regulations. The reasons given are that this gives the better dogs a chance to run and the club "feels obligated to put on a showing of good dogs" for the landowner. Another reason given is that "it is only fair" to those dogs which have got "one leg up", i.e. they need a second win to become a field trial champion. A statistian, who also happens to be a field trialer, did some research into the wins recorded by one of the Good Ole Boys. Statistically, not only could he have got the runs he did if the draw had been fair and according to the rules, but he would not have made up as many FTCh's either! To my mind this is blatant nepotism and petty politics and must ultimately lead to the deterioration of the dogs. The aim of "improving dogs" is written into the Constitution of The Kennel Club, yet this organization does nothing to correct the problem.

It would be quite impossible for some owners to win as many stakes as they do if trials were run "fair and square". These owners simply would not get the chances to compete in enough trials to make up a champion. Without going into too much detail, to become a Field Trial Champion, a dog must win the equivalent of two Open Stakes or win a Champion Stake. But before it can run in an Open it must first qualify by achieving awards in lesser stakes. As the dice is already loaded as to who gets to run in the first place, you may begin to get the picture.

This requirement that a dog must first qualify in junior stakes before being permitted to compete in an Open Stake leads to ridiculous situations. The Top Dog in All Ireland had to qualify in a Novice Stake in the UK before it could compete in one of these so-called Open Stakes because Irish field trial awards are not accepted by the KC. This is plain protectionism for British dogs. In short, the Irish dogs are just too good and have to be kept out at all costs because they beat the wrong people!

The two judges at a field trial must be approved by the KC and one of these judges must be on the KC "A" panel of judges. So far as I am aware, the judge does not have to have ever trained or handled a dog, let alone run a dog in a field trial. Field trials are run under the KC Field Trial Regulations and to "The Guide to Field Trial Judges" issued by The Kennel Club which specifies a number of "eliminating faults". That is the theory. I am told by someone who would no doubt consider himself to be one of the UK's top judges that the rules have grown "by custom" so you need not bother looking too closely at that "Guide" for guidance! How to win UK field trials is a closely guided secret known only to the select few!

I should perhaps mention that the system is regulated by numerous committees which ultimately have a majority of KC appointees. In other words, the KC has the last word. It is my belief that the system is designed to protect the KC's highly profitable monopoly in the canine registration business and these days it has very little to do with the stated noble aim of "improving dogs". Every possible sanction will be taken against any who attempts to compete with their own dogs on private land to rules other than those laid down by this monopolistic organization.

These "eliminating faults" give rise to many ridiculous situations and it is the dog with guts and style which is more likely to be thrown out for some petty infringement. I can think of many cases where a dog exhibiting polish and style, hunting with speed and efficiency, has been thrown out while the dull ordinary "meat dog" has gone on to win because "it did nothing wrong" -- the criteria of the show ring applied to working dogs..

On the other hand, I have seen badly trained, wild dogs put up by judges who are unable to differentiate between the quality dog running with dash and enthusiasm and the badly trained dog running out of control. A well trained dog should require almost no handling at all yet it should be under control, and thus controllable, at all times.

At a field trial, there is no minimum heat time and I have seen 40 dogs "tested" in a little over two hours! Yes, you read that correctly -- an average run for each brace being just three minutes! If a dog commits an "eliminating fault" it must be "thrown out" regardless of the time it has been down before the judges.

The majority of pointer and setter clubs are primarily interested in showing. Field trials are cheap to run and they generate income for the cash hungry show side (which needs to hire a hall, benching, pay judges' fees, travel, hotel and other expenses, etc). So it is very attractive for a club to run a pointer and setter field trial to make some easy cash to subsidize a dog show. Dog showing clubs are probably the first to become registered with the KC anyway as dog showing is far more popular than field trialing in the UK and attracts more interest from the KC.

As the members of the same club get to propose judges and elect the committee, they naturally tend to choose those who are sympathetic to the type of dog they own. Nearly all pointer and setter KC listed field trial judges today come from a show background and almost all trials are held on good driving moors where pointers and setters would not usually be required to find game for hunting. The real dogging moors are not considered to have enough birds for field trialing which really means modern trial dogs would be incapable of finding them!

If those reading this wish to verify what I say, I suggest you go to a few pointer and setter field trials and see for yourself. Your first problem will be to locate a field trial but you could try writing to The Field Trial Secretary at The Kennel Club, 1 Clarges Street, Piccadilly, London W1Y 9AB for a list of clubs. In time, you may get a reply. Then you have to write to the individual clubs which hold a trial. This time you may not get a reply!

At some field trials you will not be permitted to use your camcorders in case it records an event which proves the judges made a wrong decision. But as the judges do not explain their decisions anyway this isn't quite logical but that doesn't deter them. Unsuccessful competitors will be left with no certain knowledge why their dogs did not feature in the awards nor how they could improve their performance for next time. UK field trials are a social occasion designed to create a small elite and have very little to do with the aim stated in the Constitution of The Kennel Club and most field trial clubs, i.e. "the improvement of dogs".

At this point I should stress that my comments are aimed squarely at field trials for pointers and setters. My experience of field trials for other breeds is limited and I would not wish to comment.

I have no argument with those who want this sort of competition, but it is outrageous that those who aspire to something better should be prohibited from competing in their own trials because the KC insists on operating a monopoly. Don't misunderstand me; there are some good judges and many honest judges, but there are many who have never trained a dog and who will never be able to recognize excellence when they see it and far too many who abuse their power for petty political aims.

Some judges manipulate the regulations to put forward those they perceive as the more deserving -- whatever that reasoning might be. (Quote of the year has to be, "Mrs X deserves to win. She has been attending long enough!". Some do not know the regulations and appear never to have read them although they are required to have a copy with them at the trial. My answer to them is this: If the rules do not allow you to judge properly, change the rules -- don't break them. And if the system does not allow you to change the rules or to criticize, don't participate. But far too many are primarily interested in the politics of the dog world and will not speak out against the nonsense they know exists. "Evil flourishes where good men do nothing".

Many of these field trial clubs were originally formed to encourage a better understanding of the breeding, training and working of pointers and setters at a local level, yet very few gamekeepers, few ordinary shooting men, and almost no young people attend pointer and setter field trials. A local gamekeeper recently pointed out to me that there are now no pointer and setter handlers in the north of Scotland (formerly "the dogging counties" under fifty). It is the same competitors at each event which led to some anonymous wit describing field trialers as "A small group of people who travel around the countryside awarding each other prizes". This statement outrages field trialers because it is spot on!

Anyone blowing the whistle about the iniquities, falsehoods, and blatant cheating that is endemic in KC regulated field trials can expect retaliation. At one time, field trials were organized with the aim of producing superb shooting dogs -- now they follow the show ring, have nothing to do with practical dog work and are judged according to standards which are totally alien to the requirements of the shooting man or falconer. You might ask yourself why it is so essential that all field trials for gundogs in the UK should be controlled by The Kennel Club in London? Perhaps they fear that others might do things better.

"When Hitler attacked the Jews I was not a Jew, therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the Catholics, I was not a Catholic, and therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the unions and the industrialists, I was not a member of the unions and I was not concerned. Then, Hitler attacked me and the Protestant church and there was nobody left to be concerned." * Martin Niemoller (1892-1984) * in Congressional Record; 14 October 1968, p. 31636

Independent Field Trials: In the working sheepdog world anyone may run a sheepdog trial but the results will be accepted by the International Sheep Dog Society only if the trial is run according to certain "minimum requirements". A similar system operates in the USA, Japan, Canada, Hawaii, etc. for gundogs under the "Minimum Requirements" of the American Field Dog Stud Book (AFDSB) and they are a great success. It could also be done in the UK as the AFDSB is the biggest working gundog registry in the world.

When those of the show fancy took over UK bird dog field trials, they brought the morality of the show world, their idea of sportsmanship and their politics with them. I believe that ordinary shooting men and gamekeepers, conspicuous by their absence at these KC field trials, ought to have the opportunity to compete in field trials organized without the KC red tape -- like those popular sheepdog trials which anyone can run.

Younger people ought to be encouraged so that there are knowledgeable handlers coming on. A field trial purports to be a competition to find the best working gundog. Yet in the UK they have very little to do with encouraging ordinary shooting men to work gundogs or to learn more about the breeding, training and handling their dogs. Go to a KC licensed field trial and judge for yourself. Why are they so frightened of allowing others to run their own field trials? There is no problem with a group of friends and their dogs going on a hunt or a shoot. Take away the guns and the KC immediately demands that the occasion is subject to all their bureaucratic nonsense!!

Interestingly, the owners of working spaniels in Denmark got so sick and tired of the Danish Kennel Club that they set up their own organization. It started out a few years ago with just 35 members and everyone said it wouldn't last. The establishment did everything to stop them, including hiring the best lawyers, playing the usual dirty political games, etc.

Today the Danish Dissidents have over 2,000 members; they have their own field trials and they have their own registration system. And they have a web site. At the moment, the web site is in Danish (yes, I'll post the URL a.s.a.p.) but it is to be translated into English. Come on, Denmark! When are you going to go international? We want to join you!

A Better System of judging gundogs, as compared with the UK system, is applied by some Scandinavian countries. Although the overall system is similar to our UK system, the accent is on encouraging owners to be better trainers and on giving breeders more guidance and information. Field trial dogs and show dogs are also closer together.

Instead of concentrating on competition between owners, the dogs are tested against an agreed standard. This was the original idea behind British field trials but it has become forgotten about as those silly people get their sport from the politics and manipulations and social side of things.

I have a copy of some Swedish field trial rules which require, and I quote, "To make it easier to participants and spectators to follow the trial, the judge shall, if possible, after each run give an oral critique and give his views of the dogs". The rules then go on, "After the field trial, the judge shall within one month send a written critique about the dogs, in typewriting, to the commissioner. The critique should not be restricted to short general expressions, but be to that extent that it clearly describes the course of events and states the reason for the given prize".

The rules also state various fairly obvious faults which eliminate a dog from receiving a prize (but not necessarily from judgment or from the stake) such as attacks on domestic animals, obvious game or gun shyness, repeated barking during the run, dog not searching in a galloping style, completely out of control, and serious disturbance of partner (though if this latter, the dog can be tried with another partner if time permits).

These "faults" are treated a lot more generously than they would be at any UK field trial. The dogs are still under judgment and the judge will give an opinion of them in his critique; they are just debarred from receiving a prize. There are only three eliminating faults; pursuing game, refusing to retrieve, and refusing to back or stop on command so that the partner's point is disturbed.

I understand that each dog is scored by the judge against an ideal for the various hunting "skills" (e.g. quartering, pace, style, retrieving, etc.) and this information is published in the club or other publication. So a breeder who has an otherwise excellent dog which is, let us say, deficient in retrieving excellence, might look at these published details and select a mate from a strain high in natural retrieving to infuse this quality into his own strain. Under the UK Kennel Club rules all these details are kept secret and if there is nothing sinister going on behind closed doors, it certainly looks as if there is!

But the most important aspect to me is that the competitive element is reduced. Each participant is running his dog against an agreed standard of excellence; he is clearly told what he and his dog are doing right and where it is going wrong. More, this information is written up and published for every one to make use of. Because it is no longer so important to beat the other competitors but rather to get high marks against that standard, the more experienced trainers help the novices and the overall standard of training is enhanced which in turn benefits the dogs. I am told that it is quite possible to have three (or more) winners as they all achieve the same score!

From my Swedish friends I also understand there is no great problem with entries or short running time. Each brace is given a very good run, probably averaging around 30 minutes, and if too many want to enter one trial, they will put on another trial a few miles down the road! What a refreshing contrast to our British system!

Disappearing gundogs -- The government is concerned by the disappearance of heather moorland on which red grouse live and there are moves to improve the management of our hills. There is little possibility that these moors will be brought up to driving (battu) standard in the short term and in most cases they will never yield enough grouse for driven shooting.

But it is shooting over dogs that many overseas visiting sportsmen know and want. They think we are crazy not using pointers and setters more than we do! Remember, it is in these islands that these dogs were brought to perfection during the 18th and 19th centuries and from here that they were exported to every corner of the globe. Yet the skills to breed and train these dogs are becoming increasingly rare.

Many kennels of working pointers and setters have disappeared in my own lifetime. (I can think of no large kennel of working bird dogs anywhere in the country at the moment apart from my own). Twenty years ago I could have named a dozen or so. Arkwright mentions that, at the turn of the century, every landowner of any substance had his own kennel. We are in grave danger of losing the dogs it has taken hundreds of years to create because it is more fashionable to breed a field trial dog which can run for ten minutes or a show dog that does not need to run at all!

A Challenge to the KC's Monopoly -- In an attempt to redress the balance, I decided to confront the KC monopoly over gundog field trials in Britain a few years ago. I contacted a firm of solicitors, Messrs Shindler & Company of London, who listened to the points I have made here. They were so convinced of the justice of my case that they agreed to handle it pro bono publico -- at no cost to myself. This resulted in The Office of Fair Trading (our anti-monopoly body) "requesting" The Kennel Club to change its rules so that those who wish to compete under different rules may do so without prejudice from the KC. When a government organization makes such a suggestion it is best to comply or legislation may follow.

In response to this request, the KC did indeed change the Field Trial Regulations and now, in theory at least, it is possible for anyone to organize a field trial with the KC's permission and run it to rules other than those laid down by the KC. To run a field trial, all that you need to do is to apply to the KC for permission to do so, submitting a copy of the rules under which they are to be run, the place and date of the meeting, the judges, and any other relevant information. Under UK Common Law, the KC cannot unreasonably withhold permission. This new regulation is intended to allow owners to run a field trial and merely brings the field trialer into line with those who compete in working trials and dog shows who already have this facility.

To date, no such permission has been given to the ordinary owner to organize such a competition although some have applied. The KC has granted token permissions but these have been to atypical applicants and the situation needs to be challenged. It is quite clear that the KC persists in protecting it's monopoly over field trials for the obvious reason that it sees any breakaway as a challenge to it's supposed "authority" over all pedigree dogs and a threat to it's very lucrative mail order business in dog registrations.

The change to the KC Field Trial Regulations is not intended for registered clubs which have tacitly agreed to be bound by the previous regulations. It is for those who want to try something different and (hopefully) better. Anyone wishing more information, or having problems obtaining KC permissions, are invited to contact me direct. Just Email me or write to me at the address below. All enquiries will be treated in the strictest confidence. There is more information on the above in the Second Edition of my book, "Pointers and Setters", published by Swan Hill Limited.

Derry Argue
Advie Gundogs
Miller's Place, Fendom, Tain,
Easter Ross IV19 1PE
Scotland, UK

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