Meet Erik!

[EllieBeast]

Gorgeous boy
I love it when their little domed heads begin to widen and you can see the dog they will become. xx

Thankyou I hadn’t even noticed that change in the head shape but you’re so right!

He’s getting mistaken for a spaniel less and less now- a sure sign he’s growing up

 

[EllieBeast]

And (more for me to look back on than anything else!) Erik at 6 months



First shows entered

His retrieving is coming along slowly and we’ve conquered water now.
He’s definitely slower to pick things up than Ivy but, being a total newbie to all this- I don’t see that as a bad thing. He’s very biddable and keen to learn. He’s also incredibly sweet, kind and a pleasure to live with.

I’m sure the devil horns will sprout soon

 

[Shady]

Such a handsome lad
All sounding very positive EllieBeast and having the desire to learn is so important. Got to say my boy has it to the point where I gave him his lead to carry today and he took that job so seriously that he didn't even want to drop it for a poo. Molly on the other hand just wants cuddles

 

[EllieBeast]

Such a handsome lad
All sounding very positive EllieBeast and having the desire to learn is so important. Got to say my boy has it to the point where I gave him his lead to carry today and he took that job so seriously that he didn't even want to drop it for a poo. Molly on the other hand just wants cuddles

Thankyou, hopefully we’re getting there. I’m just so mindful of trying get things right and not to mess him up, that I forget how young he is sometimes!

He’s definitely more independent than our bitch is, which has its challenges- but has positives too.

Your two sound fab they’ve got such characters havn’t they!!

 

[druid]

He looks great, quite balanced for his age. Pity Terriers and gundogs never seem to be on the same day, we're over for some UK shows with Finn this summer now he's got his Junior Ch title and 6 Green Stars towards his Irish Ch title!

 

[EllieBeast]

He looks great, quite balanced for his age. Pity Terriers and gundogs never seem to be on the same day, we're over for some UK shows with Finn this summer now he's got his Junior Ch title and 6 Green Stars towards his Irish Ch title!

Thankyou, that’s so nice of you to say I have no idea what I’m looking at really and even if he’s got 6 legs, my rose tinted specs will tell me he’s beautiful anyway! my husband affectionately refers to him as ‘the rodent’

That’s a real shame, it would be so nice to finally meet you! Maybe we can cross paths at crufts 2024- we’ll be there on multiple days whether we’ve qualified or not as we’ll be on the discover dogs stand. If you head over for the Game fair at all- we’ll be there for the duration too.

That’s fabulous news re Finn, good luck with his UK campaign

As it stands we have a little local show on 10th of June then we’re straight in with Windsor champ and national gundog baptism of fire!

 

[druid]

I don't tink Finn will be at Crufts, haven't checked the judge though. We will be with the Springers.

No Gamefair, it clashes with Leeds Champ and the boss has spoken on which we are going to

Good luck with the showing!

 

[EllieBeast]

I don't tink Finn will be at Crufts, haven't checked the judge though. We will be with the Springers.

No Gamefair, it clashes with Leeds Champ and the boss has spoken on which we are going to

Good luck with the showing!

Ah fair one well maybe we will catch you on gundog day at crufts 2024

Thankyou- As long as we enjoy ourselves I’m happy, I’m not going out with any expectation of doing well. Just getting GLPs in the ring is the aim of the game, great socialisation for the little bugger too I’d like to try my best not to let him down with any silly mistakes though!

 

[EllieBeast]

Eriks (and my!) first show! 3rd out of 3 in AVNSC gundog puppy at a local Open Show- you can see what he thought of his Rosette

The judge was so lovely and kind with him. We just got a bit over excited in the run up I can’t knock his enthusiasm

(He doesn’t know we came last!!)





He was an utter pleasure to be with all day, such a good boy and happy to be out and about.


Next stop Windsor (with plenty of training for us both in the interim!)

 

[some show]

Wow, he's so handsome

 

[EllieBeast]

Wow, he's so handsome

Thankyou he’s a big goofy baby most of the time at the moment but is starting to grow into himself!

 

[EllieBeast]

Just a little update on Erik at 8 months old, here he is at the National
gundog Show a couple of weeks ago. He won both his classes- as he was the only one in both

He came last in all of his challenges, maintaining our record of never beating another dog in the ring he still has no idea how many legs he has or what he’s doing with them, but he was a fabulous happy, well mannered boy all day and I was chuffed to bits with his attitude

 

[EllieBeast]

Enjoying a lazy Sunday start to the morning and thought I’d look back over this thread so lovely to be reminded of the progress we’ve made. I wish I’d kept it updated more over the last couple of years!

I thought I’d do a bit of an update on what is now a 2.5yr old () Erik

He is still a total sweetheart, doesn’t have an ounce of defiance in him, has boundless enthusiasm and a real eagerness to please.

He’s two VERY different dogs in one package, at home, showing or anywhere you take him that doesn’t involve the possibility of work- he is ‘Rasta dog’ unbelievably chilled and spends the majority of his time on his back, to the sky

However in ‘work’ mode he is like an Exocet missile crossed with a freight train he’s incredibly enthusiastic and driven yet trainable but we’re taking our time to get it right. He’s the first gundog of any description that I’ve trained and he is a LOT of dog, but we are having an absolute blast in the process

We are very lucky to have the help of some fabulous trainers and I’m really enjoying the journey.

A few pictures of a grown up Erik the GLP

In ‘home mode’







Learning his craft, starting with the line for safety then progressing to a nice steady point with flush on command- rather than barrelling in like Thomas the tank engine I love seeing how he’s connecting the dots.

There’s something quite magical about watching your dog on staunch point then triggering a hard flush of the bird with just one command, running HPRs is a real adrenaline sport




In case anyone was wondering, I’m still totally besotted with the boy. He is my heart and soul and I’m really excited about all of the adventures (and inevitable challenges ) we have yet to come!

 

[druid]

He's looking fab! Will you do some grouse counting this year?

 

[FinnishLapphund]

Thanks, it's such a joy reading a positive update.

 

[Clodagh]

That’s fabulous. Watching them on the moors (only on screen in my case) is like nothing else. Go Erik!

 

[Bradsmum]

What a lovely update. I know nothing about gun dog training nor showing but he looks like he’s having the best life

 

[EllieBeast]

He's looking fab! Will you do some grouse counting this year?

Thankyou his litter sisters are way ahead of us, but they are owned by people with far more experience!

I’m not sure we’ll get a chance this year unfortunately, but we’ve got a nice amount of fodder beet and a good few English partridge on T’s new shoot so we should get to have a play with that this season

 

[EllieBeast]

That’s fabulous. Watching them on the moors (only on screen in my case) is like nothing else. Go Erik!

It’s fabulous isn’t it! There’s nothing I enjoy watching more than a good HPR on a grouse moor

 

[EllieBeast]

What a lovely update. I know nothing about gun dog training nor showing but he looks like he’s having the best life

Thankyou so much, I really hope so! I’m thoroughly enjoying every minute of the journey with him.