Question For The Judges

[danny vansickle]

i would handle the dogs and put them together to be fair to everyone,unless one or two where swinging way out and hitting different rabbits,if that was happening,then they better stay close and get ready to run their dog down and catch it.

[DarrinG]

Opps...let me rephrase the statement.

I didnt mean to say "another" rabbit, just a second one. Lets say the area is pretty darn thick where the split occurred and there's no way to know for sure which is the original rabbit.

Sorry for the confusion.

[PREACHERS KENNEL]

if u r not sure its the original rabbit u should call time out get all dogs together and go from 1st breakdown. but as i have seeen many times the dogs getting the bulk of the work done r usually the ones on the orignal rabbit ..the dog that jumps the rabbit usualy seems to do the best on that rabbit..

[mike crabtree]

I agree with Preacher. You still have to handle them if not sure which rabbit is original.

Not guessing will keep down a lot of problems if you handle them EVERY time they split. You cant be Buddy judging if you handle all splits that are questionable.

[danny vansickle]

ditto,call time out,go from first check if everyone agrees or get another one!

[yellowdog]

if i was not dure which ws original ..i would handle the dogs ...i have had this happen several times during casts...i handle it the same way everytime....

[Big Mike]

DarrinG,
Whats the bottom line, what was the judges ruling during the running of the cast you described? and how did the disagreement arise?

[Spruce Ridge Beagler]

When I have a split that occurs on an "up and running rabbit" like you describe, I will go with the lead dog in that situation. Notice I said " up and running". If there was a bobble or two in there then you can't be sure.
Dog C may have very well got the check but dogs A & B may have taken the lead from him.
Just food for thought, but like the others have said ,if your not sure you need to get them all back together.
Good luck with that one, Dave

[DarrinG]

DarrinG,
Whats the bottom line, what was the judges ruling during the running of the cast you described? and how did the disagreement arise?

Ok...

There was no disagreement on the cast, not openly. If I dont agree with a judge on every call, that's OK, no big deal with me. No judge or handler will agree 110% on everything and that's part of trialing I suppose. Most judges do a great job and put forth good effort and try to do the correct thing each time....so I would never call out someone over something so petty as a judgement call.

Anyhow, that being said....I was handling ALL FOUR DOGS! Funny how folks will come to your casting stake and ask you to handle their dog and you end up handling all 4 of them, LOL.

Dogs C and D pretty much dominated the races although A & B were there but I didnt see them in the lead, any. When dogs A & B spilt, the judge went with dogs A & B and called for me to get dogs C & D back with A & B if I could. You ever try to run down 2 fast hounds pounding a hot bunny in some THICK cover? LOL....Taint easy to do bro! After I caught both of them (one which was my dog), so much time had elapsed and scoring taken place, I started to just keep them leashed. I caught my dog first but I didnt feel right about getting my dog back in the race without catching the second dog too. When I agreed to handle the dogs for the owners, I felt obligated to give their dog as much of a shot to win the cast as my own, so I tied mine to a tree until I caught the other dog on the split too. Then I got them back in the race, but what good did it do when there was only a short time left in the cast...and the judge had been scoring the other 2 dogs the whole time?

I'm not one to air out my feelings about matters on a public forum, so I'll just leave it at that. Trialing wasn't that big of a deal to me then anyhow. I just wondered what other judges do in a similiar situation?

[PREACHERS KENNEL]

1=i would never agreed to handle 4 dogs..2-under those circumstances then judge shoulda never put u in tha spot knowing u were the only handler ...shoulda helped u catch the dogs and put them all back on same bunny ansd yes i have done that before ina similar situation.!darring u got any dogs now??

[DarrinG]

Nope. Maybe sometime in the future but just do not have time now.

[checkmate kennels]

What i liked about this last post was dogs c and d domintated the race although a and b were there they never had the lead why do so many people think the dog up front is doing all the work all the time. It is fun to see your dog up front but there is something special about a hound that can lay in the middle of the pack and check their guts out. I think to many judges get on that fastest dog and forgot the others just my two cents worth..

[DarrinG]

I appreciate a dog like that too Checkmate...but during this cast, until the dogs split, dogs A & B never scored a point. Jump points went to dog C, and the only 2 checks before the split went to dog C and one to dog D.

Just for clarification.

[rockhilldog]

I agree that great work can be done from the middle of the pack, however, If dog C and D are stroking and A and B peel off from the back of the pack on a different rabbit, I'm staying up front with C and D.

[the real slim shady]

like its been said, a judge must try and watch all the dogs. i have dogs get in the front but doesnt know what to do. i think judges have a hard time scoring swinging dogs too. just because a dog barks out of the area where the dogs broke down, that doesnt mean the dog is on a different rabbit.