The Luck of the Draw: The Dog, Location, Judge and Rabbit

[rabbitatfarm]

The last trial consisted of two five-dog casts. The high score in one cast was 160 with a couple of 100s for 2nd and 3rd. The other cast winner had 15, with three 0s, and a -10 for the other dogs. What a difference! While each cast competes within their own group, if the rabbit won't run there's not going to be much scoring. It always amazes me how one day you can just pound rabbits and the next day, same location, you can't even buy a strike. Granted, all spots aren't equal, but rabbits live on about a 10-acre range. Where do they go from one day to the next? Some want to run and others don't.

The judge plays a big role too. Some judges come in looking like they lost a battle with a bobcat and others look like they had a walk in the park. It's not easy to keep up with the dogs, and judges should be complimented for even trying, but some try harder than others. The judge will have one happy winner and the others will all swear they got screwed. I lean with the guy who says "we hear our dogs harking in and think he's really rolling up a score." What we don't see is where the dog is in the pack. I'll never forget the guy who every time his dog harked in saying "That's Old blue! That's Old Blue!" When the scores were red at the end Old Blue had a -10.

I enjoy the field trials, win, lose or draw and I do my share of complaining about the judging, but the next trial is another day and another game. For sure, you need a good dog, to consistently win, but you also need the location, judge, and rabbit plus the luck of the draw.