Hunting 

Braccos, German Shorthaired Pointers, and Vizslas all make fantastic hunting dogs. These breeds were bred to produce a dual-purpose gun dog that also excels as a family companion. Great scenting ability and powerful endurance make these breeds highly coveted versatile hunting dogs. These pointing breeds are used to hunt all types of upland game and also natural retrievers on both land and water. Though each of them may vary in the style of how they hunt with proper training, hunting with your pointing dog can be a great way to mentally and physically stimulate your dog.

 There is no better way to build an unbreakable bond with your dog as an outdoor enthusiast.

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Why Title a Dog 

"Not just a brag, not just a stepping stone to a higher title, not just an adjunct to competitive scores, a title is a tribute to the dog that bears it, a way to honor the dog, an ultimate memorial. It will remain in record and in memory for as long as anything in this world can remain. Few humans will do as well or better in that regard.

And though the dog itself doesn’t know or care that its achievements have been noted, a title says many things in the world of humans, where such things count.

A title says your dog was intelligent and adaptable, and of good nature. It says that your dog loved you enough to do the things that please you, however crazy they may have sometimes seemed.

And a title says that you loved your dog, that you loved to spend time with it because it was a good dog, that you believed in it enough to give it yet another chance when it failed, and that, in the end, your faith was justified.

A title proves that your dog inspired you to that special relationship enjoyed by so few; that in a world of disposable creatures, this dog with a title was greatly loved, and loved greatly in return.

And when that dear short life is over, the title remains as a memorial of the finest kind, the best you can give to a deserving friend, volumes of pride in one small set of initials after the name.

A title earned is nothing less than love and respect, given and received, and permanently recorded."

-Sandra Mowery

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Hunting Tests

Hunting tests are designed to evaluate the abilities of various types of dogs by testing them against a standard. Dogs are tested at various levels and when the requirements of a level are met, the dog will be awarded an AKC title.  In the case of the sporting breeds, these titles would be the Junior Hunter (JH), Senior Hunter (SH) and Master Hunter (MH). These tests were designed to showcase what a dog and hunter may be required to do in a normal day’s hunt. They were set up to measure dogs against a set standard as opposed to a competition between dogs. 

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Junior Hunter Title (JH).

In order to be recorded as a Junior Hunter, a dog must be registered
in the AKC Stud Book, and must have a record of having acquired Qualifying scores in the Junior
Hunting Test in four (4) AKC-licensed or member club Hunting Tests.

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Upon completion of these requirements, an AKC Junior Hunter (JH) certificate will be issued to the
owner, and the dog shall be identified as a Junior Hunterin all official AKC records by the suffix title JH.
A dog that has been recorded as a Junior Hunter may continue to enter the Junior Hunting Test, but no
further Junior Hunter certificates will be issued.
 

 

A Junior hunting dog must show a keen desire to hunt, be bold and independent, have a fast, yet attractive, manner of hunting, and demonstrate not only intelligence in seeking objectives, but also the ability to find game. A Junior hunting dog must establish point on at least fifty (50) percent of the pointable birds it encounters. It is up to the Judge to determine if a bird is pointable given the specifics of the situation. No additional credit shall be given for steadiness to wing and shot. If the handler is within reasonable gun range of a bird which has been flushed after a point, a blank cartridge must be fired by the handler. Junior hunting dogs must hold point until the handler gets within normal gunshot range. This requirement should be tempered by practical considerations such as the dog’s distance from the handler when it finds a bird. Junior hunting dogs must also show reasonable obedience to their handler’s commands.

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The Judges of a Junior Hunting Test must score the dogs on the basis of the following four categories of hunting ability:

 

(1) HUNTING: A dog is scored from “0” to“10” on the basis of whether or not it evidences a keen desire to hunt, boldness and independence, and a fast, yet useful pattern of running. A dog that lacks independence to the extent that it seldom leaves its handler’s side, needs constant direction as to where to hunt or is directed into a bird(s) has not demonstrated adequate hunting ability and cannot receive a qualifying score.

 

(2) BIRD FINDING ABILITY: A dog must find and point birds in order to receive a Qualifying score. Dogs are scored from “0” to “10” based upon demonstration of intelligence in seeking objectives, use of the wind, and the ability to find birds. 24

 

(3) POINTING: A dog is scored from “0” to“10” in this category on the basis of the intensity of its point, as well as its ability to locate (pinpoint) birds under difficult scenting conditions and/or confusing scent patterns. A “flash” point cannot be graded as pointing, however, and a dog’s score in this category shall not be influenced by its steadiness to wing and shot.

 

(4) TRAINABILITY: A dog is scored from “0” to “10” in this category on the basis of its willingness to be handled, its reasonable obedience to commands and its gun response. If the handler is within reasonable gun range of a bird which has been flushed after a point, a blank pistol must be fired. Gun response is included under Train ability in Junior, Senior and Master for purposes of scoring since some degree of training is often involved.“Gun-shyness,” a component of gun response, cannot be tolerated in the make-up of any dog that is being evaluated as a hunting companion. A dog may be restrained (collared) to prevent interference with the dog on point.

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Senior Hunter Title (SH). In order to be
recorded as a Senior Hunter, a dog must be registered in the AKC Stud Book (except ILP dogs), and must have a
record of having acquired Qualifying scores in the Senior Hunting Test at five (5) AKC-licensed or member club
Hunting Tests, or, in the case of a dog that has been  recorded by AKC as a Junior Hunter, that dog will
be recorded as a Senior Hunter after having acquired Qualifying scores in the Senior Hunting Test at four (4)
AKC-licensed or -member club Hunting Tests. Except hat a German Wirehaired Pointer and a Spinone Italiano,
shall not be recorded a Senior Hunter unless it has also been certified by two approved field trial or hunting test
Judges to have passed an AKC Water Test at a licensed or member field trial or hunting test.
 

Upon completion of these requirements, an AKC Senior Hunter (SH) certificate will be issued to the owner,
and the dog shall be identified as a Senior Hunter in all official AKC records by the suffix title SH, which title
shall supersede the Junior Hunter title when the Junior Hunter title has been previously earned. A dog that has
been recorded as a Senior Hunter may continue to enter the Senior Hunting Test, but no further Senior Hunter
certificates will be issued. A dog that has acquired a Senior Hunter title is eligible
to enter the Junior Hunting Test. Section 3A. Senior Hunter Advanced Title
(SHA). A dog must have previously earned a Senior
Hunter title to be eligible to earn qualifying legs towards a Senior Hunter Advanced title. In order to be recorded
as a Senior Hunter Advanced, a dog must have a record of having acquired five (5) SHA qualifying scores in the
Senior Hunting Test.

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A Senior hunting dog must show all of the attributes expected of a Junior hunting dog in

 

(1) HUNTING & (2) BIRD FINDING ABILITY: but must be scored in these two categories with less tolerance than would be accorded to the Junior hunting dog. Senior hunting dogs must also be scored on the basis of the following four additional categories of ability:

 

(3) POINTING: A dog is scored from “0” to “10” in this category on the basis of the intensity of its point as well as its ability to locate (pinpoint) birds under difficult scenting conditions and/or confusing scenting patterns. A Senior hunting dog must be steady to wing and remain until the shot. Steadiness is considered a trained ability and should be scored in the Trainability category.

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(4) RETRIEVING: A dog is scored from “0” to “10” based upon the level of Retrieving ability demonstrated by the Senior hunting dog. A Senior hunting dog must retrieve, but a dog need not deliver to hand in order to receive a Qualifying score. If the handler of the retrieving dog assists that dog by walking towards the fallen bird, the handler will run the risk of having the dog’s Retrieving ability scored less than 5.0. The Judges shall call back any dog that did not have an opportunity to retrieve during the running of its brace in order to score the dog’s Retrieving ability. The call backs to demonstrate Retrieving ability shall be limited to those dogs whose scores in the other abilities would otherwise enable them to receive a Qualifying score. 25 When a dog is called back to demonstrate its ability to retrieve in the Senior Test, it must remain steady until the shot. Two Official Guns must be used whenever a dog is called back to demonstrate a retrieve.

 

(5) TRAINABILITY: As in the Junior Hunting Test, a Senior hunting dog is scored based upon its willingness to handle, obedience to commands and gun response, but the Senior hunting dog must be scored with less tolerance than a Junior hunting dog. Additionally, the Senior dog must remain steady to wing and remain until the shot on all pointed birds. The Senior dog must have adequately demonstrated steadiness to wing before the handler is permitted to fire. A Senior hunting dog must stop on a wild flushed bird and may be commanded to do so without receiving a failing score. The firing of a blank gun for a stop to flush is at the option of the handler. The dog must adequately display its steadiness to wing before the optional shot can be fired. A Senior dog may be collared away from a stop to flush.

 

(6) HONORING: In order to receive a Qualifying score, a Senior hunting dog must honor; a handler may give a dog a verbal command to honor. In order to receive a Qualifying score, a Senior hunting dog must see or acknowledge that its brace-mate is on point before it has been cautioned to honor. A dog that steals its brace-mate's point cannot receive a Qualifying score. After a dog has demonstrated its ability to honor, it may be restrained (collared) by the handler in order to prevent interference with the dog on point when the bird is flushed. If a dog has had no opportunity to demonstrate honoring during the running of its brace, it shall be called back by the Judges so that it can be scored on its Honoring ability. Callbacks to demonstrate honoring should be limited to those dogs whose scores in the other abilities would otherwise enable them to receive a Qualifying score, but the Judges may call back all dogs that did not have an opportunity to honor. In the Senior Test, an honor on the back course fulfills the honoring requirement

 

 

Master Hunter Title (MH).

In order to be recorded as a Master Hunter, a dog must be registered in the AKC Stud Book (except ILP dogs), and must have a record of having acquired Qualifying scores
in the Master Hunting Test at six (6) AKC-licensed or-member club Hunting Tests, or, in the case of a dog
that has been recorded by AKC as a Senior Hunter, that dog will be recorded as a Master Hunter after
having acquired Qualifying scores in the Master Hunting Test at five (5) AKC-licensed or -member club Hunting
Tests. Except that a German Wirehaired Pointer and a
Spinone Italiano shall not be recorded a Master Hunter unless it has also been certified by two approved field trial or hunting test Judges to have passed an AKC Water Test at a licensed or member field trial or hunting test. Upon completion of these requirements, an AKC Master Hunter (MH) certificate will be issued to the
owner and the dog will be identified as a Master Hunter in all official AKC records by the suffix title MH, which
title shall supersede any AKC Hunting Test title that may have been previously earned. A dog that has been recorded as a Master Hunter may continue to enter the Master Hunting Test but no
further Master Hunter certificates will be issued. A dog that has acquired a Master Hunter title is eligible
to enter Junior or Senior Hunting Tests. No further Junior or Senior Hunter certificates will be issued.
A dog is not required to earn any title as a prerequisite for earning a higher title.

 

 

A Master hunting dog must give a finished performance and demonstrate clearly that it deserves to be qualified as such. This is the complete hunting companion that any hunter would be proud to own. It must be under its handler’s control at all times, and handle kindly, with an absolute minimum of noise and hacking by the handler. A Master hunting dog must show a keen 21 desire to hunt, must have a bold and attractive manner of running, and must demonstrate not only intelligence in seeking objectives, but also the ability to find game. The dog must hunt for its handler at all times at a range suitable for a handler on foot, and should show or check in front of its handler frequently. It must cover adequate ground but never range out-of-sight for a length of time that would detract from its usefulness as a practical hunting companion. The dog must locate game, must point staunchly, and must be steady to wing and shot on all birds and if it breaks, it cannot receive a Qualifying score. Intelligent use of the wind and terrain in locating game, accurate nose, and intensity on point are essential. Whenever it encounters its bracemate on point, it must honor. A dog that steals its bracemate’s point cannot receive a Qualifying score. A Master hunting dog is not allowed to be collared unless the Judge deems the situation to be so unusual as to instruct the handler to collar the dog. A Master hunting dog must positively demonstrate its steadiness to wing and shot. All birds that are pointed by the Master dog in a bird field must be shot where safety allows. If gunning is being done on course, all birds pointed on course must be shot where safety allows. Gunning must be done by Official Guns only. A legitimate attempt to retrieve all downed birds must be made. Conditions such as the type of cover, where the birds landed, the terrain, and the condition of the downed bird, sometimes make a retrieve impossible and this should not reflect negatively on the score of the Master dog. All killed birds must be retrieved promptly, tenderly and absolutely to hand. The handler shall not command or signal the dog to retrieve until positive steadiness has been demonstrated.

 

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A Master hunting dog must show all of the attributes of a Senior hunting dog in

(1) HUNTING and (2) BIRD FINDING ABILITY but must exhibit these abilities in the more exceptional manner expected of a truly finished and seasoned hunting companion. Master hunting dogs must also possess all of the attributes of the Senior dog in

(3) POINTING, (4) 26 RETRIEVING, 5) TRAINABILITY and (6) HONORING. The Master Hunting Test requirements for these categories are identical to those of the Senior Test, except no collaring is allowed during a stop-to-flush or honor. Judges must score the Master with full expectation of the following refinements:

 

(3) POINTING: A dog is scored from “0” to “10” in this category on the basis of the intensity of its point as well as its ability to locate (pinpoint) birds under difficult scenting conditions and/or confusing scenting patterns. These abilities should be scored more stringently than in the Senior test. A Master hunting dog must be steady to wing and shot on all birds. Steadiness is considered a trained ability and should be scored in the Trainability category. It is permissible for the handler to caution a Master hunting dog on point. Cautioning, if any, is expected to be quiet and infrequent. No intimidation or physical restraint shall be permitted.

 

(4) RETRIEVING: A dog cannot receive a Qualifying score if it fails to deliver promptly, tenderly and absolutely to hand. If the handler of the retrieving dog assists that dog by walking towards the fallen bird, the handler will run the risk of having the dog’s Retrieving ability scored less than 5.0. A Master hunting dog must be given the opportunity to demonstrate Retrieving ability, either during the time its brace is running, or in a call back situation. The Judges may call back only those dogs whose scores in the other abilities would otherwise permit them to receive a Qualifying score. When a dog is called back to demonstrate its ability to retrieve in the Master level, it must demonstrate its steadiness throughout the flush and shot. Two Official Guns must be used whenever a dog is called back to demonstrate a retrieve.

 

(5) TRAINABILITY: The elements of handling and gun response are viewed more stringently in a Master hunting dog. Both handlers shall carry an empty shotgun or an “imitation” long-barreled gun at all times during the running of the brace. In those instances where the use of live ammunition is not permitted on the back course, blank pistols must be fired. The Master dog must demonstrate that it is positively steady to wing and shot on all pointed birds and in all honoring situations. A Master dog shall not be commanded to retrieve until steadiness has been demonstrated. A dog that breaks cannot receive a qualifying score in trainability. It is permissible for the handler to caution a Master 27 hunting dog on point. Cautioning, if any, shall be quiet and infrequent. No intimidation or physical restraint shall be permitted. A Master dog must be heeled away from all game contacts unless the judges(s) deem that the situation warrants the collaring of the dog. A Master hunting dog must stop on a wild flushed bird without being given a command to do so. A dog that fails to do so, or a dog requiring a command to stop cannot receive a qualifying score. A blank shall be fired on a stop-to-flush bird. A Master dog must be heeled off a stop-to-flush. When a game bird is flushed, following a point, the handler of the pointing dog must shoulder an empty shotgun or an “imitation” long-barreled gun, and with both hands on the gun, follow the flight of the bird as if a shot were to be fired at it. Shouldering of the gun is not required in situations where live gunning will not occur. In those instances, the handler must fire a blank pistol.

 

 

(6) HONORING: A Master hunting dog must honor, but shall not be commanded to do so. A dog requiring restraint, either physical or verbal, while establishing an honor cannot receive a Qualifying score. A dog that steals its bracemate’s point cannot receive a Qualifying score. A Master dog may be called into the vicinity of the pointing dog to demonstrate an honor. A Master hunting dog shall not be commanded to honor. Once a dog has established an honor, the handler is permitted to give a quiet verbal caution, but may not use loud vocal or physical restraint. Cautioning, if any, is expected to be quiet and infrequent. No intimidation or psychical restraint shall be permitted. The handler of an honoring dog shall not close the shotgun or shoulder the gun. A Master dog must honor throughout the entire flush, shot and retrieve. However, an honoring dog may be heeled off and sent on if the retrieving dog takes overly long, or does not make the retrieve. In such instances, this shall be considered a completed honor and a dog shall not be required to demonstrate an additional honor unless it again encounters its bracemate on point (it must honor on each occasion and cannot receive a Qualifying score if it fails to do so). A Master hunting dog must be given an opportunity to honor, either during the time its brace is running, or in a callback situation. The Judges may call back only those dogs whose scores in the other abilities would otherwise permit them to receive a Qualifying score. When a dog is called back to honor in the Master Test, it must remain steady throughout the shot and retrieve. 28 Steadiness while honoring is considered a trained ability and should be scored under the trainability category. If a bird is shot at and missed and the pointing dog breaks, the mannerly honoring dog shall be considered to have met the honoring requirements. In the Master Test, backcourse honors and honors where only a blank cartridge is fired shall not be considered as having met the honoring requirement, but should be considered in the trainabilty score, except as previously stated

NATURAL ABILITY TEST (NA)
Natural Ability Test Eligibility

Dogs are eligible for a Natural Ability Test until and including the day they reach 16 months of age. Dogs over 16 months may be tested for evaluation if space is available, but no prize classifications are awarded to dogs tested for evaluation. No game is shot during the NA test, and no retrieves are required.  There is no set sequence for conducting the four general phases. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Natural Ability Test is organized into four main segments, or phases, as follows:

1.  Field Phase - The dog is hunted in the cover where the presence of the game has been assured by releasing of game birds.  Each dog is hunted for a minimum of 20 minutes and is evaluated on:

Use of Nose
Search
Pointing
Desire to Work
Cooperation
Gun Shyness

2.  Tracking Phase - The dog is given an opportunity to track a flightless running pheasant or chukar.  Each dog is judged on the following items:

Use of Nose
Tracking
Desire to Work
Cooperation

3.  Water Phase - The dog is tested for its willingness to swim.  The following items are judged during the water test:

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Water Entry
Desire to Work
Cooperation

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4.  Evaluation of Physical Attributes - Each dog's teeth, eyes, and coat are evaluated, typically after the completion of the water phase. 

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SCORING

PRIZE 1 

PRIZE 2

PRIZE 3

Max. Points 112

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