Working Gundogs on the Apple Isle
In July 2025, the Working Gundog Queensland Discipline Chairman Jim Jeffrey travelled to Tasmania to observe the Working Gundog Association of Australia (WGAA) Tasmania AGM and judge an important Retrieving Trial.
Evie – winner of the Open competition.
WGAA Tasmania is making great progress in assisting new members to SSAA and aiding them to work successfully in their dog/handler teams. This work has only been possible with SSAA assistance and the dedication of a solid band of enthusiastic members ably led by their Presidents, Mr David Mansfield, Mr Karl Britton and now Mrs Edwena Adcock. We can look forward to even more great events such as the Spaniel and Hunt Point and Retrieve Field Trials that are in the planning stages for 2026.
The Working Gundog Association of Tasmania held a very successful Retrieving Trial following their AGM, on a very picturesque private property in the Ross Area. The weather was cold but fine and sunny with consistently solid windy conditions.
The dogs in the two stakes contested worked extremely well as the judges and their assistants put the dog and handler teams through some very testing duck hunting scenarios.
Once the dog and handler team have collected a shotgun loaded with blank shells, marks are set up and the team moves to a point where they observe a ‘Dokken’ (an artificial duck) fired into the air at varying distances and across various obstacles, such as dams, creeks, gullies and associated heavy covering vegetation. The dog is then required to retrieve the duck in an efficient manner and deliver it to the handler.
Judges can set up marks in many different configurations: single, double, triple, simultaneous double marks and walk-up marks.
Blinds are set up when the handler, having collected the shotgun and blank cartridges, places his/her dog in a concealed location and moves to a firing point and fires in the direction of the Dokken that has been placed in a location across the same type of obstacles. The owners then call their dog to ‘Heel’ and it is sent out on the retrieve.
Judges can set up blinds as stand-alone single or double blinds and/or combined with any of the other types of marked retrieves.
The winner of the Advanced Competition was the team of Kerry Armstrong and her Murray River Retriever “KOA” (BAROKAMURRAY BUFFALOBILL IRD NRA NRD).
The winner of the Open competition was the team of Mr Paul Hennessy and his Labrador Retriever ‘EVIE’ (HUNTOGUN THE MAGIC OF EVIE). Jim Jeffrey with Paul.
The newly elected President of the Branch, Mrs Edwena Adcock, presented the awards to the winners and other place getters and thanked all those involved for their outstanding camaraderie and willingness to assist with the running of this Retrieving Trial.
If you are interested in observing or competing in this type of SSAA competition, please contact:
workinggundogs@discipline.ssaa.org.au
Jim Jeffrey Ph: 0457675464
Edwena Adcock Ph: 0447487996
KOA (BAROKAMURRAY BUFFALOBILL IRD NRA NRD) – Winner of the Advanced Competition.
