Kooly's Timeline from July 1, 2004 through Feb., 2005

July  1   two sets of remote winger marks with ducks at "Macktown" - stretch the distance & take a
             break in between (wide 70, 90, 110 yards in mowed grass), three-handed casting at the
             "Square Pond"
July  2  trained at "Macktown" and ran the 3-legged pattern & he did it well, put up to rest & after
            Taffey ran her set of marks, Kooly ran three remote winger singles with ducks (60, 90,
             110 yards), the horn on the remote worked well as a "Hey, Hey" substitute
                    note; need to increase the marking = MORE MARKS!           
             (evening) review the right/left "back" pile in 3-handed casting a "The Square Pond",
             intro remote "poorman" honoring water marks  with Taffey
                    note: Kooly seems to be in that "gawky" physical state where his mind and body
                             aren't exactly on the same page, you can especially see it in his water entry
                             he flies to the water and kind of can't figure out where his legs should go
                             so in July we are going to do easy straight forward "stuff" and let him get
                             use to his body
                             concentrate on marking, remote "poorman" with Taffey, short sessions
                             of 3-handed casting, baseball type lining drills with two-sided push/pull,
                             and "intro" mini-T
July  3   fourth day on 3-handed casting - did five right backs followed by four left backs, then
             alternated twice and he never missed one (varied cast timing), did a four pile right over
             & another four pile left, then alternated twice = one pre-cast, but made NO mistakes with
             all backs tight "wheels" with no indecision, combine it all tomorrow
                     note: he sat there square and tall, "staring a hole in me" waiting to see which way
                              to go next and loving every minute of it
                              (it was a cool evening, he was sharp and it was a "Kool moment"
             did a few more short remote "poorman" marks + a few "no retrieves" by me
                     note: this was one of his best sessions in terms of an attentive focus,
                              as I recall 3-handed casting had the same effect on Taffey - she became
                              more aware and willing to accept the teamwork approach
                             "Tell me what to do because I think it is fun!"
                              A key goal is achieved. Kooly is a "What's Next" dog!
                     note: Kooly's eating has improved (three cups at night & one in the morning
                              still feeding in crate without a bowl (he likes to lay down and nibble)
                              (the other two dogs are finished in a few minutes)
July  4   3-handed casting at "The Square Pond" with all three piles, needed some help, but
             the lesson finished well, ran at the "Sand Ponds" about 15 semi-remote marks with a
             white bumper and alternating retrieves with Taffey (off leash), honored super on all
             but one mark, his was ripping through cover & lunging water, swimming some and
             bounding up and down the gravel banks while marking very well, both dogs were
             having a blast
                      note; there was no water in these ponds last year and they are great for a
                               young pup, four ponds - twenty to thirty yards across with natural cover
                               which is kept thinner than normal by the gravel terrain 
                      note: Interceptor
July  5  dropped Taffey off at Brian's, trained Kooly on 3-handed casting, he was not into
            training right from the start (not sure if dropping Taffey off or the different area had
            any effect, but is was as if he had forgotten the last two days), went back to identifying
            each pile/cast and it was a "go back two steps day", stopped at Legend Lake for a few
            "cooling off" swimming marks afterwards
            (evening) quick review of 3-handed casting in the regular place ("Square Pond")
            broke it down to simplify & put it back together = he did well and was comfortable,
            did three "here/fetch", ran two sight blinds did one stop and turn on whistle & cast
            back - nice, ran one all the way, and stopped three times with whistle sits on the
            way back - sharp!
                     note: familiar area and much cooler (60°) with clouds plus a nice breeze
                     note: Frontline Plus 
July  6  ran 3-handed casting at the "Square Pond, established each pile first, ran about 20
            with NO MISSES, cool and breezy = perfect July morning and he's got this! sharp!
            ran here/fetch three times = did well, stopped en route after fetch = crisp, ran a sight
            blind twice = third time stopped en route & he turned to sit squarely facing me = took
            the correct back cast, repeated with "other" back cast
                     note: if I could bottle today's effort....wow!
                     note: Kooly thrives on clear presentations after being taught the skill, all I have
                              to do is avoid distractions 
                     note: his focus is exceptional
                     note: he is ready for the mini-T
            (evening) ran several "poorman" marks (he's got this down), several lunging
            water marks, four simple doubles and finished with a few hilly terrain marks at
            "The Sand Ponds" - totally fun session for him, good OB & delivery, steady
                     note: started out slow, but the lunging water really is an exciter
July  7  trained at the "Square Pond" - set up the back pile for the mini-T, 30 yards (long &
            wide) ran back pile three times, next stopped en route at the apex four time to do
            right and left backs with a full back in between each cast,  put out the two side piles
            & had to move up a few yards to prevent going over on the backs, soon taking
            casts correctly, but stopping at the apex was not crisp or straight, didn't fight this
            today, just do it and get through it with as little pressure as possible,
            teach and coddle today, expect more tomorrow, he did well and finished strong
            ran two 70 yard BB blinds ('poorman" BB) and he lined them out  
                      note: picking all bumpers up in the very center!
July  8  ran small single-T about 60 X 40 yards apex at 25 yards, ran back nine times
            without side piles, ran back piles alternating stop/back right/left casts with "all the
            ways", put out side piles and moved line up to within 10 yards of the apex, again
            back piles, finally ended with four overs (two to each side) between some "all the
            way backs" he is not fired up about doing this, but he is doing the work
                      note: Kooly is almost 8 months old - the smaller single T "fits" , when we do
                               TT move back and add second T
                      note: keep lessons "short and concise"
                      note: very few errors today
                      note: don't compare to Taffey, meet his needs
            did three "poorman" marks (95, 110, 125 yards) & two shorter remote winger marks 
 July 9  Single-T first day as Stone Creek Grade School (note: bring "equip" to keep clean)
            moved center T line over to accommodate expansion of wider over piles
            initial set-up is at 80 yards with T side pile at 25 yards (use clean new bumpers at
            back pile and old grey ones at two side "overs" out at 30 yards (none of the piles are
            visible from the line, time 6:00 am, dew on the grass with temp in the fifties = perfect
            ran back pile once from 30 yards and again from 55 yards = moved to 80 yard line
            ran eight straight backs, then stopped for a right back at the apex, ran five more and
            stopped at the apex for a left back, ran two more backs then went to the apex to
            identify the left over, ran a back and then the left over, ran three backs because he
            was headed for the over, went out and identified the right over pile, ran two backs
            and then the right over, back & and over left, back & and over right, finished with two
            backs and four fun bumpers - impressive for first day (he was ready)
                       note: flared the back pile on the first four going to yesterday's pile area,
                                expected that and ignored because it would correct itself (and it did)
                       note: he is not tired and I used force several times (not heavy, but nicks) and
                                his momentum was very good & got better as we continued
                       note: ran around up-beat afterwards helping me pick-up the left over
                                bumpers and he is not sleeping even an hour after we get home
                                he's in shape and can handle this drill, cool morning helps
                       note: I have allowed for room to back up and make it a full 100 yards and
                                the sides can be moved to 40 yards   
            (evening) changed to 8  simple "poorman" bumper singles in short grass with the
                            start of using a place board to return to, stopped at Legend Lake for four
                            "out to sea" swimming marks
July  10 Today was a "doe-wanna" day. One of the many facets of FF is that some day a dog
             is going to look you in the eye and say "I doe-wanna". Having a tool to explain the
             error of that choice is mighty handy. Taffey had her "doe-wanna" day in the final
             session of swim-by. She had a "no-go" in the middle of the pond, refused all attrition
             and e-collar remedies and finally came to my side and said, "Ha-ha, what 'ya gonna
             do?" Wallet and keys on the bank and collar/ear pinch across the pond together
             seemed to explain the consequence quite clearly, and she completed swim-by
             when we got back to the line with vigor.
 
             Which leads us to today's single T with Kooly. Yesterday was outstanding. However,
             although today the first two back pile runs were fine, on the third he bugged his little
             blond head off to the side (but went). The fourth was a "I doe-wanna". First thing to
             try was stepping forward to get some motion, second moved closer to pile, third
             identified the pile.  Kooly was in full blown "I doe-wanna".  So the FF tool came
             out of the bag.  Kooly was too busy feeling sorry for himself to remember the proper
             response for awhile, but it didn't take that long. He stopped bugging, ran the back
             pile four times and stopped twice (on five and six) to take a right & left back rotation.
             To finish, he was stopped twice at the apex for a right & left over and finished
             with a solid no hesitation back. Today was not a finesse day, and even though
             "adjustments" were required, I went home still thinking it was a good morning.
                      note: tomorrow I will finesse the beginning by moving up & identifying  
July 11  ran the singe T at Stone Creek Grade School early, first backs at 30 & 60 yards,  the
             drill went fine with no hesitations, two right backs resulted in over mis-casts = moved
             up and cast again, otherwise today went very well, ran two "out-to-sea" water marks
             at Legend Lake to cool off 
                    note: kept a close watch on Kooly's body language exiting truck and walking
                             toward the training area, no apprehension, use no nicks today and plenty of
                             "atta boy" encouragement, upbeat at the finish (and it was getting warm)  
July  12  Useful clarification: "The T and TT are basic land drills, done immediately after force
              to pile, and used to teach rudimentary casting as well as work through things like
              flaring, bugging, no-goes and popping." Lisa Van Loo, RTF
              ran the singe T at Stone Creek Grade School, two no-goes, handled as per yesterday,
              ran a total of fourteen backs and two each of the overs, discussed it with Brian and
              work on here (walking off) nicks at the line on any no-goes, also did a search on RTF
              and got good suggestions (trainer tips) about bugging at the line = hold a bumper in
              your hand as a pressure releaser plus use some remote sends, it is a good idea to
              mix it up and thus reduce any anticipation
              ran three remote winger marks at "Macktown" with ducks and followed those with
              three "poorman" singles (again with ducks) = fun! & did a good job
 July 13  ran the singe T at Stone Creek Grade School, took Taffey to alternate running single T
              staked Kooly out to watch,Taffey ran two backs & two overs, ran Kooly from the apex
              with facing short remotes = right & left backs & then two left overs & two right overs,
              finished with a side back, then watered & staked out, Taffey ran six and then Kooly ran
              four backs & two overs, Taffey & then ran Kooly one more time four backs & two overs
                      note: the stake out seemed to keep Kooly fired up & yet he could rest a bit
                      note: running from the apex he was more clear about where to go (he needed that)
                      note: it was warm, but we got in almost twenty solid reps, only two force en route
                      note: mixed up the remote backs with a few side sends and that went well
                      note: only did one here (walk off) nick sends and that went perfect
                      note: kept bumper in my hand and that kept him focused on me (no bugging)
              stopped off at Lengend Lake for some cooling off singles, honoring and diversions, 
              swimming past each other going out and coming in (a lot faster and more fun)
 July 14  ran the singe T at Stone Creek Grade School, again ran Taffey first, Kooly ran four
              backs & two overs from the apex (front sit), repeated the routine so that Kooly ran
              three times (varied remote backs with a few side sends) = very solid session
              did remote "leap frog" sit'heres back to the truck
                      note: in retrospect I should have spent more time at the apex starting out
              ran six honoring water singles at the "Square Pond", ran six more "leap frog" walking
              two dog "poorman" marks
                      note: Kooly has the remote sit/send down pat & is steady for his turn with Taffey               
July  15  trained at Stoughton with Brent & Chris - change of pace day, ran with Taffey for
              awhile, picked up two of the ducks in the water from Taffey's set-up, first only 20
              yards - took back into the water through some high shore weeds and took an over,
              then the second blind was not visible & 50 yards away through grassy shore weeds
              into grass on the other side, took a back cast and swam to the other side where he
              got up on shore came back in and took an over to find the bird, ran two primer pistol
              hand throw water marks, first he though the duck had sunk and went completely
              under, the spotted it note: Taffey & Kooly played and romped through lunging water
              afterwards for about 30 minutes = fun day for Kooly
July  16  went to train at Brian's (change in plans as he was home), introduced back pile on
              new single T (double T eventually) area, ran from about 30 yards once and backed up
              to finish at 50 yards today, got a "no go" on number 5 = walk off here/nick/here and
              needed to pinch to pile on next, he then ran three in a row with excellent "mo",
              fun "bumpered" the end 
July  17  trained at Brian's = ran "new" single T from the apex, overs are fine, but need to get
              more consistency on right vs. left backs, did two remote winger marks with ducks the
              HRC way (duck call & popper gun at the line) he was good with that, staked out to
              watch Taffey train, did 6 walking "poorman" marks with Taffey and Kooly (he really
              does well on this), went for a short dunk in Brian's swim-by pond
 July  18  evening OB session - whistle/sit chaining, facing remote sits & return to heel (right &
               left), backward heeling (right & left), with bumper in mouth (drop/fetch/hold repetition),
               stick pressure conditioning (less than ten minutes & three fun bumpers) 
 July  19  ran single T at Stone Creek GS, front sit/delivery at the apex, alternating 3-right/3-left
               overs with 4-right/4-left backs = excellent turns & casts plus good "mo".....sharp!
               ran 5 single marks increasing from 50-150 yards using a 3" bumper (first time) doing
               walking "poorman" alternating with Taffey - Kooly was steady & ran very fast and
               straight = good session (home by 8:30 am)
 July  20  trained with Chris at Stoughton, Kooly ran five gunner with primer pistol singles, and
               one short cold blind, finished with 6 land & 4 water walking "poorman" singles
               alternating with Taffey = ran hard, marked well, steady and showed a tighter hunt
               on the marks he didn't "pin"
                            note: three days ago Kooly was switched to Eagle Power Pak from the
                                     puppy food and he is eating it up quickly (Eagle Pak "Puppy" food
                                     must not taste very good?)
                evening OB session - whistle/sit chaining, facing remote sits & return to heel (right &
                left), backward heeling (right & left), with bumper in mouth (drop/fetch/hold repetition),
                stick pressure conditioning (less than ten minutes & three fun bumpers) 
 July  21   huge storm coming, single T at Stone Creek GS ran from the apex one more time,
                6 right/left backs and 6 right & left overs - nice session, ran 5 walking "poormans"
                singles alternating with Taffey (approx. 75, 100, 125, 150 and 200 yards) - super!
                             note: this is a mowed soccer field type terrain
                went to the "Square Pond" for a couple of cooling water singles (beat the rain)    
                evening OB session -
 July  22   hot and humid, heat index 86° at 9:00 am, ran single T at Stone Creek GS & move back
                from the apex, 8 backs with four sits at the apex & 8 overs (left & right), delivery at heel
                              note: he is much more "into it" now & did very well right to the end
                staked out with bark collar to watch Taffey and then loaded up for a short trip to Brian's
                for two remote winger single marks with ducks, duck call and primer pistol - first time
                off lead, holding blind with steady expectations, routine = stick/sit, launch sequence and
                Kooly broke (as pretty much expected - however, he has been almost perfect on his
                "poorman" marks), used a calm "no/here/nick/here" & heeled off the line to the truck
                (reloaded winger), he then did two singles in a row while sitting high and solid like an
                old dog, delivered ducks to hand with excellent composure = ggooooood pup!
                evening repeat same short session OB drill = whistle/sit chaining, facing remote sits &
                return to heel (right & left), backward heeling (right & left), with bumper in mouth
                (drop/fetch/hold repetition), stick pressure conditioning
 July  23  trained at Stoughton FT grounds, early and beautiful, cool morning (60°)- ran four
               walking "poorman" singles using a 3" bumper, alternating with Taffey the last one was
               140 yards = nice work, helped train Chris's dog, Kooly then ran five gunner thrown
               walking singles with ducks, duck call & primer shots = starting at 50 yards & finishing
               with 130 yards through challenging terrain - off lead, steady, flies full tilt, marked super
               and delivered to heel very well (sat & looked up to say "Here, ya go!") - very nice work,
               after Chris's dog & Taffey ran a multiple (5) blind set-up, Kooly ran two remote winger
               doubles (45° separation) = off lead, steady, used horn on second winger to swing him
               to go bird = handled this well, again nice mouth on ducks with quick pick-up and solid
               deliveries & drops, played with Taffey afterwards running through marshy areas and
               swimming, they had the whole place to romp      note: Kooly can really mark! 
July  24   short OB drill in the evening = day off!
July  25  set up double T at Stone Creek GS, ran from second apex & identified each over pile
               ran backs three times and overs twice, moved to first apex & repeated, moved to true
               line and ran six backs & each over twice - only missed one (far) right over, stopped &
               took the correct to the pile
                            note: Kooly is getting stronger & ran the drill well (especially for the first time)
               packed up and moved to the "Sand Ponds" to run alternating "poorman" marks with
               Taffey, ran 10 singles with 3" bumper all through lunging water with excellent water
               weeds & terrain
               evening repeat same short session OB drill = whistle/sit chaining, facing remote sits
               and return to heel (right & left), backward heeling (right & left), with 3" bumper in
               mouth (drop/fetch/hold repetition), left & right heeling rotations with stick pressure
                           note: the specific evening OB work is making the daily drills easier because
                                    there are no distractions from basic OB issues       
 July  26  intro wagon wheel lining drill at Stone Creek - eight bumpers at 20 ft, did 90° first &
               pushed/heel to the left vs. pulled/here to the right (both sides), then went around
               again to all left & right - he liked this and did well, set up W with stickmen and ran
               two "up the slot" singles with the remote wingers, not marked well so move up next
               time, ran 5 walking singles using stickmen = nice job, introduced basic triple 120°
               spread pushed from left to right, moved nicely, steady & now officially can count to
               three    note: first time applying push pull went very well (kept his butt down)
                           note: no hesitation on third memory bird (knew it was out there), jumped on
                                    it and he couldn't see it from the line  
               evening - repeat same short session OB drill
 July  27  ran double T at Stone Creek GS, learned to not skip a day after first day = had to
               re-identify the second T and this resulted in a longer session, ran all, but could have
               been better, ran two long remote sit "poorman" marks with Taffey - 150+ yards, 2nd
               mistake today = never run a long mark anywhere near the back pile of your T - Duh!
               evening - took Marsh Rat to "Square Pond" - put in wood duck house for owner & to
               intro Kooly to duck boat later, reviewed 3-handed casting
 July 28   ran double T at Stone Creek GS, beginning to think the high sky and construction
               site behind me doesn't go well with a white coat (switch to something darker
               tomorrow), today did some forcing on "backs" and "here" (he needs to put more
               effort into it...and he did), ran two 150 yard "poorman" marks alternating with Taffey,
               loaded up and went to Brian's - two singles in a W (5) stickman field from remote
               wingers "up the slot", duck call, primer pistol, two holding blinds with ducks, then did
               four walking "poorman" from behind the stickmen again with ducks & a primer pistol 
                           note: lots of duck calling and popper plus primer gun shooting before each
                                    dog was brought out 
 July 29   ran double T at Stone Creek GS, visibility not the issue, couple of "no-go's" at the line
               one dealt with by using ear pinch and the other with a "walk away/here nick " and
               more force en route, got moving solidly to the back pile, but then refused to cast at
               the apex, moving up did it by first re-identified once, next time applied strong indirect
               pressure, the light went on, "Oh, you can do that from way over there? OK!", then he
               started taking the casts, finished with good "mo"  
               loaded up and went Brian's = two holding blinds, bucket and Retrieve-R-Trainer, first
               time for Kooly, he watched Taffey (parked so truck was in line with the marks), Kooly
               worked the holding blinds off lead and was steady on the line, use 6 total (short and
               long) bumpers getting on and off the truck for three sessions of two singles = nice job!
                              note: the double T is doing a lot for Kooly as he needs this format to work
                                       out no-go's, deal with pops and learn about attitude adjustments
                              note: Kooly is soft, but that can't be allowed to get in the way of doing
                                       things = just make sure he knows and then expect him to do it
                              note: he is showing signs of selective listening = unacceptable! 
 July 30  ran double T at Stone Creek GS, the repetition of the drill and the application of
              attrition is beginning to show some progress = Kooly ran eight back piles and cast to
              each of the four over piles without a mistake, he knows the answers to bugging,
              no-go's and casting errors & now he is settling into doing the drill without the issues,
                              note: attitude and effort much improved (because this is what is expected)
             afterwards went to the "Square Pond" to put up the duck house, not an easy job in a
             layout boat              

July 31  ran double T at Stone Creek GS, did 24 bumpers and cast to the back pile and three overs
             with a bumper in his mouth
                       note: time to move on! start setting up a three legged pattern blind, run the wagon wheel
                                sequence & get in plenty of marks every day, teach the W lining drill, start using
                                walking baseball, start FTW, water T and swim-by second week in August
             ran several "poorman" marks alternating with Taffey & the some short blinds five ducks in a
             35 yard fan, sent and which ever one he came close to we picked up, did well and got all five
             evening went to the "Square Pond" to play in and around the layout boat (on land), then ran
             several short splash water marks just for fun
 Aug  1  spent the day in the truck under a big shade tree - listening to the distant sound of the Amateur
             All-Age field trial at Hook Lake, got in a few water retrieves after the third series and when it
             was over, he behaves very well
 Aug  2  day off!
 Aug  3  mostly a day off with some basic OB review off leash with Taffey on one side and Kooly on
             the other = taking turns on remote sits and recall heeling to both sides, nice & solid!
             Interceptor heart worm pill (all dogs)
 Aug  4  nice cool morning, set-up an eight bumper Wagon Wheel drill, Kooly is really "handy" with
             his heeling positions and bumper handling manners, it showed = did the four 90° bumpers
             left & right side push/heel and pull/here perfect and then did the whole eight bumper
             set-up from each side = no bugging and locking on each bumper correctly, with "dead
             bird/back" he was looking for more at the end, Kooly really likes this drill!  
                        note: the short daily OB drills are beginning to show excellent results 
             evening - OB with ducks, introduced the "camo jump" for the "no-no" drill by putting "pile"
             of five ducks on the other side and sending him on "dead bird/back", did a very nice job of
             holding on to each duck and delivering to heel (jumped over going and returning)
             Frontline Plus (all dogs)
                                                                  PVC frame for jump

Aug   5  trained with FT white coats, Kooly ran a short blind  - took a decent line and one whistled
             with correct cast, ran three singles in hay field = first shortest small hunt for bumper, second
             was out into the middle of the uncut hay & had to get some help to come up with the duck
             (fairly normal), last was longest and had to enter and drive through a larger corner of the
             hay field, exit into cut/raked area to the duck = nice job and handled ducks very well
Aug   6  set-up first leg of pattern blind, decided after the fact the area is too small and too close to
             other earlier pile drills, as long as he needed a few force reminders on the earlier drill we
             moved over to the "Square Pond" and did FTW (first force to water session) this went well
             and we finished with him hitting the water (with nothing in front of him) ala Evan Graham's
             program
Aug.  7  established first leg of a pattern blind where there will be at least 250+ to work with on the
             longest leg, used five ducks to establish, moved out to about 75 yards today = looked good
             evening - walking singles with Taffey at the "Sand Ponds"
Aug   8  trained with Badger State HRC - Kooly ran the HRC finished level triple as singles & picked
             them all up - nice job, steady with gunner off to the side and looked at each mark from a
             nice "tall" sit, ran a very short blind, should have use a duck and the break in terrain
             required that I move up
                    note: injury report - handler severely pulls hamstring, nearly passed out, one of the
                             HRC members is a paramedic - lucky me = but not ready for prime time
Aug   9  day off = handler R&R (not moving very well)
Aug  10  still in pain, but my wife put my right sock on and tied the shoe, limped through Kooly's
              first session of walking baseball with two orange bumpers, caught on quickly and was
              having fun, a few mis-casts, but just said a quiet "no" then a gave a recast, after a brief
              rest (ran Taffey) the pattern blind was run from 100 yards and then 150 yards = straight
              without any hesitation = looking sharp today (maybe because I moved very slowly)
                     note: used ducks
 Aug  11 ran the new pattern blind from 125 & 150 yards again today and he did it right, afterwards
              ran an excellent session of walking baseball concentrating on setting him up for long
              "backs" and "overs" = went well (especially well, because of a new idea gleaned from the
              Internet = probably should have know this (but didn't) = cast first then give a verbal when
              teaching 'cause it gives the pup more time to sort it out
                      note: kind of like "here is the cast (visual)........now this is want it means (verbal)"
  Aug  12 trained at Stoughton FT grounds off the north hill - three remote winger singles HRC
               style (shotgun poppers off a bucket with duck call) = marked first two super, but the last
               was confusing with two hay bales nearby, finally decided to handle him after a long
               hunt, this went very well, he took all casts (five total "overs and backs")
                      note: looking for direction with each square sit & last cast after scenting = wow!
                               handled ducks really nice (heel/sit/delivery very good for an eight month old)  
               moved to big mound and ran four water & three land Retrieve-R-Trainer single marks
                      note: marked them all well (solid training session) 
  Aug  13 ran the pattern blind from 175 yards, but moving back from there had to move back to
               175 yards (will keep it  there for awhile), played walking baseball and he did this well,
                picked up and move to Brian's to run three remote winger singles with primer shot
                and duck call from the line (jumped on first two and then over ran the third by at least
                75 yards  note: need to do more bird boy marks and/or mix in some remote "poorman" 
  Aug  14  ran six "poorman" singles at Stone Creek, then ran the pattern blind at 175 yards and
                followed with two more marks (duck call with white coat = solid and fast), moved to
                the "Square Pond" and ran one remote winger water single with an angle entry
                       note: used canvas dummies on the land (75 to 150 yards), fun & easy day! 
  Aug  15  trained at the "Square Pond" - six water & four land singles alternating with Taffey
                for steadiness & delivery standards
  Aug  16  day off, but a good day!
                        note: finally sold bass boat & immediately bought a duck hunting boat
  Aug  17  review OB in two short sessions
  Aug  18  wagon wheel lining drill & OB, easy day  
  Aug  19  review OB drill & two bumper push/pull lining drill
  Aug  20  trained at Stoughton - three remote winger land singles with ducks (Taffey's triple)
                Retrieve-R-Trainer singles on the middle pond (did fine on the land water, but had
                trouble exiting and driving on for a land/water/land mark, had an issue with not
                wanting to retrieve a bumper near a decoy & had to pinch him with force to get
                the bumper = repeated until he went without hesitating (carry-over from the
                "spooking" episode a month or two ago)  
                         note: no more Retrieve-R-Trainer marks over water plus he needs BB marks
                         note: plan to get him ready to hunt this fall (steady to flush & able to handle
                                  on simple blinds) 
  Aug  21  decided to run Kooly in an HRC started tests to see where he is at, manners "iffy" (he
                was a little loose), really spooked by the goose decoys, shot the gun at the line & he
                needed to be re-heeled, first mark ran way past and then visited the bird boy = called
                in and sent again ran straight out and picked it up, second land single went fine, water
                again needed to be re-heeled on both ducks & didn't sit well to delivery, 2nd duck was
                floating really high in the water and looked like a decoy = with the issue from the day
                before he wanted nothing to do with it & would not retrieve
                          note: got the needed answers 1) he is beginning to feel his male hormones and
                                   testing the boundaries, 2) his duck handling skills need more work, 3) the
                                   day the cattails fell on his back has carried over to decoys and we need to
                                   "get over" the spooked attitude about "things" in the water and 4) steadiness
                                   needs some tightening up (for his age it is really not bad)
                          note: do swim-by & then backing off on training, plan on a lot of hunting work this
                                   fall 
  Aug 22  day off
  Aug 23  started swim-by at nearby pond, went to pile only after forced into water with ear pinch
               and spooked by a stick near exit, not pretty the rest of the session, sensitive issue similar
               to single T, especially difficult to get "out of the hole", would go on remote sit, but very
               reluctant & the "cattail" incident issue is not going away
                          note: need to back off and modify his training sequence, talked to pro and the
                                   Lean Mac side of his pedigree was considered the sensitive trait source,
                                   go slower with an easy hand and wait for maturity 
               afternoon - reviewed stick fetch to pile to check out the sensitivity vs. "spooked" source,
               handled stick fetch without shutting down
                          note: work on more exposure to new "stuff" to reduce chances of getting
                                   "spooked" or whatever it is
  Aug 24  day off, decoys in the living room near his crate & one inside for a short time, by evening
               he was playing with them
  Aug 25  "dead/bird - back" pile in front yard in and around decoys = no problems, afternoon
               threw bumpers in and all over the swim-by pond = great attitude and no signs of
               the "spook" phase (perplexing puppy)
                         note: lesson learned if and when the "spook" phase shows up quietly switch to
                                  another area or do something different, waste of time and
                                  counter-productive to try and push/force him through it   
  Aug  26 ran back pile to swim-by alternating a "dead/bird back" pile with a mark on the same
               line, first mark flew into water, first pile very slowly entered, this continued with each
               "back" to the water gaining incrementally in momentum, on the last pile send he was
               airborne = good session!
                         note: used a very quiet "dead/bird back" with plenty of encouragement saying
                                  "good" with his lock, avoided messing at all with sit/heel/delivery using 
                                  mostly front finish, not much apprehension on the cattail side, fun and
                                  reassurance seemed to increase his ability to overcome the chance of
                                  getting "spooked", reading signs of this anywhere & anytime will switch
                                  to the "anti-spook" plan (fun & easy "stuff"), more exposure, finesse
                                  avoidance and maturity is the long term rationale 
  Aug  27 morning - road 2 easy miles with Taffey, stopped for drink at creek twice (out & back)
                         note: soft, fine limestone surface on an old railway converted to a bicycle path,
                                  they run & I ride a mountain bike (Wow! I'm really out of shape.)
              afternoon - repeated pre swim-by session of yesterday on the back pile & intro'd
              both over pile areas with remote "here/fetch" and "OK exit" followed with a land
              fun bumper = good session & solid off remote sits   
              evening reviewed OB drills & did two dummy push/pull, two-sided lining drill
              amongst decoys 
  Aug 28 spent the day riding along to Taffey's last hunt test, got home in the afternoon & rain
  Aug 29 trained with Dave at the swim-by pond, ran some walking baseball and then staked him
              out to watch the other pup work on swim-by, Kooly did some back piles and then did
              the "OK exit" on both over positions - his attitude is very positive now, momentum is
              good and most of his entries are airborne 
                          note: a bit sloppy with the delivery, but I don't want to make that an issue,
                                   concentrating on keeping this very mush fun with no fights
  Aug 30  swim-by pond and working on "sitting" (treading water) every other send, did well for
               first time, pile work was impressive = five bumpers and he picked them up right to left
               one at a time, until the last two then decided to take the one on the left  
               This made for a lot of fun, since Dave's dog shopped every bumper before Kooly's run.
               Kooly started systematically picking off the bumpers and I kidded Dave about teaching
               a young pup to work a pile properly.  I knew it was something he did when the bumpers
               were set up in a deep pattern (but not sideways).  Kooly just kept picking the next one
               and I continued to act as if this were normal. Two left and Dave was really into this. 
               Kooly climbed out of water went right to the correct bumper and then stepped over and
               took the "wrong one".  What a tease!  In reality with two left side by side either one is
               correct as long as he doesn't shop.  Dave was actually relieved that he didn't do it.  It's
               fun to train with someone that has a sense of humor and pups that are trying, having fun
               and learning.  Both are doing very well and showing more and more confidence.
  Aug 31  push/pull two bumper lining drill with handling on both sides (heeling)
  Sept  1  road two miles in the morning at Macktown, afternoon walking baseball followed by
               swim-by treading water sessions & "following" overs, finished with "big splash" Dokken
               mark, Kooly was staked out to watch Dave's pup work 
   Sept 2  "roaded" at Macktown in the morning, did walking baseball (not well) & worked on swim-by
               late afternoon, back piles with marks in between working on "mo", got spooked by a Dokken
               near the cattails (same problem), but finessed back to OK attitude and then went right into
               cattails to dig out another mark, finished some right/left overs with "opposite" walk & re-entry
                          note: Interceptor heart worm pills for all        

 Sept 3  too humid to road today, ran swim-by today, just going to do back pile alternating with marks
             to work on momentum
                        note: with marks he flew into the water - keyed by "mark/Kooly", on the "dead bird/back"
                                 pile runs he slinked into the water (very clear difference), this was low voice and
                                 no pressure, told Dave I was going to try something based on the read that he may
                                 apparently perceive a great deal of pressure from the words used on the pile,  so
                                 on the third send to the visible pile he was told only "good/Kooly", he flew for
                                 the pile = "back" is perceived by him as a bad word, his sensitive nature from
                                 being pinched to the piles in previous sessions where he refused to go has carried
                                 over, he learned he has to go, but the words produce more pressure than he can
                                 deal with, lesson learned and filed away, may have to use the commands my GWP
                                 friend uses "line/get out" instead of "dead bird/back" on blinds
                                 (then again.....maybe not  lol)   
                        note: the rest of the swim-by lesson went terrific, happy dog flying into the water,
                                 stopping and treading water nicely, looking at me and then taking back & over
                                 casts while swimming hard & delivering with a bounce, interestingly = back is
                                 only a problem "out of the hole" (trainer error!) 
  Sept 4  ran some water marks into the cattails on the corner of the swim-by pond, then ran the back
              pile without using "back", worked on treading water and then going "back" about every
              third go, finished with a right & left overs followed with one more back pile
                        note: tentative at the line twice, but entered water fine with walk off/heel technique,
                                 dug way into cattails for last mark, he looks with very good eye contact and takes
                                 excellent casts, "sat" well in the water and finished with a very good attitude
                        note: FrontlinePlus for all three 
  Sept  5  worked again with "Scooter" and Dave, both "Scooter" and Kooly" are at the same stage in
               swim-by,  neither have been rushed through it and just about finished, Kooly worked on
               treading water and casting back, finished with one right & one left over with finishing on
               the opposite side
                        note: Kooly got off to a slinky start and had one "no go" = decided to apply some
                                 pressure and not finesse this today, it was the right call because he accepted
                                 the correction and continued with improved "mo" instead of shutting
                                 down = big hurdle! sent on "dead/bird back", good looks on "water sits"
                                 finished strong & happy 
Sept  6  ran a few water & land marks waiting for Dave, staked Kooly out to watch "Scooter" do his
              swim-by session, then Kooly worked the back pile fine and when whistled to tread water
              was able to concentrate, waiting for casts (any head turn got another whistle sit), then his
              first over cast to the right pile and a re-entry to exit left was done = went super, at first he
              looked at me and got another over cast, the light went on a he made a determined,
              swim to exit and sit on the other side, after a back pile he repeated the "swim by" pass
              again  = great attitude, did it well, understands and I was impressed  
 Sept  7  "roaded" about three miles with Taffey & Lick early in the morning = he is fast, fit and
               loves to run, late afternoon - worked on marks thrown into cattails = much improved, ran
               swim-by, three backs, then ran left over, picked up bumper & re-entered for swim-by
               exited with bumper then re-entered to do a second swim-by (swam very straight back
               and forth to the pile areas)
                         note: his body language was "You want me to do what?"  OK, I get it.  Again?
                                  Really? OK, if you insist!"  = very smart pup, looking, thinking and willing 
                                  his attitude after work is exciting, very energized!
                                  he is sensitive, but I'm beginning to get a better handle on when to push or
                                  whether to finesse, his confidence is blooming & his ability to focus is super
  Sept  8  ran three water mark in and through the cattails before doing swim-by drill, ran three
               piles with on cast, very tentative on first go, but improved quickly, after third back, did
               swim-by and back for effect, he's got it! 
                         note: repeat swim-by in two other ponds (Gallagher and Stoughton), start steady
                                  diet of land & water marking set-ups, stretch distance & start some
                                  de-cheating drills end of next week
                         note: looks like the optimistic goal of being de-cheated before winter is reality
                         note: working two dogs with one staked out & watching seems to have had some
                                  positive bonuses with distraction proofing and additional OB opportunities
   Sept  9  day off, spending more time in outside kennel (six hours today) 
   Sept  10 early morning - three walking two dog singles with Taffey, road three miles with Lick
                and Taffey at Macktown, pick up 12 quail at John's 
   Sept  11 planted two quail for Kooly to work at Macktown, reminded of why I shouldn't use pen
                raised quail to train with = poor flyers, couldn't jump high enough in cover to fly, pretty
                much a waste of time = too hot, no breeze, he was really jazzed by their smell and the
                fact they were first time quail (nice solid, but gentle mouth)
                afternoon finished swim-by at "five minute" pond, not flashy, but handled well  
                         note: what a great stretch of September water training weather!
  Sept  12 day off, too hot - practiced getting in and out of the Marsh Rat (boat) in front yard 
  Sept  13 road three miles at Macktown & practiced getting in and out of boat again, worked
                on pressure conditioning (within OB framework) & walked him near/ around a lot
                new and "strange" things 
  Sept  14-19 six days off, yard OB, playing in & out of boat, spending a larger part of the day
                    in the outside kennel (less "complaining" third day)
  Sept  20 roaded easy three miles
  Sept  21 day off, yard OB, day in the outside kennel
  Sept  22 roaded five miles
  Sept  23 day off, yard OB, day in the kennel
  Sept  24 trip to Rockcut State Park to check out the duck boat & ramp design, retrieved
                several marks (Dokken) off the front deck & back in via the ladder/ramp, Taffey went
                first and Kooly was eager! (used tie-ups for both dogs to avoid "congestion", Kooly was
                airborne into lunging water first and then moved to deep water
                        note: Kooly was very good today & took all the new "stuff" - boat, motor, water,
                                 waves and retrieving in stride
  Sept  25  morning - threw some fun bumpers in the yard - honoring with Taffey
                 afternoon - took a long boat ride on the Rock River, set out three mallard & one goose
                 decoy and threw Dokken singles into and past decoys, Kooly was fairly steady & did
                 well with the current and ramp (made some modifications from yesterday's first trial)
                        note: two geese swam up to within 15 yards and watched what we were doing  
  Sept  26  Kooly and Taffey went to Horicon Marsh (1 hour 45 minutes) for a scouting trip, small
                 narrow boat ramp (one at a time) should be interesting with a 12:00 noon opener
                        note: not sure we'll go for the opener 
  Sept  27-28 days off, yard OB
  Sept  29 road five miles at Macktown (almost always on grass, worked on "sit, whistle, shot, flush"
                chain for steady to wing and shot (picked this idea up on first time around),
  Sept  30 road five miles and work on "sit, whistle, shot, flush" chain, start "whoa" training, started
                de-cheating drill at the "Square Pond", as soon as I started to handle him he went into
                the "shut down" mode and refused to go, pinched to the water and with a bit of a
                struggle he decided to go, but soon spooked from a small exposed mud flat, threw
                bumpers in and around that and finished with some OK retrieves, this issue of not
                trying when some pressure is applied is not going away
  Oct     1  run the uplands at Blonhaven and he did not have a clue, liked the smell of fresh
                pheasants and went into the cover better the second time out with Taffey, showed
                a noticeable lack of courage when the cover got even a bit difficult, got spooked a
                couple of times with hunters in the distance and wind blown cover
                         note: the last two days have not been very encouraging, the continuing lack
                                  drive and courage under even light pressure is beginning to be a concern,
                                  is it a maturity issue or a sign of a lasting problem? 
                         note: today decided to change the breeding of Taffey to FC AFC Calumet's Super
                                  Sonic ("Soupy") & started to contact buyers on the puppy list   
  Oct     2  day off, decided to pass on the noon WI duck opener, did some stick fetch today and
                worked specifically on some pressure conditioning, elevated until he bolted and then
                worked back down through the pressure to ease him out of it, avoidance is not going
                to be accepted and finesse is not going to be the first option all the time
  Oct     3 Taffey went to Horicon, Kooly stayed home
  Oct     4 hunt/train at Blonhaven, eight bird special set hens out in one area for Kooly to
              start with, walked cover (heavy sorghum) and Kooly was moving fairly well,
              the sudden scent had him very excited and jumping about, he went on point
              and I flushed a hen, he did not see it fly and it was only wing shot, Kooly kept
              on it and eventually trapped it and brought it back, nice job and this really kicked up
              his energy level to find one more, after running the other two dogs, all three went
              out and Kooly got his second wind, he was much better today
              Interceptor heart worm pill  &  Frontline Plus
   Oct   5 Koolly ran two walkout blinds (using pheasants) - lined both with excellent momentum 
              and handled the birds well, spent day outside in the kennel
   Oct   6 day off, too many other things that have to be done
   Oct   7 hunt/train at Blonhaven, another eight bird special, Kooly got first crack at the release,
              another warm, very dry morning and he did not find anything, the two experience dogs
              had trouble with the scenting conditions, soon realized all the birds were running and
              changed tactics, Kooly ran well but only got some conditioning
   Oct  8  day off, worked on holding and delivering of birds in the yard
   Oct  9  "Euro" shoot at Blonhaven - 600 bird release with only my three dogs and two others,
              Kooly watched Taffey, Lick and the birds for the first six rounds staked out, finally let
              him loose and he sat steady with the other two, first bird was an easy thirty yard retrieve
              right in front of him, before the end of the day, Kooly retrieved over a dozen flyers &
              did a nice job picking up cripples and dead pheasants in the "after" clean-up, Kooly was
              very steady and under control (and not because of the collar or any pressure, he was just
              cool!)        
                         note: Kooly learned a ton today and handled it well 
                         note: thrill of the day - three dogs sitting steady, Kooly was sent first, followed very
                                  soon by Lick and finally Taffey = three dogs, one by one, returned with their
                                  own birds and sat for delivery = that was as neat as it gets, the last few
                                  rounds it was a personal pleasure to look down and see three dogs
                                  scanning the sky and waiting to see if it was their turn
                         note: temperature was in the seventies, sunny, very dry and a slight breeze, went
                                  through five gallons of water, staked Taffey and Lick for a couple rounds,
                                  Lick has a problem with heat, but she hung in there and got her second
                                  wind - none were in any distress, the "roading" and three days of hunting
                                  this last couple of weeks has them ready, Taffey's nose is raw and tender
                         note: between the three of them, they picked up about 140+ birds including at
                                  least thirty cripples afterwards      
    Oct 10-11  day off for three very tired dogs, plus one more
    Oct 12  "roaded" five miles in the evening & Kooly really ran well, his speed is impressive 
               and he is beginning to show some graceful, powerful athleticism 
    Oct 13 day off, worked on heeling and general OB, spent the entire daylight in the outside
               kennel
    Oct 14  repeat of yesterday
    Oct 15  Kooly stayed home today in the kennel as Taffey & Lick worked a guide hunt at
                Blonhaven, in the afternoon Kooly worked on handling pheasants correctly (a good
                periodic review of the rules helps a young dog)
                          note: I sometimes forget that OB is not something you teach a young dog and
                                   then assume it will be there from then on, expectations should be
                                   reviewed and ingrained with regularity 
                          note: Kooly thoroughly enjoyed the attention, the time in the kennel really
                                   focuses a young dog on short lessons 
    Oct 16-17 worked on handling pheasants and OB in the yard
    Oct 18 went to Blonhaven for a hunt with Brent, Kooly went out by himself after Brent went
               home, great training session with Kooly finding six scratch birds, shot well (double on
               two roosters) - so he was able to retrieve all six, the "light" is burning strong, he started
               looking up for the flight and was searching really well, even got up a covey of quail
                          note: handled birds much better today (not quite as wild eyed - ha!)   
                          note: covers ground fast and effortlessly (perfect build for the upland), he
                                   air scents the birds from quite a ways off (really looks like he has a
                                   very good nose)
    Oct 19-21 days off with only walks and yard OB
    Oct 22 walking baseball at "The Square Pond" 
    Oct 23 yard OB
    Oct 24 trip to Steve's in truck (deer stand work) no training
    Oct 25-26 two more days off in kennel & yard OB
    Oct 27 short forty-five minute scratch hunt at Blonhaven Hunt Club (after Taffey's guided
              hunt job) got up about 15 pheasants in an area that is adjacent to a large CPR field,
              Kooly was hunting hard, shot four birds for him which he retrieved
                     note: no pointing as all these birds were running, lots of action and scent
                              everywhere!
    Oct 28 day off with yard OB
    Oct 29 fun bumpers in the yard
    Oct 30 day off with yard OB
    Oct 31 ran three walkout blinds & several concept doubles with orange bumpers
                     note: very upbeat and attentive
    Nov  1 rained all day & cold
    Nov  2 worked on yard OB, Kooly's attitude is getting really super and listening with the two
               older dogs around (as distractions) seems to have enhanced his level of concentration
    Nov  3 start back with formal field trial training (one year old on Nov 14th) introduced the KRD
              at the Rockton Road TA ("in front of the gunner" - establish pile #1 out to 179 yards),
              this was done by placing a pile of 16 bumpers at the destination while Taffey & Kooly
              sat 25 yards away, Taffey was sent to the pile while Kooly watched, then Kooly was sent
              for "his turn", backing up in seven more increments each was sent with Taffey first as
              Kooly would wait his turn,  Taffey crushed her "easy" job and Kooly did fine all the way
              out to the 179 yard total distance - first day!
                      note: tomorrow there will be three increments and six pheasants
                      note: almost two months away form formal field trial training doing hunting and
                               conditioning skills plus upland work (break in transition after completing
                               swim-by and doing some de-cheating)
                      note: Interceptor and Frontline Plus   
    Nov  4 continued work on first KRD pile (using 6 pheasants) placed stickman gunner station
               at the position of the mark area (buried piece of PVC with next size up cap into which
               the stickman re-bar can be inserted after freeze-up, establish same PVC inserts for
               the four phase & definitive casting drill areas)
                ***note: Today's session was extremely gratifying. The plan two months ago was to step
                               back and devise a specific plan especially for Kooly to work around his softness
                               on pile work and end up with some "fire" on pattern blinds.  He would run them,
                               but it was work. He needed some to time mature and a break from the pressure.
                              
                               His heart just wasn't in it. So we stopped "the program" right after swim-by and
                               one session of de-cheating.  He was first "roaded" to heighten the pure joy of
                               unfettered running and improve his conditioning.  We did all the preparations for
                               hunting - upland and waterfowl.  Kooly got into the "Euro" tower shoots with birds
                               everywhere and learned what pheasants were like in the uplands.  He got less time
                               in the house by giving him quite a bit of time in the outside kennel. Kooly ceased
                               being a picky eater and thrived on his new routine!  

                               Yesterday's established pile with Taffey as a visible mentor went well with
                               bumpers. He looked OK. Worked all the way back to 179 yards, but he didn't run
                               at full speed.  Today the pile was reduced in numbers and frozen pheasants
                               were in place instead of bumpers.
                              
                               Taffey's fire always excites me and she just tears up the first run at sixty yards.
                               Kooly is lanky and deceivingly fast, but he runs out on the first one like yesterday -
                               just OK out (no real fire), but he came back very fast.  The pheasant excited him!
                              
                               At 120 yards, after Taffey's explosion.  Kooly is lined up and the usual
                               "dead bird/back" was said.  The light had gone on and Kooly was now a flash!
                               Wow! On the final 179 yard pheasant Kooly ran his retrieve faster than Taffey (hard
                               to believe) and got a lot of "atta boys".  I went home with a huge smile on my face. 
                               Maybe this will be one of those training sessions worthy of being called a milestone.
                             
                               It is such a pleasure to have a plan that comes together..........especially when
                               you know the needs of a pup were met and force was not the answer.  The focus
                               was to give him some time and make it fun!  
    Nov  5 morning - set up another pattern blind at Blonhaven hunt club before the "Euro" tower
               shoot (300 bird "presentation"), shorter 125 yard blind and Kooly did very well (three birds)
               for the "Euro" all three dogs were taken out, a 20 mph wind from the southwest pushed
               birds in a direction where three handlers could get most, the wind gave gunners difficult
               shooting conditions, but shot very well (66% even on a "no wind" day would be excellent),
               Kooly was staked for the first two rounds and he didn't like it, because of the high number
               of birds in our area, three dogs were almost too much to work with, so I kept one staked out
               and alternated them. Kooly made some exceptional marks even though he was distracted
               by the action and sheer numbers (he managed to stayed focused on the one he was after),
               held his own picking up birds afterwards in the clean-up
                        note: OB not quite as good as last shoot, need to work him alone from now on and
                                 alternate rounds to let him settle
                        note: estimate of birds picked up = 70+ and went through three gallons of water,
                                 later there were three dogs "conked out" for the night in the living room
    Nov  6 ran 1st KRD blind (in front of the gunner) after a 75 yard "poorman" mark at Rockton DTA,
               using pheasants and after waiting/honoring Taffey (she was running her's first), Kooly "fired"
               out and did really well with his turn, steadiness was excellent & a solid bonus
                         note: quickly loosing daylight, this set-up took only 25 minutes to run (door-to-door)
                                  Kooly is looking impressive!
    Nov  7 day off
    Nov  8 did training/hunt for all three dogs at Blonhaven (run separately), seven bird release and
               Kooly went first - for a young pup, he works the cover very well and got up four birds,
               shot all and Kooly is now looking & marking out of the tall cover = four nice retrieves,
               After the others (Lick and Taffey) ran their turns, we moved to another area to do a "group"
               hunt for scratch birds.  There is a huge CRP area across the road that the pheasants use
               as a refuge (but they filter back in for the food plots).  The three of them (dogs) got up
               15 birds in less than forty-five minutes.  Kooly now has a meaning to his life and is full
               blown into it!  His "fire" for birds is now lit.........back to field trial training.
    Nov  9 ran KRD without Taffey and used remote winger & stickman gunner for the mark, then
               started to establish second longer "behind the gunner" pile (using pheasants)  
   Nov 10 morning - roaded all three dogs 8 miles, Kooly was strong to the finish
    Nov 11 late afternoon (dusk) - ran eight long walking "poorman" singles on the 14th fairway
                         note: concentrating on recording (monitor) marks & blinds with the idea of
                                  maintaining at least a 5-1 ratio, this means KRD only once a week
                                  (after established)
    Nov 12 day off - just a bit of yard OB
    Nov 13 late afternoon - six "poorman" marks at Rockton road training area with a pheasant,
               (125 - yards) remote sit, pinned four and had small organized hunts in the AOF on the
               other two, very solid, fast and sharp!
                         note: got home & read that Kooly's dad is now 2004 NFC = what a thrill! 
    Nov 14 Kooly's birthday - one year old! solo run at Blonhaven (left Taffey & Lick home), tough
               running a pup that is not fully into handling, but he picked up a whole bunch of pheasants
               and was delivering them under control, great nose afterwards = he was picking up scent
               readily and finding lots of cripples and dead birds, he's in  great shape as we did a session
               of walking baseball later (after a meal break for the handlers) and loving every minute of it
    Nov 15 day off - steady rain
    Nov 16--17 two more days off, non-dog work to do
                         note: Kooly will now have his name transitioned to Kool (he's a big boy now)
                         note: his eating habits have changed much for the better = cleaning up his bowl
                                  in one "effort", wondering if the early serious bout with puppy diarrhea and
                                  probably whip worm issue took its toll on his system and is now recovered
                                  from it, always was a bit on the skinny side, but he is starting to look
                                  much better physically and his mental makeup is really improving
                         note: Kooly may train in California this winter with guide money "footing the bill"
     Nov 18  steady drizzle - lazy day in the kennel
     Nov 19  about 12 concept doubles in the yard
     Nov 20  trained late afternoon at Rockton Road DTA, 8  remote sit, walking "poorman"
                 singles (125-250 yards) = hard charging, very steady and jumped on them all, did 6 long,
                 hand thrown concept doubles, finished by running the 180 yard pattern blind, got about
                 half-way and started to hunt, handled = "ping-pong'ed" (back and forth avoiding back 
                 casts) = move up (to close the distance) = same thing, sat him for awhile applied
                 indirect pressure (level 4 burn), waited and then gave back cast = perfect response
                 with a straight back to the blind - he dealt with the pressure! this is significant!  
      Nov 21 day off in outside kennel - daily OB review
      Nov 22 a dozen concept doubles with focus on heeling correctly (both sides) plus stick pressure,
                  looking out at second mark while holding first, delivering first bumper while maintaining
                  "look" at second, last four included a diversion
                           note: Kool is becoming a real "manic" retriever = just loves the work
      Nov 23  day off in outside kennel (inside at night, as usual)
      Nov 24  concept doubles with push/pull selection (two sided) and proper delivery with "look"
      Nov 25  yard OB, more concept doubles work & a session of walking baseball
                           note: Kool loves the attention and work, becoming extremely athletic  (Wow!) 
      Nov 26  daily OB routines
      Nov 27  cold rain all day long, day off
      Nov 28  "roaded" eight miles at Macktown DTA, 40°, very little breeze and sunny,
                   all three dogs very "up" and handled it easily, each got a single mark afterwards
                           note: Kooly is very fast & built perfectly to handle it 
                           note: definitely going to California for the winter
      Nov 29 day off
      Nov 30 rain into snow
      Dec  1  guided hunt for Taffey, Kooly went out alone afterwards in a different area for a
                scratch hunt, first bird he pointed was a big black rooster, got three more birds
                with one really great mark and retrieve, bird out of sorghum flew across thirty yards of
                shoulder high blue stem and knocked down beyond that in very heavy cover,
                Kooly drove out of the waist high sorghum, all the way through the blue stem (in a
                straight line), across a path, into the high cover, picked it right up & came back, all I
                could see was the top of the tall cover moving (like a raptor)      
      Dec  2  day off, ice & slippery  
      Dec  3  repeat yesterday
      Dec  4  late afternoon, long walking singles on the "back" fairways, three 150-250 yds, one check
                 down of 80 yards, last 350+ (tee to green-side sand trap), fast and straight, nice delivery  
      Dec  5 dusk, five short walking singles on the 14th fairway (100-150 yds), plus fun bumpers  
                       note: delivery routine solid
                 Interceptor & Frontline Plus
      Dec  6-8 couch potato days
      Dec  9 seven marks in heavier cover at Macktown (north west area)
                      note: Kooly either nailed it or went way past (once carried at least 100 yds
                               beyond)
                      note: on two marks he did not hunt it very hard & kept looking for help
                               switch from no cover to this has had some negative effects, tomorrow
                               will shorten up some and for the long ones throw an extra bumper when
                               he gets about half way = want him jumping on them all
                      note: 18 days until he goes to the pro for a week of kennel & evaluation
                               before the trip to California 
      Dec  10-11 review yard OB
      Dec  12 started to work on de-flaring drills, the asparagus strip has fallen over to form
                   a two by three by twelve foot (length, width, height) natural barrier which becomes
                   a perfect no-no terrain, first bumper over the middle - Kooly swerves to the left, stopped &
                   brought back, sent again, swerves to the right, stopped again brought back and walked
                   "over" the barrier, next bumper he flies over & back like "I get it!' and he did it five more
                  times, getting more excited with each one, very animated and stylish!
      Dec  13 repeat of the no-no drill of yesterday, very neat job and his two-sidedness is really solid 
      Dec 14-5 honoring no-no drills with Taffey and Lick
      Dec  16  road along with Taffey & Lick to guided hunt, got several honoring single marks before
                    with Taffey & Lick plus more marks afterwards (alone), perfect on the truck  
      Dec  17  yard OB
      Dec  18  fun bumpers
      Dec  19  Blonhaven "Euro" shoot retrieving & honoring with Taffey, wind chill below 0°,
                   handling the excitement very well and delivery solid 
      Dec  20-25 few bumpers in the yard, bitter cold and "vacation" time  
      Dec 21 trip to vets: all permanent vaccinations up to date plus kennel cough
                                    obtained copy of health records for trip 
      Dec  26 worked on concept double in the yard, did easily
      Dec  27 worked on short concept triples, he can count to three
                        note: threw several triples and mixed them up from the line using white
                                 bumpers in the snow, used the "jump" at an angle rather than straight on,
                                 Kooly took excellent lines and remembered the marks even across old falls
                                 plus only used the "jump" when it was the line, he was having fun counting
                                 to three and he was solid on the two-sided heel/sit/drop skills
      Dec 28 day off, owner went deer hunting
                      note: spent the last two weeks really working on Kooy's house manners, spending
                               at least an hour a day, one on one, sitting on the floor in the living room, he is
                               finally beginning to calm down in the house, this means he can lay down in one
                               spot for extended times relaxing, can accept a pet or ear scratch without becoming
                               excited and jumping up and about, more importantly, loose the outward anxiety of
                               wanting to always be on the move, age has helped, but teaching what is expected
                               and acceptable (or not) is probably more necessary with a high drive dog, bottom
                               line..........a dog that does not have the predisposition to relax has to be shown, if
                               he can learn how to run a big pattern blind in one day, then learning how to relax
                               is just as possible, BUT he has to be taught, the fact that he understands now makes
                               him a much more balanced dog
                      note: the idea that a high drive dog can't be much of a house dog may become true if
                               early on, little time is devoted to developing and maintaining this skill, it requires
                               an expectation
      Dec 29 road four miles before being dropped off at Brian's for the two month California training trip  
                               Interceptor and Frontline Plus
                      note: expectations are 1) regular and high quality training at a critical time in his
                               development,  2) an accurate talent assessment, 3) preparation for derbies (with no
                               time table), 4) Kooly needs to "see the world"........meaning mentally challenging
                               stimulation is a great thing for pups, 5) getting away from his two "house buddies"
                               will be good for developing his individuality, 6) learning to deal with other dogs,
                               routines and expectations may pay huge dividends down the line, 7) avoiding a big
                               time gap in his training just due to weather, and lastly the big stretch, 8) if Kooly is
                               the talent I think he is, he will have a big advantage over the northern trained pups
                               in early spring derbies and make running qualifiers in the fall a distinct possibility
                  the "program" - one of 12 dogs headed to Paradise, CA on Jan 5th, staying at a kennel with
                  individual runs, the next few days before the trip is to get the new dogs use to the routine,
                  left Kooly busy checking out new smells in the airing yard and finding out strange dogs like
                  Daisy don't like their "butts sniffed", I think he's part mongoose 

    Dec 29 - Jan 5 at Brian's then off to California & back first week in March
    Jan 16  training report from California - OB on both sides getting sorted out, behind in marking skills
                and drive, softness is an ongoing issue, really likes birds & this make a big difference in his
                attitude, showing steady improvement & Brian has a good read on him, but in a heavy duty
                field trial program he would be in trouble, immature 
                    summary: nothing to write home about
    Jan 22  update for the blonde California “surfer dude” (Kooly): yesterday was all big water training
                with the temperature a balmy 65°, dogs not running were staked out and enjoying the sun,
                Kooly is beginning to show some occasional “wow’ness”, big air and long marks, two sided
                heeling is really getting solid (comfortable both sides), good initial lines on blinds and taking
                casts, Brian said his swimming speed is almost that of the older, FT level dogs, and what is
                unusual is his water work exceeds the land (normally this is reversed for young dogs)
                    summary: things are looking “way better”  
                    note: Brain has access to several outstanding training areas, so Kooly is getting variety,
                             one day they had to run marks right past pheasant flight pens containing 1000's of
                             pheasants, talk about dealing with distractions
     Jan 26 Kooly went pheasant hunting this week, really perked him up, started working on multiples
                and has had little or none up until now, by the end of the week things were better, running
                pattern blinds and starting to run cold blinds, initial lines and and handling are his strong
                points, confidence still is an issue when anything new is introduced, Brain has a good grip
                on this and Kooly seems to be responding, marks are getting extended and shooting a live
                flyer first in the morning seems to make the whole day better, start with bumpers and there
                is less enthusiasm, focus at the line ("looking out") is getting better and OB solid at the line    
                     summary: progress & no snags makes this another productive week
                                      two month objectives are right on track
     Jan 30 California weather for the next six days -  sunny, highs 60°- 62° & lows 40°- 42°
     Feb 13 Kooly continues to improve, multiple marking is looking (much better), birds making a big
                difference in his desire, Brian found a good supply of cheap hen pheasants and live
                flyers are a regular event, he is taking good lines and is honest (not much cheating), pattern
                blinds are now out to 250 yards, marking is getting more factors, occasionally his softness
                crops up, but it is not really an issue, if he feels there are not enough birds his effort drops
                off, learning concepts is not a problem (smart)
                     summary: right on course, steady improvement  
     Feb 16 two more weeks and Kooly will be home 
     Feb 26 Kooly is home! picked him up at Brian's at 3:00 pm and he is "sawing wood" tonight, the
                 plans are to give him a week off, the weather the next week doesn't look all that great
                 (good timing), maybe a few birds at Blonhaven, he's dropped a few pounds 
     Feb 27 - March 4 just hung out around the house