Those long Winter months were really starting to drag the past few weeks. At this point, the town I live in needs one more inch of snow to set the all time record for a single winter season. I know that all across the Continent we have seen some wild Winter weather and I can safely say that almost everyone is happy that Spring is starting to creep in. Our hours of daylight are getting longer and the time we can spend outdoors with the dogs and our family is much welcomed. I am really looking forward to Spring and Summer, and the activities that come with them. I'm sure that your Winter is probably warmer and less snowy than mine, but I know we can all relate to feeling the itch of training season upon us. I am ready to move and so are the dogs. Here we go!!!
Prost, Megan
congratulations
Congrats are in order for two "A - litters" that recently were whelped. Kevin Burke and Vom Ahane's Shadow kennel had 4 males and 4 females on January 10. Pups headed to their fur-ever homes just recently!
Rob Batterson and Vom Herzland's kennel welcomed their pups on February 28. 4 males and 2 females. Congratulations!
Pheasant Fest 2023
By Paul Buenzow
Pheasant Fest, the annual trade show dedicated to all things Upland (plus a little more), was held this past February in Minneapolis, MN. This was the 18th year for the event and once again Minnesota proved to be somewhat of a mecca for fans of the sport. A new record for attendance was set at this show with 33,154 people attending over the three day event. That is a huge number and wonderful exposure for our dogs!
We had plenty of visitors all 3 days of the show with Saturday being our busiest day! We had a numerous amount of people that seemed genuinely interested in the breed, ranging from those who have never heard of the DL to those who have been able to meet one or two before or even watch them test alongside other breeds. Each year we continue to meet more and more people who have heard about and are curious about the DL. This is excellent news as we want to continue to gain exposure for our breed.
A huge shout out to our members who volunteered their time and brought along their dogs to be our club delegates. Thank you to Matt, Deb and Joe M, Ridge, Al W, Jack S, Jennifer and Joe W, Senia, and Tom M who all helped out in the DL booth. DL-GNA was well represented at this show with 14 different dogs to show the variety of our breed. Also a shout out Jennifer and Joe W for having their DLs in the Project Upland Booth.
Next years event will be in Sioux Falls, SD, March 1 through March 3, 2024. Later this Fall we will ask for volunteers to help out with the show.
Training Virtually? How does that work?
The DL-GNA Virtual Training Group
By Joe Wapenski, JGHV Judge and DL-GNA Member
On top of hunting, testing and training our dogs is one of the best ways to get the most out of our hunting seasons over the lifetime of our dogs. Part of DL-GNA’s mission is to improve the breed’s performance and versatility through training and testing to the JGHV standards. Meeting this mission is a challenge with only a single club in North America - we have members spread across 2 countries and 5 time zones. This makes it hard to find a local group of DL owners with whom to train our dogs and make friends.
Jake Batts and Freckles v. Hunter's Shadow passed their VJP this Spring.
To help meet this mission and provide more benefit to members, DL-GNA has established virtual training groups. The purpose is to help connect new puppy owners with experienced DL handlers, foster discussion of training methods, and share knowledge of testing topics. This can be a supplement to other local/in-person training options with a specific focus on DLs.
Two training groups have been established this year: one for VJP/HZP handlers and another for VGP handlers. These groups were formed based off responses to our survey at the beginning of the year. To date, there have been two VJP virtual meetings covering exposure and preparation of puppies for the specifics of the VJP test. After VJPs this spring, the focus of the group will turn to HZP training subjects. The VGP group has held four virtual meetings that covered all test subjects and training methods for each.
With the help of many experienced DL-GNA members, new members/handlers have access to a wealth of knowledge of what it takes to train and test our DLs at every level - from puppy and Fall breed tests to the challenging VGP finished dog test. Experienced members have the opportunity to meet new faces in the club and to exchange best practices from across our club’s broad reach.
The new groups have been successful due to the enthusiasm, knowledge, and excitement of our members - without you we wouldn’t have our beloved dogs! Thank you to all who have participated. Good luck in your training and testing this year; I look forward to hearing all the stories of training and testing with your dogs and how great your hunting seasons will be!
We would appreciate the participation of all our members - if you are interested and haven’t had a chance, join our virtual training groups by filling out the survey linked on the button below.
Floyd vom Hunter's Shadow
Financial Report 2022
By Jeff Tichota, DL-GNA Treasurer
Now that fiscal year 2022 is a wrap, I have included two financial reports that will help you understand our club’s finances. I have 2022 4th quarter expenses compared to the budget. I have also included a “Statement of Activity” that details income and expenses. I have outlined our board’s best estimate of a budget for income and expenses in 2023. I also elaborated a bit on where and when we spend our money and who has a large part helping the club run its big events and other things. Please read the full report by clicking the button below. If you have any questions about our expenses or how we spend your dollars just call, text, or email me at the address listed! Have a great spring!
We're ready for our close up...
DLs have been spotted in the media, again! Last issue we shared with you the Project Upland film, titled "For the Love of Dogs" and if you haven't seen it yet, definitely click the link above for a fun short film on our DLs. But that's not the only place our DLs have been stealing the show!
Matt Bathke got a chance to show off some of his DL beauties for the Minneapolis based Star Tribune in February. Check it out here. You'll have a chance to read about some other interesting breeds that were also at Pheasant Fest, but we are partial to Matt's DLs: Amara and Berdie vom Minnewaukon!
Minnesota just cannot seem to get enough of the DL! Jack Sudyk, Tom Marron, Mary Wilson and Al Kuznar hosted Laura Schara of Minnesota Bound this past Fall to do a segment on our breed and what amazing dogs they are. The episode has not aired yet, but we will be sure to send it out when it does!
If you've got a favorite local outdoor show in your area, reach out to them about our Deutsch Langhaars!