In this episode, I take you behind the scenes of my journey to become an AKC hunting test judge for pointing breeds. I walk through the requirements for becoming a judge, share my experience apprenticing at a recent hunting test, and reflect on the key takeaways from the experience. Tune in for insights into the judging process, what I learned along the way, and why I enjoyed watching the dogs and handlers.

In the intro, I mention the scentwork course I am hosting with Tamara from Canine Development & Testing and Mike from Ugly Dog Hunting. The course starts February 3rd and registration is now open! Here's the link to register: https://caninedevelopmentandtesting.mykajabi.com/birddogdetection

The Accidental Bird Dog Podcast is sponsored by OnX Hunt and Boss Shotshells. We are part of the HerUpland Podcast Network.

This episode kicks off a new series for the podcast! Every few episodes, I will be featuring interviews with other people who got bird dogs as pets and then got into hunting later because of their dogs.

The first tale of a fellow accidental bird dog owner is Sara Kline. Sara lives in Alaska with her three dogs: a vizsla named Jack, and two Deutsch Drahthaars named Dicky and Rufus. Sara originally got Jack as a running buddy when she lived in England, but it wasn't long before Jack decided he liked pointing pheasants along their runs, too. Sara has grown a lot in her journey training her dogs and is very forthcoming about the mistakes she's made along the way and how she's trying to use the lessons she's learned with her new puppy. Sara's story is very relatable and I know you will enjoy it!

You can follow Sara on Instagram at @journeyswithgundogs.

The Accidental Bird Dog Podcast is sponsored by OnX Hunt and Boss Shotshells. We are part of the HerUpland Podcast Network.

This is the last episode of 2024! Thanks to everyone who has listened this year. In this episode, I answer questions about Zara and Lanka, the priority I place on wild bird hunting, and what I'm looking forward to in 2025.

The Accidental Bird Dog Podcast is sponsored by OnX Hunt and Boss Shotshells. We are part of the HerUpland Podcast Network.