Indian Creek Abby – USCSDA National Amateur Puppy of the Year – 2009

Four Dog of the Year awards came back to New York after my first year of field trials.  Competing under the tutelage of Garry Malzone, bird dog trainer extraordinaire and owner of Indian Creek Kennels, as well as trialing with dogs bought from his Blazing Trails (by Mr. Awsum) bloodlines, I was able to experience a highly successful rookie season in the Northeast field trial circuit.

Indian Creek Riptide aka “Porky”

Indian Creek Riptide was my first field trial puppy and I hit numerous trials with her last fall.  In spite of the fact that I was handling her like a true amateur, she managed to finally bring home a blue ribbon as a puppy in an Amateur Derby stake!  Garry handled her to another win in an Open Puppy stake outside of Harrisburg, PA in December while I was hunting whitetails in Kentucky.  I placed her a few more times during the Spring schedule, including an Amateur Puppy win upon her return to Harrisburg in April.  Subsequently, she was named 2009 Pennsylvania Puppy of the Year.

Abby training on the farm

But it was Indian Creek Abby who was the real story and the real deal.  A half sister to Indian Creek Riptide (both by Blazing Trails), she appeared back at Garry’s kennel in late January, when her owner’s wife was adamant that she be removed from their house because she growled at their child.  If that dog did truly growl at their child, it was because their kid was messing with her, as she never showed a single bit of aggression towards anyone.  I brought her home and she took to my boys as if she had lived in our house all of her life.  She appeared to have some issues with women, so I think her former “mom” may not have liked dogs a whole lot.

She had spent the majority of her first year of life as a hunting dog, pointing and retrieving.  After she came back to Indian Creek, Garry cut her loose out in a field in front of his barn with a couple of chukar put out in the cover.  I smiled to myself as she ran the edges full speed with her tail cracking side to side, then suddenly slamming to a dead stop, her poker-straight tail at ninety degrees, on point.  Her only drawback was she pointed a little low up front, which disqualified her from Garry’s Open team.  But, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure and I gladly took her into my home, turning my one dog Amateur roster into a two dog team.

“Point over here!”

In her first ever field trial, she took home the blue rosette, topping a field of nineteen puppies.  She continued to place throughout the Spring in most of her trials.  She entered the last trial of the season ranked first in the nation, and sealed her fate as the 2008-09 USCSDA Amateur Puppy of the Year with a first place finish in Peace Dale, Rhode Island.  That victory also affirmed her status as the 2008-09 USCSDA New England Amateur Puppy of the Year.  I later received notification that she was named the 2008-09 Northeast Field Trial Club Puppy of the Year as well.

Interestingly, her full brother, Indian Creek Warpaint, owned and handled by Garry, was named the 2008-09 USCSDA National Open Puppy of the Year.

US Complete Shooting Dog Association

Two siblings from the same litter, both awarded USCSDA National Dog of the Year recognition – one Open Puppy and the other Amateur Puppy.  Unless I’m mistaken, that’s a first.  Congratulations Garry!