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"Conceived
by Hunters for Hunters" is both the philosophy and reality of the
Hunting Retriever Club, Inc. ("HRC"). Established in 1984, the
primary purpose of HRC is: "the betterment
of Hunting Retrievers as a whole and to influence the breeding and training
of a better and finer Hunting Retriever; to provide hunters and Hunting
Retrievers a series of actual Hunting tests in a controlled system and
furnish an ongoing educational program for the Hunters, for their training,
experience, and sporting competition. Further, it is the purpose of the
Association to support and protect the inherent rights of its members
to own, hunt, bear arms, to promote the breed and type of dog of their
choice and promote complimentary conservation and management of game birds
and wildlife species commonly pursed by the members of the Hunting Retriever
Club, Inc."
HRC is
affiliated with The United Kennel Club, Inc., Kalamazoo, MI, who caries
the registry for the Inc. A volunteer organization, HRC is democratically
governed by a Board of Directors and an elected Executive Committee. Membership
in HRC is open to persons regardless of age, race, religion, creed or
national origin. The HRC is family-oriented offering outdoor fun and fellowship
to its participants. Participation by women and children is strongly encouraged
and wholesome atmosphere is maintained at all times. While most HRC members
own retrieving breeds, participation in events is open to those with other
versatile hunting dog breeds that can do the work.
HRC maintains
its common sense, hunting realism in testing Hunting retrievers. There
are five utility-based (not age) categories that the dogs may enter in
the HRC Tests: Started, Seasoned, Finished, Grand and upland. Unlike field
trials, these are not competitive 1st, 2nd, and
3rd place events, but tests where all dogs are judged pass/fail
against a "Hunting Standard". These are events that are great
fun where everyone can root for the other person’s dog and help each other
with their training. The judges must be experienced Hunters and must pass
HRC administered tests, apprentice as judges, have gun safety training,
attend judging seminars, have handled and passed a dog in the category
that they are judging and meet other HRC requirements. Good ‘Hunting-oriented’
judges are the keys to having tests with Hunting Realism.
The tests
are directly related to hunting the retriever in the field for waterfowl
and upland game. Unlike field trial, the bird throwers and any guns in
the field are NOT exposed and dressed in whit, but are hidden as in real
hunting situations and dressed in appropriate hunting clothing. The handler
must wear camouflaged or other hunting attire. Gallery members must also
wear appropriate camouflaged or other hunting attire due to creating distractions
for the working dog. In the three upper levels, the Handler handles the
shotgun (firing blanks), and works his/her dog from a blind or perhaps
a boat, and may be required to quarter the dog in a pheasant or quail
field. Seasoned, Finished and Grand dog, Handlers must direct their dogs
to birds the dog did not see fall (a blind). HRC stresses actual ‘Hunting
realism’ and ‘gun safety’ in the hunting tests.
The Grand
Hunting Tests are held twice a year and are open only to those retrievers
that have attained their Hunting Retriever Championship title. While there
are over 1,800 Hunting Retriever Champions, there are only 85 Grand Hunting
Retriever Champions. The Grand tests are considered the ‘Retriever Superbowl’.
There
are currently 93 Hunting Retriever Clubs in the United
States and
Canada and there are over 7,000 active HRC Members. The substantial membership
of the HRC are devout outdoors men, women, and young people. 17% of HRC
members are under 30 years of age, 38% are age 30-40, and 45% are over
40. Our diverse membership includes responsible hunting individuals from
all walks of life.
98% of
the members of HRC own dogs. 37% own more than three dogs. As the dogs
associated in this program are by the vast majority, trained and handled
by their owners, they are more than just hunting dogs, but companions
and members of the family. HRC Clubs hold over 150 licensed Hunt Tests
each year with an average of 73 retrievers and 182 persons participating
per event. Of these people participating, 66% are male, 34% are female
and 10% will be under the age of 18. On average, each of HRC’s 7,000+
members spend 6.3 days per year at a Licensed Hunt Test. 65% of HRC members
drive over 1,000 miles per year to hunt or attend hunt tests.
Members
of local Clubs typically get together to train, for monthly meetings,
hear presentation, hold fun hunts and Licensed Hunt Tests. Most clubs
have training grounds for their members. HRC success comes from active
members. Most local Clubs have newsletters that help keep members informed
and in touch, while the UKC publishes an excellent bimonthly publication
for HRC, the HUNTING RETRIEVER magazine. This magazine keeps members up
to date on upcoming HRC events and news, results of licensed hunts, includes
training articles by nationally know columnists, regional information,
product updates and much more. |
