So since we're doing this, I figured I would start a thread on it!

NOLA Barn Hunt Friends put on an introduction to Barn Hunt and a Fun Test that we participated in to see about getting into this dog sport. We had a great time and it was a totally new experience for us. We are entering our first real trial June 13 in Instinct and Novice. We have some practice to do with recall and tunneling but we will see how we do!

Here is a video and some photos from the Fun Test & Intro.

He looks like he had so much fun! Do they always get to work with other handlers?

That is me in the blue shirt.

The first part when the lady in gray had him, we were just working on introducing him to the tunnels.

George was my camera guy for the day. Lol.

And honestly, you can have someone else handling the dog for you when you enter into a trial.

How much others can work with your dog outside of the intro though, I'm unsure of.

Ha ha. I know that's you, I meant the lady in the gray

She was the "tunnel queen" so they had her helping everyone introduce their dogs for the first time. She also had some REALLY great treats so of course my little a-hole went through the tunnels for her. Hahaha.

That looks like so much fun! Great pictures Ashleigh!

Ashleigh, great pics and looks like so much fun. Do you know if I could find this type of sport my way? I think Miya would love doing that. Any kind of info that I could look up that you know about would be greatly appreciated.

Renee, I know you're in West Texas but there is this group on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/525501257527046/

You can also check out the Barn Hunt website to see if there are any upcoming events near you:
http://www.barnhunt.com/eventcal.html

It's a relatively new sport (like literally was founded in 2013/2014) so it may not be in an area closer to you but you can always look to see with any area clubs if there is one closer!

Oh there is a club listing for Texas too!

All FUR Fun Training and Event Center Addison TX paula.affdog@gmail.com www.allfurfundog.com
North Texas Barnhunters Allen TX mnshaw@gmail.com http://www.northtexasbarnhunters.org/
DogJoy Training Bryan TX dogjoyonline@gmail.com www.dogjoytraining.com
K9 staR Barn Hunters Floydada TX poochlady2003@yahoo.com
Countryside Barn Hunt Georgetown TX countrysidepetresort103@gmail.com www.countrysidepetresort.com
KFA Barnhunters Tenaha TX barnhuntsec@gmail.com

Thank you, I will check them out. Working dogs are more the norm here than pets(excluding the chis that are plentiful here, lol). So I would think that the barn hunt would become popular here. If not close enough to participate on a regular basis, perhaps close enough to watch one. Thanks again!!

Cool pictures! Mishka looks like he was really into it too! What is in that canister? Is it something with a scent or a live critter?

MiyasMomma wrote:

Thank you, I will check them out. Working dogs are more the norm here than pets(excluding the chis that are plentiful here, lol). So I would think that the barn hunt would become popular here. If not close enough to participate on a regular basis, perhaps close enough to watch one. Thanks again!!

No problem! Hopefully you can make it out to one to watch! I'm glad our club offered the Fun Test and Intro because it let's you try and learn the rules of the game without it being a real trial to worry about. And the people give you pointers on how to work with your dog better and gives the dog an opportunity to meet the rat and see how they react to it.

Artic_Wind wrote:

Cool pictures! Mishka looks like he was really into it too! What is in that canister? Is it something with a scent or a live critter?

It's a live rat.

Barn Hunt has different classes - Instinct, Novice, Open, Master, Senior

In Instinct there are three tubes laid out in the open in a row (one empty, one with litter, and one with the rat) and the dog has to indicate which one has the rat in it.

Novice they have to find the tube with the rat that is hidden in the course, but also execute a climb and tunnel.

Open, Master, and Senior the course gets more complicated and there are many more rat tubes and litter tubes they have to indicate.

Live rat? Oh wow! Kinda gross, LOL. Barn Hunt sounds really fun though, and great experiences for Mishka as well. I look forward to seeing more of this Ashleigh

My father worked alongside, and trained, dogs for U.S Customs, they use a "scent" based thing to look for, that's why I asked you what they use in the barn hunt . For some reason I really didn't expect a live animal to be in there, LOL, but it DOES make total sense.

Great pictures, Ashleigh! Mishka looks like such a natural. Especially after all practice he had with possums

So we had our first trial yesterday! We entered in Instinct and Novice.

We got our first Q!



Just in Instinct but it's a start. Our Novice run went really well until Mishka decided he wanted to roll in the straw and not go through the tunnel. He provided an entertaining run for everyone though.


Someone made the cutest rat cake. XD



And they had a cute photo setup as well for the beach theme.



I was by myself so I have no pictures or videos of our runs but there was a photographer taking photos so I'll hopefully have some at a later time.

We will be exhibiting in the September trial so we will take the next few months to work on getting a solid tunnel and recall. And hopefully we can Q or title in Novice next time!

Way to go, Mishka! I hope you told them the hay rolling was just a husky thing

Looks like a few people and dogs were having fun. Now, would you explain "Q" for those of us who might be dense?

aljones wrote:

Looks like a few people and dogs were having fun.  Now, would you explain "Q" for those of us who might be dense?

I had the same question - I'm guessing "qualify" ?

Huskies are born entertainers aren't they Glad you both had a good time Ashleigh! Can't wait to see the pics!

What a happy boy, Congrats Ashleigh and Mishka!! I agree with Jimmy, the great entertainers, GO HUSKIES!!

amymeme wrote:

Way to go,  Mishka!  I hope you told them the hay rolling was just a husky thing

Haha. I was too busy about to fall on the floor laughing myself. Everyone was talking about it so it was hilarious. XD

aljones wrote:

Looks like a few people and dogs were having fun.  Now, would you explain "Q" for those of us who might be dense?

Yep, like Amy said it's a qualifying point. For Instinct you only need one Q to get the RATI, Novice you need 3 Qs to get RATN title, Open is also 3 Qs to title, and so on and so fourth.

Artic_Wind wrote:

Huskies are born entertainers aren't they Glad you both had a good time Ashleigh! Can't wait to see the pics!

MiyasMomma wrote:

Sun Jun 14, 2015 11:47 pm
What a happy boy, Congrats Ashleigh and Mishka!! I agree with Jimmy, the great entertainers, GO HUSKIES!!

Thank you guys! Next time we're doing the whole weekend which is exhausting but it will be worth it! I'm hoping it only takes a week or so to get the pictures and I'll be sure to share them.

So I got my pictures from the Barn Hunt! Photo credit goes to Karen McCrory and the Louisiana Boxer Rescue.

that is awesome. he looks like such a natural in his element.

Wow, Ashleigh - I always thought of Mishka as a black and white. He's much more silvery in these pics.

He looks like such a pro...right up to the rollin' in the hay picture. Looks like a lot of fun.