A Visit to Shohola

Freeman Lloyd was a prolific writer in his day on all matters "canine." He also became a close friend of George H. Ryman and visited Ryman's "splendid sporting estate" frequently.

In the most recent piece just-published on the "Fetters Setters ~ The Ryman English Setter Story," easily accessed by clicking here, "A Visit to Shohola" ~ link added to "The Ryman English Setter Story ~ Index" at the top of the page ~ colorfully recounts one of Lloyd's visits to George Ryman's Shohola Falls, Pennsylvania, home.

Of certain interest to George Ryman enthusiasts in this particular piece is a thoroughly descriptive narrative about the "great hall" in Ryman's home. While it has been described elsewhere by other writers, Lloyd's inclusive description leaves other narratives sadly wanting.

In our seemingly never-ending venture of sorting through, organizing and filing the massive amount of documents, photos and other materials from the previous four generations of Fetters Family English Setter histories, we recently came across this special piece and wanted to share it with our readers here. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did when we re-discovered it ...
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Valuable Tips on Training Younger Dogs in the Field

Ryman's Allegheny

Snow at a tender

six-months of age

Watching the progress of younger dogs in the field should be an enjoyable and memorable endeavor and as stress-free (for both the owner/trainer and the young dog) as possible.

Frustrations on the part of the inexperienced owner/trainer may begin to surface when one feels a younger dog is not progressing as fast as they have been told, according to something they read somewhere, etc. Circumstances such as this will not only diminish the enjoyment of the owner/trainer, but can serve to confuse and confound the younger dog as well.

When our children were still infants, my pediatrician gave me some invaluable advice on potty-training that could also be applied in a sense to younger dogs ~ that every child progresses at their own rate, and will potty-train when they are ready ~ and that when they are sixteen and eighteen years old it will not matter if they potty-trained at 10-months, 12-months, 18-months of age or even 24-months of age, whatever the case may be.

No one would think of demanding a baby of two-to-three months old become proficiently potty-trained, yet there are some who expect the world of a younger dog in the field when all the pup may be interested in at that particular point of their life is play. In addition, dogs have their own unique "ways of thinking about things" that may differ greatly from a human's points of view at critical times.

With the invaluable knowledge of four devoted generations of English Setter Gun Dog breeding and training behind him, John has written a wonderful piece in this regard, "Time, Patience and Understanding Equals Early Perfection" on the "Fetters Setters ~ Training Tips" page, easily accessed by clicking here.

And the common sense approach he offers is sure to bring the pleasure and enjoyment back into any young dog training experience in the field ~ not only for the owner/trainer, but for the very impressionable young dog as well.

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