Eulogy of a Yellow Dog
SC’s Hunt’em Up Ryder along with his hunting partner, SC’s Hunt’em Up Bella, joined me at a time in my life when I really needed a change. I was working 60+ hours a week as an IT Manager and quickly approaching burnout.
Little did I know how much Ryder would teach me about life, love, and patience. He was a quick study, and one of the calmest dogs I’ve ever known. Bella has always been wired 440, but you had to look really close to make sure Ryder was even breathing. He was a methodical dog when it came to training or hunting, but he had a memory like a steel trap. If there was a pile of retrieving dummies at 400 yards, you only had to handle him to it the first time, and after that, he remembered exactly where to run the next time. His memory was extraordinary.
In October 2005, Dad, Ryder, and I re-discovered upland bird hunting, and I was amazed that Labrador Retrievers could be used to hunt quail, pheasants, or chukar. I always thought that upland hunting was for the pointing breeds. After learning what training Ryder required, we got to work.
Ryder took to it and quickly outpaced his owner in hunting prowess. I missed shots quite often which earned me those looks that only a…
