There were some spaniels involved, but in the big open paddocks (fields) and with quail as the main quarry, the wide ranging pointing dogs were favoured. At this stage, there were no written rules and large amounts of money were bet on particular dogs or handlers. Anecdotal evidence would suggest that retrieving competitions were also held where the dogs were slipped and the first dog back with the game was the winner. "...since the system was geared to shooting the rabbits produced, it was clear that the best shot with a mediocre dog was always going to triumph over the best dog with a mediocre shot." By the early 1920's, the group had formalised themselves into the Sporting Dog Club of Victoria. Rules were written with points allocated for various aspects of work eg: pointing, style, roading etc... and points deducted for mouthing or touching the bird. Seeking Dead was enshrined in these rules and remained so until 1993 when the rules were amended to allow the handler a choice of retrieving or seeking dead and the knock out system was changed. At this time, the stated aims of the Club were: to promote and further the interests and cultivation of the Sporting Dog to hold Open Field Trials to hold Saturday and holiday shooting trips to hold Parades and Shows and evening lectures to assist in the protection of game by legislation to protect the property of the man on the land and stop careless shooting to help and get Farmers' support The Club also promoted a register of dogs. The groupings being: Pointers, Spaniels, Retrievers, Irish Setters, English Setters, Gordon Setters. By 1924, Field Trials were making the State newspapers and were being held at inner city venues such as the Showgrounds as well as in local paddocks. The Argus of the day reported: "Leading dogs of the State (Victoria) competed for trophies and demonstrated their skill before an enthusiastic assembly of 300 people..." The Govenor of Victoria, His Excellency Lord Somers, was one of the Club’s Patrons. Reports of trials appeared in all the local newspapers - as did the Field Trial Honours list for the year. Page 2 | Spaniel Journal | Previous Page | Next Page |