| The sun is rising on another Oklahoma Panhandle morning, and Tim Hidalgo is out saddling Cal, his long-legged Tennessee Walker. After a walk through the kennels to a chorus of dogs barking their demands, he chooses the lucky ones that will go out with him first in what will be a long day’s work. He mounts his horse, and with a whistle and a shout they head off across the prairie in search of pheasants and quail.
This routine has been played out again and again in the years since 1986 that Tim has been training bird dogs for AKC and American Field trials as well as companion hunting dogs. Pointing breeds have always been his specialty, starting with his first Brittany at age 14, and continuing through with his fifty field champions, three senior and two master hunters, and seven National Champions — open and amateur. He’s trained and run Pointers, Setters (English, Irish/Red, Gordon), German Shorthairs, Wirehairs, Vizslas and Weimaraners.
“I do it because I love the dogs,” Tim says. “I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
“We chose Oklahoma because that’s where the wild birds are.” And the mild Oklahoma winters are another plus. Training goes on year ‘round without the need to pick up and move in cold days of winter or in the long, hot summers — although in summer, the days start much earlier with a break midday and back to work until the sun sets at 10:00 pm.
Tim prides himself in being able to find the potential in any dog, whether destined for National Champion status, or Favorite Companion status. And all of his dogs hunt. “I’ve taken my all-age pointers out to hunt on foot, and never had a problem,” he says. “A well trained dog knows what you expect from it and will adjust” (A fact we can attest to, as we regularly hunt with our National Amateur Champion Weimaraner).
In the end, it all comes down to getting the best from your good dog.
For more information, contact:
Tim Hidalgo
Sand Creek Kennels
Rt. 1, Box 8A
Hardesty, Oklahoma 73944
580-888-4257, 303-809-1588 (cell) |
