Purina Top Open Shooting Dog of
the Year Award
By Johnny Taylor | May 10, 2012 -
Article From The American Field
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Our
Big Bully, owned by Erwin and Karen Saniga of Nottingham,
Pa., and handled by Mike Tracy of Summerhill Kennel fame,
has won the coveted 2011-2012 Purina Top Open Shooting Dog
of The Year Award. Not only did this bold white and liver
pointer male, whose callname is Big, win, but he won with a
spectacular closing finish.
Big was within striking
distance going into the final trials of the season but had
to be at the top of his game to close the gap between
himself and the points leader Perkins Happy Tobe Here. He
proved he was equal to the task, winning the Bama Quail
Classic and taking the runner-up title in the Michigan
Shooting Dog Championship, then going to Ontario for the
Canadian Open Shooting Dog Championship, the last points
trial of the season, and still trailing by 32 points. Here
he showed mettle by winning the Canadian and clinching top
honors as the 2011-2012 Purina Top Open Shooting Dog Award
winner.
Roger Dvorak of Elkton, Md., bred the litter
that produced Big, and the dog came to Ernie and Karen as a
stud fee puppy. They owned his sire, three-time champion
Bulltown, a previous runner-up in the Purina Top Amateur
Shooting Dog Award points standings. Roger bred his nice
pointer female Impressive Lady Sue to Bulltown and gave
Ernie and Karen the pick of the litter. Ernie credits
Karen’s keen eye in picking the youngster.
When Big
came to them they liked him so much that they raised him in
their home. With all the affection and attention he received
in the year he lived with them it is no wonder that Ernie
can foot hunt him for grouse and pheasant and that he will
stay in and handle for him.
Big was slowed by a puppy
illness as a young dog and Ernie says that he was the “most
expensive” puppy he’s ever owned. But Karen and Ernie
recognized early that Big was special because of his
intelligence and more importantly he had great bird-finding
skills at an early age. Ernie gave him a solid early
foundation with yard work and exposure to game. Recognizing
he had the potential to excel at the next level he contacted
Mike Tracy and placed the dog with him for further
development.
The Sanigas have had a three-generation
working relationship with the Tracys. Ernie had previous
associations with Gerald and George Tracy, and Mike’s record
of success made it an easy choice for them to send Big to
Mike.
Mike got Big in May before his Derby year and
immediately started him in the Tracy development program,
always under the watchful eye of his father George. The dog
exhibited early that he had worlds of potential. Mike Tracy
was solely responsible for the breaking and development of
Big, whose early years were uneventful and frustrating
because he could not finish with enough to win a stake. Mike
knew something was not right. Even after several trips to
different veterinarians there was no true diagnosis of the
problem. When Mike picked Big up at the end of his heat in
the National Open Shooting Dog Championship in February,
2011 he knew something was amiss. He rode straight to Dr.
Joe Maddox who was judging the trial and asked him “What’s
wrong?” Dr. Maddox told Mike to come to his trailer at the
end of the day and he would prescribe treatment.
Mike
followed his advice and treatment to the letter and from
that time to present he has won two championships, five
runners-up and placed in five classics for a total of 13
wins all in a period of 14 months! Add to that the
prestigious Purina Top Open Shooting Dog Award and he’s had
quite a season, thanks to Dr. Joe Maddox and his effective
advice.
What sets Big apart from other great dogs?
Mike is quick to say “intelligence and bird-finding skills.”
Big always seems to find birds and in the running of the
2012 United States Shooting Dog Invitational Championship he
set an Invitational record with nine finds in an hour!
He also has shown great adaptability by winning in eight
different states over multiple venues.
The Tracy
family is a team and Mike is quick to point out that George
and Mary, his father and mother, have played key roles in
his ability to develop and campaign Big. Their involvement
and support has been critical to his success. Mike Tracy has
been Handler of the Year seven times, but Big is the first
dog he has successfully handled to win the Purina Top Open
Shooting Dog Award.
Every winning field trial dog
must have an exceptional scout and Mike is blessed to have
young Mark McClain to help him with his string. Mark has
played a key role in the successful
campaigning of
this award winning team. Congratulations to Ernie and Karen
Saniga, Mike Tracy, Mark McClain and the entire team that
played a role in helping Our Big Bully win the Purina Top
Open Shooting Dog Award. Congratulations indeed!
Dog/Handler/Owner Points
Our Big Bully, Pointer male,
Mike Tracy/Ernie & Karen Saniga 2718 |
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