Today we received Mila's premlinary grading back from the OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals). She came back "Good" for hips and "Normal" for both elbows. This is great news. But why do this at 9 months old when it just has to be repeated at 24 months of age or later?! Mila was the only girl in the litter and there are hopes that she will have her own pups down the road - so screening her now gives a little insight into what to expect when it's time for her final evaluation, and it gives the go ahead to invest a bit more into her training with birds and so forth. 

This year we were lucky enough to spend a little over a week in Montana chasing birds...a couple of days in Eastern Montana and then nearly a week in Bozeman catching the end of the September blue grouse season. The Bozeman trip was Fowler's first time to hunt blue grouse and he had a great time. Learning the game of the forest birds wasn't easy for Fowler, but he had a nice point on a single and a couple of nice retrieves. The weather has started changing here and there and we were blessed with some lovely fall colors and cool temperatures. Overall, a great trip. Please enjoy the photos :)