Information on this year's litter (whelped July 13, 2015) can be found on the "Next Breeding" page.

THE PUPPIES OF SUMMER 2013...THEN AND NOW

On October, 6 2013 at about 12:30 PM the last "pupper" our smiling guy "Terp" Windmill Hill's Eastern Shore Islander went to his new and forever home. Bitter sweet Donna and I cried as he romped off with his new family. As we thank all the families who have our "Twelve Puppers of Summer 2013," know that they will always remain special to us as we hear about their antics and achievements for years to come.

Windmill Hill's "Celtic Water Fire" Brigit: This “spitfire” has stayed with us. Donna picked her the moment she was born. Although we didn’t know it at the time she would be smallest once reaching adulthood. Quick on her feet with a nose like a magnet, she spent last spring training with three of her siblings at Salmy Acres under the patient hands of Tempest’s trainer Mike Wallace. Later she spent the summer with us practicing what she learned, playing with her Mom and Uncle George; going for boat and canoe rides in NH, and finding, flushing and retrieving pigeons daily. She had a great first season afield with 21 flushed pheasants to her credit, retrieving to hand the 16 pheasants I shot of the 21 she flushed. She even retrieved one grouse to Donna’s surprise when coming back from a romp in the October woods. (Donna now needs a NH hunting license.)

Windmill Hill's "My Sweetheart Daisy" - Daisy: This funny faced girl sent the spring at Sunrise Kennels being trained by Gary Wilson. She spent the summer with her 12 year old handler Jessica and her Dad becoming a great team while practicing what she learned. She has a great older Field Springer Spaniel house mate Mosie to model herself after. We heard they had a great first season on pheasants, grouse and at tower shoots, while also earning her Junior Hunt Test title along the way. How about some ducks with us next year - we hope.

Windmill Hill's "Peter of Never Land" - Pete: Spent the Spring being trained in Kansas by John Knowles. After which he spent the Summer camping with his young family in Oklahoma and Kansas, while honing his field skills and earning his Junior Hunt Test Title. By all accounts he has found, flushed, and retrieved his share of wild Heartland pheasants. Maybe this season his Mom and sister Brigit will come to a visit and get a shot at those “wild” pheasants in America's Heartland.

Windmill Hill’s “Argos” - Gus: After settling in with his new family he spent part of the Summer with trainer Ralph Botti learning the basics of find, flush and retrieve. He then hunted woods and fields often with his buddy and gunner from October through December. It looks like those chuckars had no-where to hide and his shooting partner did his part on the bird hunting team.

Windmill Hill’s “Up with the Sun” – Hunter: Spent the Summer being trained by his owners at Kingsbury Springers way up North in Canada.. Come the Fall he was sniffing out elusive grouse in the surrounding woods. When not in the woods he enjoys life with three field English Springer Spaniel girls. He even became a daddy of three great pups this past year. The biggest of the litter (he still is at over 50 pounds) he was the first to retrieve on land and then on water. We know he is destine to be a remarkable hunter and friend for life. He looks to be still a muscle bound guy. No wonder the girls love him.

Windmill Hill’s “Coppertone Surfer” – Copper: Has been trained by Geoff English of Woodland Kennels and is his owner and hunting partner - Todd's - “little buddy;” traveling in his truck wherever he goes. From woodcock and grouse in Vermont to pheasants and geese in Connecticut, he has become a true all round rough shooting dog. He has a pappion named Bella as a housemate that shares in the fun and love of a great family with three kids. We hear he is taking on a new challenge of snowboarding with his family this Winter. (Coppertone Snow Boarder?)

Windmill Hill’s “Sent Surfer” – Pinoke / Pinocchio: Is being trained by his owner Art Girard and friend Rocco Iasparra. Pinoke entered this world at 6.5 ounces on a wing and a prayer. Bottle fed for 6 days he was the runt, but no longer. At 50 pounds he is a bird finding and retrieving muscle bound springer who loves his owner and to hunt birds. Hunt tests are planned for this year with a goal of a MASTER title by summer’s end. He has a couple legs under his built for that title already. We hope to hunt him with his sister Brigit this Fall.

Windmill Hill’s “Storm Chaser” – Chase: Joined his sister Brigit at Salmy Acres for three months of training. Living up to his name he is quick on his feet with an instinctive hunting manner. He spent the Summer continuing his training with the Nutmeg Hunting Spaniel club at Nod Brook, CT and around his hunting buddy around his home. When not afield he is also a bit of a Momma’s boy cozying up to the feminine side of his human family.

Windmill Hill’s “Scantic River Flow” – Zoe: She is still the retrieving demon she always was. The second of the litter who started retrieving at 4 weeks and would hup for 5 seconds waiting to be sent. Her owner Don Pomeroy has been training her with an eye to hunt tests this Summer. Stylish when running she has the face and grace of her mother Tempest. Hopefully we will hunt with her this Fall as well.

Windmill Hill’s “Eastern Shore Waterman” – Terp: Our smiley guy, he was the last to leave and my personal favorite who loves to swim and sniff out hidden birds and dummies. He also spent three months with Mike Wallace and three of his littermates learning the basics of finding, flushing, and retrieving. When he is not at home or afield in Connecticut, he is in Vermont doing the same with a wonderful loving family of three children.

Windmill Hill’s “White Lightening” – Lucy: Lives and plays with her Uncle Cover in one of the most beautiful spots in the Garden State. Another one who was a natural when retrieving and being steady until sent from an early age she has been staying in shape retrieving dummies on the beaches of Martha’s Vineyard and woods of New Jersey. Her hunting buddy had a cancer scare last Summer and Fall which put the brakes on her going away for training. We are hopeful this natural hunter will get the schooling she needs this Spring or Summer, so she can hunt this Fall with her brother.

Windmill Hill’s “Spitfire” – Ellie Our smiley girl was also in the wilds of West Virginia with Mike Wallace learning the basics of upland bird hunting. As they say in Massachusetts she is wicked fast when cast, then loving and happy when the hunt or training is done. She shares her home with a beagle buddy and wonderful family. She was wonderful to watch when I visited Salmy Acres last Spring and hopefully we will all hunt this Fall together. 

"Home and Hunter" Field Springer Spaniels

We breed with the goal of producing puppies with the traditional springer spaniel qualities of calm demeanor, instinctive hunting drive, and ease of training so positive ordinate conditioning training methods can be used. We believe that Tempest and her breeder Kevin Battistoni of Crosswinds Kennels and her trainer Mike Wallace (www.salmykennel.com) have demonstrated that with the right breeding and the right training to match this goal is possible.

We believe that positive gundog training is critical to developing a true “home and hunter.” As three time Hogan Award Winner Mike Wallace once told us, “You have to make it (the training and the hunting) all about the birds. If the dog loves finding, flushing, and retrieving game birds from the start, the rest is simply a matter of focusing this instinctive desire and using it to influence the dog to develop self-control so they can get to do what they love, which is finding, flushing, and retrieving gamebirds.” To that end we want to continue what Kevin and Betsey Battistoni have started with Tempest by extending that line of field springer spaniels that love to find, flush, and retrieve gamebirds with a focus on traits of traditional home and hunter springer spaniels. Our philosophy is, “A true gundog is a best friend and family member that should be treated and trained as such."  

Our "Prepared Puppy" Approach – Puppy Pre-K"

Most breeders and trainers will agree the most critical learning development period of a dog’s life is the first six months of which, weeks 4 to 12 will lay the foundation for learning throughout a springer’s life. This time is when a dog "learns how to learn." Therefore, to give our puppies long-term trainer the best opportunity to receive a dog that is ready to start training, our puppies will stay with us through week 10 to undergo extensive and intensive social learning experiences and individual preparatory training. During those initial weeks the puppy will be part of a structured learning environment that will give the experienced trainer the best opportunity to apply positive reinforcement training once the springer starts its formal training. We will be giving our puppies thorough socialization and hunting situational exposure that will fully prepare them for their next phase of learning. This is possible due to Tony’s career in education that allows him the time to focus all his efforts on this goal during the summer. Because we are willing and able to provide this service, it is more likely that the likelihood for needing an electronic collar to train our puppies to meet high standards will be much less.

Prepared Puppy Approach

Our prepared puppy approach focuses on four critical elements of the initial individual and social learning and modeling processes in a canine:

1. Developing positive learning motivation drivers through re-enforcing a puppy’s internal desire to learn by displaying behaviors that will get them rewards. In our case the rewards will be treats, play and praise, or bird related fun.

2. Developing self-control so a puppy’s ability to learn extends to inhibiting typical instinctive reactive responses. “Hup” is constantly used (at dinner, at the door, at play) to begin the development of the all-important “steadying.” The “Short Pip” whistle command will follow as soon as “Hup” is learned.

3. Developing core behaviors so a puppy that is at “Hup” will remain calm and steady when tempted by distractions.  

4. Developing socialization and adaptation skills by experiencing a number of new and strange environments in a positive and supportive manner. This leads to calm disposition desired in a companion hunter and the ability to adjust when they encounter a new environment be it with people, other dogs, terrain, weather or even game birds they are not familiar with hunting.

Training  Process

1. From birth until their eyes and ears open and they begin their first wobbly attempts at walking we conduct "early sensory conditioning" that is commonly used for developing law enforcement or military working dogs and service dogs.

2. Starting around week 2 interactive social learning in an 8 foot by 12 foot play pen area both indoors and outdoors. Exposure to household activity, neighborhood sounds, and everyday smells is provided through continuous interaction in a home and family environment.

3. Starting week 3 learning and exposure continues with focus on a larger world with challenges and obstacles such as steps, rugs, tile floors. The "No" command is introduced and peeing and pooping outside in a play peen is introduced and encouraged.

4. Starting week 4 providing daily exposure to and learning of:

Crate Training (when not in play pen or play ground)

Bathing Daily (maybe more than daily)

Loud noises (banging blocks while playing with bird wings)

Water (kiddy pool wading and shallow pond)

Boats (on land)

Recall ("here" command for a toy, treat or wing)

Obstacles and surfaces (decoys, cover plants, rocks, sand, gravel, brush)

Bird wings & retrieving bumpers with bird sents (for finding and carrying)

Distractions (such as children, elderly people, and other dogs of various types)

6. Starting week 5 developing basic home and self-control skills such as door and food waiting, non-counter surfing, peeing and pooping ONLY outside, quiet time and place, and sharing (honoring). Pup is introduced to the slip lead and the "Heel" and "Hup" commands. Also we begin use of the "Master's Voice" Gundog Condition System and continue it until finished week 9.

7. Starting week 6 developing basic hunting and retrieving instincts with "wing on a string" and retrieving thrown bumpers while pup is on a check cord. Also, introduction to quartering using "Hey Hey Hey" drills begins. Travel in small boats such as canoes and skiffs sometimes with outboards is introduced along with shoreline exploring and swimming in natural bodies of water. Walks in fields and woods on and off leash are a daily activity. 

8. Starting week 7 through week 9 we start advancing all training at Pup's learning speed with an emphasis on making it fun and developing a mind set that the human in the pack is the boss. Retrieving, swimming for retrieves and finding sented bumpers with wings attached is a daily exercise.

This is all at no extra cost to a future owner. Also, all shots and required or recommended medical exams and certifications will be up-to-date through week 10.

For those desiring a longer preparation time, puppies can stay with us and continue this learning through week 12 for $100.00 per week and the costs for additional shots and medical exams.  

"Home Manners"

Additionally, all the pups begin their home training in  earnest at four weeks. Over the next five weeks "pup" begins to develop the all important ability of "self control" needed to become "steady" in the field. Through learning to wait at "hup" to be released to eat or exit, "pup" is better ready to "hup" until released when flushing a bird. Also, crate training, quiet time, and travel exposure starts at week four. Of course typical training so "pup"knows to do his or her "business" outside and to keep away from kitchen tables and counters is integrated during formative weeks.

Videos of 2013 Puppies

These are only 30-40 seconds long.

You can find longer versions of these videos at Tempest's Facebook location.

https://www.facebook.com/tempest.bakerprout