Wendy Shepard of Levant was only looking for a hunting dog in 1991 when she got her Chesapeake retriever, known to his family as “Rudy.” When the large puppy proved too much dog to have around the house with two small children, Shepard sent it to Dave Mosher’s training ground in Texas its first winter.

Mosher, who spends the summer and fall in Burnham, is among the top trainers of field trial retrievers in the country.

His winter training ground at the Lazy M Ranch in Goodrich, Texas, was intended only as a camp for the hunting dog, but Rudy turned out to be a retriever worth training for field trial competitions.

When Rudy started running derbies, or field trials for novices, he made the national derby list. The dog was only 2 when he placed as an amateur field champion at a competition in Idaho.

In 1995, he finished as an amateur show champion at a show in Boston.

And on Aug. 19, Rudy added to his show champion title the distinction of amateur field trial champion when he gained enough points in the Michigan Field Trial Championship at the Flat River Retriever Club.

Because Rudy showed promise as a field trial dog early, Shepard decided to hunt grouse using one of her several other Chesapeakes.

“He loved to retrieve. I thought we’d try two years with Dave in Texas. He just turned out to be brilliant in training,” Shepard said. “With a good dog, you want to see what they can do.”

In the past 10 years, Rudy has traveled to field trial shows around the Midwest, up and down the East Coast, and as far away as Alaska.

The retriever returns to Corinth in the summer, but takes just a two-month break from training in the winter. Shepard said Rudy loves the hard training.

As a vet in Corinth, Shepard understands the personalities and idiosyncrasies of domestic animals. She said with retrievers, particularly Chesapeakes like Rudy, exercise is everything to a dog’s happiness.

“I jog myself, five miles a day in the winter. I take my dogs with me,” she said.

Poachers beware

The Maine Warden Service plans to start a community policing program like one in Wisconsin, where game wardens have joined forces with the public the past four years to combat poachers and other lawbreakers. They have seen a decrease in environmental crimes as a result.

The idea of community policing means the public actively participates.

In Maine, the Warden Service plans to start such a program to help reduce alcohol- and drug-related snowmobile accidents with the help of a $4,845 grant from the Department of Public Safety.

Wisconsin Colonel Tom Harelson said his wardens have seen results. The idea required no funding, and snowballed with several projects taking hold, he said.

“It used to be in the old days the way we would approach the program was to throw as many people working on it as possible and write citations,” Harelson said. “We still chase poachers. But we found we could do a lot of things by harnessing the power of the people.”

Harelson said starting the program only took a little instruction in problem solving and a lot of encouragement. After that, he said, wardens made contacts with the public and started local programs.

One example of the success in Wisconsin was at Lake Winnebago where one of the nation’s largest fishable sturgeon populations exists.

Historically, when the fish spawned up rivers, Harelson said, they would lay their eggs along the shore and become vulnerable for poachers to spear them. Since implementing its “Sturgeon Watch,” with members of the public actively watching for sturgeon stealers, Harelson said, the problem is now a lot smaller.

Snowmobiling education pivotal

Maine Snowmobile Association President Bob Meyers said the problem of alcohol- and drug-related accidents on sleds has declined in recent years through education but remains enough of an issue that additional support is needed. He said last year’s 12 percent registration increase is one reason why.

“The past seven years snowmobiling came into its own in the state,” Meyers said. “Some of that came out of the economic impact study we had done in 1996. It came out with the $2 million figure. People were stunned. But it’s a tremendous activity that takes place all over the place, from small towns to relatively isolated areas.”

Snowmobile show Oct. 5-7

The long winter Maine saw this year was like gold to the Maine Snowmobile Association. But with registration increasing, and more riders using Maine’s vast trail network, the organization needs to keep growing along with the population of riders.

With that in mind, the MSA is holding its fifth Maine Snowmobile Show next weekend, Oct. 5-7, at the Augusta Civic Center to kick off the season and help raise funds for the 33-year-old organization that oversees the clubs that maintain Maine’s 12,000 miles of trails.

The civic center will hold snowmobiles, gear, accessories, grooming equipment and trailers.

The event runs from 4-9 p.m. Oct. 4; 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 6; and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 7. The cost of admission for adults is $5 and is free for children under 12.

Deirdre Fleming covers outdoor sports and recreation for the NEWS. She can be reached at 990-8250 or at dfleming@bangordailynews.net