Field Trials are an important part of the pointing dog world. Sure, the majority of pointing dog owners don’t participate in trials, but the never-ending quest of trialers to breed better bird dogs spills over into the hunting dog world, with champion field trial dogs found in the lines of many bird hunters’ four-legged companions.

The first recorded field trial in the United States was held in 1874 near Memphis, Tennessee. In the ensuing 150 years, men and women have been climbing on their gaited horses, releasing their dogs in front of judges, and working to take the top spot. And in so doing, over the past century and a half they’ve played a major role in the improvement of various pointing dog breeds.

Are Field trials a Dying Sport?

Over the past decade or so, field trials have experienced a downward spiral. The number of trials has decreased for a number of reasons; participants growing too old or passing away, grounds being harder to find, and the increased cost of just about everything—including owning horses and dogs.

Walking trials, like those held by the National Bird Hunting Association (NBHA), have breathed some new life into the sport, but you can’t attend a trial and hang out with handlers—both professional and amateur—during which the topic doesn’t eventually turn to the common question, “How can we save field trials?”

Fact is, field trials probably aren’t going to disappear anytime soon. But the decreased interest in trials is a cause for concern. While the topic of “saving” field trials is somewhat premature, the related topic of “growing” field trials is anything but. The possibility of field trials being a thing of the past in just the next two or three decades isn’t out of the question.

One of the things limiting field trial participation is the increasing age of participants. At 61, I’ve been to field trials where I was one of the youngest participants. It’s not uncommon to see men and women aged 85 and older climb onto their horse and run their dogs under judgment. But, in nearly every trial circuit a handful of “old-timers” die off each year, leaving an unfilled void.

As with most sports, getting more youth involved in field trials is one practical way to grow the sport. Enter the recently formed Youth Field Trial Alliance (YFTA).

Of Kids and Bird Dogs

Most people would agree that kids and dogs just seem to go together. And the same holds true for kids and competition. So, why not have kids compete with their dogs in the age-old sport of field trialing? That’s what the YFTA was formed to promote.

Chris Mathan, a longtime field trailer, designer, marketing professional, and, most recently, world-class field trial photographer—whose images accompany this story—started YFTA back in 2022 with a good idea and a healthy dose of optimism. Seeing the need to grow the organization, Mathan incorporated YFTA. The organization officially gained nonprofit status in July 2023.

“I went to a trial down here in Georgia that they’d been running for a while,” Mathan said in an exclusive interview with Gun Dog magazine. “It was fantastic, but I thought, ‘Great, they’re doing it. But other people aren’t hearing about it.’ That’s how the Youth Field Trial Alliance was born.”

YFTA doesn’t organize and run youth field trials themselves. Rather, it is a clearinghouse to try to get more clubs around the country involved with youth trials; thereby getting more youngsters involved in the sport. In 2023, YFTA put on a number of pointing dog demonstrations targeting youngsters; produced marketing materials promoting youth field trials; attended, supported, and sponsored a number of youth trials; and worked on getting more media coverage for youth trials. This was along with a number of other efforts, including running a top-notch website, providing social media pages, and sending e-blasts featuring training and handling podcasts focused especially for youth.

The organization also helps with the expenses of clubs or organizations hosting youth stakes, whether standalone, or stakes for youngsters held during regular field trials.

“We want to support those holding youth trails, whether it’s sending a check for $250 (or whatever the number is) to buy gifts for participants, or birds, or have a lunch—anything we can do to get clubs to start doing more.”

To Mathan, the love of bird dogs and the bird dog lifestyle is what inspires her to push forward with getting more youth involved in field trials.

“There are already organizations that are getting kids hunting, and we’re all for that,” she said. “But I think the key is getting kids to love dogs and horses. If they love the dogs, I think we’ve got them hooked. I think the dogs are kind of the key, and maybe it’s because I love the dogs. You love the dogs. Whoever loves the dogs sort of sees what we’re talking about.”

Teaching Kids Life Lessons Through Field Trials

Getting youth involved in field trials has a number of benefits that many gun dog owners might not have considered. It promotes physical and mental health and well-being by having kids active and outdoors, teaches responsibility through caring for and working with animals, and instills confidence and healthy competition while fostering real-life social skills. Field trialing, and the associated care and training, also promotes a lifelong love of the outdoors, dogs, horses, and wildlife, nurturing an interest, support, and involvement in wildlife conservation. Not to mention, it teaches good sportsmanship and engages young people in local community activities.

YFTA Board Member Claudia McNamee is a longtime field trialer who is also dedicated to getting more youth involved in the sport.

“We’re really just in this to expand youth field trials around the country, and the opportunities that youth field trials present—being outdoors, having a healthy lifestyle, and meeting lots of other people,” McNamee said. “It’s not just about competition. It’s animal husbandry, taking the responsibility, taking care of animals, and all the positive things that come with that.”

“It needs to be fun. And it’s a social thing too, even with the kids. Sure, they compete against each other, but they’re also helping each other. So, it’s fun for them to get together in that space, under that umbrella.”

To McNamee, being involved with youth field trials the past few years—from promoting them, to judging youth stakes—has been very rewarding.

“I went over to Alabama with Jamie Daniels last year and judged, and we had the best time,” she said. “Because you’re not just judging these kids, you’re helping them. They look at you like, ‘I don't know what to do. I can’t find the bird. What do I do?’ So, you’re helping, you’re mentoring them. And that to me is very satisfying.”

Georgia’s Youth Field Trials

Jeff Arnold is the manager at Pinewood Plantation in Georgia, and he handles bird dogs in trials throughout the South with great success. He, too, is worried about the future of field trials.

“A lot of the big field trials are going away now,” Arnold lamented. “I feel like if we don't get more young people involved, trials are going to go away. They’re just not like they used to be 20 years ago.”

A few years back, Jeff began helping the daughter of some friends learn about training, handling, and field trialing dogs. They went to some youth trials in Alabama, where youth field trialing is fairly strong, and had good success. That led Arnold to organize his own youth trial last fall at Pinewood Plantation.

He held the trial in November, and the entry was small. That would have spelled failure to some trial organizers, but Arnold realizes that youth field trialing is sometimes about reaching kids, and their parents, a few at a time.

“We didn't get many kids because nobody in this area knows much about field trialing,” he said. “And that’s one of the reasons I wanted to start one in this area—to get more people involved.”

While the number of participants was low—only five or six entries—many people came out to watch; even more came out to learn what field trialing was about and to see if it was something they’d have an interest in.

“The trial turned out nice,” Arnold said. “We had more people show up than we thought we would. We had a bunch of kids that didn’t know about it that came out and that wanted to see it. So, I’m holding another trial this March, and I expect to have more kids involved with this one.”

Arnold is also holding seminars for both youth and adults at Pinewood this summer; to introduce more of them to the sport, and to try to get more of them involved with dogs and horses. He believes that reaching parents is just as important as reaching kids with the opportunity.

“I think if you get the parents involved, then you’ll have the kids involved,” he said. “A lot more parents—who didn’t know how trials worked—came out to the first youth trial that I put on, and now they’re more involved. I’ve got more kids coming out this March, and parents want to bring out more local kids.”

“I have also spoken with some parents who are interested in learning more about field trialing and might like to participate.” In the end, being involved with YFTA and youth field trialing has been a good learning experience for Jeff. “What I learned is, the more you spend time with the youth and with dogs and horses, the more they want to be a part of it and focus more on it,” he said. “That’s why I want to do more things this summer to get more kids involved and coming into field trialing.”

How the Gun Dog Community Can Get Involved

What can bird hunters and field trialers do to help with the cause? According to Mathan, there are a number of things. First, if they have kids, or know of kids who might be interested, steer them toward the YFTA website (youthfieldtrialalliance.org). The website is a treasure trove of information for anyone wanting to learn about field trialing. “Some of the stuff on the website is for people who don’t even know what a field trial is,” Mathan said. “We have pages like ‘What’s a field trial?’, ‘What’s a walking field trial?’, ‘What’s a youth walking trial?’, and ‘What’s a youth horseback trial?’”

The website also has profiles for popular pointing dog breeds used in field trials, lists of upcoming youth trials (anyone who knows of one coming up should contact YFTA to publicize it), results of youth trials, trial organization contacts, and pictures of youth participating in the sport.

Another way gun dog fanciers can help is through donations to the organization.

“Everybody who cares about any of this stuff, whether it’s quail hunting or field trials, knows that getting kids off their phones, and into the outdoors is a good, positive thing,” she said. “Field trials are a way of getting kids involved with dogs that might never have an opportunity in places in the country where there isn’t any wild bird hunting.”

“Everybody complains about how bad things can be within the sport. Here’s a really great way to help change that narrative. Whether it’s $10, $50, or $1,000, every little bit helps. And the fact that someone wants to help in that way is a success.”

I encourage every Gun Dog reader to explore the YFTA website and to learn more about the organization and its goals. In the end, everyone who loves gun dogs and the gun dog lifestyle should be interested in growing youth field trials. Not only does it help perpetuate the field trial lifestyle, but also brings more gun dog owners, hunters, and conservationists into the fold—and that’s always a good thing.