Our First Long Walk of the Year

I got out with the dogs last week for our first long walk of the year.

A couple of us are showing our age.

I limp a bit more than I used to, and although I didn’t think it possible, Ace has gotten even slower.

Never a fast dog, Ace has paced himself his entire life. It’s served him well. With the exception of a slower gait and a graying muzzle, you’d never guess he’s almost 12.

I think.

He might be going on 11.

A middle dog, he always slipped under the radar, hunting behind older, better-trained, faster, more enthusiastic dogs.

He didn’t seem to mind and neither did I. He never missed a hunt, although in recent years he’s been more of a spectator than a participant.

While I struggle to keep track of the rest of the pack as they tear through the sagebrush looking for birds, Ace always walks with me until we cross fresh scent, then he’s off, nose to the ground, until the flush.

While he’s hunted since he was a pup, he’s only retrieved two birds in his life. It hasn’t mattered much as there was always another dog to do the fetching. He’s quite good at finding dead birds. He just doesn’t like to pick them up.

Neither does he like to swim. He can, but rarely gets more than his feet wet.

It might all be in his genes. His father was a show dog, and Ace is certainly a bit of a prima donna.

Near the end of our walk, two-and-a-half-year-old Dot was still at full speed, kept close by the electronic collar she wears. I was struggling to keep up, and Ace followed a few yards behind me.

Other bird hunters have told me they wouldn’t keep such a dog, but Ace has a saving grace: he loves me. My wife often comments on it.

“That dog just adores you,” she says.

Adoration goes a long way with me.

Ace also has the unique distinction of being the only dog over whom I’ve tripled on rooster pheasants, an accomplishment I doubt I’ll repeat.

Whatever his age, Ace is becoming more like me all the time. He stumbles a lot, often appears confused, and barks for no reason.

Some of us, apparently, are growing older.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]