Two GSPs with the Freedom to Hunt, Fish, and Run: Maddi & Sophie's Story

March 30, 2023

Meet Maddi and Sophie from St. Charles, Illinois.

These German Shorthaired Pointers are high energy pups who love to be outside! In keeping with their breed, they are prey driven and hyperactive, so they definitely need room to run. But once the day is done and they are all tuckered out, both girls are happy to relax and cuddle.

Maddi is five, and Sophie is four. As is often the case with the oldest, Maddi is the leader, and Sophie is happy to play follow-the-leader to her big sister (as long as her mom is within eyesight).

‘Maddi is our energizer bunny, always ready to run and run and run! She’s independent, incredibly smart and lives to hunt and fish. Sophie is the lovable, goofy little sister, happy to follow her sister's lead as long as Mom is close by-she’s a total velcro dog.’
- Kelly, Owner

These two fun-loving GSPs like to swim. And lucky for them, they live on a lakefront property with a one acre fence that goes through the water to let them swim (season and weather permitting of course). And they love to hunt and fish! They are in for any and every off leash adventure where they can hunt birds, mice, squirrels, bunnies, dragonflies or fish! They love sniffing and being able to run and run, which helps to tire them out, making for two very happy and content high energy dogs. (video of mole here?) And when it comes to fishing, each pup has their own strategy!

‘When we’re at the lake the two of them fish nonstop, Maddi likes to stand on the paddleboard for the height advantage of looking at the fish from above, while waiting for the fish to come to her, while Sophie charges and pounces her way through the water…scaring every fish in sight.’

Despite a few trees, their property is not very wooded. However, since they are located in a remote area in the Northwoods, she uses Forest Mode to improve GPS reception and maintain reliable boundaries.

Before SpotOn, the family had an underground (buried wire) fence in their yard. While this worked at home, they could not take it with them when visiting friends and family. Which meant they had to monitor Maddi and Sophie more closely when they were away, making for a less relaxing getaway. Now she can easily take SpotOn with her, and uses a different fence when visiting her parents, her cousin and a friend.

Since SpotOn, Kelly has more peace of mind. While both dogs do have strong recall, she likes that SpotOn gives her an extra layer of protection to keep her dogs safely contained, especially when they travel to areas that are closer to the road. She also loves the portability of SpotOn, so she can take the dogs with her wherever she goes.

‘Being able to create a fence anywhere we go. Especially when we’re closer to roads or other dangers. I wasn’t as concerned if we were in a big field far from cars prior to having SpotOn. They have great recall but I never like to tempt the safety of my dogs.’

As for what initially sold her on SpotOn Fence?

‘I love that it is waterproof since my girls go in any body of water or puddle they can find, that it can work well in the remote Northwoods and lately, creating a fence in the app is a huge game changer.’

Having used SpotOn since 2020, Kelly is enjoying the enhanced experience of the Gen 2 SpotOn GPS Fence. She particularly likes the new app and the ability to draw fences in the app rather than having to walk the perimeter. Since she lives on the water and her girls are swimmers, drawing fences in the app is especially handy when it comes to creating boundaries through water.

As for what new adventures await for Maddi and Sophie? These hunting and fishing fanatics will continue to enjoy their off-leash escapades, in and out of the water. And since SpotOn is so easy to take with you, these pups get to be included in more trips to see friends and family.

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Author Bio:
Amy McPoland is a dog mom, dog lover and Sr. Brand Strategist at SpotOn Fence.